Peterboroughs

Peterboroughs is a plural term used in geography and on occasion in demography to refer to places named Peterborough or to the people associated with those places. In practice, the meaning is context dependent: it can designate any town or city bearing the name Peterborough, or, less commonly, the inhabitants of such places.

The name Peterborough derives from a combination of Peter and borough (from the Old English burh), typically linked to a church or fortress associated with Saint Peter or a founder named Peter. The English city of Peterborough, in Cambridgeshire, is the primary origin of the toponym, with its name dating to the medieval period and tied to Peterborough Cathedral.

Beyond England, several other towns and cities in the English-speaking world bear the name Peterborough. The best known include Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, a city on the Otonabee River noted for the Trent-Severn Waterway and the Peterborough Lift Lock; and Peterborough, New Hampshire, a town in the United States. In addition, numerous smaller communities, former settlements, or neighborhoods around the world have used the name Peterborough, reflecting British naming influence during colonization and immigration.

As a plural form, Peterboroughs may be used to refer collectively to these places or to their inhabitants; the exact meaning depends on context. The term does not have a single, official definition beyond indicating the shared toponym.