Wolverhamptonis acityandmetropolitan boroughin theWest Midlands, England.Thedemonymfor people from the city is "Wulfrunian".Historicallypart ofStaffordshire, the city is named afterWulfrun, who founded the town in 985, from theAnglo-SaxonWulfrūnehēantūn("Wulfrūn's high or principal enclosure or farm").Prior to the Norman Conquest, the area's name appears only as variants ofHeantuneorHamtun, the prefixWulfrunor similar appearing in 1070 and thereafter.Alternatively, the city may have earned its original name fromWulfereēantūn("Wulfhere'shigh or principal enclosure or farm") after the Mercian King,who tradition tells us established an abbey in 659, though no evidence of an abbey has been found.
The city grew initially as amarket townspecialising in thewoollen trade. In theIndustrial Revolution, it became a major centre for coal mining, steel production, lock making and the manufacture of cars and motorcycles. The economy of the city is still based on engineering, including a largeaerospaceindustry, as well as theservice sector.