Celtic toponymy from Brythonic *"crüg" 'hill' (Irish "cruach") From tribal name "Dumnonii" or "Dumnones", from Celtic *"dumno-" 'deep', 'world' From Celtic *"dubr-" 'water', *"dubrās" 'waters' (Welsh "dwfr"; Breton "dour") First element is possibly "dun", ' hill fort' (Welsh ddin, 'fort'). First element from Celtic *"duro-" 'fort'; in "Dūrobrīvae", Celtic *"brīwa" 'bridge' Possibly derived from Brythonic *"iska", 'water, fish' and *"leith", 'damp, wet'. From Celtic *"iska" 'water' (Irish "uisce"); second element in "Isca Dumnoniorum" (Exeter) is a tribal name (see "Devon") From Brythonic *"lēd-" [from Celtic *"leito-"] + *"rïd-" [from Celtic *"(φ)ritu-"] = "Grey Ford" From Celtic *"lindo-" 'pool' + Latin "colonia" 'colony'
Isca Augusta and timber ramparts of the fortress were strengthened by the addition of a stone revetment at the front. This "composite" rampart consisted of a stone wall 5 to 5½ feet thick, backed by a clay bank and fronted by a single ditch By 120 AD, detachments or vexillations of the legion were needed elsewhere in the province and Isca became more of a military base than a garrison. However, it is thought that each cohort still maintained a presence at the fortress. When Septimius Severus seized power in the 190s, he had Isca refurbished and the legion were in residence