Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
The "Ladder" name
I hadn't really thought about it till the other day (waaayyy too much time on my hands), but, I don't like it. We always say we live on the Ladder because you can't really say you live in the Ladder; linguistically it just regsiters as plain wrong.
The only other places you live on are islands.
I wonder if this and the very meaning of the word ladder (going up, going down - but going, not staying) convey a sense of impermenance and not belonging.
The messages conveyed by single words are certainly powerful. Commercial organisations spend millions on getting a product or brand name right and the choices made can mean success or failure.
If I had a vote on the name, I'd vote for change. To what? With some historical basis, one could choose Harringay Park. All the roads of the Ladder, excluding the Endymion-Lothair quadrant were once part of the old grounds of Harrringay House, called Harringay Park.
You'd then have Harringay Gardens & Harringay Park.
And I could finally say I live IN somewhere.
Tags for Forum Posts: The Ladders, gardens, harrinagy, harringay, harringay name, ladder, park
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by hannah on
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I like the 'Ladder'. It's quirky and has to be better than "Harringay Village". I fell over backwards when some estate agent came up with that one. Ah yes, the gentle thud of cricket bat against ball on a sultry summer afternoon and the wheeling of larks against the twilight as Mr Plod the bobby wheels his bicycle past the village shop...................
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the ladder is so called because of how it looks on a map with green lanes and whitman road as the 'uprights' and the cross streets as the 'rungs'.
the council has taken to calling it 'the ladders'. i saw it written on a street sign on whitman road as in ... 'welcome to the ladders'.
this is probably to try to change the conatation of the word ladder because of the influence it may project as in ....' the property ladder'. and 'first timer'. I don't see why people would be put off but there you go. (another pet theory of mine is that it is influenced by greek and turkish accents. as in harry enfeild ... 'hello peeps'.)
i lived in new york where place names are always being messed around with BY REAL ESTATE AGENTS such as ' SoHo (South of Houston street) and tribeca (TRIangle BElow CAnal street)
there is also 'chelsea' which dosen't have any reason except that it 'sounds trendy'. it was a meat market also a well known red light district. (still is)
estate agents who don't live in the area they work, interfere with place names because they want to sell more.
estate agents will do anything to make money. i hate looking at their cheesey placards everywhere for which, i am told they need PLANNING PERMISSION. i know people that go around vandalising them by pulling them down. i have to say i don't agree with this but i do sympathise.
i have a low opinion of estate agents due to my dealings with them in the past.
i have even known one to administer sexual favours to further a sale.
go figure.
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Permalink Reply by David Jones on
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I don't think there was ever any thought out reason for changing the name "Ladder" to "Ladders". I think it was simply a mistake by the council officer who ordered or designed the new signs, which should of course have read "Welcome to the Ladder" not " ... to the Ladders.
Perhaps we should take this up with the Council, and get an undertaking that in future they will stick to "The Ladder"?
It could have been worse. We could have ended up with a grocer's apostrophe. "The Ladder's."
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yes david. the council seem to have taken their eye off the ball here.
lets not let it get out of hand.
we live : ON THE LADDER
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Permalink Reply by Paul on
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It could be worse. We could live on/in/under/in general proximity to the toast rack in Wandsworth...
...I for one am proud to be halfway up the ladder on Hewitt Road (am scared of heights you see).
Best, Paul
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