Is it the Spanish princess? Nope. Is it the knife-makers’ guild with a bizarre obsession for pachyderms? Yep. And that’s fine. It’s the most London answer possible: a boring, trade-based origin that got completely hijacked by a pub and a fad for drawing elephants with houses on them.
The next time you’re stuck in traffic at the Elephant and Castle roundabout—staring at that giant, hideous shopping center—just remember: you are sitting in the ghost of a medieval animal trend. And a bunch of sword-makers are laughing at you from the afterlife.
If you ever get a chance to name a place, please name it something equally unhinged. We need more Flamingo and Turret or Giraffe and Drawbridge in the world. The Elephant would approve.
