I've always been interested to know what the names of some of these vernichtungslager mean if translated into English...a few seem obvious:
Auschwitz - The German transliteration of the Polish city of Oswiecim
(But does Birkenau or Monowitz mean anything?)
Nordhausen - North Houses
But what of the others, such as:
Mauthausen, Sachsenhausen (What kind of houses?)
Ravensbrück (My initial thought is "Raven's Brook", but it can't be that easy, can it? )
Bergen-Belsen
Buchenwald
Dachau
Theresienstadt (I know stadt = city)
Neuengamme ... New...?
Natzweiler
Majdanek - This doesn't sound German....sounds like it's the name of the town where it was located...in Poland, I think
Sobibor (Same as above...doesn't sound German....)
Ohrdruf
etc...if you can think of any others, just add 'em
Vielen dank
-Bryan
Concentration camps
Mauthausen
Maut = toll (toll levy in Mauthausen harbor since 904)
Sachsenhausen
Sachsen = Saxons
Buchenwald
Buchen = beech trees; Wald = forest
Dachau
is first mentioned as Dahauua in 805, which means lehmige Au = clayey meadow
Theresienstadt
in czech Terezín, was created in 1780 by Joseph II as a fortress, who named it after his mother Maria Theresia
Maut = toll (toll levy in Mauthausen harbor since 904)
Sachsenhausen
Sachsen = Saxons
Buchenwald
Buchen = beech trees; Wald = forest
Dachau
is first mentioned as Dahauua in 805, which means lehmige Au = clayey meadow
Theresienstadt
in czech Terezín, was created in 1780 by Joseph II as a fortress, who named it after his mother Maria Theresia
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Re: Concentration camps
gokyu wrote:I've always been interested to know what the names of some of these vernichtungslager mean if translated into English...a few seem obvious:
Auschwitz - The German transliteration of the Polish city of Oswiecim
(But does Birkenau or Monowitz mean anything?)
Nordhausen - North Houses
But what of the others, such as:
Mauthausen, Sachsenhausen (What kind of houses?) houses of the saxons sachsen is also a german "bundesstaat"= province dresden is most famous and was the place of the king in the former kingdom of sachsen also leipzig saxons form an old german people in antiquity
Ravensbrück (My initial thought is "Raven's Brook", but it can't be that easy, can it? ) brücke means bridge
Bergen-Belsen bergen means mountains in germany a hill is a mountain have been there its rather flat but the city has very old houses
Buchenwald wald is wood buchen is a sort of trees, look in your dictionary
Dachau
Theresienstadt (I know stadt = city) theresia is a women name, the most famous is queen maria theresia from austria about 1700
Neuengamme ... New...?
Natzweiler
Majdanek - This doesn't sound German....sounds like it's the name of the town where it was located...in Poland, I think
Sobibor (Same as above...doesn't sound German....)
Ohrdruf
etc...if you can think of any others, just add 'em
Vielen dank
-Bryan
Re: Concentration camps
The names are simply names of cities.gokyu wrote:I've always been interested to know what the names of some of these vernichtungslager mean if translated into English...a few seem obvious:
So the names are not related to a concentration camp or its purpose.
If you want to know why the german citeies have these names, well, I can't help you, most of the cities names root in the regional dialect, so I just could speak for Franken
Re: Concentration camps
Birkenau is the german name for polish Brzezinka. It's the name of a village close to Auschwitz. Same for Monowitz - Monowice.gokyu wrote: Auschwitz - The German transliteration of the Polish city of Oswiecim
(But does Birkenau or Monowitz mean anything?)