Magpie Lane is a narrow historic lane in central Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It leads south from the High Street

High Street, Oxford

The High Street in Oxford, England runs between Carfax, generally recognized as the centre of the city, and Magdalen Bridge to the east. Locally the street is often known as The High. It forms a gentle curve and is the subject of many prints, paintings, photographs, etc...

 where it is at its narrowest, now completely pedestrianised as a pavement, and north from the cobbled Merton Street

Merton Street

Merton Street is a historic and picturesque cobbled lane in central Oxford, England. It joins the High Street at its northeastern end, between the Ruskin School of Drawing & Fine Art and the Eastgate Hotel at the historic east gate of the city...

.

To the west is Oriel College (including the Rhodes building of 1910 at the northern end) and to the east is University College

University College, Oxford

.University College , is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2009 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £110m...

, two of the oldest Oxford colleges

Colleges of the University of Oxford

The University of Oxford comprises 38 Colleges and 6 Permanent Private Halls of religious foundation. Colleges and PPHs are autonomous self-governing corporations within the university, and all teaching staff and students studying for a degree of the university must belong to one of the colleges...

. On the northeast corner there is a 1902 house, now the Quod restaurant. A small cul-de-sac

Cul-de-sac

A cul-de-sac is a word of French origin referring to a dead end, close, no through road or court meaning dead-end street with only one inlet/outlet...

 street, Kybald Street, leads off Magpie Lane at the southern end to the east, giving access to the rear of University College and Kybald Twychen, owned by Corpus Christi College

Corpus Christi College, Oxford

Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...

.

South from Merton Street, the lane continues as Merton Grove (or Grove Passage) between Merton College to the east and Corpus Christi College

Corpus Christi College, Oxford

Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...

 to the west, giving pedestrian access via railinged gates to Christ Church Meadows. The building in the south-western corner of Merton College is also called Grove. The name perhaps derives because this area used to be an orchard.

History

In the 13th century Magpie Lane was known as Gropecunt Lane

Gropecunt Lane

Gropecunt Lane was a street name found in English towns and cities during the Middle Ages, believed to be a reference to the prostitution centred on those areas; it was normal practice for a medieval street name to reflect the street's function or the economic activity taking place within it...

 or Grope Lane, as it was an area where prostitutes plied their trade. John Speed

John Speed

John Speed was an English historian and cartographer.-Life:He was born at Farndon, Cheshire, and went into his father's tailoring business where he worked until he was about 50...

's map of 1605 lists it as such. In the 17th century, it was named Magpie Lane because of an alehouse in the lane that used a magpie

European Magpie

The European Magpie, Eurasian Magpie, or Common Magpie, , is a resident breeding bird throughout Europe, much of Asia and northwest Africa. It is one of several birds in the crow family named as magpies, and belongs to the Holarctic radiation of "monochrome" magpies...

 as a sign. By the late 19th century, the lane was known as Grove Street but by in 1927 the name was changed back to Magpie Lane.

The houses between Kybald Street and Merton Street were demolished in the 1960s by Corpus Christi College

Corpus Christi College, Oxford

Corpus Christi College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom...

to provide space for more modern student accommodation.