Inn 14776 225579087 2008-07-14T11:57:56Z 203.123.174.7 /* History & Origins */ {{otheruses}} [[Image:Hanul "La barieră".jpg|thumb|250px|A 19th century inn in [[Vălenii de Munte]], [[Romania]] (currently in [[Village Museum]], [[Bucharest]])]] '''Inns''' are establishments where travellers can procure [[food]], [[drink]], and [[lodging]]. == History & Origins == Found in [[Europe]], they possibly first sprang up when the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] built their system of [[Roman road]]s two [[millennia]] ago. Some inns in Europe are several [[century|centuries]] old. In addition to providing for the needs of travellers, inns traditionally acted as [[community]] gathering places. "Inn" in more recent times has often come to denote a business serving alcoholic beverages, especially in [[North America]], where they are usually [[alcoholic beverage|alcohol]]-serving [[restaurant]]s that have never provided lodging or serviced the needs of travellers. In Europe, it is the provision of accommodation, if anything, that now differentiates inns from [[tavern]]s, [[alehouse]]s and [[pubs]]. These later tend only to supply alcohol (although in the [[United Kingdom|UK]] the conditions of their licence sometimes require them to have a nominal supply of food and soft drinks). Inns tend to be grander and more long-lived establishments. Famous London examples include [[the George]] and [[the Tabard]]. There is however no longer a formal distinction between an inn and other kinds of establishment, and many pubs will use the name "inn", either simply because they are long established and maybe were once a [[Coaching inn]], or to summon up a particular kind of image; however, originally an ''Inn'' had to provide not only food and lodging, but also [[Stable|stabling]] and [[fodder]] for the traveller's horse(s) and for fresh horses for the [[Mail coach]]. The original functions of an inn are now usually split among separate establishments, such as [[hotel]]s, [[lodge]]s, and [[motel]]s, all of which might provide the traditional functions of an inn but which focus more on lodging customers than on other services; [[pub]]s, which are primarily alcohol-serving establishments; and [[restaurant]]s and [[tavern]]s, which serve food and drink. (Hotels often contain restaurants and also often serve complimentary breakfast and meals, thus providing all of the functions of traditional inns.) In North America, the lodging aspect of the word "'''inn'''" lives on in hotel [[brand]] names like [[Holiday Inn]], and in some state laws that refer to lodging operators as innkeepers. == Germany == The German words for "inn", "innkeeper", and "innkeeping" illustrate the historical importance of inns. An innkeeper is '''Wirt''' (a [[:wikt:host|host]]), the inn itself is a '''Wirtshaus''' (a host's house), and innkeeping is '''Wirtschaft'''. The last word literally means hosting or [[hospitality]], but is also used to mean [[economics|economy]] and [[business]] in general. In the [[Greek language]], the word for economy (''oikos'' "house" + ''nomos'' "law") is actually identical to [[housekeeping]]. == Inns of Court == The [[Inns of Court]] were originally ordinary inns where [[lawyer]]s met to do business, but have become institutions of the [[legal]] profession in [[London]]. ==See also== *[[Public house]] *[[Coaching inn]] *[[Caravanserai]] *[[Pub names]] *[[Ryokan (inn)]] *[[List of lodging types]] *''[[The White Horse Inn]]'' == External links == {{Commons|Category:Inns|Inn}} {{wiktionarypar|inn}} *[http://www.ratebeer.com/Beer-News/Article-312.htm A Brief History of the British Pub] *[http://www.congleton-cheshire.co.uk/congleton_inn_signs.htm Congleton's ancient Inn Signs] *[http://www.closedpubs.co.uk The Lost Pubs Project]: Lost and closed pubs of the UK. [[Category:Drinking establishments]] [[Category:Hotel types]] [[ar:استراحة]] [[da:Kro]] [[pdc:Wattshaus]] [[de:Gaststätte]] [[es:Posada (establecimiento)]] [[eo:Gastejo]] [[he:פונדק]] [[nl:Herberg]] [[ja:宿泊施設]] [[no:Kro]] [[pt:Pousada (hotelaria)]] [[ro:Han]] [[fi:Kestikievari]] [[sv:Krog]] [[zh:客棧]]