'Rotherhithe' is thought to mean the landing place for cattle.
The name is thought to come from the Anglo-Saxon Hrȳðer-hȳð. It was first recorded in about 1105 as Rederheia. In the past the place was also pronounced and written Redriff, a form that survives in Redriff Road; parts of Rotherhithe Street were once called Redriff and Redriff Wall.