'Holloway' may come from 'hollow way' or from 'hallow'; its origin is disputed.
Some think the road dipped where cattle bound for Smithfield and water wore it down; others derive the name from 'hallow', for a pilgrim route to Walsingham. No documents support either. The road was known as the Holloway by 1307. By the 17th century Upper Holloway was a settlement at the upper end of Maiden Lane; Lower Holloway was recorded in 1553.