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).

  • Prague 4, day 272: Jílovská

    Jílovská was built in 1947.

    The earliest mention we have of Jílová is from the 1200s, when it was a mining settlement (the writer wanted us to think the document was from 1045, but it turns out that it’s a forgery).

    In the 1320s, it was described as a ‘royal gold-mining town’; around 1350, Charles IV (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/10/15/prague-1-day-196-karlova/) confirmed its status as a royal town.

    As happens too often in these stories, economic activity was dealt a heavy blow in 1422, when the Hussites conquered and burned Jílová. The mines were restored, but reports from the 1500s suggests they weren’t nearly as successful as in the past.

    Here’s an account showing the purchase of gold and operations of a mill in Jílová in 1506 / 1507.

    Larger-scale mining started in 1689, and lasted until 1968, when the last mine was closed due to its lack of profitability.

    The painter Joann Venuto painted Jílová in 1821.

    And here’s a 19th-century engraving by an unknown artist.

    And a photo of the town hall and main square, taken around 1908.

    These days, the town is known as Jílové u Prahy and is in Prague-West district. It lies on the Sázava (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/02/18/prague-2-day-31-sazavska/) and has a population of just over 5,000.

    The people with a connection to Jílová that you’re most likely to have heard of include the Renaissance occultist Edward Kelley (1555-1597 or thereabouts), who purchased a mine here.

    And František Chvalkovský, who had the task of being Czechoslovak Foreign Minister from October 1938 to March 1939. Chvalkovský was born in Jílová in 1885.

  • Prague 4, day 271: Němčická

    Němčická was built at some point between 1973 and 1982 (warning: today’s post is going to remain about this vague).

    The street is likely to be named after a village called Němčice (whose name, in turn, I assume comes from the fact that its inhabitants were once predominantly German).

    Unfortunately, there are at least nine villages in Czechia with that name, as well as five former villages which are now parts of larger municipalities.

    On top of that, there’s a Dolní (Lower) Němčice, two Horní (Upper) Němčices, a Velké (Great) Němčice and a Němčice nad Hanou (on the Haná river).

    And none of these places is particularly near Prague, so the jury’s out.

  • Prague 4, day 270: Nad lesním divadlem 


    Nad lesním divadlem was built in 1968.

    Behind this street, you’ve got Velký háj (‘The big grove’), a forested area with parkland. Only a small portion is owned by the City of Prague; the rest is in the hands of various private individuals.

    In 1913, Jan Šimsa, a local doctor, established a ‘lesní divadlo’ – a ‘forest theatre’ – here. It was run by the Krč Sokol (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/26/prague-2-day-114-sokolska/ has the story of those) and showed plays by both professional and amateur troupes.

    It showed plays between May and September each year; personally, I can think of nothing more delightful than watching a play in a forest on a moonlit summer evening.

    In 1935, though, most of the theatre was destroyed in a fire. Once repaired, the theatre also held performances by the Nusle-based Fidlovačka (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/01/26/prague-4-day-15-na-fidlovacce/), and, in 1944, it gained a separate pavilion for puppet theatre.

    The theatre had almost 600 performances up until 1951, and could welcome audiences of over 5,000 (although seating was limited to 500 people). However, by the time of the last performance, it was running at a loss, and, in 1958, the buildings were demolished.

    That could have been quite a downbeat ending – but, according to https://lesnidivadlokrc.cz/, the theatre should be opened again in the summer of 2026. Somehow, this has made me as happy as someone old enough to remember the theatre as it once was would be.

  • Prague 4, day 269: Ohnivcova

    Ohnivcova was built in 1933.

    We’re still in ‘novels by Alois Jirásek’ territory: between 1887 and 1890, Jirásek published a trilogy called Mezi proudy (Between the Currents), based on real events which occurred between 1381 and 1409.

    Those real events concerned Czech resistance against German oppression during the reign of Wenceslas IV. As this was the era that saw the rise of Jan Hus (who began teaching at the University of Prague in 1398), the trilogy also gives a lot of attention to the immorality of the Church at the time.

    The first of the novels, Dvojí dvůr (Double Courtyard), ends with the king granting Czech speakers of Prague greater rights in further education.

    Volume two, Syn ohnivcův, would most easily be translated as ‘The Fireman’s Son’. This is because the main character, Jan Ohnivec, is the son of Šíp, who was once asked to be a royal fireman.

    He was asked by Jan Jenštejn – a real-life archbishop of Prague who is discussed on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/01/prague-day-151-jenstejnska/ – and, in the novel, this was because Jenštejn was in love with Šíp’s wife (Šíp’s second, and the stepmother of Jan Not Janštejn).

    By volume three – Do tří hlasů (In Three Voices) – Jan Ohnivec is a royal courtier. This novel is focused on the rivalry between two noble families – the Trocnovs and the Rosenbergs, who don’t get on (to put it mildly).

    At the start of the novel, Jan Žižka meets Ohnivec, who has been injured by thieves while on a journey, and takes him in. Meanwhile, the Rosenbergs capture King Wenceslas and try to get him to improve their standing in the state.

    While public opinion in Prague is largely on the side of the Rosenbergs, the king’s brother, who, like 117% of the people in these three novels, is called Jan, manages to turn the tide. They build an army – including Žižka – which forces the Rosenbergs to give in.

    The king was ultimately freed; despite being captured and tortured, Ohnivec remained faithful to him.

    Later on in the novel, the Rosenbergs are trying to capture Jan Žižka, but the king, with Ohnivec’s help, manages to prevent this.

    Other things happen in the novels too, of course, but I’m saving those in case there’s another Mezi proudy-related street coming up. The novels were successful, despite Catholic commentators not appreciating the portrayal of Jan Jenštejn.

  • Prague 4, day 268: Poberova

    Poberova was built in 1935.

    We’ve been on a bit of a break, so let’s recap some key information.

    Alois Jirásek was a writer of historical novels and plays; these were written at a time when the Czech nation was seriously (re-)discovering itself. He has a square named after him in Prague 2: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/01/prague-2-day-154-jiraskovo-namesti/.

    As well as a bridge: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/01/prague-2-day-155-jiraskuv-most/.

    Making our way south to Braník, the streets around here are mainly named after characters from Jirásek’s novels. Fittingly, the district is therefore called Jiráskova čtvrť (Jirásek’s Quarter).

    One of these novels – or, more accurately, a trilogy of three novels – was called Bratrstvo (Brotherhood), and concerns Hussite exploits in Slovakia around the 1450s (spoiler: the Hussites’ finest military exploits had been and gone by this stage).

    Bratrstvo is quite well represented in Braník – we’ve already discussed it on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/19/prague-4-day-264-talafusova/.

    And some of the real events underpinning the trilogy are discussed in more detail on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/11/15/prague-4-day-230-jiskrova/, also in Braník.

    Another character in the story is Pobera z Lomu, a fighter whom we first see when he’s (only just) escaped death at the hands of the Germans.

    Pobera, while staying just outside Žilina with his army, meets a local, Bodorovský, who decides to settle his considerable debts by selling his wife, Mária to, yes, Pobera.

    Pobera tries to win Mária’s heart, but she makes arrangements with Jan Talafús – he of Day 264 fame – who secretly takes her away. At the end of the first novel, Pobera and Talafús commit to a duel to the death once the war is over.

    When this duel eventually happens, Pobera manages to seriously injure Talafús.

    Ultimately, Pobera falls in the same battle that Petr Aksamit (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/21/prague-4-day-266-aksamitova/) did (the real-life battle took place in May 1458).

  • Prague 4, day 267: Údolní


    Údolní was built in 1925.

    At one end of this street, you’ve got a hill with Braník Brewery (no longer brewing) on top of it (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/13/prague-4-day-258-nad-branickym-pivovarem/).

    At the other end, I’m going to assume we’re also on a hill, but will confirm that when we get to the streets around there.

    Hills or not, the street is located in a valley, i.e. an ‘údolí’.

  • Prague 4, day 266: Aksamitova

    Aksamitova was built in 1932.

    We don’t know anything about Petr Aksamit’s life before 1440, when he was put in command of the Brotherhood / bratříci troops in Upper Hungary (present-day Slovakia).

    These bratříci were former Hussite fighters, operating as independent units, from 1445 to 1467, not only in today’s Slovakia but in its neighbouring regions.

    Originally, he served under Jan Jiskra z Brandýsa (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/11/15/prague-4-day-230-jiskrova/), but struck out and formed his own army in 1448, while continuing to profess support for Jiskra until the latter fell in 1453.

    After that, Aksamit’s army controlled what is now eastern Slovakia and north-eastern Hungary, with a castle at Plaveč (renovated and partially rebuilt in 2014).

    It seems that Aksamit’s name came from the fact that he was partial to expensive clothing – aksamit translates as ‘velour’.

    However, in January 1458, Matthias Corvinus (Czech: Matyáš Korvín; Hungarian: Hunyadi Mátyás) became King of both Hungary and Croatia, and decided it was time to restore royal power.

    In a battle at Sárospatak in present-day Hungary, on 21 May of that year, Aksamit was killed and his forces were defeated.

    As you might have guessed from recent posts, this street is called Aksamitova because of his presence in a novel by Alois Jirásek, or, rather a trilogy of them – Bratrsvto, as discussed very recently (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/19/prague-4-day-264-talafusova/).

  • Prague 4, day 265: Zálesí


    Zálesí was built in 1925.

    Zalesí is behind (za) a forest (les).

    If you want to know what to call that forest, you’re kind of spoiled for choice: you can call it Kunratický les (colloquially: Kunraťák), Krčský les (colloquially: Krčák) or, in its northwest, Michelský les.

    As we’ll be going through Krč, Michle and Kunratice eventually in this series, there will surely be some forest-related stories then.

  • Prague 4, day 264: Talafúsova


    Talafúsova was built in 1935.

    Jan Talafús was born around 1410 in Ostrov, near Chrudim (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2023/06/24/prague-3-day-177-chrudimska/).

    Early records of his life are limited, but he is thought to have participated in the Battle of Lipany in 1434 (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2022/12/23/prague-3-day-120-lipanska/).

    Within little over a decade, Talafús would be in charge of Ostrov, as well as having inherited six villages and three towns.

    In 1440, he left for Upper Hungary (present-day Slovakia), where he joined the army of Jan Jiskra (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/11/15/prague-4-day-230-jiskrova/), who was protecting the rights ofLadislav Pohrobek (Ladislav the Posthumous).

    His feats included the liberation of Košice (1441) and capturing the Hungarian town of Eger in 1442. However, he was subsequently captured and imprisoned for six months, promptly returning to military action upon his release.

    In 1445, Talafús became hetman of Chmeľov Castle and, in 1448, of Rychnava. In 1451, he helped Jiskra defeat 20,000 Hungarians at the battle Lučenec.

    In 1457, the newly crowned Matthias Corvinus decided it was time to get rid of the Hussite forces. Talafús – at times allied with Jiskra, at times not – continued to fight, but lost more than he won.

    In 1463 he returned, destitute, to the Czech lands (hence the Slovak expression ‘biedny ako Talafús’ – wretched as Talafús), where he entered the direct service of George of Poděbrady (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2023/12/23/prague-3-day-189-namesti-jiriho-z-podebrad/).

    Talafús is last mentioned in writing in 1475. Well, that’s the last non-fiction reference during his lifetime: the street is named after him because of the Alois Jirásek trilogy Bratrstvo (The Brotherhood; 1900 to 1909), which is set in Slovakia and where Jiskra and Talafús are the main characters.

    Completely irrelevant to the story, but, as Eger has been mentioned, I have to point out that I went there last year and visited Egri Road, a frankly incredible museum dedicated to the Beatles. I could share photos of it all day.

  • Prague 4, day 263: Na výstupu

    Na výstupu was built in 1925.

    Anybody who’s ever taken the Prague Metro will know that ‘výstup’ is one of the two things that you have to complete when the doors are closing (or, ideally, slightly before), the other one being ‘nástup’.

    Anybody who’s ever taken public transport to or from Braník will also know that we are nowhere near a metro station.

    As well as the process of getting off a train, ‘výstup’ can be translated as ‘climb’, or ‘ascent’, and ascend is exactly what this street does.

    Braník isn’t going to have a metro line running through it when the D Line is finally opened, either, although a fair chunk of it will go through nearby Krč, so that’s something.

  • Prague 4, day 262: Psohlavců


    Psohlavců was built in 1933.

    ‘Psohlavci’ would translate as ‘dog-heads’, which may have you hoping that I’m going to write about a film from 1994 or thereabouts which has some of the lowest ratings possible on Rotten Tomatoes, ČSFD, etc., but which you loved when you were ten years old.

    In which case, sorry to disappoint you – Psohlavci is another novel by Alois Jirásek, published in 1884.

    It turns out that psohlavec is a derogatory term to describe a Chod. In short, the Chods / Chodové were free peasants in current-day Western Bohemia, most famous for a full-scale uprising against Habsburg rule in the 1690s.

    For more on the Chods, take a look at https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/01/30/prague-2-day-25-chodska/. There’s a picture of their leader, Jan Kozina, on that page – he was executed in 1695, and is also the main character in Psohlavci.

    Psohlavci, unsurprisingly, touched a nerve in a land that wouldn’t be under Austrian control all that much longer; unauthorised adaptations for the stage arose in the 1880s (including one in the US), and an opera version premiered at the National Theatre (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/14/prague-1-day-105-divadelni/) in 1898.

    It’s also been adapted as a film twice (1931 and 1955), and once as a made-for-television opera (1985). Here’s the 1955 version.

  • Prague 4, day 261: Věkova


    Věkova was built in 1933.

    After a brief detour, we’re back in ‘characters from novels by Alois Jirásek’ territory.

    František Ladislav Věk is a Czech patriot in the novel titled, well, F. L. Věk, and described (to an extent) on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/02/prague-4-day-247-vrbova/.

    He is a student – and, later in the novel, a merchant from Dobruška, which is getting its own post soon enough. The novel is essentially his life story, but also covers a lot of other ground.

    Věk was based on a real person, specifically the remarkably similarly-named František Vladislav Hek (1769-1847), a writer, publicist, composer and fervent Czech patriot who took part in the early stages of the Czech National Revival.

  • Prague 4, day 260: Pikovická


    Pikovická was built in 1991.

    Well, I say ‘built’ – it’d be more accurate to say it already existed in 1991, which was the year it was separated from Modřanská (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/09/29/prague-4-day-185-modranska/).

    Pikovice is a village on the bank of the Sázava river; the earliest written mention that we have dates back to 1310. It changed hands several times, entering those of the Strahov Monastery (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/08/prague-1-day-29-strahovska/) in 1638.

    In the 1920s, Pikovice became a popular destination for tramping; in 1942, its inhabitants were forcibly removed as the village became the site of an SS military training ground. The locals returned in 1945.

    Nowadays, Pikovice is part of Prague-West.

    Back on the street, Pikovická is mainly known for being the home of Braník Train Station.

    Praha-Braník was opened in 1882 as Praha-Hodovičky, was connected to Greater Prague in 1922, and was renamed as ‘Braník’ in 1937.

    Looking at tomorrow’s timetable, during the daytime there are typically 2-3 trains stopping here per hour.

  • Prague 4, day 259: Kamenitá


    Kamenitá was built in 1925.

    Another one that describes the street’s physical features – ‘kamenita’ translates as ‘stony’, ‘rocky’, or ‘pebbly’.

  • Prague 4, day 258: Nad branickým pivovarem


    Nad branickým pivovarem was built in 1925.

    In 1899, thirteen Prague brewers, feeling that industrialisation had caused them to lose their competitive edge, decided that Prague needed a new, modern brewery.

    In 1900, the Společenský pivovar pražských sládků – Prague Brewers’ Community Brewery – opened. The complex consists of seven Neo-Renaissance and Art Nouveau buildings, designed by the architect Jan Herain (1848-1914).

    It had its own port and two ships which transported beer to Výtoň (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/08/26/prague-2-day-121-na-vytoni/). It even sent beer to the Habsburgs.

    On the brink of bankruptcy a few years later, it was saved in 1908 when various Prague innkeepers became shareholders. It was renamed as Hostinský pivovar around this time.

    Successful during the First Republic, and closed down by the Nazis the occupation, it was nationalised in 1948 and wouldn’t enter private ownership again until 1990. During the early years of the post-communist era, both Asahi and Stella Artois were brewed here.

    However, the age of the building – and its status as a protected monument – severely limited the owners’ ability to modernise the facilities. The last batch of beer was brewed here in 2007 (by Staropramen, who moved production across the river to Smíchov).

    As with many buildings in Prague that no longer serve their original purpose, the road to repurposing has been rocky. It was meant to be a residential complex, then a centre for small businesses, then the home of a computer company.

    None of these happened, but it does currently host a dance conservatory (Taneční centrum Praha – konzervatoř).

    So, yes: if you’ve ever drunk a Braník světlý since 2007, you may be a bit sad to realise it wasn’t brewed in Braník, and that Prague 4 no longer has any industrial breweries.

    But all hope is not lost for beer fans – the micro-brewery Moucha (https://mouchapivo.cz/) has operated at the premises since 2016 (separately from the dance classes, of course).

  • Prague 4, day 257: Táhlá


    Táhlá was built in 1925.

    If something is ‘táhlá’, it’s long, protracted, sweeping or far-stretching, which seems to be what the street-namers of 1925 thought this road was.

  • Prague 4, day 256: Pod Jiráskovou čtvrtí

    Pod Jiráskovou čtvrtí was built in 1935.

    Also having its construction completed in 1935? Jiráskova čtvrť, i.e. the entire district (a primer is on https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/02/prague-4-day-247-vrbova/).

    Clearly, this was a popular idea: there’s also a Jiráskova čtvrť in Kyje (Prague 9), as well as in Doksy (near Liberec) and Meziměstí (near Náchod).

    Brno had one too from 1953 to 1991, but it’s now known as Masarykova čtvrť (go to https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/01/prague-2-day-156-masarykovo-nabrezi/ if you fancy a longish read).

  • Prague 4, day 255: Žalmanova


    Žalmanova was built in 1969.

    First of all, your almost-daily reminder that we’re in Jiráskovo čtvrť (see https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/09/01/prague-2-day-154-jiraskovo-namesti/).

    Second of all, your reminder that Jirásek wrote a novel called F.L. Věk (see https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/02/prague-4-day-247-vrbova/).

    Žalman is a character in said novel; he’s an old man and closet Protestant, whose tales of hardship and persecution have a major effect on the above-mentioned Mr Věk.

  • Prague 4, day 254: V závitu


    V závitu was built in 1945.

    A ‘závit’ is a coil or a whorl, and the street is so named due to its shape.

  • Prague 4, day 253: Ve studeném

    Ve studeném was built in 1935.

    ‘Studený’ means ‘cold’. Is it colder than elsewhere round here? I didn’t particularly notice.

    The other option – which I’ve not been able to prove, as that would involve having read 21 novels and ten plays on a working day – is that there’s something ‘studený’-tangential in one of the works by Alois Jirásek.

    This would make a lot of sense, as every other street round here seems to be named after something or someone in his works.

    Part of Na Studeném became part of Vrbova (https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2025/12/02/prague-4-day-247-vrbova/) in 1973.

    For language fans, ‘studeni’ is November if you’re Croatian. For fans of falling leaves, ‘listopad’ is October in Croatian, but November in Czech.

    In which case, why not enjoy a November story *and* a case where I was certain what the street was named after: https://whatsinapraguestreetname.com/2024/10/23/prague-1-day-212-17-listopadu/.