What's in a Prague street name
Every street in Prague, one by one.
recent posts (search bar on main page for about a gazillion more)
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: Trade
-
Šenácká was built in 2023. Making it younger than this series. The internet tells me that a ‘šenák’ is a small rowing boat which is manned by two or three ‘plavci’, literally ‘swimmers’, or, in the Vltava context, the people responsible for floating wood across the Vltava when this was a mainstay of the local economy.…
-
Nad malým mýtem was built in 1935. A ‘mýto’ is a toll. We’re near the Vltava, and, historically, this is where tolls were collected. By the mid-19th century, the entire area was called ‘Za malým mýtem’, literally ‘Behind the small toll’. Those who think it may be unusual to name a place after a toll…
-
Originally published on X on 1 April 2024. In 965, Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, an Arabic-speaking, Sephardi Jewish traveller (and probable merchant) whose family came from what is now Tortosa in Catalonia, travelled to Prague. He wrote about his trip – and what he wrote is the oldest written reference to Prague that we have. He…
-
Originally published on X on 13 March 2023. Plavecká was built centuries ago, but wasn’t named until the mid-19th century. We’ve covered the fact that the people of this district, Podskalí, made their living by trading in wood: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/26/prague-2-day-121-na-vytoni/. And then we covered the history of Podskalí itself yesterday: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/26/prague-2-day-122-podskalska/. Plavecká, meanwhile, is named after…
-
Originally published on X on 11 March 2023. Na Výtoni was built in 1894, and was called Vejtoňská until 1903. Once upon a time, there was a settlement here called Podskalí. The first written mention is from 1198, but it’s likely to have originated a long time before that. The locals made a living by…
What's in a Prague street name 