Žižkov
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Prague 3, day 32: V Domově
Originally published on Twitter on 25 May 2022. V Domově was built in 1925. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Prague didn’t become the capital of an independent country until 1918, and that the civil service had previously been based in Vienna. As Prague gained in importance, its population grew rapidly too. In 1920, it Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 31: V Jezerách
Originally published on Twitter on 24 May 2022. V Jezerách was built in 1925. I was going to say that this means ‘In the lakes’ and move on, but that would be v jezerech with a second e and not an á. One lake is a jezero, two lakes are jezera, and a small lake Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 30: Na Jarově
Originally published on Twitter on 23 May 2022. Na Jarově was built in 1925. It translates as ‘In Jarov’ or ‘On Jarov’ (in Czech, you tend to be in a town, but on a district). Jarov is the easternmost area of Žižkov, stretching east from V Zahrádkách (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2022/11/19/prague-3-day-29-v-zahradkach/) until Žižkov becomes Hrdlořezy*. Jarov was the Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 29: V Zahrádkách
Originally published on Twitter on 22 May 2022. V Zahrádkách was built in 1925. Road leading off Koněvova in ‘not named after a Hussite’ shocker. V Zahrádkách translates as as ‘in the gardens’. But a zahrádka is smaller than a zahrada (the standard term for ‘garden’). So it’s a small garden, a back garden, or, Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 28: Jeseniova
Originally published on Twitter on 21 May 2022. Jeseniova was built in 1875. Jan Jesenius / Ján Jesenský (1566-1621) was a physician, politician and philosopher, born in Wrocław (then Breslau) to a father of Slovak origin. He studied in Wittenberg, Leipzig and Padua, becoming professor of anatomy at the first of these in 1594. In Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 27: Loudova
Originally published on Twitter on 20 May 2022. Loudova was built in 1930. Matěj Louda z Chlumčan (died 1460) was commander of Písek, a Hussite warrior and diplomat, and owner of a farm in Chlumčany near Louny. He studied at Charles University. He didn’t complete his studies, but he did became aware of Jan Hus’s Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 26: Viklefova
Originally published on Twitter on 19 May 2022. Viklefova was built in 1930. It’s named after John Wycliffe (1320-1384-ish), an English theologian, and one of the first to translate the Bible into Middle English, though historians say he may not have done much of the translation himself. Wycliffe also wrote that papal claims of temporal Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 25: Buchovcova
Originally published on Twitter on 18 May 2022. Buchovcova was built in 1930. Zbyněk Buchovec z Buchova (died 1436?) was a Hussite warrior and commander (hejtman). Coming from a peasant family, he was elected one of the four governors of the newly founded town of Tábor in 1420 (one of the other three being Jan Žižka). Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 24: Rečkova
Rečkova was built in 1930. The name has nothing to do with Greece, which is Řecko in Czech (sometimes when I’m whizzing past here on the tram, I mistakenly think it’s called Řeckova, and yes, that name would make no grammatical sense). Jan Reček z Ledče was a maltster and a well-to-do citizen of Prague’s Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 23: Jana Želivského
Originally posted on Twitter on 16 May 2022. Jana Želivského was built in 1931. It was originally named Mladoňovicova, after Petr z Mladoňovic (died 1451), a Hussite writer and scribe to Jan z Chlumu (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2022/11/19/prague-3-day-18-chlumova/). Jan Želivský (1380-1422) was a priest during the Hussite Reformation, with a taste for somewhat apocalyptic sermons. On 30 July Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 22: Zelenky Hajského
Zelenky Hajského was built, with a different name (see later), in 1908. Jan Zelenka (1895-1942), born in Kamenný Újezd, but spending most of his life in Prague, was a primary school teacher, and, later, member of the Czech resistance in WW2. From 1925, he worked in a newly-built school in Háj u Duchcova, where he Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 20: Ostromečská
Originally published on Twitter on 13 May 2022. Ostromečská was built in 1896. Ostromeč is a former castle, located north of the village of Hrazany in the Příbram district. Its foundations were laid in 1424 under the Hussite leadership of Jan Hvězda of Vícemilice. It was raided and demolished just four years later, but was Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 18: Chlumova
Originally published on Twitter on 11 May 2022. We’ve reached the western end of Koněvova, so now we’re crossing the road and it’s time for Chlumova, built in 1872. Jan Kepka z Chlumu / John of Chlum (date of birth unknown) came from the Česká Lípa region (the modern village of Chlum has 259 inhabitants). Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 17: Tachovské náměstí
Originally published on 10 May 2022. Tachovské náměstí / Tachov Square, which has had this name since 1958. It’s home to the southern entrance to Žižkov Tunnel. Between 1875 and 1958, it was Žižkovo náměstí / Žižkov Square. There’s now another square called that instead, 800 metres away. The Battle of Tachov took place in Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 16: Lukášova
Originally posted on Twitter on 9 May 2022. Lukášova was built in 1875 or before. It’s named after Lukáš Pražský / Luke of Prague. Lukáš (d. 1528) was a bishop of the Unitas Fratrum (Jednota bratrská), otherwise known as the Moravian Church. He joined the UF shortly after graduating from Charles University in 1481, and Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 15: Hájkova
Originally published on Twitter on 8 May 2022. Hájkova was built in 1908. Václav Hájek z Libočan – or, if you prefer, Wenceslaus Hájek of Libočany (died 1553) was a chronicler and author of the Czech Chronicle (Kronika česká, 1541). Originally a Protestant, he converted to Catholicism in 1521; from 1524, he worked as a Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 13: Pražačka
Originally posted on Twitter on 6 May 2022. Pražačka was built in 1947. It’s named after *another* farmstead (and vineyard) that no longer exists. The origin of the name ‘Pražačka’ isn’t clear, but original maps list the name as ‘Brasatscha’ – so, surprisingly, the name probably doesn’t have anything to do with ‘Praha’. The vineyard Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 12: Pod Krejcárkem
Originally published on Twitter on 5 May 2022. Pod Krejcárkem was built in 1962, and translates as ‘Under Krejcárek’. Krejcárek was an emergency colony (i.e. a residential area, akin to a shanty town, built to deal with a large influx of workers moving to Prague). It was established as a garden centre in 1922 (when Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 11: Na Ohradě
Originally published on Twitter on 4 May 2022. Built in 1975, Na Ohradě the newest street that I’ve written about to date. Like yesterday’s Vápenka, Ohrada is a former homestead, founded somewhere around the year 1400, and containing a large vineyard. An ohrada is a fence, a barrier or an enclosure. Presumably there was one Continue reading
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Prague 3, day 10: Na Vápence
Originally published on 3 May 2022. Na Vápence was built in 1925. Vápenka translates as ‘lime works’ or ‘limekiln’; it was also the name of a farmstead lying where the street is now. Presumably there was formerly a limestone quarry in the area, hence the name of the settlement. Apparently it stretched across Židovské pece Continue reading
What's in a Prague street name 