Oxford County Gaol

The term Gaol is a variation of the word Jail, most commonly used in British English, it sometimes appears in the English language in other commonwealth nations like Canada or Australia.  In contrast American English uses the term Jail.  Both words are pronounced the same way.

The use of Gaol was common in Great Britain between the 1730 to roughly around the 1960s before the American variation become more mainstream.

Gaol is a middle English term with connected to the Old French term jaiole, which comes from the Latin term cavea, meaning a cage or enclosure.

Today the word Gaol is mostly used in legal documents in the United Kingdom or for Historic place names such as the Oxford County Gaol.