Leominster - <>

Leominster is a market town in Herefordshire, England, and is located at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater, approximately 12mi north of the city of Hereford and approx 7 miles south of the Shropshire border, 11 miles from Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of approximately 11,700 people, Leominster is the largest of the five towns (Leominster, Ross-on-Wye, Ledbury, Bromyard & Kington) in the county surrounding the City of Hereford.From 1974 to 1996, Leominster served as the administrative centre for the former local government district of Leominster District.ToponymyThe town takes its name from a minster, that is a community of clergy in the district of Lene or Leon, probably in turn from an Old Welsh root lei to flow. Contrary to certain reports, the name has nothing to do with Leofric, an 11th-century Earl of Mercia (most famous for being the miserly husband of Lady Godiva). The Welsh name for Leominster, still used today by a few on the Welsh side of the nearby border, is Llanllieni.HistoryDuring the Early Middle Ages, Leominster was home to Æthelmod of Leominster, an English saint known to history mainly through the hagiography of the Secgan Manuscript. He is reputedly buried in Leominster.

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