STREET ART AT FUMBALLY LANE
THE BUMBAILIFF [STREET ART ON FUMBALLY LANE]
John Rocque's meticulously detailed 1756 map provides a comprehensive view of Dublin's mid-18th-century expansion. Here, Fumbally Lane is labelled 'Bumbailiff's Lane'. While later understood as a misinterpretation, its appearance on Rocque's authoritative map indicates this was the prevailing designation at the time.
The word "bumbailiff" carries a distinctly negative connotation, and its etymology reflects its unsavoury association.
A "bumbailiff" is, or rather was, a derogatory term for a bailiff or underbailiff, particularly one employed in serving writs, making arrests, and collecting debts. Essentially, it refers to someone who enforces the law regarding debts, often in a harsh or intrusive manner.
The word is a compound of "bum" and "bailiff." The "bum" part of the word alludes to the idea of someone who "follows close behind," or "pursues," debtors.
Therefore, a "bumbailiff" is someone who doggedly pursues those who owe money.
The word's usage reflects historical realities of debt collection, which were often harsh and unforgiving.
The word is found from the mid 1500's, and the use of the word reflects how long the activity of debt collection has been a part of society.
In essence, "bumbailiff" is a relic of a time when debt enforcement was often a brutal business, and the word itself carries the weight of that history.
John Rocque's meticulously detailed 1756 map provides a comprehensive view of Dublin's mid-18th-century expansion. Here, Fumbally Lane is labelled 'Bumbailiff's Lane'. While later understood as a misinterpretation, its appearance on Rocque's authoritative map indicates this was the prevailing designation at the time.
The word "bumbailiff" carries a distinctly negative connotation, and its etymology reflects its unsavoury association.
A "bumbailiff" is, or rather was, a derogatory term for a bailiff or underbailiff, particularly one employed in serving writs, making arrests, and collecting debts. Essentially, it refers to someone who enforces the law regarding debts, often in a harsh or intrusive manner.
The word is a compound of "bum" and "bailiff." The "bum" part of the word alludes to the idea of someone who "follows close behind," or "pursues," debtors.
Therefore, a "bumbailiff" is someone who doggedly pursues those who owe money.
The word's usage reflects historical realities of debt collection, which were often harsh and unforgiving.
The word is found from the mid 1500's, and the use of the word reflects how long the activity of debt collection has been a part of society.
In essence, "bumbailiff" is a relic of a time when debt enforcement was often a brutal business, and the word itself carries the weight of that history.
STREET ART AT FUMBALLY LANE