Definition

1. Proper noun:
   • The Mediterranean coast of northern Africa: A historical region along the North African coast, famous in past centuries for its Moorish pirates who attacked ships.
   • A notorious district of a city: A part of a city, especially a waterfront area, that is infamous for vice, including gambling, drinking, and prostitution.

Usage Examples

• Proper noun (Geographical):

  • Ships were often attacked by corsairs from the Barbary Coast.
  • European nations paid tribute to the rulers of the Barbary Coast to protect their shipping.

• Proper noun (Urban district):

  • The old waterfront was the city's Barbary Coast, full of saloons and danger.
  • After the 1849 Gold Rush, San Francisco's Barbary Coast became legendary for its lawless nightlife.

Advanced Usage

• Used metaphorically to describe any area perceived as morally corrupt or lawless.
  • The mayor vowed to clean up the neighborhood, calling it a modern Barbary Coast.

Variants and Related Words

• Barbary pirate / Corsair: A pirate operating from the Barbary Coast of North Africa.
• Barbary States: The historical North African states (e.g., Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli) associated with the Barbary Coast.

Synonyms

• Den of iniquity: A place notorious for vice and immoral activities (for the urban sense).
• Pirate coast: A coast known for piracy (for the geographical sense).

Related Idioms

• While not a phrasal verb, the term is often used in the idiomatically fixed phrase "tolerate no Barbary Coast", meaning to refuse to allow an area of lawlessness and vice to exist.
  • The new police commissioner declared they would tolerate no Barbary Coast in this city.

Noun

1. the Mediterranean coast of northern Africa that was famous for its Moorish pirates
2. a part of a city that is notorious for gambling dens and brothels and saloons and riotous night life (especially the waterfront of San Francisco after the gold rush of 1849)
   • we'll tolerate no Barbary Coast in this city!