What's in a Prague street name
Every street in Prague, one by one.
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I could talk about myself for ages, or I could point out that https://english.radio.cz/ed-ley-englishman-recording-stories-pragues-streets-one-one-8806941 is over two years old but still largely stands (other than the Twitter links).
Category: Nusle
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Marie Cibulkové was built in 1900. Until 1940, and again from 1945 to 1947, the street was called Libušina, as nearby https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/23/prague-2-day-93-libusina/ still is. Marie Cibulková was born as Marie Grasserová in 1888. In 1920, she became a leader of the Pankrác Sokol (see https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/26/prague-2-day-114-sokolska/), as well as a representative of the Sokols at the…
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Mikuláše z Husi was built in 1906. Until 1940, and again from 1945 to 1947, the street was known as Husova – as is a street in Prague 1: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/10/05/prague-1-day-169-husova/. Mikuláš z Pístného was born around 1375, and the earliest written reference we have to him is from 1389. In 1406, King Václav/Wenceslas IV made…
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U Jedličkova ústavu was built in the 1930s, but not named until 1957. Rudolf Jedlička was born in Lysá nad Labem in 1869; his father had previously served as a doctor in present-day Slovenia, and his mother was the daughter of a mayor of Vyšehrad. He studied medicine in Prague, graduating in 1895, which was…
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Na Bučance was built in 1935. Josef Ignác Franz Buček was born in Příbor, then known as Freiberg, in 1741. He studied philosophy in Olomouc and Vienna, later becoming a professor of economic sciences at the University of Prague. Around the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, he built a farmstead round here, with…
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Pankrácké náměstí (Pankrác Square) was built in 1931. I walked around – a lot – and couldn’t find a street sign, so here’s a picture of the square instead. Not Prague’s most beautiful. However, when it was first built, Pankrácké náměstí included a small stadium, Na Bělce, which belonged to a football club, SK Nusle.…
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Štětkova was built in 1898. Until 1940, and again from 1945 to 1948, the street was called Horymírova, and you can learn a thing or two about Horymír on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/01/29/prague-4-day-7-kresomyslova/. Then, from 1948 to 1952, it was called Mikešova, after Mikeš Divůček z Jemniště, a mintmaster from Kutná Hora who was good friends with Jan…
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U gymnázia was built in the 1930s, and given a name in 1947. A ‘gymnázium’ is a well-known false friend: it’s a grammar school (if you’re British), or a high school (if you’re American). Around the spring of each year, your local friends who have kids may talk about how insanely competitive their entry examinations…
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Na bitevní pláni was built in 1911. You may remember a nearby street whose name translates as ‘On the Victory Plain’, and which commemorates the Battle of Vyšehrad of November 1420: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/02/01/prague-4-day-21-na-vitezne-plani/. Well, today’s street translates as ‘On the Battle Plain’ – or ‘On the Battlefield’ – and commemorates exactly the same battle.
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Viktorinova was built in 1931. Viktorín Boček z Kunštátu was a nobleman; the earliest written mention we have of him is from 1417. When the Hussite Wars broke out two years later, he became one of the most important Hussite commanders. In 1420, he participated in the Battle of Vyšehrad (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/02/01/prague-4-day-21-na-vitezne-plani/), but left Prague shortly…
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Bohuslava ze Švamberka was built in 1938. Bohuslav (the sixth) was the son of Bohuslav (the fifth), who was the highest judge in Bohemia from 1390 to 1398. The Švamberks were a noble Catholic family. In 1417, Václav IV asked him to ensure security (ie to protect Catholics from Hussites) in Western Bohemia. Within a…
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Hradeckých was built in 1931. This one can be explained by pointing to a few previous stories. Hradečtí are people from Hradec Králové, which, with 94,000 inhabitants, is Czechia’s eighth-largest city, and has a street named after it in Prague 3: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2023/06/24/prague-3-day-176-hradecka/. By association, Hradečtí are also soldiers from Hradec Králové, and, near here, there…
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In 1938, this square was first named individually on maps – but it was called Soudní náměstí (Court Square), after the Prague High Court, which had moved here in 1933 (see https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/03/25/prague-4-day-57-soudni/). During the Prague Uprising of May 1945 (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/02/05/prague-4-day-25-5-kvetna-5-may/), barricades stood in front of the court, aiming to stop the Nazis from reaching Pankrác;…
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Sevřená was built in 1933, but not given a name until 1957. ‘Sevřít’ means to clench (something), to press (two things) together, to clamp, squeeze, etc. To ‘sevřít’ [insert name here] ‘v náručí’ is to take them in your arms; to ‘sevřít’ (something) ‘pevněji’ is to tighten your grip on it. The street, meanwhile, located between…
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Na Pankráci was built in 1900. Even as an ex-Londoner who used to travel to Brussels an awful lot, it somehow took me until 2024 to put two and two together and work out that Pankrác is St Pancras. Pancras of Rome converted to Christianity, and was beheaded for this around 303, aged just fourteen.…
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Pikrtova was formerly part of 5. května (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/02/05/prague-4-day-25-5-kvetna-5-may/), but construction of the nearby main road changed its shape so much that it was declared a separate street in 1977. We don’t have tremendous amounts of information about Josef Pikrt – for example, we don’t know his year of birth. We do know that he was…
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Doudlebská was built in 1941. Doudleby (coat of arms below) is a village less than ten kilometres from České Budějovice – so it’s quite appropriate that this street is just a stone’s throw from Budějovická. It’s named after the Doudleby tribe, who settled in the area of the village around 800. It was one of…
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Hvězdova was built in 1900. Jan Hvězda, nicknamed Bzdinka, was born in Vícemilice (near Čáslav, and nowadays known as Licoměřice), but we know nothing else about his early years. In the summer of 1421, Hussite priest Jan Želivský (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2022/11/19/prague-3-day-23-jana-zelivskeho/) launched a coup; in October, he suggested that Hvězda be appointed Chief Hetman of Prague. In…
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U družstev was built in 1934. Back on day 60, we visited Družstevní ochoz (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/03/28/prague-4-day-60-druzstevni-ochoz/), and learned that we were in an area where everything was built by družstva – collectives – in the 1930s. It’s been a long twenty days since then, mainly because nearly every street in this area has been a variation on…
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U Svépomoci was built in 1934. ‘Svépomoc’ is self-help; the adjective from this is ‘svépomocný’. If you’re like me, you’ll see ‘self-help’ and think ‘book’; however, it’s also a legal term, referring to individuals exercising their rights without having to consult higher authorities. In the case of this street, Svépomoc was the name of the…
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U čtyř domů was built in 1934. A slight variation on the theme today: we already know that the streets around here were built in the 1930s, and that most of the street names were designed in celebration of that. Today’s is a bit more to the point: the street had four buildings on it…
What's in a Prague street name 