High Street

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This article is about the generic term for the main business streets in British towns. For roads of the same name and other uses, see High Street (disambiguation).

$Ilfracombe High Street, Devon, England.$

Ilfracombe High Street, Devon, England.

High Street, or the High Street (often abbreviated to High St), is the generic name (and frequently the official name) of the primary business street of towns or cities in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is usually a focal point for shops and retailers in the city centre, and is most often used in reference to retailing. The equivalent in the United States and Canada is Main Street, a term also used in smaller towns and villages in Scotland. In Jamaica as well as North East England and some sections of Canada, the usual term is Front Street. In Cornwall, and also in some towns in Devon, the equivalent is Fore Street.

High Street is the most common street name in the UK. According to a survey by the Halifax, there are 5,410 High Streets compared to 3,811 Station Roads and 2,702 Main Streets.

1 History
2 Use
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

Starting at least 10 centuries ago, the word high gradually evolved to also mean something excellent or of superior rank, as evidenced in high sheriff and high society. It was applied to roads as they improved, and the word highway has been recorded from the early ninth century. "High Street" began to be used to describe the thoroughfares containing the main retail areas in villages and towns.

In recent years, although the term "High Street" is still used to refer to commerce, shopping has begun to shift to purpose-built out-of-town shopping centres and supermarkets. However compared to the United States town and city centre shopping remains widespread. The town centre of a British town of any size combines a group of outdoor shopping streets, one or more of which may be pedestrianised, with an adjacent indoor shopping centre.

The large presence of chain stores on High Streets repeated in settlements around the UK is part of the clone town theory.

[edit] Use

The term "High Street" is often used to describe common stores found on a typical high street, to differentiate them from more specialist or less common outlets. For example, someone might refer to "High Street banks" or "High Street shops".