"Tom Anderson" wrote in message
rth.li...
On Thu, 23 Sep 2010, Mizter T wrote:

On Sep 23, 7:38 pm, Ian Jelf wrote:

It's surprising how many examples there are of streets being known by
one name but actually being something else. It's "Strand", not "The
Strand" and "Aldwych" not "The Aldwych".

But a number of streets do get the definitive article tagged on, in
speech at least, to a greater or lesser extent - e.g. The Old Kent Road,
The Euston Road, The Edgware Road, The Walworth Road, The Cromwell Road,
The Holloway Road, The King's Road, The Mile End Road, The Harrow Road,
The East India Dock Road, The Uxbridge Road etc.

Mostly - and ISTR we've talked about this before - ones that are named for
a destination. The expression 'the Edgware road' means 'the road to
Edgware', in much the same way as you might say 'the radiator pipe' or
'the lamp cable', and i tend to think that this usage came first, with the
idea that the road had a name, and that name was 'Edgware Road', coming
later.

The two exceptions to that rule in your list are The King's Road, where i
think an analogous origin exists, and The Cromwell Road, which i cannot
explain.

A similar principle applies to roads being called 'Road' at all. It's
Holloway Road because it goes to Holloway, but Liverpool Street because it
doesn't go to Liverpool!

Although of course there is a Liverpool Road running up from Angel which
also does not go to Liverpool, so this is not an iron rule.

Looking at a map reminds me of the interesting case where Hornsey Road,
having come down from Hornsey to meet Holloway Road, crosses over it and
becomes Hornsey Street. You indeed cannot get to Hornsey on Hornsey
Street, only to the tip.

tom

--
Information is not knowledge. -- Albert Einstein

But I have recently been in contact with an American author over the use of
"THE high street" as against his "main street", and why. Indeed, why?

MaxB