1938 changing of place names in East Prussia

Nazi-era replacement of toponyms in East Prussia 1938 changing of place names in East Prussia Ostpreussen 1890.jpg A map of East Prussia in 1890 with many of the original place names Umbenennung von Orten in Ostpreußen im Jahr 1938 German 1938 07 16 East Prussia Geographical renaming Germanisation Prussian Ministry of Science, Education and People's Education (Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Erziehung und Volksbildung) On 16 July 1938, more than 1500 place names in East Prussia were changed, following a decree issued by Gauleiter and Oberpräsident Erich Koch and initiated by Adolf Hitler."Wolfsschanze": Hitlers Machtzentrale im Zweiten Weltkrieg Uwe Neumärker 3 Ch. Links Verlag 2007 978-3-86153-433-4 German 202 etal Most of the names affected were of Old Prussian, Lithuanian and Polish origin; they were either eliminated, Germanized, or simplified. Similar geographical renaming also took place in other parts of Nazi Germany. History Place names in Masuria were occasionally changed prior to 1938, and even before the Nazi era.Vierteljahrshefte für Zeitgeschichte 51 2 2003 'Grenzlandpolitik' und Ostforschung an der Peripherie des Reiches. Das ostpreußische Masuren 1919-1945 Andreas Kossert 117–146, here p. 137 German In the district of Lötzen 47 percent of all villages had already been renamed in the Weimar Republic and another 36 percent after 1933. A systematic renaming campaign was prepared after Koch issued the corresponding order on 25 August 1937.Vierteljahrshefte für Zeitgeschichte 51 2 2003 'Grenzlandpolitik' und Ostforschung an der Peripherie des Reiches. Das ostpreußische Masuren 1919-1945 Andreas Kossert 117–146, here p. 138 GermanThe order was republished by the Publikationsstelle Berlin-Dahlem (PuSte) and is now in the Federal German Archives (Bundesarchiv Berlin), R 153/390 https://web.archive.org/web/20110719065444/http://startext.net-build.de:8080/barch/MidosaSEARCH/R153-18329/index.htm?search=%22Erfassung%20slawischer%20Ortsnamen%20im%20deutschen%20Reichsgebiet%20und%20Pl%C3%A4ne%20zur%20Umbenennung%20dieser%20Orte%20in%20deutsche%20Namen%22&KontextFb=KontextFb&searchType=any&searchVolumes=all&highlight=true&vid=R153-18329&kid=86264eeb-e2ad-41bc-a18a-181502efb796&uid=R_153_390&searchPos=1 2011-07-19 : "Erfassung slawischer Ortsnamen im deutschen Reichsgebiet und Pläne zur Umbenennung dieser Orte in deutsche Namen", includes: Oberpräsident Ostpreußen, Königsberg, 25. 8. 1937, betr.: Verdeutschung fremdsprachiger Namen in Ostpreußen, Bezug: Erlaß des Reichs- und Preußischen Minister des Innern vom 6. 7. 1937; cf. Kossert (2003), p. 138. Following this order, the Prussian Ministry of Science, Education and People's Education (Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Erziehung und Volksbildung) set up an expert commission led by the ministerial adviser (Ministerialrat) Heinrich Harmjanz de Heinrich Harmjanz. Other members of the commission included Slavicist Karl Heinrich Meyer de Karl Heinrich Meyer (Slawist), Germanist Walther Ziesemer de Walther Ziesemer, Lithuanian and Old Prussian place name specialist Viktor Falkenhahn de Viktor Falkenhahn and the director of the Prussian State Archive Königsberg and Teutonic Order state place name specialist Max Hein de Max Hein. Affected were names of villages, water bodies, forests and cadastral districts. In some counties up to 70% of the place names had been changed by 16 July 1938. After World War II the local German populace fled or was expelled. In the part of East Prussia that was given to Poland and became the Warmian–Masurian Voivodeship the modern Polish place names were determined by the Commission for the Determination of Place Names, which generally restored the pre-1938 place names, in the case of German-origin place names without a Polish alternative simply translating them from German into Polish. In the northern part of East Prussia that was given to the Soviet Union and became Kaliningrad Oblast, no historical Russian place names could be found and the Soviet government was unwilling to restore the old Lithuanian or old Polish place names, therefore entirely new names were invented. In the case of major oblast towns, half of them were named after Russian and Soviet military leaders.No Neighbors' Lands in Postwar Europe: Vanishing Others The Prussian Spirit of the Land Wylegała Anna Łukianow Małgorzata Rutar Sabine 12 March 2023 Springer International Publishing 45–46 978-3-031-10857-0 The place names invented in 1938 by the government of Nazi Germany still remain in official use in Germany.Masuren Ostpreussens vergessener Süden Kossert Andreas 2007 :de:Andreas Kossert German 323 RM-Buch-und-Medien-Vertrieb 978-3-570-55006-9 "Diese Regelung übernahm dann die 1949 gegründete Bundesrepublik Deutschland, deren Lastenausgleichsämter, Aussiedler- und Flüchtlingslager, Rentenbehörden und Meldeämter weiterhin die germanisierten NS-Formen gebrauchten." Examples of changed place names +Pre-1938 place nameNew place namePolish spellingLithuanian spellingNotesAbscherningkenEbershagenAbszerzynkiOpšrininkaiAschlaukenKalkhöfenAszłukiAšlaukaiBabkenLagenquellBabki OleckieBabkonysModern-day Babki Oleckie, Poland.BittkowenBittkauBitkowoBitkavasModern-day Bitkowo, Gołdap County, Poland.BudweitschenAltenwachtDarkiejmyBudvaičiaiDarkehmenAngerappDarkiejmyDarkiemisModern-day Ozyorsk, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.DombrowskenKönigsruhDąbrowskieDombrovskėModern-day Dąbrowskie, Olecko County, Poland.DobawenDobauenDobawnoDobavėDubeninkenDubeningenDubeninkiDubeninkaiModern-day Dubeninki, Poland.DrosdowenDrostenDrozdowoDieveniškėsDuttkenSargenseeDudkiDudkaiElluschönenEllernPięknoeluszEliušėnaiModern-day Sadovoye, Chistye Prudy rural settlement ru Садовое (Чистопрудненский сельсовет), Russia.GermingkehmenGermingenGerminówGerminkiemisGertschenGertenauGerczynGerčiaiModern-day Yarovoye, Kaliningrad Oblast ru Яровое (Калининградская область), Russia.GollubienUnterfeldeGollubinGollubaiModern-day Golubie, Gołdap County, Poland.GrabowenArnswaldGrabowoGrabavaModern-day Grabowo, Gołdap County, Poland.Gr. GrigalischkenEllerbachWielkie GrigalinkiDidieji GrigalaiGr. RomintenHardteckRominty WielkieRomintaModern-day Krasnolesye, Russia.Gr. SchwentischkenSchanzenortWielkie ŚwenciszkiDidieji ŠventiškiaiModern-day Pugachevo, Nesterovsky District ru Пугачёво (Нестеровский район), Russia.Gr. SchakummenEichkampWielkie SzakuminyDidieji ŠakumonysKl. GrigalischkenKleinkalkhöfenMałe GrigalinkiMažieji GrigalaiKl. LassekLiebchensruhMałe LasekMažieji LasekaiKl. SchwentischkenKleinschanzenortMałe ŚwenciszkiMažieji ŠventiškiaiKowahlenReimannswaldeKowale OleckieKovalaiKrajutkehmenDürrfeldeKrajutkiemyKrajutkiemisKuikenAlbrechtsrodeKwikKuikiaiKukowenReinkentalKukowoKukovaiKulligkehmenOhldorfKulikyKulikiemisMakunischkenHohenwaldeckMakuniszkiMakūniškiaiModern-day Tokarevka, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.MehlkehmenBirkenmühleMielkinyMielkiemisModern-day Kalinino, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.MeldienenGnadenheimMeldyniaiMeldynaiMierunskenMerunenMieruniszkiMėrūniškiaiNaujeningkenNeuhufenNaujeninkiNaujininkaiModern-day Khutorskoye, Kaliningrad Oblast lt Naujininkai (Pilkalnio apskritis), Russia.NeuteichDamerauNowe StawyNaičiaiOszeningkenPfalzrodeOżynkiOžininkaiModern-day Karpinskoye ru Карпинское, Russia.PablindszenZollteichPobłędziePablindžiaiModern-day Pobłędzie, Poland.PerkallenHusarenbergPerkalinyPerkaliaiPlautzkehmenEngernPluszkiejmyPliuškemisModern-day Pluszkiejmy, Poland.PöwgallenPöwenPewgaliaPievgaliaiPillupönenSchloßbachPilupionyPilupėnaiRibbenischkenRibbenauRybieniszkiRibiniškiaiModern-day Uvarovo, Kaliningrad Oblast ru Уварово (Калининградская область), Russia.SameluckenSameln, BrückentalSamalukaiSamalukaiSamonienenGut ReiterhofSamonienySamanynaiModern-day Dokuchaevo, Kaliningrad Oblast ru Докучаево (Калининградская область), Russia.SaydenSaidenZajdyZajdaiModern-day Zajdy, Poland.SchmulkenBirkenhöheSzmulkiŠmulkeniaiSchönbruchDamerauPiękny BruchŠonbrūkasStallupönenEbenrodeStalupianyStalupėnaiModern-day Nesterov, Russia.StooßnenStosnauStożneStošnaiSuleykenSuleikenSulejkiSuleykaiModern-day Sulejki, Poland.SzittkehmenJudendorfŻytkiejmyŽydkiemisModern-day Żytkiejmy, Poland. The name literally means "Jewish village".SzurgupchenSprindortSzurgupkiŽirgučiaiTellitzkehmenTellrodeTelliczkiTelyčkiemisTollmingkehmenTollmingenTolmingianyTolminkiemisModern-day Chistye Prudy, Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia.WalterkehmenGroßwaltersdorfWalterkiemyValtarkiemisModern-day Olchovatka, Kaliningrad Oblast ru Ольховатка (Калининградская область), Russia.WilkoschenWolfseckWilkoszeVilkošiai In other regions thumb|Contemporary signboard of the German minority community centre in Sławików, Racibórz County, with the place names Bergkirch and Weidenmoor implemented in 1936 instead of Slawikau and Lassoky A similar replacement of place names was carried out in other regions of Nazi Germany, especially in Silesia. There, 1088 place names in the Oppeln region were changed in 1936, also 359 in the Breslau (Wroclaw) area and 178 in the Liegnitz (Legnica) area between 1937 and 1938. In the portion of Upper Silesia which after World War I had become part of the Second Polish Republic, most places had two locally used names, a German one and a Polish one, and after 1922, Polish authorities made the Polish variants the official names. During World War II, renaming occurred primarily in occupied/annexed territories, because the Nazi government felt that "foreign language names for places constitute a national threat and may lead to mistaken world opinion in regard to their nationality". Areas affected included Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, e.g. Upper Silesia and the area near Poznań,Monika Choros, Lucja Jarczak, "Relacje polsko niemieckie w nazwach miejscowych" (Polish-German relations in local placenames), [www.instytutslaski.com/www/pliki/relacje.ppt Instytut Slaski] and Alsace, as well as Czechoslovakia. See also German exonyms (Kaliningrad Oblast) List of cities and towns in East Prussia Notes References Changing of place names in East Prussia, 1938 Category:Gau East Prussia East Prussia Category:Politics of Nazi Germany Category:Germanisation Category:History of Kaliningrad Oblast Category:History of Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship Category:Germany–Poland relations (1918–1939) Category:Anti-Polish sentiment in Germany