Cheddar, village, Somerset, SW England. It is chiefly a tourist center. Limestone is quarried, and strawberries are grown. Nearby Cheddar Gorge towers c.400 ft (120 m) high, with imposing limestone cliffs and numerous caves from which relics of prehistoric man have been excavated. The town gives its name to the famous cheese, which has been made there since at least the 16th cent.