Soho, London

Soho is an area in the centre of the West End of London, England, in the City of Westminster. Although similar in name, Soho is unrelated in any way to the SoHo neighbourhood in New York City. Soho is an entertainment district and for much of the later part of the 20th century, had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life. There is also a range of eating houses here.

Angus Steak House, Soho
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aberdeen_Angus_Steak_Houses_in_2008.jpg
Author: Steve Fareham


The area where Soho is located is bounded by Oxford Street to the north, Regent Street to the west, Shaftesbury Avenue to the south and Charing Cross Road to the east. To the west of Soho is Mayfair, to the north Fitzrovia, to the east Holborn and Covent Garden, and to the south St James's. Chinatown and the area around Leicester Square can also be considered as either just inside or just outside the southern edge of Soho.

Soho was grazing farmland until 1536, when it was taken by King Henry VIII to be turned into a royal park for the Palace of Whitehall. The name Soho first appears in the 17th century. It is believed that it was an old hunting call, as in "Soho! There goes the fox!" On the other hand, it may also be a short form for South Holborn. Holborn itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word holbourne which means "deep brook", referring to a stream that used to flow near where High Holborn and its continuation, Oxford Street are today.

Berwick Street Market, Soho
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Berwick_street_market_1.jpg
Author: Fin Fahey


By the mid 1800s all respectable families that lived in Soho had moved away while prostitutes, music halls and small theatres moved in. In the early 1900s a number of foreign nationals opened cheap eating-houses. Soon it became a favourite haunt for intellectuals, writers and artists. It is said that the pubs of Soho are often packed with drunken writers, poets and artists - many never staying sober long enough to be successful.

The Soho name has been imitated by other entertainment and restaurant districts such as Soho, Hong Kong; SoHo, New York; and Palermo Soho, Buenos Aires.

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