Anna Lindhs Plats ‘Anna Lindh Place’: the story of an urban commemorative name1

Staffan NYSTRÖM

Commemorative names in Stockholm and elsewhere In April 2006 the Name-Drafting Committee in Stockholm (hereafter referred to as NDC) suggested a name for a park in the district of Hökarängen. The name was created within an already existing local, name category. However, politicians in the City Planning Committee referred this suggestion back to the NDC with the comment: ‘The City Council has decided to call streets and parks after a series of deserving persons. The NDC is instructed to resubmit a suggestion for naming the park in Hökarängen after such a person, or a different name asso- ciated with the place, that the NDC considers suitable’. This is just one of many examples from recent years, where the NDC has been recommended to produce a commemorative name of some sort, giving us the chance to revise and update the ‘waiting list’ which already exists. Commemorative naming is a frequent and delicate task for the NDC, and thus for me, as its secretary. Some naming suggestions are unreservedly recommended for rejection. But a considerable number of persons have already been commemorated by a name—more or less successfully—and others wait their turn in a large and motley com- pany. Over a hundred persons who have been suggested for com- memorative names in Stockholm, have not (as yet) received any. In recent years, requests for new commemorative names have been complicated by requirements for increased gender equality in the naming process. Three members of the City Planning Committee wrote in a directive to the NDC in 2004 that ‘today’s work in eliminat- ing formal and structural distinctions based on gender should also be reflected in the work of the NDC’. The NDC thus was asked to submit

1 This article is a translated and slightly revised version of an article published in Swedish in Ortnamnssällskapets i Uppsala årsskrift 2007, 71–86. Uppsala.

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‘a proposal showing how gender equality could be improved even in the naming of streets and the like’. It is clear from this directive that those who signed it desired to restrict the gender question to com- memorative names, that is place-names based on personal names, as opposed to names that contained profession, dress, activity or any thing else which could be considered gender-related. In its comment to this directive, the NDC asked the City Plan- ning Committee how they should act in relation to previous man- dates from the City Council and from the residents of Stockholm. Considering how few new street names based on personal names can be established each year, it is a difficult and long drawn out task to abide by the City Council’s demand that certain specific persons, primarily men, should be commemorated by name at the same time as prioritising women. No answer of guidance has yet been received by the NDC. It might be appropriate to mention here the UN-resolution on commemorative names, adopted in Berlin 2002, by the almost one hundred member states (including Sweden) who actively partake in the UN’s work on place-names. The complete text reads as fol- lows:

UN Resolution VIII/2 Commemorative naming practices for geo- graphical features The Conference, • Noting that the use of names of persons or events to designate fea- tures for commemorative purposes or as geographical reminders con- stitutes an active practice, • Recognizing that the attribution of a personal name to a geographical feature during the lifetime or shortly after the death of a person is a widespread practice, • Recalling that, during a meeting of 1960, the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names acknowledged that naming or renaming of a geographical feature to include the name of a living person could be a source of problems, • Recognizing that this practice is generally disadvantageous, as this type of designation is subject to subsequent changes not recom- mended by the Conference, • Noting that little guidance exists on the practice of adopting a personal name during the lifetime or shortly after the death of a person,

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1) Recommends that the appropriate national authorities discourage the use of personal names to designate a geographical feature during the lifetime of the person in question; 2) Also recommends that the appropriate national authorities include in their guidelines clear statements on the length of the waiting period they wish to establish before using a commemorative name.

A fundamental aim of the resolution can be understood as a reduction in the use of commemorative names in general, and—even if not stated outright—special focus is placed on some aspects of this naming prac- tice: to prevent political and commercial exploitation (or the opposite) of famous persons, and to counteract emotionally steered, opportunistic or generally over-hasty naming decisions. In the resolution it is therefore recommended that the individual states should strive to prevent the use of commemorative names for persons still living, and also strive to estab- lish a nationally determined ‘quarantine’ period, i.e. the period of time that must elapse before a deceased person’s name can be used to name a geographical feature. In Sweden the Place-Name Advisory Board, fol- lowing the UN-resolution, has submitted a written recommendation to all city councils to enforce a quarantine period of 3–5 years.

A naming process in reverse Why is commemorative naming so troublesome? Why are naming agencies in Stockholm and elsewhere in the world so stubborn and intractable? Well, naturally it can be difficult to choose among all the potential and suggested persons. While many are certainly deserving, some must be given priority. In the handbook on Stockholm’s street names (Stahre & al. 2005, 24–25) eight ‘conditions’ for commemorative naming were formulated, which the NDC has long followed in its work. Some of these are rather easy to apply while others are far from self- evident. The seventh condition, for example, states that the persons con- cerned shall be worthy of having a street named after them. Naturally this must be tested from case to case. It is not possible to formulate any binding criteria. Subjective judgements cannot be excluded. A general requirement that may surely be accepted is that, when the naming takes place, the person in question is so well known, that the general public does not need an immediate explanation as to the choice of name.

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As a ninth condition one could demand that the proposed person has some form of association with the place. This is a criterion which is not specifically formulated in Stahre & al. 2005, but which is often justifiably referred to in discussions about commemorative names (cf. further below). But the fundamental problem with commemorative names lies for the most part in the fact that the usual name-giving situation is back-to-front. All natural naming concerns a feature (a street, a square, a park, etc.) that requires a name. In the case of commemorative names, it is precisely the opposite: a name is suggested which needs a place, and preferably a special or at least a worthy one. No other naming process functions in this way; not even in the case of freely invented urban names. The commemorative name procedure in Stockholm usually begins with a sponsor, be it an organization, a politician, or a private citizen, wishing to honour the memory of a person by having a street or place named after him or her. The arguments put forward are usually lengthy and persuasive. The person’s merits are described with great enthusi- asm. The NDC is commissioned to find a suitable place that can bear the desired name. But, in today’s heavily built-up environment, most features needing names already have one. This leaves us with three options in principle—besides the possibility of directly dismissing the suggestion: (1) to place the person on a waiting list and trust that a suitable object will turn up in connection with new development and building enterprises; (2) to search for an unnamed feature and give it the commemorative name; (3) to replace an older name with the pro- posed new name. All options carry inconveniences and difficulties. In the first option—to wait—the time aspect is uncertain: it is not known when a suitable place will become available, which creates impatience and disappointment for the name’s advocate. If a site need- ing a name does finally appear through some new development, any connection between it and the person on the list will be purely random. This is never really successful, and is in fact even more unsuitable in the case of individual commemorative names, than in the case of groups of people within a naming category who are to be kept within the same area. Ideally, the person who is being commemorated has a direct con- nection to the street in question, by having lived or worked there. These conditions are the most typical and easiest to pursue. My own experi- ence of people’s attitudes towards, and knowledge of commemorative

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names, says this is how most are interpreted. When we see a street or park containing a personal name, we often take it for granted that there is a real connection of some sort, and we enquire what it is. We look for logic behind names. As a name-giver it is hard for me to deviate from this principle of association, and locate a person’s name where he or she has no connection, simply because a certain name must be created, and a location must be found where it can be used. In the second option—where an unnamed feature needs a name—it is easy to find oneself in locations that are either peripheral, or of such low worth that they were previously not considered to need naming at all: small open areas, walks, park sections, green areas or other sites, that in the view of many do not have parity with the person who is to be remembered. The naming process that was intended to be an honour has the opposite effect instead. In the third option—to replace an older name with the new—one often finds oneself in direct conflict with the people or businesses at a well-established address; as also with the stipulation in the Swedish Heritage Conservation Act concerning place-names that says that ‘place-names established by long usage shall not be changed without good cause’. It is also found that suggested commemorative names don’t often comply with another provision in the Heritage Conserva- tion Act, namely that ‘place-names shall be spelled in accordance with generally accepted rules for linguistic correctness’. The problem here is that Swedish personal names are not covered by rules for linguistic correctness, but on the contrary show a tendency for old-fashioned, embellished or personalized spelling. Thus, it is extra difficult to make street names that include personal names comply with the basic demand that they should be easy to understand, pronounce and write. So, the naming of streets and squares after people is a sensitive and complicated matter. Many have questioned whether an abundance of commemorative names really benefits the naming process in the main, or the people and society who use these names. There are after all other ways of honouring a person’s memory: a sign, an art work, and so on—why not some form of sculpture or memorial on the ground? This would provide an opportunity to commemorate deserving persons in a relatively uncomplicated but highly visible way. Good examples exist in many places elsewhere in the world, e.g. in Vienna, where the names of a series of great composers can be viewed by thou- sands of people every day in the central pedestrian street (Fig. 1).

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Fig. 1. A memorial to Johan Strauss (the Elder) in the the central pedestrian street, close to Wiener Staatsoper,Vienna, an alternative to commemorative place names worth considering.

The case of Anna Lindh Sweden’s Foreign Minister Anna Lindh died on September 11, 2003, after a knife attack in the department store NK, in central Stockholm. She had been highly appreciated, well known—even renowned—and admired by many, at home and abroad, both as a person and as a pro- fessional woman. She was known generally as a positive, competent, and enterprising person. It is not surprising that soon after her death a series of suggestions and proposals were made, purporting that some- thing in Stockholm should carry her name to honour her memory and achievements. The first question that the NDC had to consider did not cause any problems: did Anna Lindh fulfil the usual naming standards applied by the city for commemorative purposes? Does she, and her name, have the factual and linguistic qualifications which are demanded to secure a commemorative placement?

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The second question that the NDC considered was whether Anna Lindh had sufficient connection with Stockholm or with a specific place in Stockholm, in accordance with the ninth condition mentioned above. How should one view the demand concerning connection? I will here take the liberty of citing myself from a previous article on this topic (Nyström 2003, 18–19): If we disregard names that emerge spontaneously, we can discern several variants in the decision-making process leading to the choice of personal names as street names. The person may have a direct connection to the street/place in question by having lived or worked there. The most typical and easiest to accommodate commemorative names are of this sort. Ideally there is an appropriate person who has an appropriate association with an appropriate location that lacks a name. But the person may also qualify while completely lacking any association to the street/place in question, on the grounds of general suitability. This is the case for example with Raoul Wallenberg at Uppsala central station. The grounds for using a person’s name in such cases are much weaker. Finally, the person may lack associa- tion with the street/place in question, but belong to a category of persons who have been used in place-naming there. The rationale then is purely that the category exists and that the person is suitable. Association to the location or area is otherwise not necessary or relevant. Thus a large group of well-deserving persons from a suit- able category would give a somewhat better support to naming a place after Raoul Wallenberg in Uppsala. In Stockholm—the capital city of Sweden—one might say that the world-famous Wallenberg belongs almost anywhere, and in his case, other types of ‘memorials’ caused much more discussion and indignation than did the name Raoul Wallenbergs Torg. According to this reasoning, one may say that a person of Anna Lindh’s distinction belongs anywhere in (at least the heart of) Swe- den’s capital city. Even if one wished it, no direct association to a specific central place is needed for it to be given her name. But the further one goes towards the periphery, towards the outer city bound- aries, or even further into other municipalities; then the more impor- tant becomes the need for direct association. Anna Lindh in central Stockholm would be much easier to accept than Anna Lindh in a sub- urban district or in far away towns in the South or in the North.

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A third question to consider, especially with the above-mentioned UN-resolution in mind, was finally: how can the NDC ensure that polit- ical quarreling, and bickering in the media, regarding their naming choice, be avoided? How can the NDC ensure that, with hindsight, a less successful choice is not passed as a result of ‘public agitation’?

Received suggestions and ideas By the end of 2003 a dozen more or less well-motivated suggestions had already come in for consideration regarding a place in Stockholm that could be named after Anna Lindh. An additional question was the name form itself. In the following, I wish to present in a rather specific fashion how the NDC was forced to reason on the basis of the sugges- tions and more vague ideas that were presented. The suggestions are not ranked and the descriptions of decisions FOR and AGAINST only show how such arguments usually are, or could possibly be, used. The numbers 1–8 in brackets after the suggestions correspond to the num- bers used on the map (Fig. 2).

Medborgarplatsen to change name (1) In November 2003 this was the suggestion that had the greatest polit- ical ‘weight’, and was the only one that the NDC had to take into consideration at its December meeting. In a written statement from the then mayor of Stockholm Annika Billström, the City Planning Com- mittee was encouraged ‘to investigate the possibility of renaming Medborgarplatsen [‘Citizen Square’] after Anna Lindh’. No specific name was submitted on Billström’s part, and the NDC was merely asked to reject or sanction a name change as such, though in the case of the latter to possibly suggest a specific alternative. The place-name Medborgarplatsen (known colloquially as Medis) was approved in 1940, when it had already been in general use for a considerable time—a not irrelevant example of established usage. While the name was certainly much debated when it arose2, it has now

2 The square already had a name Södra Bantorget ’Southern Railway Square’ estab- lished already in 1876, a name that many people wanted to keep. Secondly, the word place had not been used in the city’s toponyms before, it felt strange and wasn’t accepted by everyone.

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Fig. 2. Map showing the central parts of Stockholm with the eight sites 1–8 discussed below: 1–6 in Södermalm, 7–8 in other places.

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existed for more than 60 years, and should be considered to be firmly embedded as one of the most well-known among central place-names on Södermalm (see Fig. 2), and in the whole of the inner city of Stock- holm. This speaks very strongly AGAINST any name change here. Alter- ing a name that is so established and which of itself causes no prob- lems is hardly a witness to ‘good place-naming practice’ but rather an offence against the Heritage Conservation Act, which specifically states that well-established names shall not be changed without strong cause. Another argument AGAINST this name-change—if one is still in doubt—is the fact that this is by no means the only possibility for commemorating Anna Lindh by name in Stockholm. To replace the name Medborgarplatsen with one commemorating Anna Lindh would secure Anna Lindh’s memory in one of the maxi- mally central and visible places in the city, which can speak in FAVOUR of the suggestion, but would most likely go against the wishes of the people, and this speaks in its DISFAVOUR. In a simple web-based ques- tionnaire organized by the newspaper Dagens Nyheter, 75 % of the over 20,000 participating persons claimed that they would not like to change the name of Medborgarplatsen. Anna Lindh had no direct association with Medborgarplatsen other than that it was the place where she made her last public appearance and also that she once lived for a while in Södermalm. In view of the above facts and arguments, the NDC decided at its meeting in December 2003 to turn down the suggestion of changing the name of Medborgarplatsen.

Åsötorget to change name (2) One proposer objected strongly to changing the name of Medborgar- platsen and gave as an alternative ‘the promised new site development of Skatteskrapan (‘Tax Scraper’—the tax-office skyscraper) and the cheerless square, Åsötorget’, on the grounds that we would then at least be in the correct district of the city. Certainly the location off Götgatan in central Södermalm can be seen as an argument FOR this site. The name Åsötorget (‘Åsö Square’) was approved in 1941, which makes it roughly the same age as Medborgarplatsen and thus pro- tected because of established usage. This could speak AGAINST a name change here. However, Åsötorget—unlike Medborgarplatsen—is a compound name containing the already existing place-name Åsön

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‘Ridge Island’; the older name for Södermalm, and it is chiefly on the basis of this original name, that the established nature and preservation status of the name must be assessed. If Åsötorget changed name, the place-name Åsön would still survive in e.g. Åsöberget ‘Åsö Hill’ and Åsögatan ’Åsö Street’ (both names approved in 1885). This seriously weakens an objection on the grounds of it being a name that must be protected. Even among politicians a desire was expressed in the beginning of 2004 to link Anna Lindh’s name with Åsötorget. When the City Planning Committee considered and remitted the NDC’s conclusion to the City Council concerning Billström’s suggestion (see above), it was suggested that the NDC investigate the alternative possibility of renaming Åsötorget after Anna Lindh. However the future of Åsötor- get and its immediate environs at Skatteskrapan was at that time still uncertain. In the NDC’s view, before the suggestion could be exam- ined seriously, the intended scope and form of the site development needed to be established and the site assessed as a suitable location. This was not possible at that time.

Metartorget to change name (3) The relatively newly named Metartorget ‘Anglers’ Square’ off Metar- gatan in Södermalm was examined as a possibility. This square is small, unknown and relatively modest, and furthermore had only recently (2003) had its name Metartorget approved by the City Coun- cil, a fact the proposer was most likely unaware of. This would speak AGAINST a name change. On the other hand the same reasons meant that there was no strong case for arguing AGAINST this name change on the grounds of established usage in accordance with the Heritage Conservation Act. In FAVOUR of Anna Lindhs Torg being just here, is possibly the fact that we are in Södermalm, her own city district in a sense, and that to change the name of Metartorget in itself would be relatively uncontroversial and uncomplicated.

Part of Katarina Bangata to change name (4) The section of the street Katarina Bangata ‘Katarina [parish] Railway Street’ south of Ringvägen could change its name. The section lies in the parish of Sofia—that part of Södermalm where Anna Lindh had

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once lived, and this association could be seen as an argument FOR this suggestion. In addition, the proposer pointed out that this actual part of the street never had been a ‘bangata’ (a railway street), i.e. no train tracks had run parallel to or along this stretch of road. The street is divided into two distinct parts where Ringvägen crosses it, and these parts could well have separate names. Such an argument is already known from other cases where new names are proposed for ‘individ- ual’ sections of streets, which was seen by the proposer as an argu- ment in FAVOUR of this suggestion. The name Katarina Bangata was approved during the great name revision in Stockholm in 1885. The section in question is c. 300 metres long and is lined on one side by houses with street numbers 55–79 and on the other side by a park and some houses together numbered no. 80. The street ends at Vintertullstorget (see below). The greater part of Katarina Bangata would thus remain unaltered in this name change, but a large number of people and house addresses would be affected, which speaks AGAINST this name change. The street name would have its meaning altered (even if a large section remained totally unchanged) and since we are dealing with an old and established name, this change would require approval in accordance with the Heritage Conservation Act. Does sufficiently strong cause exist for changing this street name?

Vintertullsparken to change name (5) Vintertullsparken ‘Winter Toll-Station Park’ is a park in the southeast- ern extremity of Södermalm and received its name in 1979, at the same time as its companion square, Vintertullstorget. It is thus a rather young and not so established name, which speaks FOR being able to replace it with another name. In addition—in accordance with the reasoning above concerning Åsötorget—one can refer to the fact that the primary name (and object) ‘Vintertullen’ is already anchored in the name Vin- tertullstorget and in the block names Vintertullen and Vintertullen Min- dre, which further weakens any conservation requirement for the name Vintertullsparken. This also speaks in FAVOUR of a possible name change of the park. A third argument which might be FOR choosing this site, is that we are here close to where Anna Lindh once lived. A fourth argument FOR is naturally that the name Vintertullsparken is not used at all in any house address. AGAINST a name change however, is its

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rather peripheral situation, far from any central locations and far from the crowds, city buzz, internationalism, powers that be, tourists and visitors to Stockholm. Vintertullsparken is a place that only the local residents pass through. It must be sought out intentionally. Is that really how we want Anna Lindh’s memory to live on?

Färgargårdstorget to change name (6) Färgargårdstorget ‘Dyers’ House/Farm Square’ where Anna Lindh lived for a while, lies just north of Vintertullsparken on Södermalm and offers a direct and personal association with Anna Lindh. This is a very firm basis for any naming and can be used as a strong argument FOR this site and FOR changing the square’s name. The place-name Fär- gargårdstorget is relatively young: it was approved in 1979, which means that the Heritage Conservation Act statutes concerning estab- lished usage are not so applicable here. The dyers’ activities to which the name refers are already well represented in the block name Fär- gargården ‘Dyers’ House’ and its surviving row of houses from the 1740’s. Immediately to the north lies Färgarplan (Dyers’ Square), approved in 1968. Thus, a name change for the square would not create any great threat to the traces of the cultural-historically important dyer activity in the area. This opens up the way FOR a name change here. AGAINST this name change however is the fact that many proper- ties and people would be forced to change address if the name Fär- gargårdstorget disappeared. Also AGAINST this site, is its rather periph- eral location, as argued above for Vintertullsparken.

New name for a square in Hammarby Sjöstad (7) It was suggested that a planned but as yet not built square immediately north of Sickla Udde in Hammarby Sjöstad (a stylish new dockland apartment village) should be named after Anna Lindh. That no loca- tion at all—old or traditional, or young and newly named—would thus be required to change its name, is an argument in favour of this prop- osition. Against this however is the fact that Anna Lindh completely lacks any association with Hammarby Sjöstad (cf. above) and that the site is still only in the planning stage. How will the square look? When will it be ready? What other uncertainties exist? How long can a future name be allowed to stay in ‘quarantine’?

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New name for avenue in Kungsträdgården (8) One of the avenues (Sw. allé) in Kungsträdgården has been suggested for Anna Lindh’s name. Since 1998 the western avenue has borne the name Jussi Björlings Allé (after the famous tenor). The eastern avenue, which was dug up in 2003 in order to plant 300 new lime trees, lacks a name. That no location would need to change its existing name is, as in the case of Hammarby Sjöstad, an argument in FAVOUR of a new name here. But—not that this is formulated anywhere—this avenue, like Jussi Björlings Allé, leads up to the Opera House, and should perhaps be reserved for another great opera personality.3 This would argue AGAINST placing Anna Lindh’s name here. The avenue also lies close to the scene of her murder, which could give her name a certain local connection. It is however open for discussion whether or not one should be reminded of Anna Lindh just here.

One site crystallizes In February 2004, the City Planning Committee commissioned the NDC to ‘investigate the suitability of naming a new square’ after Anna Lindh beside Skatteskrapan in the Gamen block on Södermalm. The NDC had already noted this environment as one of several potential sites for a name in her honour (one of the above suggestions), but raised objections once again to the uncertainty surrounding the future appearance of Åsötorget and the area at Skatteskrapan. The committee discussed the matter in June 2004, and decided once again to wait. Two years passed. In May 2006, the question became relevant once more, as a result of a request from the city officials for a definitive answer from the NDC before the summer. The NDC reiterated its doubt from 2004 but added: The Name Drafting Committee does not wish to object to a square in the Gamen block being given Anna Lindh’s name, but presumes that in that case, the place will be built in such a way as suits the honour of the person commemorated. However the Name-Drafting

3 In May 2006—a few years after these dicussions—the name Birgit Nilssons Allé was decided by the City Council and located here, commemorating the greatly renounced soprano Birgit Nilsson (1918–2005).

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Committee would rather see that Vintertullsparken changed its name to Anna Lindhs Park. The park lies farthest out to the southeast on Södermalm, close to what was once Anna Lindh’s home.

The NDC had now moved towards one of the earlier suggestions but recommended another. However it turned out that the family of Anna Lindh did not support the naming in the proximity of her home, so the idea for a park name at Vintertullen failed. In September 2006 the matter was taken up anew by the NDC but postponed. Not until its final meeting on October 31, 2006, could the NDC present a final suggestion for the name.

NDC’s proposal—an old naming element is honoured anew At the beginning of the October meeting the NDC discussed the pos- sibility of a more general use of the generic plats ‘place’ in Stockholm names. Despite the fact that it occurs profusely in many other parts of the country, there has long—for no clear reasons—been an internal opposition, indeed distancing, to this element. Medborgarplatsen, which is mentioned above, is the only name now used in Stockholm with this generic. A few other names with -plats(en) (-en is a definite article in Swedish) existed previously but were abandoned. In Sweden -plats-names have existed from the middle of the 19th century—such as those in Göteborg (Kungsportsplatsen), Lund (Tegnérsplatsen) and Visby (Donners plats). Today plats is found in close to 300 urban addresses spread over at least 70 of the country’s municipalities—from Trelleborg in the south to Kalix in the north— including larger cities such as Borås, Gävle, Halmstad, Kristianstad, Linköping, Malmö, Norrköping, Umeå, Uppsala and Växjö; and sev- eral municipalities in the proximity of Stockholm, such as Järfälla (Riddarplatsen), Sollentuna (Ted Gärdestads plats), Solna (Sofia Magdalenas plats) and Upplands Väsby (Afrodites plats) to mention just a few. In addition to these may be added place-names containing the element plats which are not used as addresses, e.g. names for minor parks, enclosed areas, and other open ground. As can be seen from these examples, plats occurs as an element or as a separate word in names of various structures: Granitplatsen in Halmstad, Nils Eric- ssonplatsen in Göteborg, Henrik Sjögrens plats in Jönköping. It is very common for -plats-names to be commemorative.

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In Göteborg, where the element plats occurs most abundantly, it is often used synonymously with, indeed often instead of torg ‘(market) square’ or plan ‘open space, square, field’. Sometimes it is used for a smaller type of site, which in Stockholm approximates best to park ‘park’ or täppa ‘patch, garden’. Sometimes hörna ‘corner’ is even closer. A useful advantage of the element plats ‘place’ in an urban context is, in my view, that it can be given a very broad defini- tion: ‘a (more or less) open space or area (of unspecified character and size)’. At certain times, the Stockholm municipality prints a list of the city’s newly appointed names. The latest was entitled Gator Allmänna Platser Kvarter i Stockholm 2007 ‘Streets, Public Places and Blocks in Stockholm 2007’. Here the term plats ‘place’ has exactly this open-ended and broader meaning. Everything that is not a street or block falls under the term ‘public place’ and therein lies, in my view, the strength of this naming element. An active use of the naming-element plats ‘place’, within Stockholm’s great variety of names, would thus not replace the currently used generics for ‘cor- ner’, ‘square’, ‘terrace’, ‘market’, etc., but would provide a useful complementary term, and a further alternative in situations where none of the other naming elements seem natural, or where a choice between them is difficult. Based on the above argument, NDC decided—66 years after the creation of the name Medborgarplatsen—to reopen the possibility that suitable locations in Stockholm might be allocated names containing the naming element plats ‘place’. Following this decision of principle, the NDC turned to discuss- ing a name to commemorate Anna Lindh. Attention was focused on the planned square-like feature close to the Skatteskrapan in the Gamen block on Södermalm, which had previously figured in different con- texts. One possible name form, *Anna Lindhs Torg ’Anna Lindh Square’, was considered unsuitable since the proposed site lay adja- cent to the already existing Åsötorget. Two names, both with the word torg ‘square’, borne by two almost interlinked open areas, would give rise to unnecessary misunderstanding and confusion. The NDC decided instead to suggest Anna Lindhs Plats ‘Anna Lindh Place’ as the new name. The NDC pointed out once more in their minutes and in their report to the City Planning Committee—strongly stressing again how important this was—that this was on condition that the area which would bear Anna Lindh’s name would definitely be developed and

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adorned in a manner suitable for the site of a public memorial with an honoured commemorative name. On June 14, 2007, the City Planning Committee accepted the proposed name Anna Lindhs Plats and decided to send on the proposal to the City Council for ratification. At its meeting on January 21, 2008, the City Council moved to accept the proposal and to name the little square off Götgatan on Södermalm after Anna Lindh, more than four years after her tragic death. Someone might argue that this is a long time. But in terms of the UN-resolution mentioned above and the Swedish Place-Name Advisory Board’s recommendations on a regular quarantine period of 3–5 years, this is not such a remarkable time lapse.

References Nyström, Staffan. 2003. Martinsonsgatan eller Harry Martinsons Gata. Om bruket av släktnamnsbaserade gatunamn i Stockholm under 1900-talet. [Martinsonsgatan or Harry Martinsons Gata. On the use of surname-based street names in Stockholm during the 20th cen- tury.] In: Ortnamnssällskapets i Uppsala årsskrift 2003, 5–19. Stahre & al. 2005 = Stahre, Nils-Gustaf, Fogelström, Per Anders, Feren- ius, Jonas & Lundqvist, Gunnar. 2005. Stockholms gatunamn. 3 utökade och reviderade uppl., bearbetad av Staffan Nyström. Monografier utg. av Stockholms stad 50. [The street names of Stockholm. 3 extended and revised edition, revised by Staffan Nys- tröm.] Monographs issued by Stockholm City 50. Stockholm.

Staffan Nyström Department of Scandinavian languages Scandinavian Onomastics Box 135 SE-751 04 Uppsala, Sweden [email protected]

Summary: Anna Lindh Place: the story of an urban commemorative name This article begins with a general discussion of commemorative names in Stockholm and, more generally, around the world. A UN-resolution from 2002 and a recommendation from the Swedish Place-Name Advisory Board arising

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from it are mentioned in support of a restrained and carefully considered approach to commemorative naming. The author goes on to discuss the fun- damental problem with many commemorative names—that the actual naming situation is back to front, with a name in need of a place, rather than the other way round. The greater part of the article is then devoted to the case of Anna Lindh, the Swedish foreign minister murdered in 2003. What suggestions and ideas have been put forward regarding the naming after her? What discussions took place and what arguments were advanced within the Name Drafting Committee of the City of Stockholm before it decided to recommend the name Anna Lindhs Plats ‘Anna Lindh Place’ for a small square in the Södermalm area?

Resumé: Anna Lindhs Plats: histoire d’un nom urbain commemorative. L’article commence par une discussion d’ordre général sur les noms commé- moratifs à Stockholm et dans le monde entier. Une résolution des Nations Unies, en 2002, ainsi qu’une recommandation du Bureau consultatif de Topo- nymie suédois à ce sujet, sont mentionnés à l’appui d’une approche, retenue et prudemment envisagée, de la nomination commémorative. L’auteur pour- suit la discussion sur cette question fondamentale, à l’aide de nombreux noms commémoratifs: la situation actuelle de la nomination est posée à l’envers, car aujourd’hui le nom est en quête d’un lieu, plutôt que l’inverse. La majeure partie de l’article est consacrée au cas d’Anna Lindh, ministre suédoise des Affaires Étrangères, assassinée en 2003. Quelles idées et suggestions ont été mises en avant pour donner son nom à un lieu? Quelles discussions, quels arguments ont été avancés au sein de la Commission communale de Topony- mie de Stockholm avant qu’elle décide de recommander le nom d’Anna Lindhs Plats “Place Anna Lindh” pour un petit square dans le quartier de Söder- malm?

Zusammenfassung: Anna Lindhs Platz. Zur Geschichte eines städtischen Erinnerungsnamens Am Anfang des Beitrags stehen allgemeine Überlegungen zu Erinnerungsna- men in Stockholm und an anderen Stellen der Welt. Eine UN-Resolution aus dem Jahr 2002 und eine daraus erwachsene Empfehlung der schwedischen Beratungsstelle für geographische Namen werden als Stütze für eine kleiner dimensionierte, sorgfältig durchdachte Annäherung an Erinnerungsnamen her- angezogen. Dabei geht es um die Betrachtung des nur allzu gut bekannten, grundsätzlichen Problems, das sich bei zahlreichen Erinnerungsnamen stellt, dass nämlich bei den jeweiligen Namengebungsakten in den meisten Fällen ein Platz für einen Namen gebraucht wird, an den erinnert werden soll, und nicht etwa umgekehrt. Der größte Teil des Beitrags widmet sich schließlich dem Fall der Anna Lindh, der 2003 ermordeten schwedischen Außenministe- rin: Welche Vorschläge und Ideen sind für eine Benennung nach ihrem Namen

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eingebracht worden? Welche Diskussionen gab es und welche Argumente wurden dabei innerhalb des Namenausschusses der Stadt Stockhom vorge- bracht, bevor es den Namen Anna Lindhs Plats für einen kleinen Platz im Bereich der Södermalm empfahl?

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