The Strand
Definition: the land bordering a body of water
In Old English, “strond” meant the edge of a river.
This is used in quite a few contexts. “The strand” refers to a general place relative to water, I think. But “The Strand” as a proper noun is used to refer to several specific places. Additionally, “The Strand” has been used in many commercial contexts.
A few of many examples:
- The Strand is a major street in London, so-named because it originally ran along the Thames
- Strand Bookstore is a large bookstore in New York City, named after the London street (it is colloquially known as “The Strand”)
- The Strand Ballroom and Theater in Rhode Island (it’s near a river, though not directly on it)
- The Strand Theater in Georgia (it’s nowhere near a river)
- The Strand House restaurant in California (a couple blocks from the beach)
Why I Looked It Up
I had known of the bookstore for years, and I had some vague memory of the London street.
I found this in The Prize:
Britain’s oil war was thereafter run out of Shell-Mex house on the Strand in London…
That got me thinking that there was some more general concept to “strand.”
Postscript
Weirdly, about a month after I wrote this, a friend got married at The Strand House in California (mentioned above). She posted pictures of the water from their table.