Did limericks come from Limerick?

The origin of the actual word limerick is obscure, thought it's generally taken to be a reference to the city of Limerick, Ireland in Ireland. The usage in reference to this type of poem was first known to be documented in England in 1898 (New English Dictionary) and in America in 1902.[1] The name is often linked to an earlier form of nonsense verse which was traditionally followed by the refrain that ended "鈥ome all the way up to Limerick?", referring to Limerick, Ireland. That the older refrain does not match the meter of the limerick has been used to attack this theory. A point in favour, however, is the fact that in other languages, limericks are indeed sung, with wordless (la-la) refrains between them that match a version of this text.

There is strong evidence that the name came about from a group of poets who lived in County Limerick in the 18th Century. They produced an important corpus of gaelic poetry, and Gaelic scholars refer to them as the Mague Poets, because they lived in the valley of the Mague River. However, their behaviour with women and drink scandalised the local Catholic priest, who banished them from the area (they could do that then. They wouldn't dare now).

The most well-known of these poets (and said to be the most scandalous) was Aindrias Mac Craith from Kilmallock, and on that occasion he composed one of the most hauntingly beautiful songs in the Irish language, "Slan le Maigh" ("goodbye to the Mague"), which is still well liked today by Irish speakers.

Aindrias set up a tavern in the City of Limerick, around where the Dock Road is now, and his fellow poets were often there, and they liked to pass the time joking and mocking each other. One of the verse forms they used would have been like the modern "Limerick", which reflects an older medieval bardic structure. These poets were certainly bilingual in that time and place, so it's very probable that's where this type of comic verse came from.