Answers to the Dublin Place-Name Quiz

Answers to the What’s in a Name? Dublin quiz, from Chapelizod and Dolphin’s Barn to Glasthule, with notes on how each pun hides a place name.

How the puns work

The clues on the quiz page play on sound rather than history. Marino is nearly merino, a breed of sheep; Stoneybatter is a stony, or gravelly, batter; and Crumlin sounds like “crumblin’”, or nearly falling apart. Kilmainham splits into kill, main and ham, the ham being the leading actor, while Knocklyon is to knock, or disparage, a lion. Rathmines puts a rat before the mines, Stillorgan is a motionless organ, and Cabra joins a cab to a bra. Glasthule is a glass tool, Coolmine a cooled-down mine, and Donabate asks a don to abate. Lucan recalls the Earl of Lucan, the peer who disappeared in 1974. Mr Secombe is the comedian Harry Secombe, whose given name was Harold, and Fág an bealach, Irish for “clear the way”, becomes Stepaside.

One clue has two forms. The quiz asks for a fishy drinking vessel (a fin and a glass), while the list below gives a Scandinavian monocle (a Finn’s glass); both point to Finglas.

Where to read more

Many of these places have their own chapters on the site. F. Elrington Ball’s History of County Dublin covers the parishes of Stillorgan, Lucan, Crumlin, Chapelizod and Finglas. Dillon Cosgrave’s North Dublin has a chapter on Fairview and Marino, and D’Alton’s history of the county opens with Swords. For other districts, try the guide to finding history by Dublin area.

And the answers are …

CHURCH REPTILE

CHAPELIZOD

SEA CREATURE STOREHOUSE

DOLPHIN’S BARN

VERY DARK BOULDER

BLACKROCK

NEARLY A SHEEP

MARINO

A GRAVELLY PASTE

STONEYBATTER

FAG AN BEALACH

STEPASIDE

GET RID OF THIS WOMAN

KILLESTER

SINGLE MEN DON’T RUN

BACHELOR’S WALK.

BIG CAT’S PLACE

LEOPARDSTOWN

PROFESSOR, GIVE OVER

DONABATE

MR. SECOMBE IS ANGRY

HAROLD’S CROSS

HEAT’S OFF THE EXPLOSIVE DEVICE

COOLMINE

NEARLY FALLING APART

CRUMLIN

HONEST OPINION

FAIRVIEW

DUELING WEAPON

SWORDS

STORMY RETREAT

WINDY ARBOUR

BEAST IN STONE

FOXROCK

DISPARAGE THE JUNGLE KING

KNOCKLYON

ASSASSINATE THE LEADING ACTOR

KILMAINHAM

A RODENT BEFORE THE PITS

RATHMINES

A SCANDINAVIAN MONOCLE

FINGLAS

AN ELUSIVE PEER

LUCAN

MOTIONLESS MUSICAL INSTRUMENT

STILLORGAN

TAXI LINGERIE

CABRA

VERY FRAGILE IMPLEMENT

GLASTHULE