Witcombe suggests that the name "Wookey" is derived from the Celtic (Welsh) for 'cave', ""Ogo"" or ""Ogof"" which gave the early names for this cave of ""Ochie"" ""Ochy"". "Hole" is Anglo-Saxon for cave, which is itself of Latin/Norman derivation. Therefore, the name "Wookey Hole Cave" basically means "cave cave cave". Eilert Ekwall gives an alternative derivation of "Wookey" from the Old English ""wocig"" meaning a noose or snare for animals. By the 18th century the caves were commonly known as "Okey Hole". It was known as such when it was first described in print in 1681 by the geologist John Beaumont.