A brief look into the history of Digbeth

Digbeth

Digbeth provided a vital route for travellers and trade from the towns to the east, such as Coventry. Although centuries ago, travellers had to work their way through the floodplain of the River Rea to get access into Birmingham. During the Anglo-Saxon times, at some point a bridge was built for a better access route into the Bull Ring market due to the River Rea flooding quite often.

It is not clear as to what the meaning of the name "Digbeth" is but it seems to include the Anglo-Saxon word dic. In Old English, also in modern English, the word "dyke" is defined as an artificially-dug ditch or an embankment alongside a ditch. It is possible that the name "Digbeth" means "dyke pools", although the word implies a relation to bathing.

Digbeth had become Birmingham's first industrial district from the Middle Ages, this was a time when the air was filled with the smells and sounds of leather tanneries and iron foundries.

Source:

http://billdargue.jimdo.com/placenames-gazetteer-a-to-y/places-d/digbeth/