Women in the Contemporary Polish Streetscape : Memory Wars

Walkowiak, Justyna B.; Rutkiewicz-Hanczewska, Małgorzata

doi:2450-8462

- ris
- BibTeX
- EndNote
- Csv

Women in the Contemporary Polish Streetscape : Memory Wars Walkowiak, Justyna B.Rutkiewicz-Hanczewska, Małgorzata

Object structure

Women in the Contemporary Polish Streetscape : Memory Wars

Acta Poloniae Historica T. 128 (2023), Mnemonic Wars in Poland

Walkowiak, Justyna B. ; Rutkiewicz-Hanczewska, Małgorzata

Polska Akademia Nauk. Komitet Nauk Historycznych ; Polska Akademia Nauk. Instytut Historii im. Tadeusza Manteuffla ; Fundacja Instytutu Historii im. Tadeusza Manteuffla Polskiej Akademii Nauk

Institute of History of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Instytut Historii Polskiej Akademii Nauk

Warszawa

2023

p. 205-228

gender equality ; gender studies - Poland ; female street names ; under-representation of women

As diversity, equity and inclusion policies gain momentum in the Global North, the strikingly low visibility of women in Polish public space is being addressed not only via bottom-to-top activism but also through initiatives by local governments. This, in turn, results in controversies over the very need for gender equality in urban naming, as well as over the commemoration-worthiness of particular personages. The present paper aims to assess the changes that have taken place in Poland since the beginning of 2018, when an analysis of the 12 biggest cities revealed a persistent under-representation of women as namesakes in street naming. We offer a quantitative analysis and then focus on four selected case studies, each exemplifying one type of situation: open conflict, covert tactics, and two combinations of surface vs core values relationship.

Berg Lawrence D. and Jani Vuolteenaho (eds), Critical Toponymies: the Contested Politics of Place Naming (London–New York, 2009).
Bigon Liora and Dorcas Zuvalinyenga, ‘Urban Pulse – Gendered Urban Toponyms in the Global South: A Time for De-Colonization?’, Urban Geography, xlii, 2 (2020), 226–39.
Felecan Oliviu, ‘Feminine Names in Current Romanian Hodonymy’, Onomastica, lxv, 1 (2021), 271–87.
Gałkowski Artur, ‘Feminine Urbanonymy in Polish and Italian Linguistic Landscapes’, Lege Artis, v, 1 (2020), 2–53.
Gnatiuk Oleksiy and Victoria Glybovets, ‘“Herstory” in History: A Place of Women in Ukrainian Urban Toponymy’, Folia Geographica, lxii, 2 (2020), 48–70.
Neaga Diana Elena, ‘Doing and Undoing Gender in Urban Spaces: The University Square Bucharest’, Analize: Journal of Gender and Feminist Studies, iii, 17 (2014), 28–49.
Novas Ferradás María, ‘Commemorative Urban Practices and Gender Equality: The Case of Santiago de Compostela City’s Urban Toponymy’, Hábitat y Sociedad, xi (2018), 109–29.
Rose-Redwood Reuben, Derek Alderman, and Maoz Azaryahu (eds), The Political Life of Urban Streetscapes: Naming, Politics, and Place (London–New York, 2017).
Rusu Mihai S., ‘Gendering Urban Namescapes: The Gender Politics of Street Names in an Eastern European City’, Names, lxx, 2 (2022), 11–25.
Rutkiewicz-Hanczewska Małgorzata and Justyna B. Walkowiak, ‘Kobiety w nazwach polskich ulic nadanych w latach 2018–2022: stagnacja czy zmiana?’, Język Polski, ciii, 4 (2023), 91–108.
Sebastian Tania, ‘Invisibility of Female Street Names in India: Exploring the Intersection of Culture, Law and Social Situations’, McGill GLSA Research Series, i, 1 (2021), 1–19.
Walkowiak Justyna B., ‘Female Street Namesakes in Selected Polish Cities’, Mitteilungen der Österreichischen Geographischen Gesellschaft, clx (2018), 331–50.
Walkowiak Justyna B., ‘These Garden Squares are Made for Naming: New Onyms in Polish Urban Space’, in Oliviu Felecan (ed.), Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Onomastics “Name and Naming” (Baia Mare, 2022), 559–70.