Bollard

A bollard is a short vertical post. Originally it meant a post used on a ship or a quay, principally for mooring. The word now also describes a variety of structures to control or direct road traffic, such as posts arranged in a line to obstruct the passage of motor vehicles. In addition, bollards are used in the lighting industry to describe short, post-like light fixtures.

The term is probably related to bole, meaning a tree trunk. The earliest citation given by the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1844: previously, simpler terms such as "post" appear to have been used. The Norman-French name Boulard (still often found in Normandy) may be related.