Explore the real places in Dublin that appear in Dubliners by James Joyce. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include Great Britain Street, North Richmond Street, Araby Bazaar Site, Grafton Street, Trinity College and 8 more.
Now Parnell Street — Setting of 'The Sisters'
In 'The Sisters,' the unnamed boy narrator lives on Great Britain Street and visits the house where the paralyzed priest Father Flynn has died. The boy reflects on the priest's mysterious illness and death, while the adults whisper about Flynn's strange behavior and possible mental breakdown. The story establishes the theme of paralysis that runs throughout the collection.
Great Britain Street was one of Dublin's main thoroughfares in Joyce's time, running through a working-class area north of the Liffey. It was renamed Parnell Street in 1911 to honor Irish political leader Charles Stewart Parnell.
Parnell Street remains a busy commercial street, now known for its diverse immigrant communities and ethnic restaurants. The Georgian architecture that Joyce knew still lines much of the street.
Near North Circular Road — Setting of 'Araby'
In 'Araby,' the boy narrator lives on blind North Richmond Street and becomes infatuated with Mangan's sister, who lives across the street. He promises to bring her something from the Araby bazaar, but arrives too late and experiences crushing disappointment. The street's 'blind' end symbolizes the dead-end nature of his romantic fantasies.
North Richmond Street was a short, dead-end street in a respectable working-class area of Dublin. Joyce himself lived briefly at number 17 as a child, giving the story autobiographical resonance.
The street still exists as a quiet residential area, though many of the original Victorian houses have been modified or replaced. It remains a literary pilgrimage site for Joyce enthusiasts.
Royal Dublin Society Grounds — The exotic bazaar
The Araby bazaar is the destination of the boy's quest in the story 'Araby.' He arrives late to find most stalls closed, overhears a flirtatious conversation between English vendors, and realizes the bazaar is just a commercial enterprise, not the magical Eastern marketplace he imagined. His epiphany about the gap between dreams and reality is crushing.
The real Araby bazaar was held at the Royal Dublin Society grounds in Ballsbridge in May 1894. It was a charity fundraiser with an 'Oriental' theme, featuring exotic decorations and entertainment that fascinated turn-of-the-century Dublin.
The RDS grounds continue to host exhibitions, horse shows, and events. The modern RDS complex occupies the same site where young Joyce might have attended similar bazaars that inspired the story.
Visit: Royal Dublin Society (historic site)
Premier shopping street — 'Two Gallants' and others
In 'Two Gallants,' Corley and Lenehan walk along Grafton Street as they discuss Corley's scheme to extract money from a slavey (servant girl). The street represents Dublin's commercial heart and the characters' aspirations to rise above their circumstances through manipulation and petty crime.
Grafton Street has been Dublin's premier shopping street since the 18th century, lined with fashionable shops, cafes, and department stores. In Joyce's era, it was the height of respectability and consumer culture.
Grafton Street remains Dublin's main pedestrian shopping area, home to Brown Thomas department store, street performers, and tourists. It's one of Europe's most expensive retail locations.
Visit: Grafton Street (landmark)
College Green — Academic and cultural center
Trinity College appears in several stories as a symbol of education and Protestant Anglo-Irish privilege largely inaccessible to Joyce's Catholic characters. In 'Grace,' it represents the cultural divide in Dublin society, while in other stories characters walk past its imposing gates as a reminder of opportunities denied them.
Founded in 1592, Trinity College Dublin was Ireland's premier university and a bastion of Protestant privilege. Catholics were effectively barred from attendance until the late 19th century, making it a symbol of religious and class division.
Trinity College is now Ireland's oldest university and a major tourist attraction. The Old Library houses the famous Book of Kells, and the campus welcomes visitors from all backgrounds and faiths.
Visit: Trinity College Dublin (historic site)
City center park — Multiple story settings
St. Stephen's Green appears in several stories, including 'The Dead' where Gabriel Conroy walks around its perimeter in the snow-covered conclusion. In other stories, characters stroll through or past the Green, using it as a meeting place and symbol of Dublin's genteel aspirations amid urban decay.
Originally a common grazing ground outside medieval Dublin, St. Stephen's Green was enclosed and developed as a fashionable square in the 17th century. By Joyce's time, it was surrounded by Georgian houses and served as Dublin's most prestigious address.
St. Stephen's Green is a 22-acre public park in the heart of Dublin, surrounded by shopping centers, hotels, and offices. The Victorian landscaping and monuments Joyce knew remain largely intact.
Visit: St. Stephen's Green (park)
Main thoroughfare — Various story locations
O'Connell Street (then Sackville Street) serves as Dublin's main artery in several stories. Characters walk its length, observe its monuments, and use it as a measuring stick for Dublin's grandeur and decline. The street embodies the tension between Ireland's colonial past and nationalist aspirations.
Originally called Sackville Street after an English lord, this was Dublin's grandest boulevard, wider than the Champs-Élysées. It was renamed O'Connell Street in 1924 to honor the Irish political leader Daniel O'Connell, whose monument stands at its southern end.
O'Connell Street remains Dublin's main street, though much rebuilt after damage in the 1916 Rising and Civil War. The GPO, Spire of Dublin, and various monuments make it a focal point for Irish history and tourism.
Visit: O'Connell Street (landmark)
Europe's largest enclosed park — 'The Dead'
In 'The Dead,' Phoenix Park is mentioned as Gabriel Conroy recalls walking there with his wife Gretta in happier times. The park represents the pastoral escape from urban Dublin that Gabriel romantically idealizes, contrasting with the revelations about Gretta's past that shatter his complacency.
Established in 1662, Phoenix Park has been Dublin's largest public space for centuries, originally a royal deer park. It covers 1,752 acres and includes the residence of Ireland's president and the Dublin Zoo.
Phoenix Park remains one of Europe's largest enclosed parks, home to wild deer, the Dublin Zoo, and numerous monuments. It's a popular destination for recreation and hosts major events including papal masses and concerts.
Visit: Phoenix Park (park)
Quay along the Liffey — The Morkans' house in 'The Dead'
The Morkans' house on Usher's Island is the setting for the annual dance party in 'The Dead.' Gabriel Conroy arrives here, delivers his speech, dances, and has his final devastating conversation with his wife Gretta about her former lover Michael Furey. The house represents Dublin's faded gentility and Gabriel's illusions about his marriage.
Usher's Island was a prestigious address along the River Liffey, lined with Georgian houses occupied by Dublin's merchant class. The area represented middle-class respectability in Joyce's era.
The quay still exists along the Liffey, though many of the original Georgian houses have been demolished or converted. Some period buildings remain, and the area has been partially redeveloped.
Near railway station — 'A Painful Case'
In 'A Painful Case,' Mr. James Duffy learns from a newspaper that Mrs. Emily Sinico, with whom he had an intense but ultimately rejected friendship, has been killed by a train at Sydney Parade station. The railway connections through Westland Row represent the mechanical, impersonal forces that intersect with human isolation.
Westland Row was home to one of Dublin's main railway stations, connecting the city to the southeastern suburbs and beyond. The area was busy with rail traffic and commercial activity in Joyce's time.
The former railway station is now called Pearse Station and remains an important stop on Dublin's DART suburban rail system. The Victorian railway architecture Joyce knew has been preserved and modernized.
Visit: Pearse Station (landmark)
Georgian street — Multiple story references
Baggot Street appears in several stories as characters move through Dublin's Georgian heart. The street represents the intersection of commercial and residential Dublin, where Joyce's middle-class characters navigate their daily lives between aspiration and disappointment.
Baggot Street was developed in the 18th century as part of Dublin's Georgian expansion, lined with elegant townhouses and later ground-floor shops. It connected the fashionable areas around St. Stephen's Green with the Grand Canal.
Baggot Street remains an important Dublin thoroughfare, mixing restored Georgian architecture with modern offices, restaurants, and pubs. The famous Toner's pub, dating from 1818, still operates on the street.
Visit: Baggot Street (landmark)
Dame Street — 'Ivy Day in the Committee Room'
In 'Ivy Day in the Committee Room,' political canvassers gather in a committee room near City Hall on the anniversary of Charles Stewart Parnell's death. They discuss local politics, drink stout, and recite a poem about Parnell, revealing the corruption and disillusionment of Irish political life after the fall of their great leader.
Dublin's City Hall, built as the Royal Exchange in 1779, became the seat of Dublin Corporation. It was at the heart of Dublin's political life and witnessed many of the debates about Irish independence that Joyce depicts in his stories.
City Hall serves as Dublin's civic headquarters and houses a multimedia exhibition about Dublin's history. The building's neoclassical rotunda and council chambers are open to public tours.
Visit: Dublin City Hall (historic site)
Great Brunswick Street — 'A Mother'
In 'A Mother,' Mrs. Kathleen Kearney manages her daughter's piano performances at a series of concerts in the Ancient Concert Rooms as part of a Gaelic revival cultural event. The story satirizes cultural nationalism and middle-class social climbing, as Mrs. Kearney's demands for her daughter's fee create a scandal that ruins the family's reputation.
The Ancient Concert Rooms on Great Brunswick Street (now Pearse Street) was Dublin's premier concert venue in the 19th century, hosting musical and cultural events for the city's middle and upper classes.
The original Ancient Concert Rooms building no longer exists. The site is now part of the modern development along Pearse Street, though the area remains important for Dublin's cultural life.
More by James Joyce: Ulysses locations map · A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man locations map · All James Joyce books
More novels set in Dublin: Browse all Dublin books on Map A Story
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