| Cavenham | |
|---|---|
 St Andrew's Church, Cavenham | |
  Cavenham Location withinSuffolk | |
| Population | 136 (2011 census) |
| OS grid reference | TL7669 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Bury St Edmonds |
| Postcode district | IP28 |
| Police | Suffolk |
| Fire | Suffolk |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
| 52°17′48″N0°35′02″E / 52.2968°N 00.5839°E /52.2968; 00.5839 | |
Cavenham is a village andcivil parish inSuffolk, England, 10 kilometres (6 mi) northwest ofBury St Edmunds. It is in thelocal government district ofWest Suffolk, and theelectoral ward of Manor.[1] At the2021 UK census, Cavenham Parish had a population of 141.[2] In the 1870s it had a population of 229.[3]
The parish includesCavenham Heath, aSite of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) with a sand and gravelquarry close to it[4] and is the location of theBlack Ditches, an Anglo-Saxon boundary ditch which is believed to be the most easterly of a series of early Anglo-Saxon defensive earthworks built across theIcknield Way. Part of this also forms an SSSI to the south-east of the village.
ToponymistsKeith Briggs and Kelly Kilpatrick say Cavenham means a man called Cafa once owned a homestead here. They provide a number of different spellings followingDomesday Book before it became stabilised as Cavenham. They also say Cafan has the genitive suffix meaning 'of Cafa'.[5]: 31 The surname of canham originates from the name cavenham, all persons with the surname canham have their origins here at Cavenham
