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Ealing
Ealing Greater London UK Hub
Approximate Population: 312,300
Ealing is a town in the London Borough of Ealing. It is a suburban development situated 7.7 miles (12.4 km) west of Charing Cross. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan and is often referred to as the “Queen of the Suburbs”.
The Saxon name for Ealing was recorded c.700 as ‘Gillingas’, meaning ‘place of the people associated with Gilla’, from the personal name Gilla and the Old English suffix ‘-ingas’, meaning ‘people of’. Over the centuries, the name has changed, and has been known as Yealing, Zelling and Eling, until Ealing became the standard spelling in the 19th century.
Archaeological evidence shows that parts of Ealing have been occupied for at least 7,000 years. Iron Age pots have been discovered in the vicinity on Horsenden Hill. A settlement is recorded here in the 12th century amid a great forest that carpeted the area to the west of London.
The earliest surviving English census is that for Ealing in 1599. This list was a tally of all 85 households in Ealing village giving the names of the inhabitants, together with their ages, relationships and occupations. It survives in manuscript form in the Public Record Office (PRO E 163/24/35), and has been transcribed and printed by K J Allison.
Settlements were scattered throughout the parish. Many of them were along what is now called St. Mary’s Road, near to the church in the centre of the parish. There were also houses at Little Ealing, Ealing Dean, Haven Green, Drayton Green and Castlebar Hill.
