A possible derivation and a smattering of history:

Mentioned in Domesday Book (1086) as Cocre possibly meaning 'a conical heap of hay' from the Norsk kükkr. Before 1066 this was the property of Gytha, wife of Earl Godwyn, and mother of Harold II.

Many of the cottages in East Coker, one of the prettiest villages in Somerset, are built of local golden stone and thatched. None is more interesting than the long, low thatched home of the village's most renowned son, the great navigator and pirate William Dampier. He explored the west coast of Australia and was navigator on the ship that rescued Alexander Selkirk - the real-life Robinson Crusoe.

Until the late 19th Century flax was grown in many areas locally and every cottage had a loom for weaving 'Coker cloth'. The Twine and Webbing Mills, established in 1872, continued for over a century and ropes from here were used in Hillary's ascent of Everest and to lower Churchill's coffin at his interment. The Saw Mills were founded in 1880 by Joseph Perry to service the looms but closed in 1979. Perry invented the Twine Twisting Machine.