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- Famous
- Names
- Street
- History
- Vienna
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Vienna (pte017/03.07.2013/16:05) - Historians have spent two years studying the biographies of the famous people which have leant their names to streets in the Austrian capital, Vienna.
They have looked into the street's historical connections. Their report, published today, shows that 120 names stand out.
The Dr.-Karl-Lueger-Ring was a catalyst for the research. The name was changed to Universitätsring just over a year ago on the grounds that Karl Lueger was seen as a pioneer of popular anti-Semitism in Austria.
Other controversial names such as Leopold Kunschak, Karl Renner and Ignaz Seipel were reviewed by the team of historians led by Oliver Rathkolb. The councillor in charge of culture in Vienna, Andreas Mailath-Pokorny (SPÖ), said: "From 4.500 street names of people, around three percent have historical connotations."
Mailath-Pokorny wants to stay clear of changes in street names, as was the cast for the Lueger-Ring. He said: "It's not about suddenly changing street names, but that we know which names, and particularly who is being put forward, that we know the historical link to these people."
The results of the report will be discussed with the individual districts. Possibilities then include adding information on extra plates next to the street name or on the internet. For Mailath-Pokorny, artistic interventions are also a possibility.
For the Viennese culture councillor, it's not about erasing traces of history, but about raising awareness and sharing history with the population. He is against deleting names to straighten history. On the contrary, people should know who a street is named after and what this person did for the history of the city.
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