Weird Wednesdays on Urban Planet takes a look at obscure, absurd, and curious things about cities around the world.
It’s been in international headlines throughout the past few weeks over false reports that it will be changing its name, but this tiny Austrian hamlet has been “Fucking” (or close to it) since the Dark Ages.
Nestled right near the Austrian-German border, Fucking is home to just over 100 residents. It’s credited as being named after a Bavarian noble named Focko who lived in the area during the 6th century (-ing being an old Germanic suffix meaning “people of”). The first documentation of the settlement was in 1070, when it was called Vucchingen. The next mention, two decades later, was of the local lord, Adalpertus de Fucingin. The name evolved to Fukching in 1303, then Fugkhing in 1532, with the current spelling taking over in the 18th century.
The community got its first international attention during World War II as British and American soldiers had their pictures taken beside the four traffic signs, which simply read “Fucking.” British tourists have become very popular in last half century and are notorius for taking lewd photographs and even stealing the signs. The community recently replaced the signs with welded steel and concrete ones to deter theft. While the taxpayers weren’t happy with constantly replacing the old (costing €300 each), it did make for some unintentionally funny quotes from local officials:
“We will not stand for the Fucking signs being removed. It may be very amusing for you British, but Fucking is simply Fucking to us. What is this big Fucking joke? It is puerile.”
However, it seems the community does also embrace its English meaning. Starting in 2008, Fucking has been home to the Festival of the Fuck Bands, a gathering of similarly-named bands from all over the world.
photo by gemskiii
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