Mario Freitas Mar 31, 2014:

@ Catherine Please consider the use of "Porthole Hatch" if you want to be more accurate. I agree with you "porthole" is only partial (hublot).

Nikki Scott-Despaigne Mar 31, 2014:

Shot in the dark time Wondering if it might not be referring to a felt/rubber pad/joint to avoid having metal closing onto metal, for example. In context, I'm certainly not reading this as a "landmark" (amer) either, just a marker of some sort.

Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 31, 2014:

You might be right Charlie For some reason I was thinking of a largish landmark, but yes there's no reason it couldn't be a smaller object nailed to a tree or some such. While I think a plug to stop up a hole in a porthole would still be too small, Florence's idea of a deadlight (porthole cover) might be right then.

Charlie Bavington Mar 31, 2014:

Doesn't need to be a "landmark" as such, does it? Could it not just be something someone left long ago to give a bearing to themselves and/or others, in the way you might nail any old price of junk to a tree to remind you which is the safe route, or something. I don't think a "repère" necessarily has to be large scale, does it?

Nikki Scott-Despaigne Mar 31, 2014:

Only 9 hits on Google for the term; I understand the dilema!
- My Chasse-Marée/ArMen Gui des Termes de marine gives "dowel , plug" for tampon, being something used to hide the head of a screw for example.
- My Dictionnaire Technique Maritime (La Maison du Dictionnaire) gives "dowel, plug, pad, bung" and describes similar uses to the first source.
- My Dictionnaire maritime thémtique anglais et français by the Bibliothèque de l'institut français d'aide à la formation professionnelle maritime goes along with these.
How that might fit with the source and context you cite however is totally unclear.
Balsa wood plugs are still used to bung up a hole, so go along with Clive, but again, the idea of how thatr ealtes to your context is beyond me.

Catharine Cellier-Smart (asker) Mar 30, 2014:

Thanks Clive, I'm aware of the other theories, however they don't help me with the translation of "tampon de hublot"!

Clive Phillips Mar 30, 2014:

I agree it seems unlikely that a deadlight or porthole would serve as a landmark. However, I can't think of any other rendering of 'tampon de hublot'.
Your link adds two other derivation theories:
1. "D.Vaxelaire et Y.Perotin citent l’origine maritime du nom de la commune (les tampons servaient à colmater la coque des vaisseaux)."
Wooden plugs or wedges were, and possibly still are, used in vessels (from inside) to stem or stop water ingress through holes in the hull. I suppose a large wedge might stand out as a landmark but it seems a little improbable.
2. "Une autre version prête une origine malgache à ce toponyme qui proviendrait du terme « tampony » ou « tampona », signifiant belvédère ou cime que l’on voit de loin (Vaxelaire, 1995)."
To me, this sounds the most likely derivation of the place name.