Hooke, Dorset

{{Short description|Village and civil parish in Dorset, England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Use British English|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox UK place | static_image_name = Hooke Court - geograph.org.uk - 479024.jpg | static_image_caption = Hooke Court | country = England | coordinates = {{coord|50.7988|-2.6604|display=inline,title}} | map_type = Dorset | official_name = Hooke | population = 157 | population_ref = <ref name=ONS>{{cite web|url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11124755&c=Hooke&d=16&e=62&g=6418500&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1392541804058&enc=1|publisher=[[Office for National Statistics]]|accessdate=16 February 2014|work=Neighbourhood Statistics|title=Area: Hooke (Parish), Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics}}</ref> | unitary_england= [[Dorset (district)|Dorset]] | lieutenancy_england= [[Dorset]] | post_town = Beaminster | postcode_area = DT | postcode_district = DT8 | constituency_westminster = [[West Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)|West Dorset]] | region = South West England | os_grid_reference = ST537001 | dial_code = 01308 }} '''Hooke''' is a small village and [[Civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the [[English county|county]] of [[Dorset]] in southern [[England]], situated about {{convert|7|mi|km}} northeast of the town of [[Bridport]]. It is sited in the [[valley]] of the short [[River Hooke]], a tributary of the [[River Frome, Dorset|River Frome]], amongst the [[chalk]] hills of the [[Dorset Downs]]. In the [[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 census]] the parish had a population of 157.<ref name=ONS/>

The name comes from the [[Old English]] Hoc meaning the hook or angle and referring to the land in a river bend. The spelling has changed over the years, the [[Domesday Book|Doomsday Book]] recorded it as Lahoc and later variants include Hok (1229), La Hoke (1244) and Houc (1268).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mills |first=A.D. |title=Dorset Place-Names their Origins and Meanings |publisher=Roy Gasson Associates |year=1986 |location=Wimborne Dorset |pages=89}}</ref>

[[Rampisham Down]], the hill immediately northeast of the village, is the site of a transmitter station operated by [[VT Communications]], broadcasting long-range [[radio]] signals for clients including [[BBC World Service]]. The outskirts of the village are home to [[Hooke Court]] and its surrounding parklands. Originally built in 1407 by Humphrey Stafford, the Court was extended in 1609 by the [[William Paulet, 4th Marquess of Winchester|Marquis of Winchester]].<ref>{{cite book|title=West Dorset, Holiday and Tourist Guide|publisher=[[West Dorset District Council]]|page=10|year=c. 1983}}</ref>

To the southwest of the village are [[Warren Hill, Hooke, Dorset|Warren Hill]] and the woods of [[Hooke Park]] on its western flanks.<ref>Ordnance Survey Landranger 1:50,000 series</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons category|Hooke, Dorset}} {{Dorset}}

[[Category:Villages in Dorset]]