 Both principal elements in the name are disputed.The first element may be from a personal name, "Deorc", or some variant, which might arguably be of either Brittonic or Old English origin; but it might equally be from a Brittonic word "Dorce", a river-name meaning "clear, bright stream"; or possibly from a British word "duro", meaning a "fort", "walled town" or "gated place".The second element, if originally plural ("–ingas"), might mean "(settlement belonging to the) followers of ...", but if singular ("–ing") might mean "place", "stream", "wood" or "clump".