Catbrain Hill, simply known as Catbrain, is a small village near the north of Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

, at the edge of neighbouring district South Gloucestershire

South Gloucestershire

South Gloucestershire is a unitary district in the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire, in South West England.-History:The district was created in 1996, when the county of Avon was abolished, by the merger of former area of the districts of Kingswood and Northavon...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It is located by Cribbs Causeway

Cribbs Causeway

Cribbs Causeway is a road in South Gloucestershire, England, just north of Bristol, which has given its name to a large out-of-town shopping centre, including retail parks and an enclosed shopping centre known as The Mall...

, on a road that contains many car dealerships.

The name is often found humorous by Bristol residents and has been the subject of many jokes. A new housing estate

Housing estate

A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...

 has been recently constructed at Catbrain. At the bottom of the hill the lies Filton

Filton

Filton is a town in South Gloucestershire, England, situated on the northern outskirts of the city of Bristol, about from the city centre. Filton lies in Bristol postcode areas BS7 and BS34. The town centres upon Filton Church, which dates back to the 12th century and is a grade II listed building...

 airfield.

The name "Catbrain" derives from the Middle English

Middle English

Middle English is the stage in the history of the English language during the High and Late Middle Ages, or roughly during the four centuries between the late 11th and the late 15th century....

 "cattes brazen" which is a reference to the rough clay mixed with stones that is characteristic soil type of the location. It has nothing to do with the brain

Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...

s of cat

Cat

The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...

s.

Hazel Brook

The Hazel Brook

Hazel Brook

The Hazel Brook, also known as the Hen, is a tributary of the River Trym in Bristol, England. It rises at Cribbs Causeway in South Gloucestershire. From there, its course takes it south, passing the western end of Filton Aerodrome on its left bank, through Brentry and Henbury before dropping...

 rises in nearby Cribbs Causeway and its flow into the River Trym

River Trym

The River Trym is a short river, some in length, which rises in Filton, South Gloucestershire, England. The upper reaches are culverted, some underground, through mostly urban landscapes, but once it emerges into the open it flows through a nature reserve and city parks before joining the tidal...

is controlled by an attenuation reservoir at Catbrain, which reduces the silt flowing into the system from the many shopping malls in the area. Measurements of pollution by the city council show the water to be relatively clean.