Winnie-the-Pooh?: Warsaw's Unusual Street Names

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_grzyby_cover_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg, default, The strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilyicheva

#language & literature

#travel in poland

Whether we are wandering along the noisy streets, looking for something on a map or on our phones, arranging a meet-up or sending a postcard from a trip – we are always coming across the names of roads, side streets, and plazas. We rarely pay them much attention during the daily hustle and bustle, but among them are names that are strange, amusing, and sometimes completely incomprehensible, like, for example, dead ends, thoroughfares, and avenues named Grotesque, Winnie the Pooh, Vigor, and Embarrassment and Pun Streets. Don’t pass them by!

In Russia, for example, street names as a rule are of a purely official and strictly non-ironic nature, honoring great figures (Gagarin Square) or historical events (1905 Street) or as a last resort, named for the destination of roads and highways (Tver Street), churches (Barbara Street for the Church of St. Barbara the Great Martyr), or places where members of a certain workshop lived (Blacksmith’s Settlement), but in Poland it’s impossible not to notice the abundance of street names that would be completely unacceptable in other parts of the world!

Imagine that somewhere in the world there was a Winnie the Pooh Street (ul. Kubusia Puchatka). Can you at all? And yet there is such a street in the Polish capital. It’s not that long – only 149 meters – but it’s in the very center of the city, near the Ministry of Finance and the capital’s main artery Nowy Świat Street. You may know what Winnie the Pooh is called in Polish, but just in case, it is Kubuś Puchatek, literally 'Fluffy Jake'. Boris Zakhoder gave the Russian name to the English bear cub Winnie in the 1960s in his translation (or, more precisely, retelling) of A. A. Milne’s book. This is how Zakhoder himself wrote about it:

Text

Vinni-Pukh was not yet named Vinni-Pukh. He was called 'Winnie-the-Pooh'. And he didn’t know a word of Russian – after all, he and his friends had lived all their lives in the Hundred-Acre Wood in England. (…) But since all of them could only speak (you guessed it) English, and this is a very very difficult language – especially for those that don’t know it – I had to do something. First, I had to teach Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends to speak Russian, I had to give them – Vinni-Pukh and each and every one of them – new names (…)

Winnie the Pooh spoke Polish much earlier – his name was thought up a year before the start of the Second World War by Irena Tuwim – poet, translator, and sister of the famous poet Julian Tuwim. Everything would be fine, but… almost half a century later, after millions of Polish children became close with the homey-sounding name Kubuś Puchatek, it suddenly turned out that the bear was not a boy at all, but a girl! The fact is that the Winnie the Pooh of the stories was named after a plush toy belonging to Christopher Robin, the author’s son. And Christopher Robin had given his toy the name of a real female bear named Winnipeg (after the Canadian city), or Winnie for short, who lived in the London zoo. In addition to this, Winnie is considered to be more of a female name than a male name in English.

Having learned of this, the literary critic and specialist in American literature Monika Adamczyk-Garbowska, who was then only a student, got to work. And so in 1986, on the pages of the journal 'Poezja', Fredzia Phi-Phi made her debut. Scandal erupted across the country! 'I didn’t change the bear’s gender. I only changed her name', the translator justified herself. 'Fredzia' came from Winnifred (the full version of Winnie), and 'Phi-Phi' from 'Pooh'.

Nonetheless, in 1954, 'at the end of Stalinism, the people’s government agreed to name a street this in the very center of city! (…) Not only was the patron of the street imported from the West, he was also a teddy bear,' wrote Jaroslaw Osowski in the book Warsaw and Her Streets: The Origins of the Names.

Before World War II, there were the outbuildings of mansions here, overlooking the adjacent grand streets Nowy Świat and Świętokrzyska. Even then there were plans to turn this area into a pedestrian walkway, but these ideas were only realized after the war, when the Polish capital was rebuilt from ruins. The urban concept of a block of eight 5-story buildings and a linden-lined avenue was developed in the post-war years by Zygmunt Stępiński and his students from the Warsaw University of Technology, and the name was chosen by the readers of the newspaper 'Ekspres Wieczorny' ('Evening Express') in a vote declared by the editors.

On Tom Thumb Street

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_misie_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

Winnie the Pooh is not the only storybook character honored with its own street in the capital city. For example, in the Wawer district on the right bank of the Wisła up until recently was Little Red Riding Hood Street (ul. Czerwonego Kapturka), which interestingly enough was also named in the 1950s. It 'was' – because in November 2019, the Warsaw City Council voted to remove it from the city register due to administrative confusion:

Text

(...) although Red Riding Hood Street has been listed on the actual city plans for years, it never actually appeared. During our search for it, we even compared aerial photographs and satellite images. It was all in vain. It seems that Little Red Riding Hood has completely lost her way in the forest wilds of Wawer.

Author

Jarosław Osowski, 'Radni chcą zlikwidować ulicę Czerwonego Kapturka. Znowu dekomunizacja?' [in:] Gazeta Wyborcza 5-11-2019

The collection of fairy-tale and cartoon patrons of Warsaw streets includes Tom Thumb (ul. Tomcia Paluchia), Balbinka (ul. Balbinki, Balbinka is a character from one of the first Polish cartoons for children 'The Adventures of Gąski Balbinki' [Różne przygody Gąski Balbinki] which debuted in the late 1950s), and Jacek and Agatka (Jacek and Agatka are the main characters of a cartoon that played on Polish televisions from 1962-1973. The characters were created by the famous poet Wanda Chotomska) in Ursus, Thumbelina (ul. Calineczki) and Miś Uszatek (ul. Misia Uszatka, 'Teddy Floppy-ear' in English, is the title character from a cartoon that aired from 1975-1987) in the Białołęka district. Ursus is the name of a district on the right bank of the Wisła in Warsaw. Its history goes like this: in 1893 a group of engineers and entrepreneurs opened an industrial joint-stock company to produce valves and motors in the center of Warsaw, on Sienna Street.

Two years later, the first chapters of a book that would soon become extremely popular, were published in Warsaw’s 'Gazeta Polska' - we are talking about Henryk Sienkiewicz’s famous novel Quo Vadis, which brought him worldwide fame and the Nobel Prize in Literature. The cultured manufacturers decided to rename their enterprise 'Ursus', in honor of one of the characters in the book – Lygia’s bodyguard who was known for his extraordinary physical strength. In 1921, they bought land in the village of Ciechowice and built a 'city-developing' plant there, which many years later was famous for its tractors. The settlement was named Ursus in its honor, and since 1977, the district of Warsaw. Ursus means 'bear' in Latin, so one of the neighborhoods of Ursus was affectionately named Niedźwiadek - 'little bear'. It’s a shame we don’t give our industrial areas names like that!

The oldest street names in Warsaw are over six hundred years old. The first mentions of these streets dates back to 1415, though the names of the communities that were incorporated into the city and became districts, have existed since the 12th century. Before the familiar names of Marszałkowska, Krakowskie Przedmieście, or even Plac Konstytucji came to be, they came a long way. At first, people simply put what they saw into words.

For example, we can find the following streets in a map of Warsaw from 1667: Public Street (ul. Publiczna) runs through Freta Street ('freta' comes from the Latin 'fretha' meaning 'muddy land') and Old City Gate (Bramy Staromieyskiey) to New City Market (Rynek Nowego Miasta) and further through the Market (Rynek) to Zakroczymska Street (a medieval route to Zakroczym); Narrow Street (ul. Ciasna) from the first corner of New City Market (Rynek Nowomieyskiego) to the church of St. George on the left and the back sides of the Houses of the New City Market (ul. Doma Rynku Nowego miasta) and so on.

A note to mushroom pickers

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_grzyby_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

In the 17th century, it was not the norm to skimp on words… The Boni Ordinis (Good Order) committee put an end to this lawlessness in the second half of the 18th century, but people were so used to these descriptive names that some of them quietly found their way into official documents. And so, The Paved Street through Konwikt became ulica Konwiktorska (Konwiktorska Street). The Street Leading to Mushrooms became ulica Grzybowska, The Path from the City to Zdroj – ulica Zdrojowa. Some names were also both used for a long time: ulica Koźla / ul. Zakośna ku Franciszkanom (The Street Oblique to the Franciscans).

At the beginning of the 20th century, when street names began to be entered into documents, they were written in both Latin and Polish: Platea Dluga / ul. Długa, Platea Monachorum / ul. Mnichów, Platea Pistorum / ul. Piekarska, Platea Crziwecolo / ul. Krzywe Koło. At first, many names arose spontaneously and were based mainly on the topography of the area: ul. Żurawia (named after the Żurawka River), Dunaj (named after the stream whose mouth was located on the site of the current ul. Szeroki Dunaj. Interestingly, the word ‘dunaj’ (‘Danube’) came from Indo-European times. The Slavs would use this word for river, as well as 'big waters' in general), Nalewki (no, not after the word for ‘liqueur’, but after a river by that name), Chmielna (from a hops, 'chmiel' in Polish, plantation), Stawki (from ponds, 'staw' in Polish, in the Drina River basin), Brzozowa (from the birch trees, 'brzozy' in Polish, that grew in the cemetery at the St. Lazarus hospital, which was once on this street). The city’s fortification system is reflected in the names Podwale ('under the city wall') and Krzywe Koło ('crooked circle', the street that went around the walls). The roads that lead from the city to different parts of the world are remembered in the names (once-called) Czerskie - (now called) Krakowskie Przedmieście ('From the gates of Old Warsaw along the road leading to Czersk, which grew into an important settlement in the 14th century, and then on to Kraków' - according to the Dictionary of Warsaw City Denominations') and ulica Zakroczymska (the old road to Zakroczym).

The owners of plots of land or houses would also generously 'give' their surnames to streets: ul. Małodobrska (from the surname Małodobry), Wójtowska (from the name of the plot belonging to Voit), Wilcza (from a parcel of land belonging to a certain Wilk). And then there are names with prepositions like Ku Dolinie ('to the valley'), Pod Lasem ('under the forest'), Między Murami ('between the city walls') that have almost completely disappeared from city signage. These old names have been generally replaced by adjectives, and new ones are no longer created according to this pattern.

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_bagno_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

Sometimes this motivation can play out as a cruel joke. If you look forward to drunken fun on 'hops' street, then life of the streets of Gnojna (from 'Foul Mountain' – the city sewage dumps. This is something like Moscow’s Поганые болота, 'Filthy Swamps', but unlike their Polish counterpart, they have changed their image and have become Чистые пруды 'Clean Ponds') and Bagno (from 'swampy area') doesn’t seem as pleasant… especially when you consider that 'bagno' can also be used to mean 'demoralization' and 'corruption' in addition to meaning 'swamp'.

As the city developed through the 16th and 17th centuries, street names associated with the occupations of the people who lived on them began to appear. Representatives of various professions and monastic orders left their marks on the urban onomastics before anyone else: ul. Białoskórnicza (tanners of valuable leathers), Piekarska (bakers), Rybaki (fishermen), Tkaczy (weavers), Dominikańska (members of the Dominican Order), Franciszkańska (members of the Franciscan Order), Mnichów (monks), Rycerska (knights), Szewska (cobblers), Szynkarska ('ham' or 'pub'). Important sites and buildings often served as landmarks, and they have come down to us in the form of corresponding street names (even if the buildings themselves have not been preserved): Kościelna ('church'), Koszarna ('barracks'), Konwiktowa ('boarding school'), Mostowa ('bridge'), Fabryczna ('factory'), Apteczna ('pharmacy'), Szkolna ('school').

Walk along Peacock Street then turn off at Pelican

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_rajskich_ptakow_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

At some point over the years, apparently, all of the topographical features of the city had been immortalized in street names, and the townspeople were forced to use their imagination to name new roads. So, in the 18th century, names that were in no way related to the objects they denoted began to appear. If birch trees actually grew on Brzozowa Street, cattle actually driven along Bykowa (pl. 'byk' - eng. 'bull'), pigeons actually bred and sold on Gołębia (pl. 'gołąb' - eng. 'pigeon'), a church actually stood on Kościelna, bakers actually lived and worked on Piekarska, Ciasna was actually cramped, Krótka was actually short, and Wójtowska actually belonged to a voit, then Dębowa, Orzechowa, and Wronia no longer had anything to do with oaks, walnuts, or crows. A new type of name entered the urban onomastic – symbolic.

A whole flock of birds and animals were dispersed throughout the Warsaw register of 1770: Gęsia ('goose'), Lisia ('fox'), Pawia ('peacock'), Rysia ('lynx'), Zajęcza ('hare'). Even more flora and fauna were honored in the streets in the 20th century, in the 1950s and 1960s: Rajskich Ptaków ('bird of paradise'), Gruszy ('pears'), Jabłoni ('apple trees'), Fiołków ('violets'), Lubaszki ('damsons'), Arachidowa ('peanut'), Czapli ('herons'), Dzięcioła ('woodpecker'), Kolibrów ('hummingbird'), Pelikanów ('pelicans') and the list goes on… These years have turned out to be extraordinarily fruitful. The fact is, officials have not found a better source of inspiration for coming up with names than from… dictionary entries! And as a rule, entire blocks were devoted to a single topic from the dictionary.

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_roslinne_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

For example, in 1960 streets popped up like mushrooms after the rain in the districts of Ursynów and Wilanów: Gąsek ('yellow knight mushroom'), Kurkowa ('chantrelle'), Maślaków ('slippery jack'), Muchamora ('fly agaric'), Opieńki ('honey fungus'), Prawdziwka ('boletus'), Rydzowa ('saffron milk cap'), Trufle ('truffle'). Ursynów also became home to a 'music and dance' section: ul. Pląsy ('dance'), Walczyków (waltzes), Lambady ('lambada'), Samby ('samba'), Rumby ('rumba'), Korowodu ('circle dance'), Kadryla ('square dance'), Pięciolinii ('musical staff').

In Białołęka, they also set out to honor music, but they did so with musical instruments: ul. Perkusyjna ('percussion'), Gitarowa ('guitar'), Strunowa ('stringed'), Wiolonczeli ('cello'). On the other hand, in Bielany in the north of Warsaw, they decided to enshrine widely-known literature and writing. And thus arose the streets Groteski ('grotesque; sans-serif'), Prozy ('prose'), Poezji ('poetry'), Pergaminów ('parchment'), Ilustracji ('illustration') and the even more strange (grammatically, street names in Poland are either adjectives or possessives, however the following names are in the nominative case) Akcent ('stress; emphasis'), Samogłoska ('vowel'), Abecadło ('alphabet'), Kalambur ('pun'), Hieroglif ('hieroglyph'), Rękopis ('manuscript'), Burleska ('burlesque').

Picture display

standardowy (864px desktop)

Strange names of Warsaw streets, image: Olga Ilicheva

Picture image

dziwne_nazwy_warszawskich_ulic_taneczne_rys._olga_ilicheva.jpg

There is another important and very common category of names that is clearly missing from our list. If we take a stroll around Warsaw today, we can walk from Emilia Plater Street to John Paul II Street. We owe these 'commemorative' names in honor of significant persons, events, and institutions to the 19th and 20th centuries as well.

Text

The most striking change in the history of the system of city names occurred in the 19th century and was associated with the emergence of commemorative names. This phenomenon was known to many European cities. In Warsaw, the first commemorative name appeared in 1808 – Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was honored in this way, and his name given to the street in place of the former (until 1661) Miodowa Street. Napoleon Street existed until 1814 – writes Kwiryna Handke in her book “Dzieje Warszawy nazwami pisane” (The History of Warsaw through Written Names).

Subsequently, it was this naming convention that became one of the most popular and prestigious, and therefore the most short-lived. These names are very strongly connected with the era and the decisions of officials. The list can go on forever: Aleja Armii Ludowej (Avenue of the People’s Army) was ul. Lecha Kaczyńskiego (in honor of Polish president Lech Kaczyński) from 2017 to 2019, Aleje Ujazdowskie (avenue to Ujazdów) was Al. Marszałka Józefa Stalina (in honor of Joseph Stalin), Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenue) was Bahnhofstraße from 1941 to 1943 and Reichstraße from 1943 to 1945, and so on.

Life on Joke Street

What about streets like Boleść ('sorrow'), Dowcip ('joke'), Akurat ('exactly, just as'), Ambaras ('embarrassment'), Animuszu ('energy, vigor'), Kaprys ('whim'), Uśmiech ('smile'), Odpoczynek ('rest'), Wspomnień ('memories'), Babie Lato ('Indian summer', lit. 'old woman’s summer')? Some of these are metaphors born of real objects. What other feelings besides pain and sorrow could prisoners feel as they were led under escort to the Don Kara i Poprawy prison on Sorrow Street? Others evoke pleasant associations: ul. Dobra ('good'), Miła ('nice'), Hoża ('handsome'). These types of names are especially favored by developers of modern residential complexes.

There are also very poetic street names in Warsaw. For example, Pamiętajcie o Ogrodach ('remember the gardens') in honor of the popular song by pop singer Jonasz Kofta (there is street nearby named after him as well), Zaczarowanej Dorożki ('Enchanted Carriage') after the poem by Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński, which incidentally was translated into Russian by Joseph Brodsky, and Zielonej Gęsi ('Green Goose'), which was the name of Gałczyński’s famous absurdist 'theater', whose texts were regularly published in the literary journal 'Przekrój' from 1946 to 1950.

And yet, the contest of craziest streets name in Poland would not be won by Warsaw, but by Kraków - specifically for a street there with the meaningful name Poniedziałkowy Dół (lit. 'Monday depression'). It’s exact origin is unknown. According to one version, the street was named after the former owner of this plot of land, which features a ravine (the direct meaning of the Polish word dół is 'pit'), Pan Jozef Poniedziałek. It’s said that the residents of this street are quite happy, and even love Mondays. However, in the Polish capital there is a worthy response to the Krakovian spleen – the micro-disctrict of Piekiełko ('Hell'). What life looks like there – it’s probably better not to ask…

Sources

P.S. for the curious:

There is a whole section of linguistics that studies names and titles – onomastics. The field is relatively young, though the fact that names differ from ordinary words caught the attention of the Stoics in the 3rd century BCE. Onomastic terminology is a separate subject of admiration for anyone who opens the corresponding dictionary at least once. As befits a strict scientific discipline, it tries to classify and sort everything. So, agoronyms – proper names of squares and marketplaces, hemeronyms - titles of newspapers and magazines, drymonyms – proper names of woods and forests, chrematonyms – names for economic goods and product names, and hodonyms – names of linear objects in the city (avenue, street, lane, passage, etc.).

Translated from Russian by Kat Alberti

Language English