from Seo-mere-saetan meaning "settlers by the sea lakes". The same ending can also be seen in the neighbouring Dorset. The first known use of Somersæte is in the law code of King Ine who was the Saxon King of Wessex from 688 to 726 CE, making Somerset along with Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset one of the oldest extant units of local government in the world.

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