Introduction and methodology.

**

Dublin Street Names**

Dated and Explained

By the Rev. C. T. M’Cready, D.D.,

Curate of S. Audeon’s, and Minor Canon of S. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin.

(1892)

Vita Sine Literis Somnus Sine Christo Mors Est.

Introduction

The title of this compilation indicates with sufficient clearness its Aim.

Its Aim is:-

(1) to ascertain the earliest known Date, when the name of each of our streets is first found to occur, - and then,

(2) to offer (where possible) an Explanation of the name so dated.

The Date will usually be necessary to test the correctness of the suggested Explanation.

I. - Sources of Information.

The chief Sources of information-conveniently accessible to the compiler, - as to the earliest dates for the names of our streets, are the following:-

1. The Appendixes to the 20th (1888) and the 23rd (1891) Reports of the Deputy Keeper of the Public Records in Ireland. (These are slight blue books, - and can be had for 81 d. and Is. 1d. respectively.) They give details of certain Deeds transferred to the Public Record Office from Christ Church Cathedral in 1872. These Deeds range from 1174 to 1684, and abound with the names of persons and places. An Index thereto has yet to be published. [These and other Reports of the Deputy Keeper contain voluminous ‘Fiants,’ from the reign of Henry VIII. downwards, with elaborate indexes. To these ‘Fiants,’ some references have been made.]

2. The Calendar of Ancient Records of Dublin, - edited in two large volumes (1889 and 1891) by Mr. J. T. Gilbert. These give details of Deeds and other Documents, extending from 1171 to 1610. An Index will probably appear with a later volume.

3. Mr. Gilbert’s History of Dublin.

This is in three volumes (i. 1854; ii. iii. 1859). A good Index to the entire work is attached to the third volume.

This History, very full as far as it goes, is (as is well known) incomplete. It does not touch upon the north side of our City, - nor does it at all exhaust the history of the south side.

4. Speed’s Map of Dublin, - 1610.

This may be found in Gilbert’s Calendar, vol. ii, - in his History of Dublin, vol. i., - in Harris’s Dublin, - in the Post Office Directory for 1842, - and elsewhere.

5. Brooking’s Map of Dublin, - 1728.

This is comparatively rare - but it can be seen in the Libraries.

6.Rocque’s Map of Dublin, - 1756. This is less rare—and can be seen in the Libraries.

7. Harris’s History and Antiquities of Dublin, 1766. This is useful, - especially as it contains:

(1) a reduced and revised edition of Rocque’s Map, corrected to 1765, and also:-

(2) our earliest alphabetical list of the streets of Dublin.

8. Haliday’s Scandinavian Kingdom of Dublin, 1882. This (with Mr. Prendergast’s Introduction and Notes) is a most interesting and valuable work.

9. Rev. Dr. Hughes’s books on the Churches of S. Werburgh’s and S. John’s, 1889.

These books place within our easy reach the chief contents of the important Registers of these ancient parishes.

10. The Parochial Registers of S. Audoen’s and S. Nicholas Within, - from 1672.

These often give earlier dates for streets than we can learn from Directories or Maps.

11. A series of papers in the Irish Builder, 1886-92, on the Parishes of S. Audoen, S. Nicholas Within, and S. Michael.

This series of antiquarian papers, with others of an earlier date, has placed all students of old Dublin under a deep debt of gratitude to Mr. Peter Roe, the proprietor of the Irish Builder.

12. The Dublin Almanacks, from 1733, - and the Directories, from 1760, - to the present time.

Down to the year 1835, these are usually found bound together, - making, with the English Court Registry, a triple volume.

In 1834, Pettigrew and Oulton publish an Almanack and Directory, - which appears annually until 1848. (In this are given, for the first time, the streets, showing the names of the residents in each.)

In 1836, the first Post Office Directory is published, - and it has been continued to the present day, as a re-issue of a portion of Thom’s Almanack and Directory.

In 1844, Thom’s Irish Almanack and Official Directory appears, - and has been continued to the present day.

The earliest Alphabetical List of Streets, in these Directories, appears in the Directory published in 1768, - and the earliest map in the same series appears in the Directory published in 1773. (It should be remembered that the Maps were often issued, from year to year, without any revision.)

13. Cooke’s Royal Map of Dublin, - and Baldwin’s Plan of Dublin, - both published in 1821.

14. The Ordnance Maps of the City of Dublin, - made from a survey taken in 1837, and subsequently revised at various dates.

Many of the foregoing, which have been useful in ascertaining the Dates of our Dublin Street Names, have also been of service in providing Explanations of those names.

 II. - Classification of Street Names

Some rough Classification may here be attempted of the chief Sources of the names of the Dublin Streets.

1. It will be seen, at once, that some of the oldest names of our Streets are derived from the ancient CHURCHES of our City. Churches dedicated to the following have given to our streets Names, several of which are from 500 years to 700 years old

**S. Andrew

S. Audoen

S. Bridget (1465)

S. Catherine

S. Francis (1337)

S. George (1280)

S. James S. John

S. Kevin

S. Martin (1230)

S. Mary (1215)

S. Michael (1418)

S. Nicholas (1190)

S. Olave S. Patrick (1250)

S. Peter

S. Stephen (1250)

S. Thomas (1263)

S. Werburgh (1257)

Holy Trinity (1190)

or Christ Church

2, The names of KINGS and QUEENS, and their families, have not given us very many Names for our streets. They have, however, given us the following

Albert

Adelaide

Alexandra

Anne

Brunswick

Caroline

Charles

Charlotte Clarence

Cumberland

Frederick

George

Gloucester

Grafton

Leo

Mecklenburgh Nassau

Orange

Prince

Prince of Wales

Prussia

Victoria

William

York**

3. The names of LORDS LIEUTENANT, and their families, have furnished a very large number of Names for our streets, - such as the following

**Abercorn

Aberdeen

Anglesey

Bedford

Berkeley

Bessborough

Bolton

Buckingham

Camden

Capel

Carlisle

Cavendish

Clarendon

Cowper De Grey

Dorset

Eglinton

Essex

Fitzwilliam

Grafton

Granby

Grantham

Grenville

Haddington

Hamilton

Harcourt

Hardwicke

Harrington Henrietta

Herbert

Heytesbury

Lennox

Marlborough

Montague

Northumberland

Nugent

Ormonde

Pembroke

Percy

Portland

Richmond

Robarts

Russell

Rutland

Sackville

Sarah

Spencer

Stanhope

Talbot

Temple

Uxbridge

Wellesley

Westmorland

Whitworth

Winton

Wodehouse**

4. The names of other NOBLEMEN, and their families (in most cases once resident and owners of property), are also perpetuated in the names of many of our streets, - such as the following:-

**Allen

Aldborough

Amiens

Anglesey

Ardee

Ardilaun

Arran

Aungier Belvedere

Blessington

Brabazon

Chambre

Charlemont

Charles

Chatham

Clanbrassil Clanwilliam

Clare

Clonmell

Conyngham

Cork

Creighton

Denzill

Drogheda Earlsfort

Ely

Erne

Florinda

Galway

Gardiner

Harberton

Henry Holles

Hunt

Kildare

Lansdowne

Leeson

Leinster

Loftus

Longford Meath

Mellifont

Moira

Molesworth

Monck

Montgomery

Moore

Mountjoy Mountrath

Oriel

Palmerston

Pitt

Reginald

Roper

Sandwich

Sarsfield Shelburne

Suffolk

Temple

Tyrone

Vaux

Wentworth**

**

5. Comparatively few LORD MAYORS and civic functionaries furnish us with Names for our streets. The following list, however, includes some of those who do so:-

Blackhall

Bolton

Crampton

D’Olier

Eccles

Forbes

Fownes

Gray Guinness

Harty

Hendrick

Jervis

Kane

Kinahan

O’Connell

Page Plunket

Rainsford

Rogerson

Stamer

Sullivan

Tighe

Tucker

Warren**

**

6. Some STATE OFFICIALS, not already mentioned, may be named here as furnishing Names for some of our streets

Beresford

Bowes

Eden

Eustace

FitzGibbon

Foster**

7. As **OWNERS OF PROPERTY, giving Names to streets, the following may be noted, - in addition to several which have been already mentioned:-

Arnott

Arthur

Arundel

Aston

Burgh

Coghill

Coppinger

Crow

Cuffe

Dawson

Dominick

Fade

Findlater

Hatch

Hawkins

Hendrick

Hoey

Hume

Hutton

Jones

Kennedy

Kirwan

Langrishe

Lemon

Lombard

Mabbot

MacMahon

Malpas

Molyneux

Peter

Phipps

Stafford

Stanley

Synge

Temple

Usher**

8. CELEBRATED PERSONS - other than those already enumerated - may here be mentioned as giving Names to some of our streets:-

**Annesley

Blaquiere

Butt

Cadogan

Clyde

Davis

Dillon

D’Olier

Elgin Emmet

Goldsmith

La Touche

Lord Edward

Mangan

Mercer

Nelson

Newcomen Parnell

Pickwick

Pleasants

Preston

Raglan

Steevens

Swift

Washington

Wellington**

**

9. PUBLIC BUILDINGS, **etc., (in addition to the Churches already named) often give Names to our streets and minor thorough-fares, e.g.:-

**Abbey

Bank

Barrack

Basin

Bethesda

Brewery

Bridewell

Bridge

Castle

Cathedral

Chancery Chapel

Church

College

Custom-ho.

Exchange

Exchequer

Four Courts

Gallows

Harbour

Infirmary

Library Linen-hall

Marshalsea

Mass

Meeting-ho.

Mill

Palace

Parliament

Post-office

School

School-ho.

Yarn-hall**

**

10. SIGNS OF TAVERNS often give Names to lanes and yards:-

Adam and Eve

Black-dog

Black- horse

Black-moor

Blue-boar

Boot Bull

Cow

Crown

Fleece

Lamb

Ram Red-cow

Red-lion

Sun-inn

Swan

White-cross

White-horse**

**

11. HISTORIC PLACES, - and places of minor interest, - supply the Names of some street, e.g.:-

**Avondale

Auburn

Aughrim

Belfast

Benburb

Blenheim

Boyne Charleville

Coleraine

Derrynane

Fontenoy

Gibraltar

Glencullen

Glengarriff Innisfallen

Killarney

Lisburn

Lurgan

Tangier

Tara

Waterloo**

**

12. OCCUPATIONS furnish Names for some of our streets, - and those usually of great antiquity, e.g.:-

Calendar

Carman

Cooks (1270)

Merchants (1565) Potters (1348)

Saddlers (1260)

Shoemakers (1190)

Skinners (1367) Skippers

Taverners (1311)

Washerwoman

Weavers**

**

13. Some Names are derived from TITLES OF OFFICE, e.g.:-

Bishop

Dean

Prebend

Canon

Minors

Petty Vicar

Chapter

Mitre

King

Queen

Duke Earl

Mayor

Sheriff

Parliament

Commons

Guild**

**

14. PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS furnish some Names, e.g.:-

Back

Behind

Bow

Circular

Coombe

Crooked

Elbow

East Gravel

High

Hill

Liffey

Long

Main

Mount

Mud Newfoundland

North

Off

Pill

Pool-beg

Rialto

Sand

Strand**

**

15. Some few Names would seem undoubtedly to be CORRUPTIONS **of earlier names, e.g.:-

Bow-la., - from Beaux-la., or from Elbow la.

Cut-throat-la., - from Quoitred-la.

Fumbally’s-la., - from Bumbailiff’s-la.

Hammond-la, - from Hangman-la.

Longstick - and Woodstock-la., - from Lowestock-la.

Phoenix, - from fionn-uisg’.

Ship-str, - from Sheep-str.

Wormwood-gate, - from Gormund’s-gate.

16. Some Names seem to owe their origin to ASSOCIATION OF IDEAS, e.g.:-

Cow-la., - from Bull-la.

Greek-str., - from Latin-ct.

S. Luke’s-str, - from S. Mark’s-Ch.

Mark’s-al., - from S. Luke’s-Ch.

Coleraine-str., Derry-str., Lisburn-str., and Lurgan-str., - from the Linen-hall

17. Some Names - in addition to several already given as being derived from the names of noblemen - are, perhaps, borrowed from LONDON NAMES, e.g.:-

**Constitution-hill

Curzon-str.

Fleet-str.

Pimlico.

Pudding-la.

Spital-fields.

Temple-bar

Watling-str.

Some OBSOLESCENT NAMES*** may be mentioned,-which, having disappeared from our current Directories and Maps, still linger on the lips of many of our humbler fellow-citizens, e g.*:-

**Clonmel-row

Dirty-la.

George’s-la.

Gravel-walk

Kevin ‘s-port

The Poddle

III. -Tentative Character of this Compilation.**

This little work (the first, it is believed, of its kind) does not profess to be final or exhaustive. Those who have access to other sources of information, - such as ancient deeds and parochial registers,- have it in their power,

(1) to discover earlier Dates for our street-names than those which have been here assigned to them, - and,

(2) to suggest, from the same sources, likely Explanations of such names, in cases where such Explanations are still needed.

1. The DATES here given are only the earliest which the Compiler has been able to ascertain from the rather limited sources of information conveniently accessible to him. The frequency with which (e.g.) the years 1728 and 1756 occur shows that, in many cases, he can give no more specific dates than those of Brooking’s and Rocque’s maps respectively.

2. The EXPLANATIONS here given are seldom merely conjectural. They are usually such as may be established by the date assigned to the name, and by a topographical and historical knowledge of the neighbourhood. Fancy names (such as now abound) were rarely, if ever, given in former times. A reasonable explanation of almost every street-name in use before the last five and twenty years may naturally be looked for, - although, indeed, it may not always be readily forthcoming. Why (e.g.) were Church-road, and Seville-place, so named? And, why were many other names given, for which explanations have as yet to be supplied?

IV. - Notices of Rivers, Statues, &c.

In their alphabetical place in these pages are included notices of-

(1) the Rivers of Dublin, taken mainly from an unpublished work (by the Compiler’s father) on the Rivers of Ireland, - and

(2) the Open-Air Statues of Dublin, - which form striking objects of interest in some of our leading thoroughfares.

At page 146 are given Lists of Dublin Street-Name Prefixes and Suffixes.

In the APPENDIX (p.149) will be found-Lists of Books, etc., relating to the History and Topography of Dublin.

V. -Assistance invited.

Very gratefully, indeed, will the Compiler welcome any corrections or suggestions (whether as to dates or as to explanations of names) which the readers of these pages may be good enough to communicate to him,-and, should he be encouraged to prepare a second edition of his Dublin Street Names, Dated and Explained, he will have pleasure in rendering it, with their kind help, much more nearly perfect than has been possible in the present necessarily tentative volume.

Explanation of Abbreviations..

al.= alley.

ave.= avenue.

br.= bridge.

ct.= court.

la.= lane.

lr.= lower.

mkt.= market.

par.= parade.

pk.= park.

pl.= place.

qu.= quay.

rd.= road.

sq.= square.

str.= street.

yd.= yard.

A. D. C.= Artisans’ Dwellings Co.

D. K. R.= Deputy Keepers Report.

G. C. D.= Gilbert’s Calendar of Dublin.

G. H. D.= Gilbert’s History of Dublin.

L. L.= Lord Lieutenant.

L. M.= Lord Mayor.

Cf.= confer (compare).

l.c.= loco citato (in the place last cited).

q.v.= quod vide (which see).

cr.= created.

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