# A New Name for Czech Republic **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 24, 1999, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045 "1999-08-24T09:20:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2025, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/41 "2025-12-23T23:32:09Z")
well talk about german speed and dilingence … 😉 … the Erdapfel (pomme de tierre, “earth-apple”) for potato is a good one, but largely overshadowed by the more country-folkish expression _Grumpirn_ (I assume: Grund-Birne, ground-pear) which seems to be an interesting take on the earth-apple… Very true with the polish last names in the Ruhrgebiet (haven’t thought of that), my TV-past obv. brings up the Schimansky character … there Is a whole czech (and hungarian) chapter to open in terms of cuisine … Vienna’s often famed cuisine obv. draws heavily on czech and bohemian plates. I understand the Knödel is actually a czech word (blew my mind) … and lots of sausages (e.g. Klobasse = slavic colbasá) … and don’t get me started on gulasch … ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/42 "2025-12-24T08:02:17Z")
> [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](#): > > I have heard it referred to as Czechia by some Europeans. I have too, but Czechia sounds too much like Chechnya. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/43 "2025-12-24T08:04:09Z")
Ouch! I just quoted a 26-year-old post. From far back in the days o’ my yute! ---
**Author:** ![Chelonaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9a140/32.png) [@Chelonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chelonaut)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/44 "2025-12-24T09:53:00Z")
Judging by looking on the wikipedia page and clicking the language selector, in most languages the name of the country is some variation of Czechia rather than Czech Republic. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/45 "2025-12-24T11:17:29Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > I have too, but Czechia sounds too much like Chechnya. Swaziland changed it’s name to Eswatini a few years ago. I guess people there got tired of mistakenly getting on flights to Switzerland. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/46 "2025-12-24T14:37:42Z")
Question - how is the “ch” in Czechia pronounced in English? In Hebrew, it’s pronounced like it is in “Chanukkah”. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/47 "2025-12-24T14:40:02Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > Swaziland changed it’s name to Eswatini a few years ago. I guess people there got tired of mistakenly getting on flights to Switzerland. I’m convinced that the only reason the Austrians don’t insist on people calling their country “Österreich” is because they’re afraid of all the Ostrich jokes. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/48 "2025-12-24T14:45:06Z")
> [@Al128](#): > > Up till today, the slang word for a homeless/hobo/drifter in Austria is Sandler … (it seems that this is an expression that might throw off the Germans on the board (@EinsteinsHund @Pardel-Lux et al pls report to set the record straight … 😉 ) Is that so? Never heard that term, but Austrians speak weird sometimes. Now let me check what this thread is about, seems a zombie in excellent health. ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/49 "2025-12-24T15:22:43Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I’m convinced that the only reason the Austrians don’t insist on people calling their country “Österreich” is because they’re afraid of all the Ostrich jokes. OTOH: there are quite a few **“Sorry, there are NO kanguroos in Austria”** t-shirts … so damned if you do, damned if you dont … ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/50 "2025-12-24T15:30:52Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Is that so? Never heard that term, but Austrians speak weird sometimes. Now let me check what this thread is about, seems a zombie in excellent health. yep, my guess is that 90% of autoctonous Wiener above age 30 will know (and use) this term. I am not gonna post a link here, but if you search YT for “Ein echter Wiener geht nicht unter” (don’t be shocked by the 1970ies looks!) … you might get a good giggle out of this … that was quite a scandalous show back then, as speaking (broad) dialect and working class lifestyle is quite often associated with lower social class/status. Of course, the RTL-isation (term I use) of the language is strong, and the youth in our family speaks “German-news-broadcaster” german. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/51 "2025-12-24T15:36:45Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I’m convinced that the only reason the Austrians don’t insist on people calling their country “Österreich” is because they’re afraid of all the Ostrich jokes. You are wrong on that one: Österreich only sounds like Ostrich to an anglophone. For Austrians themselves an ostrich would be a **[Strauß](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strau%C3%9Fe_(Gattung))**. Austria is Latin and brings good memories to them, for instance in the matter of the so called **[Pax Austriaca](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pax_Austriaca)**, a myth as nice as any other. See for instance: “Bella gerunt alii, tu felix Austria nube” (“let others wage war; you, happy Austria, marry”). I doubt any Austrian has a problem with the word Austria. And back to the topic of this thread, the @Northern_Piper had it right 26 years ago: > [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > I seem to recall, from about the time of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, that the name “The Czech Republic” was chosen because when Nazi Germany occupied Czechoslovakia it set up a puppet fascist state called “Czechia.” The new Czech government did not want to carry any of the baggage of that name, so chose “The Czech Republic” instead. > > Anyone else remebmer seeing this? Indeed, there are several names for the country in German, including **[Tschechien](https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tschechien)**, Tschechische Republik and Tschechei. The last one, in particular, has a nazi aftertaste. According to the German wikiarticle just linked to: > The now obsolete term ‘Tschechei’ was used after the formation of Czechoslovakia in 1918. Broader use of this term (alongside Bohemia) was observed from the 1930s onwards. However, the term Tschechei has negative connotations due to its use in nazi language, particularly in the term ‘Rest-Tschechei’ (Rest of Czechoslovakia) in the sense of ‘Rest of Czechoslovakia’. Older Czechs in particular therefore associate the term with National Socialism. ETA: > [@Al128](#): > > if you search YT for “Ein echter Wiener geht nicht unter” Will check, but I am not sure I will understand much hard core Wiener Schmäh from the '70s. Can be funny, though, I’ll give it a try. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/52 "2025-12-24T18:09:07Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Will check, but I am not sure I will understand much hard core Wiener Schmäh from the '70s. Can be funny, though, I’ll give it a try. Well, I think I still could follow, as “Kottan ermittelt” was my favorite TV show around the same time. > **[Kottan ermittelt](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kottan_ermittelt)** > > Kottan ermittelt is an Austrian television series that was aired by Austrian television ORF between 1976 and 1984. The satirical 19-episode series about a policeman from Vienna now sports cult status. Police major Adolf Kottan was played by three actors (Peter Vogel, Franz Buchrieser, Lukas Resetarits) who each gave the character a distinct 'flavor'. > The series centers on police major Adolf Kottan, who works for the homicide department of Vienna police. His closest collaborators are the one-le... ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2025, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/53 "2025-12-24T19:29:13Z")
I’ve only ever heard it as “check-ee-uh” in English, and that’s what I see in the dictionaries. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/54 "2025-12-26T18:30:06Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Is that so? Never heard that term, but Austrians speak weird sometimes. Now let me check what this thread is about, seems a zombie in excellent health. I know the term “Sandler”, but only because there’s a pop song by EAV (a satirical 1980s pop band from Austria) that uses it prominently. I wouldn’t know it otherwise. And, being Bavarian, I’m probably linguistically closer to Austria than the majority of Germans. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/55 "2025-12-26T18:37:49Z")
> [@Schnitte](#): > > And, being Bavarian, I’m probably linguistically closer to Austria than the majority of Germans. No doubt about that. FWIW, here in Southern Westphalia (Sauerland), the word for what’s called a “Sandler” in Vienna or a “bum” in America is “Hambummel”, but please don’t ask me for its etymology. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/56 "2025-12-26T20:19:15Z")
“Bummel” is obviously cognate to the English “bum”… would “Ham” maybe be from a root related to “hamlet”? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/57 "2025-12-26T20:58:33Z")
I don’t think so, “hamlet” isn’t a word in German, and its closest translations would be “Weiler” or colloquially “Kaff”. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/58 "2025-12-26T22:33:37Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > “Bummel” is obviously cognate to the English “bum” Is it? Jerome K. Jerome, who wrote a book in 1900 entitled \*Three Men on the Bummel" about three friends who take a bike trip in Germany, explained it this way: > [@](#): > > One of the characters in the book asks, “how would you translate [bummel],” to which the narrator replies, in the very final paragraph of the book: > > “A ‘Bummel’,” I explained, “I should describe as a journey, long or short, without an end; the only thing regulating it being the necessity of getting back within a given time to the point from which one started. Sometimes it is through busy streets, and sometimes through the fields and lanes; sometimes we can be spared for a few hours, and sometimes for a few days. But long or short, but here or there, our thoughts are ever on the running of the sand. We nod and smile to many as we pass; with some we stop and talk awhile; and with a few we walk a little way. We have been much interested, and often a little tired. But on the whole we have had a pleasant time, and are sorry when it’s over.” Any comments from our German speakers in the thread? ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/59 "2025-12-26T22:38:25Z")
Jerome K. Jerome is right. A Bummel is aimless, done for pleasure and curiosity, and should lead back home eventually. Now whether this Hochdeutsch Bummel is cognate to the Bummel in Hambummel, which is some variant of Plattdeutsch, I ignore. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2025, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045/60 "2025-12-26T22:40:09Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Any comments from our German speakers in the thread? That was a very specific 19th century definition of “Bummel”, but still today the verb “bummeln” means to take a slow walk for no other purpose than leisure, to go window shopping or taking a stroll in a lovely quarter on a vacation. ETA: quasi-ninja’ed by @Pardel-Lux . [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-new-name-for-czech-republic/3045.md?page=4)