Name change: “Fucking” becomes “Fugging”

It is and never has been the most popular place name: Fucking. Now it should finally be history in Austria. Because as it became known on Wednesday, the municipal council decided to change the name. From January 1, 2021, “Fugging” will be read on the town signs.

Actually, Fucking is a small part of the municipality of Tarsdorf in the Innviertel. For years, however, the name has heated people’s minds, as it mutates in English into a swear word with an erotic background.

Request of the population

The population no longer put up with that, they submitted a request for a name change. And this was approved. “The local council has decided to rename the village of Fucking to the locality name Fugging with effect from 01/01/2021” can be read in the communal announcement.

With that, the international fame of the place has probably ended. Because tourists visited the place again and again to snap a photo in front of the sign. Some were not satisfied with this and took the whole board with them, which is why it was cast in concrete.

In the future, the residents will probably no longer have to pay such meticulous attention to the blackboard.

The controversial name has a long tradition. Fucking has been documented since 1070 and can probably be derived from an Adalpert von Vucckingen, who lived in the region in the 11th century. The suffix -ing is a common ending for place names in the Bavarian language area. Incidentally, the village is still listed as Fuking on a folder from the 19th century.

There is also a name colleague in Lower Austria. Namely Fugging, a district of Obritzberg-Rust in the St. Pölten-Land district. In the Middle Ages, around 1195, the place was still mentioned as Fucking. The name change came here much earlier than in Upper Austria. By 1836, Fucking had already become Fugging.