Fugging, Upper Austria
Fucking | |
---|---|
Village | |
![]() The frequently stolen traffic sign,[1] at the entrance to the village of Fucking. | |
Country | Austria |
State | Upper Austria |
Region | Innviertel |
Municipality | Tarsdorf |
Established | since at least 1070 |
Named for | 6th century man called Focko |
Population | |
• Total | 104 |
Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Postal code | 5121 |
Area code | 06278 |
Licence plate | BR |
Fucking (German pronunciation: [ˈfʊkɪŋ]) is an Austrian village[2] in the municipality of Tarsdorf,[3] in the Innviertel region of western Upper Austria.
The village is located 33 kilometres (21 mi) north of Salzburg, four kilometres (2.5 mi) east of the German border.
History
The settlement of Fucking has existed since at least 1070 and is named after a man from the 6th century called Focko. "-ing" is an old Germanic suffix indicating the people of the root word to which it is attached; thus Fucking means "(place of) Focko’s people."[4] The village has a population of 107.
Fucking's most famous feature is a traffic sign with its name on it, beside which tourists often stop to have their photograph taken. It is a commonly stolen street sign, owing to the identical spelling to a form of the English-language profanity "fuck".[5] Significant public funds have been spent on replacing the stolen signs.[6]
In 2004, mainly due to the stolen signs, a vote was held on changing the village's name, but the residents voted against doing so.[4] According to the town mayor, Siegfried Hauppl:
We had a vote last year on whether to rename the town, but decided to keep it as it is. After all, Fucking has existed for 800 years, probably when a Mr Fuck or the Fuck family moved into the area. The 'ing' was added as a word for settlement.[4]
In August 2005, the road signs were replaced with theft-resistant signs welded to steel and secured in concrete to prevent further chances of the sign being stolen.[6]
References
External links
Media related to Fucking at Wikimedia Commons