What's in a Prague street name

Originally published on X on 26 January 2024. George, not Denzel, Dinah or Poussey.

I could tell the George Washington story, but you might already know it quite well and/or feel it’s not got enough/any Czech connections (it won’t shock you to learn that GW never set foot in Bohemia).

So let’s go looking for world leaders and political figures who may not have been in charge in the Czech Republic or Czechoslovakia, but were/are of Czech origin.

Jerzy Buzek, Prime Minister of Poland from 1997 to 2001, was born in Smilovice in 1940, though he was, of course, part of the Polish community there. He was also President of the European Parliament from 2009 to 2012: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/28269/JERZY_BUZEK/history/9

Karl Renner (1870-1950) held multiple roles in Austria, eventually becoming its first post-WW2 president in 1945. He was born to an ethnic German family in Unter Tannowitz (now Dolní Dunajovice), and went to secondary school in nearby Nikolsburg (now Mikulov).

Keeping with a theme, Adolf Schärf, President of Austria from 1957 until his death in 1965, was born in Mikulov in 1890, though his family had moved to Vienna by the end of the decade.

While Juscelino Kubitschek (1902-1976) was President of Brazil from 1956 to 1961, a period which included the founding of Brasília. His mother had Czech origins.

In Ireland, Ivana Bacik is the granddaughter of Karel Bačik, who moved to Ireland after WW2 after his glass factories were nationalised, and set up Waterford Glass there. Ivana has been leader of the Labour Party since March 2022: https://www.ivanabacik.com/.

While Otto Jelinek arrived in Canada as a young child in 1948, and ultimately became Canada’s Minister of Revenue (1989-1993). He became Canada’s ambassador to the Czech Republic in 2013: https://cesky.radio.cz/velvyslancem-kanady-v-cr-se-stal-politik-ceskeho-puvodu-otto-jelinek-8695518. *And* he’s a former figure skater.

And we can’t go without mentioning Marie Jana Körbelová, who also emigrated to North America in 1948, and eventually became US Secretary of State in 1997. You’re more likely to know her as Madeleine Albright.

Tangential bonus material: Americans with roots in Slovakia include Jon Bon Jovi, Dave Grohl, Jon Voight (and therefore Angelina Jolie), Paul Newman and Andy Warhol.

Further bonus material: the most noticeable building on Washingtonova is possibly the headquarters of the Celní úřad pro hlavní město Prahu / Customs Office for the Capital City of Prague, but the whole street has an air of grandeur to it (well, the car park doesn’t).

Using Google to find news stories about Washingtonova is an absolute waste of time, as it lists not only every story relating to Washington D.C., but also everything Czech that’s ever been mentioned in the Washington Post.