Wetwang is a Yorkshire Wolds

Yorkshire Wolds

The Yorkshire Wolds are low hills in the counties of East Riding of Yorkshire and North Yorkshire in northeastern England. The name also applies to the district in which the hills lie....

 village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire

East Riding of Yorkshire

The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Yorkshire, is a local government district with unitary authority status, and a ceremonial county of England. For ceremonial purposes the county also includes the city of Kingston upon Hull, which is a separate unitary authority...

, 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 situated 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Driffield

Driffield

Driffield, also known as Great Driffield, is a market town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The civil parish is formed by the town of Driffield and the village of Little Driffield....

 on the A166 road.

According to the 2001 UK census

United Kingdom Census 2001

A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....

, Wetwang parish had a population of 672. St Nicholas's Church, Wetwang is a church of Norman

Norman architecture

About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...

 origin which was restored by both Baronets between 1845 and 1902. It is on the Sykes Churches Trail

Sykes Churches Trail

The Sykes Churches Trail is a tour of East Yorkshire churches which were built, rebuilt or restored by the Sykes family of Sledmere House in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England...

 devised by the East Yorkshire Churches Group.

It is known for its Iron Age

Iron Age

The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...

 chariot burial

Chariot burial

Chariot burials are tombs in which the deceased was buried together with his chariot, usually including his horses and other possessions....

 cemetery and its black swans.

It is recorded in the Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

as Wetuuangha. There are two interpretations of this. One is that it probably comes from the Old Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

 vaett-vangr, 'field for the trial of a legal action'. Another theory is that it was the "Wet Field" compared to the nearby dry field at Driffield

Driffield

Driffield, also known as Great Driffield, is a market town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The civil parish is formed by the town of Driffield and the village of Little Driffield....

.

It has been hypothesised that the unlocated Romano-British

Romano-British

Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...

 town of Delgovicia

Delgovicia

Delgovicia was a Romano-British town in Britain, mentioned in the first Itinerary as being the second station eastward after leaving York. It is also mentioned by the Geographer of Ravenna as Devovicia or Devovitia. Its location is currently unknown...

 is located at Wetwang.

Public transport

Until 1950, the village was served by Wetwang railway station

Wetwang railway station

Wetwang railway station was a railway station on the Malton & Driffield Railway. It opened on 19 May 1853, and served the village of Wetwang. It closed on 5 June 1950...

, on the Malton to Driffield line

Malton and Driffield Railway

The Malton and Driffield Railway ran between the Yorkshire towns of Malton and Driffield. It opened in 1853, with stations at Malton, Settrington, North Grimston, Wharram, Burdale, Sledmere and Fimber, Wetwang, Garton, and Driffield...

, but this line has now closed.
The village is now served by an infrequent East Yorkshire Motor Services

East Yorkshire Motor Services

East Yorkshire Motor Services is a large bus and coach operator which operates throughout Kingston upon Hull, the East Riding of Yorkshire, the North Yorkshire coast and the North York Moors. In and around Scarborough, EYMS operates as Scarborough & District Motor Services...

 bus.

Honorary Mayor

Its name (defined in The Meaning of Liff

The Meaning of Liff

The Meaning of Liff is a humorous dictionary of toponymy and etymology, written by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd, published in the United Kingdom in 1983, and the USA in 1984....

 as meaning "a moist penis") often attracts mirth, even coming from Richard Whiteley

Richard Whiteley

John Richard Whiteley, OBE DL , usually known as Richard Whiteley, was an English broadcaster and journalist. He was famous for his twenty-three years as host of Countdown, a letters and numbers arrangement game show broadcast most weekdays on Channel 4...

 of the Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...

 quiz show Countdown

Countdown (game show)

Countdown is a British game show involving word and number puzzles. It is produced by ITV Studios and broadcast on Channel 4. It is presented by Jeff Stelling, assisted by Rachel Riley, with regular lexicographer Susie Dent. It was the first programme to be aired on Channel 4, and over sixty-five...

; he held the honorary title Mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of Wetwang from 1998 until his death in 2005.
On 25 June 2006, local weather forecaster Paul Hudson

Paul Hudson

Paul David Hudson is a weather presenter for BBC Yorkshire and BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire in England.-Education:...

 from BBC Look North

BBC Look North (East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire)

BBC Look North is the BBC's regional TV news service for East Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, north Norfolk and northeast Cambridgeshire produced by BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire...

 was invested as Whiteley's successor to the position.

Year	Mayor
1998–2005	Richard Whiteley Richard Whiteley John Richard Whiteley, OBE DL , usually known as Richard Whiteley, was an English broadcaster and journalist. He was famous for his twenty-three years as host of Countdown, a letters and numbers arrangement game show broadcast most weekdays on Channel 4...
2006–	Paul Hudson Paul Hudson Paul David Hudson is a weather presenter for BBC Yorkshire and BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire in England.-Education:...