What is meant by ash tree clearing in old English?

It is important to understand what an Ash Tree is. Ash is used to make bows, arrows, instruments (like Guitars and drum bases) because it is lightweight and has a good balance of flexibility and strength. An ash tree clearing is a meadow where once these trees were plentiful but now, due to need, has been cleared of timber. When referring to a place that once had Ash Trees, it is like referring to how the lumber was used. It can mean something like "veteran", having once supplied the means to fight against an enemy, it can mean something like "domesticity", having supplied leisure and culture in the implements for making music.

This term in Old English is most often encountered in the etymology of the name Ashley. With the understanding I have given above, the names meaning is such; Ash (a kind of tree described for use in establishing culture) and Lee (to be on the other side of, or to be on the protected side of). It is a name that signifies honoring sacrifice by remembering and renewal. Ash tree clearings were often converted to church yards, cow pasture, and farming. Men, having lost a limb to conflict, often named sons Ashley to refer to the loss as a sign that the limb was restored to him manifold in his child. This name is currently considered feminine. Given the names connotation, what this might mean is uncertain.