Akeman Street Kirtlington also uses its course. Other parts are in use as public footpaths, including a stretch between Tackley and Stonesfield that is part of the Oxfordshire Way. The origins of the road's name are uncertain but certainly date back to the Early Middle Ages. Some have suggested that "Akeman" derives from the Anglo-Saxon words for "oak-man". Others have suggested a connection with Bath, which the Anglo-Saxons called "Acemannesceastre" ("Acemannes" apparently being derived from the Roman name Aquae Sulis). It is unclear how this might have become associated with the road, but one possibility is that the name was originally used
Aquae Sulis ("deiada" "goddess"); "Andagin" - accusative feminine "woman"; "Cuamenai" - locative/dative feminine of "Cuamena" It was the religious settlement, rather than the road junction further north, which was given defensive stone walls, probably in the 3rd century. The area within - of approximately - was largely open ground, but soon began to be filled in. There is some dispute as to whether these new buildings were private dwellings or were associated with servicing the pilgrims to the temple. There was also a ribbon development along the northern road outside the walls and cemeteries beyond. From the later 3rd century on, the