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: Žižkov

  • Prague 3, day 142: Ševčíkova

    Originally published on Twitter on 12 September 2022. Ševčíkova was built in 1904. Until 1947, this was Bendlova, after Karel Bendl (1838-97), composer, organiser of the Umělecká beseda’s music department, second conductor of the Deutsche Oper and later of Prague’s National Theatre. Otakar Ševčík was born in Horažďovice in 1852. He started learning the violin…

  • Prague 3, day 141: Křížkovského

    Originally published on Twitter on 11 September 2022. Křížkovského was built in 1910. Karel Křížkovský was born to a single mother in Holasovice (not a typo) in 1820, and was brought up by his uncles in Neplachovice near Opava. In his youth, he became a chorister at the Church of St. Ducha in Opava, later…

  • Prague 3, day 140: Slavíkova

    Originally published on Twitter on 10 September 2022. Slavíkova was built in 1910. Until 1961, this was Grégrova, after Julius Grégr (1831-96), co-founder of the Young Czechs and of Národní listy. Josef Slavík was born in Jince (near Příbram) in 1806. A prodigy on the violin, he was, by the age of nine, the lead…

  • Prague 3, day 139: Vozová

    Originally published on Twitter on 9 September 2022. Vozová was built in 1875. Nice old-school street sign too. Vozová was first mentioned in 1843, as a ‘garden with a residential building’, located in the Křížovka vineyard, which had already existed for over 400 years. In 1854, Count Karl of Lessonitz-Reichenbach purchased it and built a…

  • Prague 3, day 138: Kubelíkova

    Originally published on Twitter on 8 September 2022. Kubelíkova was built in 1885. Until 1930, this was Libušina, after Libuše, ancestor of the Přemyslid dynasty and of the Czechs. So the number of streets named after women in Prague 3 has actually gone *down* over the years. Gah. From 1930 to 1947, it was Dvořákova, after Antonín Dvořák,…

  • Prague 3, day 137: Chvalova

    Originally published on Twitter on 7 September 2022. Chvalova was built in 1910. Known as Závišova until 1947, after Záviš of Falkenstein (1250-ish to 1290), a noble from the Vitkovci clan and foe of Otokar II. Chval z Machovic (first mentioned in 1419, last mentioned in 1433) was one of the first governors of Tábor alongside…

  • Prague 3, day 136: Ježkova

    Originally published on Twitter on 6 September 2022. Ježkova was built in 1896. Until 1940, and again from 1945 to 1947, this was Nerudova, after Jan Neruda (1834-91), journalist, author, poet, and main figure of the Májovci, a group of Czech novelists and poets inspired by the works of Mácha, Havlíček and Erben. From 1940…

  • Prague 3, day 135: Čajkovského

    Originally published on Twitter on 5 September 2022. Čajkovského was built in 1885. Known as Tomkova until 1952, after Václav Vladivoj Tomek (1818-1905), a historian, conservative politician and archivist, best known for his twelve-volume Dějepis města Prahy (History of the City of Prague). Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-93), meanwhile, as composer of Swan Lake, the Nutcracker…

  • Prague 3, day 134: Bořivojova

    Originally published on Twitter on 4 September 2022. Bořivojova was built in 1875. In 1947, this street joined with Riegrova (also built in 1875). Riegrova was named after František Ladislav Rieger (1818-1903), early leader of the Czech Nationalist Movement. Old Franta still gets a park in Vinohrady with – life goals alert – a beer…

  • Prague 3, day 133: Vlkova

    Originally published on Twitter on 3 September 2022. Vlkova was built in 1878. Jakub Vlk was a radical Hussite priest. After Jan Želivský died in 1422, he took over as preacher at Our Lady of the Snows (Panny Marie Sněžné, on Jungmannovo náměstí). He was expelled in 1434 and took refuge in Hradec Králové with…

  • Prague 3, day 132: Sladkovského náměstí

    Originally published on Twitter on 2 September 2022. Sladkovského náměstí was built in 1890. Karel Sladkovský was born in Malá Strana in 1823, and studied law in Vienna. He returned to Prague in 1848, becoming a leader of the student movement. He became famous after a speech at Svatováclavské Lázně (which no longer exists, having…

  • Prague 3, day 131: Vita Nejedlého

    Originally published on Twitter on 1 September 2022. Vita Nejedlého was built in 1885. This one’s been through its fair share of other names. Until 1940, and again from 1945 to 1947, it was Veleslavínova, after Daniel Adam z Veleslavína (1546-99), lexicographer, publisher, translator and secret member of the Unitas Fratrum (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2022/11/26/prague-3-day-83-ceskobratrska/). From 1940 to…

  • Prague 3, day 130: Přibyslavská

    Originally published on Twitter on 31 August 2022. Přibyslavská was built in 1898. Přibyslav is a town in the Havlíčkův Brod district, currrently with about 4,000 inhabitants. It was first mentioned in writing in 1257 (under the name of Priemezlaves). In the same century, the town became the second most important silver mining location in…

  • Prague 3, day 129: U Viktorie

    Originally published on Twitter on 30 August 2022. U Viktorie was built in late 2021. It’s named after the home ground of FK Viktoria Žižkov (officially the eFotbal Arena). Viktoria was set up in 1903, with most players being local students. It grabbed people’s attention by beating Sparta 1:0 in 1906. In 1909, the club…

  • Prague 3, day 128: U rajské zahrady

    Originally published on Twitter on 29 August 2022. U rajské zahrady was built in 1895. It translates as ‘At the Garden of Paradise’. The street was Přemyslova, after one or more of the Přemyslid dynasty, until 1930. There were vineyards around here in the 15th century; four centuries later, a popular garden restaurant opened, complete…

  • Prague 3, day 127: Siwiecova

    Originally published on Twitter on 28 August 2022. Siwiecova was built in 1980. Until 2009, this was Havelkova, Václav Havelka (1893-1967, and yes, that was his actual name), was a Communist functionary, so it’s quite amazing the street maintained this name for so long. Not least given that the street is the home of the…

  • Prague 3, day 126: Náměstí Winstona Churchilla

    Originally published on Twitter on 27 August 2022. Náměstí Winstona Churchilla was built in 1935. Until 1955, this was U Pensijního ústavu (‘At the Pension Institute’), named after the large functionalist building on the square, once the tallest office building in Czechoslovakia. It became known as the Dům odborových svazů (House of Trade Unions) in…

  • Prague 3, day 125: Seifertova

    Originally published on Twitter on 26 August 2022. Seifertova was built in 1875. Until 1940, this was Karlova, after Karel IV; from 1940 to 1945, it was Lutherova, after Martin Luther. After a brief return to its original name, it became Kalininova from 1947 to 1990, after Mikhail Kalinin (1875-1945), an Old Bolshevik revolutionary after…

  • Prague 3, day 124: Táboritská

    Originally published on Twitter on 25 August 2022. Táboritská was built in 1885. The Táborites have come up *cough* more than once *cough* in these posts, so here’s a quick brief. They were radical Hussites, known as ‘Picards’ by their enemies. Aiming to develop a communal society, they founded the town of Tábor in 1420,…

  • Prague 3, day 123: Lupáčova

    Originally published on Twitter on 24 August 2022. Lupáčova was built before 1875. Martin Lupáč studied in Prague, where he got to know Jan Hus personally. In 1412, he took part in the burning of the Papal Bull. In 1421, he became a preacher in Chrudim. He was a moderate Hussite who wanted all the…