Copse - Definition and Overview

A copse is an English term for a small lowland woodland. It is often used as a part of a place name, for example Borthwood Copse, on the Isle of Wight.

The term is derived from the similar and linked word coppice. Most woodlands which have copse as a part of their name were probably coppiced once, but of course, this does not mean that the practice continues today, as it was once a lot more popular than it is now. As coppicing was mostly practiced in lowland England, this is the area where use of the word is most common.

However, the word has entered the language as a term simply meaning a small woodland, and perhaps implying some rustic overtones, and so it is ocassionally given to new woodlands or applied to areas which have no connection with coppicing at all.