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''Kiez'' () (also: ''Kietz'') is a German word for a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
neighbourhood A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourh ...
, a relatively small
community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...
within a larger town. The word is mainly used in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and northern Germany. Similar quarters are called '' Veedel'' in
Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...
and '' Grätzl'' in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
. The more standard German term for a neighborhood in the sense of "where one lives" is '' Viertel'' ('quarter').


Original meaning and etymology

The word ''Kietz'' originated in the time of the eastward expansion of German settlers in the Middle Ages into West Slavic territories ('' Germania Slavica''), when in many places both communities existed side by side. The word is possibly of Slavic origin (compare Slovak ''chyža'' 'hut, cottage', cf. Kessinians) and referred to a Slavic settlement (typically of fishermen) near a German town. Some placenames are reminiscent of this meaning, for example Küstrin-Kietz or the Kietz quarter of Berlin- Köpenick. Medieval ''Kietz'' settlements were first documented in the 14th century. They were often located near a castle or a river crossing and initially inhabited by Slavic vassals ("
Wends Wends is a historical name for Slavs who inhabited present-day northeast Germany. It refers not to a homogeneous people, but to various people, tribes or groups depending on where and when it was used. In the modern day, communities identifying ...
"). They were prevalent in the
Margraviate of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg () was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that, having electoral status although being quite poor, grew rapidly in importance after inheriting the Duchy of Prussia in 1618 and then came ...
as well as in
Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin, Neubrandenburg, Wismar and Güstrow. ...
and in the
Duchy of Pomerania The Duchy of Pomerania (; ; Latin: ''Ducatus Pomeraniae'') was a duchy in Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, ruled by dukes of the House of Pomerania (''Griffins''). The country existed in the Middle Ages between years 1121–11 ...
. For a long time ''Kietze'' formed a distinct community beside the neighbouring peasant villages, though evidence of a specific Slavic population becomes rare in the course of an increasing
Germanisation Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people, and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In l ...
. From the late 18th century onwards, the denotation ''Kietz'' was generally applied to fishermen's villages and remote settlements. In its transferred sense, the word became a (sometimes mocking) denotation for Berlin neighbourhoods.


Modern meaning

A "Kiez" is never originally defined by the municipality or government, but rather by the inhabitants, and therefore doesn't necessarily coincide with administrative divisions. In some cases, however, such definitions have been picked up in official documents, this including State legislation.For example {{Cite web , title = Verordnung über die Erhaltung baulicher Anlagen und der städtebaulichen Eigenart sowie der Zusammensetzung der Wohnbevölkerung des Gebietes "Stephankiez" im Bezirk Tiergarten von Berlin (''Ordinance on the Preservation of Constructions and of the Urbanistic Character as well as the Composition of the Resident Population of the "Stephankiez" area in the Borough Tiergarten of Berlin'') , work = Berliner Rechtsvorschriften (Legal Provisions of Berlin) , publisher = Kulturbuch-Verlag Berlin , date = 1991-10-10 , url = http://www.kulturbuch-verlag.de/online/brv/D0008/F00376.pdf , archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220620131810/https://www.kulturbuch-verlag.de/online/brv/D0008/F00376.pdf/ , url-status = dead , archive-date = June 20, 2022 , accessdate = 2010-04-07 . In Berlin the term usually has a positive connotation, as inhabitants often identify with the "Kiez" they live in. There is a rising number of approximately 20 unofficial "Kiez"-areas in Berlin, most often in and around the
city centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...
. A Berliner "Kiez" usually consists mainly of pre-war buildings and upholds its own commercial and cultural infrastructure. Outside Berlin, "Kiez" may be considered by some as somewhat slangy. In
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
, ''der Kiez'' refers to the area around the Reeperbahn in the St. Pauli quarter, which is the city's
nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...
and
red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex industry, sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light district ...
. It is the most well known "Kiez" in Germany and is sometimes mistakenly considered to be the first or original "Kiez". In other towns, such as
Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
, red-light districts are sometimes referred to as the "Kiez" following Hamburg's example. Also in smaller cities, some districts may be referred to as a "Kiez", especially when there are vital scenes of culture, pubs and clubs – an example being the ''KTV'', a district of
Rostock Rostock (; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Roztoc''), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (), is the largest city in the German States of Germany, state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the sta ...
.


References

German words and phrases Human habitats Urban planning in Germany Culture in Berlin Culture in Hamburg Hanover