U Say It's in the UK? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Uxbridge

Effectively a borough of London since the mid-twentieth century, Uxbridge was an important commercial centre for the historic county of Middlesex long before that. Its public house was the site of failed negotiations between King Charles I and the Parliamentary Army during the English Civil War, and RAF Uxbridge was the site of the operations room of 11 Group, Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain in 1940. Both Brunel University London and Buckinghamshire New University have a presence in Uxbridge.

The town's name comes from a Saxon tribe called the Wixan, who lived in the area in about the seventh century, and appears in early records (12th century) as Woxbrigge. The River Pinn runs through the town, and the River Colne forms part of the boundary with Buckinghamshire.

Answer: Ullswater

Unsurprisingly, Ullswater is a lake and is the second largest in the Lake District, which is located in Cumbria in the northwest of England. It is described as a ribbon lake and is about nine miles in length, forming the border between Cumberland and Westmorland, two historic counties of England which became part of Cumbria. Only Windermere is larger, in the district and in England.

A feature of Ullswater for tourists is the opportunity to tour on one of the steamers which operate from several of the villages around the lake. The origin of the name Ullswater is uncertain, but appears to have come from the Norse, and might commemorate a leader named Ulf...or possibly a wolf.

Answer: Ulster

The four traditional Irish provinces are Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster, and of these, six of Ulster's nine counties form what is known as Northern Ireland. As such, these six counties are part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The other three remain part of Eire along with the other three traditional provinces.

The capital and largest city is Belfast, a seaport with a long shipbuilding tradition. Ulster's history has been a troubled one, which we'll mention only in passing. Glaciation in the last ice age has accounted for features like drumlins in many counties. Lough Neagh, west of Belfast, is the largest freshwater lake in the British Isles.

Answer: Usk

Situated on the River Usk, the town of Usk is in Monmouthshire, not far from the city of Newport. There was a fort on the site in Roman times, and the Normans built Usk Castle in the twelfth century. It has been chiefly a market town, with some small industry and a prison which was built in the nineteenth century, which has been used for various types of offenders.

The name Usk comes from its position on the river of the same name. The origin of the Welsh name has a number of possibilities, including variants meaning Shepherding Hill or Buga's Hill.

Answer: Upper Slaughter

Upper Slaughter is one of those rare places that has no need of a war memorial, being one of what author Arthur Mee dubbed "thankful villages" in the 1930s. They were thankful because every villager who served in World War I returned home at war's end. Some, like Upper Slaughter, became doubly fortunate, when all of their residents also safely returned from service in the Second World War. The village even survived an air raid in 1944 with no fatalities.

It is one of those pretty villages in the Cotswolds, an area of Gloucestershire that feels very, very English. Its neighbour, Lower Slaughter, was not able to count itself amongst the Thankful Villages, but shares its etymology with Upper Slaughter. Neither name has anything to do with death, being derived from the same source as "slough" meaning a wetland or muddy place.

Answer: Uist

Known collectively as Uist, the main islands of the group are individually styled North Uist and South Uist. Other islands in the group include Benbecula and Grimsay, and various parts of the group are connected by causeways. The countryside is wild and beautiful, situated off the west coast of Scotland, and home to a growing tourist industry. Small scale farming (crofting) and preservation of the Gaelic language are hallmarks of the region.

The name Uist most likely comes from Old Norse, and could mean "west" or "dwelling".

Answer: Uttoxeter

Located close to the border with Derbyshire, in the West Midlands region of England, Uttoxeter is also not too far from the city of Derby. The forerunner of the international equipment manufacturing firm JCB was founded in Uttoxeter in 1945, under the name J C Bamford Excavators Limited, by Joseph Cyril Bamford. Other businesses have included the manufacture of biscuits (cookies) and crisps (potato chips). The theme park, Alton Towers, is also close by.

Recorded in the Domesday Book as Wotocheshede, the name Uttoxeter most likely came from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning "Wuttuc's homestead on the heath", which is quite a mouthful!

Answer: Upleadon

The village of Upleadon is situated to the northwest of the city of Gloucester, near the market town Newent, in the Forest of Dean District. The parish church of St Mary the Virgin has been listed as a Grade 1 Heritage Building by English Heritage. Besides the timbered tower, inlaid with red brick, the church's main building dates from the 16th century with both Saxon and Norman architectural features also in evidence.

The village sits on the River Leadon, and has in the past housed both iron forges and flour mills along its banks.

Answer: Uckfield

That tributary is named the Uck, which might have been too much of a giveaway! Situated in what is now known as the Wealden District, nearby localities include Crawley, East Grinstead, Tunbridge Wells, Eastbourne and Brighton. Uckfield is a market town, and developed as a road hub at a point where it was possible to cross the River Uck. There are several nature reserves in the surrounding countryside, and the Ashdown Forest (Winnie the Pooh's Hundred Acre Wood) is just to the north.

Ucca was an Anglo-Saxon personal name, and "feld" meant open ground, so "Ucca's feld", or Uckfield meant open ground belonging to Ucca.

Answer: Uffington

The Uffington White Horse is a Bronze Age artifact, the shape of a horse, carved into the hillside and packed with chalk, 114 m (374 ft) long and particularly striking when viewed from the air. It is actually closer to the village of Woolstone than to Uffington, but the district in which they lie is called the Vale of the White Horse. Thomas Hughes, author of "Tom Brown's Schooldays" was born in Uffington, and the old school in the village has been made into Tom Brown's School Museum, with exhibits on the author, the White Horse and other local items of interest.

The place name comes from Old English meaning the "tun" of Uffa's people, tun having once meant fence, later "homestead". Variant spellings over the years have started with both U and O, before settling on Uffington. It might be interesting to note that there are places called Uffington in both Lincolnshire and Shropshire, as well.