Pub Names - Religious

Religious

The amount of religious symbolism in pub names decreased after Henry VIII's break from the church of Rome. For instance, many pubs now called the King's Head were originally called the Pope's Head.

  • Anchor, Hope & Anchor, Anchor & Hope: From the Letter to the Hebrews (6:19): "We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope."
  • Cross Keys: The sign of St Peter, the gatekeeper of Heaven. Often found near a church dedicated to St Peter. When people walked to the Sunday service they often stayed afterwards, at a house near the church, to drink beer and to watch or participate in sporting events. These venues became known as "public houses" and would use the sign of the saint to which the church was dedicated - the Cross Keys for St Peter, an Eagle for St John, a Lion for St Mark. The sporting events might include the racing or fighting of dogs, bulls, cocks or pheasants, or the hunting of foxes, with or without hounds - thus giving rise to further pub signs.
  • Lamb & Flag: From the Gospel of John (1:29): "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world." The Lamb is seen carrying a flag (usually of St. George) and is the symbol of the Knights Templar, the Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors, and St John's College, Oxford. A pub of this name appeared in the popular BBC sitcom Bottom.
  • Five Ways: Possibly referring to the "Five Ways" of Thomas Aquinas, five reasons for the existence of God.
  • Lion & Lamb: The lion is a symbol of the Resurrection, the lamb a symbol of the Redeemer.
  • Mitre: A bishop's headgear, a simple sign easily recognisable by the illiterate. In Glastonbury and in Oxford a Mitre is adjacent to a church.
  • Salutation: The greeting of the Archangel Gabriel to Mary when informing her she was to carry Jesus Christ.
  • Shepherd & Flock may refer to Christ (the Shepherd) and the people (his flock) but may also just mean the agricultural character and his charges.
  • Three Crowns: The Magi, but also see Heraldry above.
  • Three Kings: The Magi.
  • Parish: In Huddersfield, Originally called "The Parish Pump", Referring to its close proximity to Huddersfield parish church.

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Famous quotes containing the word religious:

    “Yet the New Testament treats of man and man’s so-called spiritual affairs too exclusively, and is too constantly moral and personal, to alone content me, who am not interested solely in man’s religious or moral nature, or in man even.”
    —Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)

    “The sceptics assert, though absurdly, that the origin of all religious worship was derived from the utility of inanimate objects, as the sun and moon, to the support and well-being of mankind.”
    —David Hume (1711–1776)

    “... it is seldom a medical man has true religious views—there is too much pride of intellect.”
    —George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)