subject: Why Are Pubs... Called [print this page] Believe it or not, pub is in fact short for Public House. So yes, we've managed to answer the question posed in the title of this article; however the question now is why on earth it was ever called a Public House? Interested to find out more, we've decided to delve deeper into the history of the pub.
Back at the start of the 20th century, there were 2 types of places you could go drinking at subject to your class. Both these venue types tended to be co-located, separated by a wall or some sort of partition. The first option, if you were lucky enough to be part of the middle class was the saloon or lounge bar. This had carpets, cushioned seats and was all-round classy by the standards of the time, and in that spirit, not all persons were deemed fit to knock back a few in such a refined establishment.
So if you were of the working class, you had no choice to head to a venue that had no restrictions whatsoever...a venue that was open to the public and as such attended the public bar, with bare boards, and if you were lucky, sawdust to absorb the spitting and spillages. Although these venues didn't exactly embrace the principles of feng-shui, the beer was cheap and if you were poor... it was better than nothing. By and far, public houses were more popular than the alternative, simply because most people were poor.
Later, the public bars started getting less shit, until sometimes almost the only difference was in the prices. This gave pub enthusiasts the choice until during the blurring of the class divisions in the 1960s and 1970s; the distinction between the saloon and the public bar was often seen as stupid. As a result, many owners removed the dividing wall or partition separating the two venue types. (Which explains some of the curious pub floor plans you see in many modern day pubs?)
So armed with the knowledge you now have about the origin of the The Pub, feel free to impress your mates after a few beers at your favourite watering hole with a little bit of knowledge about pubs.
