WEST Belfast priest Fr Martin Magill is to give a talk on Friday evening based on the street names of Belfast.

The parish priest of St John's on the Falls Road first became interested in the history behind Belfast's street names during a drive through the city during the Covid pandemic.

His research has led to the website www.belfaststreetnames.com in which users can search for their street names and find out the history behind it. A quick search on the website can reveal a wealth of information about the area you live in. 

On Friday evening Fr Magill will give a talk at a West Belfast Historical Society event which will take place at 7.30pm in St Michael's Parish Centre on Finaghy Road North.

The illustrated talk will explore the rich history, people and stories behind street names across the four corners of the city.

From well known roads to names aligned with industry, churches, local families, political figures, and historical events, the evening will offer a fascinating insight into how Belfast's streets reflect the cities changing history and identity.

Speaking to the Andersonstown News ahead of the event, Fr Magill said: "My interest in street names goes back to Covid times. They are a great way of finding out about Belfast and events like this are a great way of adding to my own research.

"I was driving along Tates Avenue and I thought who was Tate of Tate's Avenue. I naively thought I would be able to find out by simple searching it online but that was not the case.

"It set me off on a trek when I learnt about George Tate and the Tate family who were very significant citizens in Belfast in the 1850s and 1860s.

"I realised such history was not written down and I started my project Belfast Street Names.

"Some of the streets I will be talking about on Friday evening are Nansen Street and Forth Parade in West Belfast and Finaghy."

Fr Magill is extending a warm welcome for people to attend.

"Local history is hugely important and these historical projects are vital. For us, as a divided history, local history is even more important," he added.

"I would encourage people to come along on Friday evening. It should be a really good night. There will be a big welcome at the door and I hope people find my talk really interesting. I will also open up to questions and corrections to my own research.

"I hope people will leave thinking they would like to learn more about street names in Belfast."