The Temple Bar
Miguel B
This is probably the most popular area among the foreigners and tourists in Dublin! Would you like to know a few facts about Temple Bar?
The historic name of the district was not Temple Bar but St. Andrews Parish. It was a suburb of medieval Dublin, located outside the city walls, but it fell into disuse because the land was exposed to attacks. The land was redeveloped again in the 1600s, to create gardens for the houses of wealthy English families.
There are two theories as to where Template Bar got its name from:
- Some sources agree that Temple Bar Street got its name from the Temple family, whose house and gardens were located there in the 17th century.
- It's also said that the Temple Bar area had the first Jewish Temple in Ireland. The word 'bar' also means 'to ban, exclude or block' and in this case it refers to the refusal of Catholics to allow the Jewish to enter any premises in the neighbourhood.
As you can see, the origin of the Temple Bar may not be as cheerful as it is nowadays :)
Among some oddities, the Temple Bar was the centre of prostitution in Dublin in the 18th century. From the way some ladies dress in Temple Bar nowadays, you may think this has not changed that much! (kidding)
And in 1999, 'Stag' and 'Hen' parties were banned in the area due to drunken behaviour. As you can see this is not enforced anymore! Actually, Dublin is one of the most popular locations in Europe for these parties and lots of Irish and British travel to Dublin to celebrate theirs :)