Unusual place names in the Czech Republic: Discover the fascinating world of strange place names
Some places attract tourists with their historical landmarks, fame and craft traditions, whilst others draw visitors with their beautiful natural surroundings or sporting opportunities. However, there are also places with such incredible and strange names that they boggle the mind. On the Kudy z nudy website, we have created a Czech ‘strange-name dictionary’, which contains many tongue-twisters and tips for places whose names are linked to food and everything we can eat.
In this part of the series ‘Fourteen Regions & Fourteen Tips’, we will visit places with names that confuse us a little and whose meaning is often unclear, even among experts. For example, travellers can look forward to places such as Houska, Pecka, Hrob, Kost, Kůlna, Úterý, Brloh, Brambory and the legendary Rybitví, or animals – the hedgehogs of Jihlava.
1. Prague and a place called Na prádle
In the Na prádle area, you’ll find many points of interest, but you’ll also occasionally come across streets and places called Na Prádle. In Prague, specifically in Malá Strana on Říční Street, stands the Church of St John the Baptist Na prádle, and nearby, on Besední Street, is the Na Prádle Theatre. Where did this name come from? Some historians believe the name originated in ancient times, during the era of legendary Czech heroes such as Krok, Libuše, Bivoj and Šemík, but the truth is much simpler. The Church of St John the Baptist in the then village of Újezd was built around 1240, but in 1784 it was closed down by Emperor Joseph II and replaced by a laundry and carpet cleaning facility. It was renovated between 1935 and 1939 and has since served as a parish church of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church. Nevertheless, it has retained the name associated with laundry, and although there is no street called Na Prádle in Prague, this name is used for a distinctive area between Kampa, Újezd and Malá Strana – where you will find a church, a theatre, cafés, hotels and galleries.
Other curious names in Prague:
Zadní Kopanina – sounds like a place you’d definitely not want to wander into. In reality, it’s a picturesque village-like neighbourhood in Prague.
2. The Central Bohemian Region and Potatoes
In the Central Bohemian Region, you’ll find many villages whose inhabitants were once known for their gluttony. We’ll skip Mrchojedy this time and invite you, for example, to Mlékojed, Kozojed, Máslovice, Masojed and Brambory, a village between Kutná Hora and Přelouč. Their name does not derive from potatoes as a favourite food, but stems from the German name Brandenburg, from where the original inhabitants came.
Other curious place names in the Central Bohemian Region:
Onen Svět – from Onoho světa you can look out over the tourist area known as Toulava, where Lang’s Lookout Tower is situated.
Prčice – a suburb famous for its long-distance march, which has its own fan club. Did you know that this event began as a joke, with the aim of covering on foot a distance equivalent to one hundred thousand Czech cubits? With numerous participants and routes, it gradually became a serious undertaking.
3. The South Bohemian Region and New York, Paris, London, Bosnia and Venice
During your visit to the South Bohemian Region, you can travel through New York, Paris, London, Bosnia and Venice in a single day. A number of small settlements, named after famous world cities and attractive destinations, are located near Suchdol nad Lužnicí. On the Kudy z nudy website, we have put together a cycling trip for you that will take you through Little and Big London and Paris. You will also learn how these bizarre names came about and what to look out for in these places.
Other curious names in the South Bohemian Region:
Brloh – in the village of Brloh on the slopes of the Blanský Forest, you can find the romantic ruins of Kuklov Castle and Monastery. The place certainly doesn’t look like a den; rather, it strikes you as a cosy village, also known from the film: director František Vláčil shot the film *The Valley of the Bees* here in the 1960s.
4. The Plzeň Region and the town of Úterý
Roughly halfway between Plzeň and Karlovy Vary lies the small town of Úterý with its half-timbered houses and the Church of St John the Baptist. It was Úterý that inspired our article: we were looking for towns and villages named after days of the week, much like in Slovakia – Dunajská Streda, Spišský Štvrtok, Rimavská Sobota… In the Czech Republic, however, the only notable exceptions are Úterý, a town in the Plzeň Region, the village of Pátek in the Central Bohemian Region, and another Pátek, located in the Ústí nad Labem Region. Úterý got its name from a traditional weekly market, whilst the Central Bohemian Pátek was a village without regular markets. There are several explanations for its name. According to one, five families settled here and established five homesteads, and the locals called them ‘U pěti’ (At the Five). Another theory suggests that several settlements may have been established in the area at the same time, and Pátek was therefore the last, the fifth.
5. The Karlovy Vary Region and the mysterious Soos Nature Reserve
Finding a place with such a strange name as Soos is truly a rarity. You won’t find such a location anywhere else in the Karlovy Vary Region, or indeed in the whole of the Czech Republic. Its name has a foreign-sounding ring to it. The national nature reserve, situated a few kilometres from Františkovy Lázně, takes its name from a German dialect, where the words Soos (marsh), Moos (moss) or Satz (sediment) make sense.
6. Ústí nad Labem Region and the town of Hrob
No one knows why Hrob is called Hrob, but it sounds very dramatic. According to the latest census, the town in the Ústí nad Labem Region has more than two thousand inhabitants. The original German name was Grab, Hrob. In the fifteenth century, the name was changed to Klostergrab, as the town belonged to the Osek monastery at the time. The town claims that the name probably originated from silver ore mining, which is a nice story, but in Czech it simply sounds like Hrob.
Other curious names in the Ústí nad Labem Region:
Pátek – the village of Pátek is situated on the Ohře River between Louny and Libochovice. The most significant building is Pátek Castle, a magnificent Renaissance structure in the style of an Italian villa, which was later remodelled in the Baroque style and surrounded by farm buildings. You can go there on a day trip; the castle is open to the public during the season.
7. Liberec Region and Houska Castle
Just as gourmets are baffled by cat’s tongues, fish fingers or cauliflower patties, so too might day-trippers wonder whether a castle in the Liberec Region can really be called Houska? The answer is yes; Houska Castle is well known among those who visit the Mácha Region. Everyone knows it is an imposing castle, not some traditional pastry. However, inside the castle you will find a truly large stone replica of a bread roll, and beneath the castle lies the legendary ‘hole to hell’.
8. Hradec Králové Region and Pecka and Kost Castles
Alongside Houska, another recognisable landmark with a curious name is Pecka Castle, the ruins of an ancient Gothic castle which also features a large Renaissance palace in the Hradec Králové Region. Pecka was probably founded as early as the 13th century, with the first written mention dating from 1322. Its most famous owner was Kryštof Harant of Polžice and Bezdružice, who spent his final years at Pecka. But why is the castle called Pecka? Apparently after Budivoj of Pecka, who founded the castle – though that doesn’t really explain much. According to folk legends, an old witch once walked through these parts, scattering the remains of her snack around her. Wherever a bone, a bun and a stone fell, castles of the same name sprang up.
Other curious names in the Hradec Králové Region:
Kost – Few people would know of Kost and Podkost were it not for the majestic and well-preserved medieval castle of Kost. According to legend, the name originated when Jan Žižka laid siege to the castle and remarked that it was as solid as a bone, which was said to have belonged to a dog.
9. The Pardubice Region and the famous Rybitví from the Yo Yo Band song
Who hasn’t heard of the famous trio of Pičín, Kozomín and Řitka from the popular song by Yo Yo Band? These villages are located in Central Bohemia, but in the Pardubice Region you’ll find the renowned Rybitví, which features in the lyrics of this song. Once an important village situated on the banks of one of the Elbe’s tributaries, it is now part of Pardubice. It was not a place where fishing contests took place; the former name for Rybitví was Rybitew, which originates from Old Czech and means ‘fisherman’. And here you can see the birthplace of the Veverka cousins, the television inventors of the ‘ruchadlo’!
10. Vysočina, Jihlava and a town full of hedgehogs
Hedgehogs are a mystery in Jihlava. In this city, the capital of the Vysočina Region, you’ll find them in many different forms – in the city’s coat of arms, in the stained-glass windows of the town hall, an episode of the children’s TV series Večerníček featuring a hedgehog was filmed here, and there’s even a hedgehog in the name of the local beer. Although it remains unclear how hedgehogs came to be in the town, we know they have been associated with Jihlava since the 13th century, with the original name Iglawa or Iglau possibly referring to both hedgehogs and sharp stones in the river. Hedgehogs are more intriguing, however, which is why there are many legends about how they actually came to be in Jihlava.
Other curious names in the Vysočina Region:
Doupě – the village of Doupě lies near Telč. Its name comes from Old Czech and means something like ‘cosy place’, suggesting that it is surrounded by a picturesque valley.
11. South Moravian Region and Kůlna, a cave in the Moravian Karst
You surely know what happens when someone turns something into a woodshed. The Kůlna Cave in the South Moravian Region looks neither like a woodshed nor a shed. The tour ends at the Sloupsko-šošůvské Caves, where archaeologists have discovered some of the most complete evidence of Palaeolithic settlement in Central Europe. You can find this ‘woodshed’ that doesn’t look like a woodshed in the northern part of the Moravian Karst, near the village of Sloup.
12. The Zlín Region and the noisy inhabitants of the town of Hluk
Did the town of Hluk in the Zlín Region get its name from the Okluky stream, from Lucký Field, or from the noisily swirling water in the local streams and rivers? Another theory suggests that its inhabitants kept such a close watch on their surroundings that, when danger threatened, they would light fires on hilltops and make a huge racket to warn the local people. Whatever the origin, Hluk has weathered the storm and now makes creative use of its name in various events and advertising slogans. For example, you can visit the Dolňácké slavnosti festival with its traditional Ride of the Kings, which takes place in Hluk once every three years (2025), at the end of June and beginning of July.
13. The Olomouc Region and the secrets of the city of Olomouc
In the Olomouc Region, the place with the strangest name is the regional capital, Olomouc. At Kudy z nudy, we know that it is a university town and the historical centre of Haná, that it has several slang names such as Olomóc, Holomóc, Olmik and Olm, and also that the German name for the town was Olmütz. In Kosmas’s Chronicle, it appears as Olomuc, Olomuz and Olomucz, and in the 12th century it was referred to as Olmjzz and Almjzz. However, it is difficult to say what the name really means. The book The Origin of Geographical Names states that the name Olomouc probably derives from the personal name Olmút. But nowhere do we learn who this mysterious Olmút was, whether he ever lived at all, and whether the name Olomouc conceals something entirely different. But what could that be?
14. The Moravian-Silesian Region and Freud’s Birthplace, Příbor
Příbor is not just a word for the cutlery we use for eating, but also a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region. How did its strange name come about? Spoons, knives and forks have nothing to do with it: it is possible that the name Příbor has German origins (Vriburch or Freiberg), but it could also mean ‘cutlery’ or ‘předbor’, which carries the meaning of ‘a place by a pine forest’. Příbor is also known as the hometown of the psychologist and physician Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), the founder of psychoanalysis. The town commemorates him with his birthplace, a bust, and also Freud’s couch, which is a life-size sofa on which this renowned psychologist treated his patients. Note: it is made of copper, so you probably won’t find it very comfortable to lie on.
