For a time the village was called Earl's Wittenham, after its feudal overlord Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester.
fɚɹə tˈaɪm ðə vˈɪlɪdʒ wʌz kˈɔːld ˈɜːlz wˈɪtənˌæm, ˈæftɚɹ ɪts fjˈuːdəl ˈoʊvɚlˌɔːɹd ɡˈɪlbɚt də klˈɛɹ, sˈɛvənθ ˈɜːl ʌv ɡlˈɑːstɚ.