List of Australian place names changed from German names

During World War I, many German or German-sounding place names in Australia were changed due to anti-German sentiment. This occurred to a lesser extent also during World War II. The presence of German-derived place names was seen as an affront to the war effort at the time.

The names were often changed by being anglicised (such as Peterborough), or by being given new names of Aboriginal origin (Kobandilla, Karawirra) or in commemoration of notable soldiers (Kitchener and Holbrook) or World War I battlefields (Verdun, The Somme).

New South Wales Old nameNew nameDate of name changeNotesBismarck Street (Canterbury)Cressy StreetDecember 1914Bismarck Street (Kogarah)Kitchener Street10 November 1914Deutschland Street (Canterbury)Onslow StreetDecember 1914GermantonHolbrook20 September 1915German's HillLidster1 February 1916German CreekEmpire Vale1 May 1915Hamburger Street (Punchbowl)Victoria RoadDecember 1914Kaiser Street (Canterbury)Mons StreetDecember 1914Reuss Street (Merewether)Kilgour Avenue14 January 1918Newcastle section renamed 1918. Merewether Municipality section Reuss Street until 1938.Schlinkers Lane (Ultimo, Sydney)Bullecourt Lane 1917 No longer exists. Development on 428–466 Harris Street, Ultimo is named "Bullecourt Place".Webber's Road (Kogarah)English Street7 September 1915

Queensland Old nameNew nameDate of name changeCoordinatesNotesBergenMurra MurraOctober 1916Bergen is a locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland. Murra Murra is a property within the locality (not to be confused with another property of the same name in the locality of Nebine)BergensideNeuveAugust 1916Neuve is a village within the locality of Bergen. It surrounds the former railway station.BismarckMaclaganMarch 1916EngelsburgKalbarJuly 1916FahleyKilbirnieFriezlandKuridalaGehrkevaleMount MortThe Post Office was renamed Mount Grace in about September 1916, then Mount Mort in about November 1916German GardensBelgian GardensJanuary 1915GramzowCarbrookHapsburgKowbiOctober 1916See Isis railway lineHessenburgIngoldsbySeptember 1916KirchheimHaigsleaOctober 1916MarburgTownshendJune 1917reverted to Marburg in 1920MindenFrenchtonOctober 1916reverted to Minden in 1930 RoesslerApplethorpeTeutoburgWitta1916

South Australia The South Australian Nomenclature Act 1917 authorised the compilation and gazetting of a list of place-names contained in a report of the previous October prepared by a parliamentary "nomenclature committee", and authorised the Governor of South Australia, by proclamation, to "alter any place-name which he deems to be of enemy origin to some other name specified in the proclamation".Nomenclature Act 1917 (SA)   The table below includes the 69 changes gazetted on 10 January 1918.

The Nomenclature Act 1935 restored the former names of the towns of Hahndorf and Lobethal, and the Adelaide suburb of Klemzig. About 20 other names were reverted in the 1970s and 1980s; some of them were assigned to larger localities rather than reverting to the original place name, as also shown in the table.

Old nameNew nameDate of name changeNotesBartsch's CreekYedlakoo Creek10 January 1918Reverted to Bartsch Creek 1986Berlin RockPanpandie Rock10 January 1918BethanienBethany10 January 1918BismarckWeeroopa10 January 1918BlumbergBirdwood10 January 1918BlumenthalLakkari10 January 1918BuchfeldeNamed for geologist and philanthropist Leopold von BuchLoos10 January 1918Reverted to BuchfeldeCape BauerCape Wondoma10 January 1918Reverted to Cape Bauer in 1948CarlsruheKunden10 January 1918EhrenbreisteinMount Yerila10 January 1918Ferdinand CreekNamed by Ernest Giles for botanist Ferdinand von Mueller.Ernabella Creek10 January 1918Mount FerdinandMount Warrabillinna10 January 1918FriedrichstadtTangari10 January 1918FriedrichswaldeTarnma10 January 1918Gebhardt's HillsPolygon Ridge10 January 1918Reverted to Gebhardt Hills in 1986German CreekBenara Creek10 January 1918Reverted in 1986German PassTappa Pass10 January 1918Germantown HillVimy Ridge10 January 1918Became part of Bridgewater; road name (only) reverted to Germantown Hill RoadGottlieb's WellParnggi Well10 January 1918GrunbergKaralta10 January 1918Reverted to Gruenberg in 1975GrunthalVerdun10 January 1918HahndorfAmbleside10 January 1918Reverted to Hahndorf in 1935Hasse's MoundLarelar Mound10 January 1918HeidelbergKobandilla10 January 1918Hergott SpringsMarree10 January 1918HildesheimPunthari10 January 1918HoffnungsthalKarawirra10 January 1918Reverted to Hoffnungsthal in 1975Hundred of BasedowNamed for M. F. Basedow MHA, MLC.Hundred of French10 January 1918Hundred of HomburgNamed for Robert Homburg MHA.Hundred of Haig10 January 1918Hundred of KrichauffHundred of Beatty10 January 1918Hundred of PaechNamed for Friedrich Paech MHA.Hundred of Cannawigara10 January 1918Hundred of PflaumNamed for Friedrich Pflaum MHAHundred of Geegeela10 January 1918Hundred of Rhine (North)Hundred of Jellicoe10 January 1918Hundred of Rhine (South)Hundred of Jutland10 January 1918Hundred of ScherkNamed for Johann Theodor Scherk MHAHundred of Sturdee10 January 1918Hundred of SchomburgkNamed for Moritz Richard Schomburgk, director of Adelaide Botanic GardenHundred of Maude10 January 1918Hundred of Von DoussaNamed for Alfred von Doussa MLC.Hundred of Allenby10 January 1918JaenschtownKerkanya10 January 1918KaiserstuhlMount Kitchener10 January 1918Renamed Kaiser's Seat in 1975; subsequently changed to KaiserstuhlKlaebesKilto10 January 1918KlemzigGaza10 January 1918Reverted to Klemzig in 1935; football club retained the name Gaza Krause RockMarti Rock10 January 1918KrichauffNamed for F. E. H. W. Krichauff MLC.Beatty10 January 1918Changed to Mount Mary 1940KronsdorfKabminye10 January 1918Changed to Krondorf in 1975LangdorfKaldukee10 January 1918Incorporated in the bounded locality of TanundaLangmeilBilyara (near Tanunda)10 January 1918Reverted to Langmeil in 1975LobethalTweedvale10 January 1918Reverted to Lobethal in 1935Mount MeyerMount Kauto10 January 1918Muller's HillYandina Hill10 January 1918NeudorfMamburdi10 January 1918Reverted 1986, became part of LobethalNeukirchDimchurch10 January 1918Reverted to Neukirch in 1975New HamburgWillyaroo10 January 1918New MecklenburgGomersal10 January 1918OliventhalOlivedale10 January 1918Became part of BirdwoodPetersburgPeterborough10 January 1918The Petersburg Times protested against the change until 1919.Rhine ParkKongolia10 January 1918Rhine HillMons Hill10 January 1918Rhine River NorthThe Somme10 January 1918Changed to Somme Creek 1971Rhine River SouthThe Marne10 January 1918Changed to Marne River 1971Rhine VillaCambrai10 January 1918RosenthalRosedale10 January 1918SchoenthalBoongala10 January 1918Reverted 1986; incorporated in the bounded locality of CharlestonSeppeltsNamed for winemaker Joseph Ernst SeppeltDorrien10 January 1918Incorporated into the bounded locality of NuriootpaSchreiberhauWarre10 January 1918Reverted 1975SiegersdorfBultawilta10 January 1918Reverted in 1975; incorporated into the bounded locality of TanundaSteinfeldStonefield10 January 1918Reverted 1986SummerfeldtSummerfield10 January 1918Incorporated into the bounded locality of PalmerVogelsang's CornerTeerkoore10 January 1918Reverted to Vogelsang Corner 1986; incorporated into the bounded locality of Geranium PlainsWusser's NobKarun Nob10 January 1918Changed to Wusser Nob in 1983

Tasmania Old nameNew nameDate of name changeNotesBismarckCollinsvale1 July 1915GermantownLilydale

Victoria

Old nameNew nameDate of name changeNotesBerlin Street, RichmondBarkly AvenueMarch 1916 Bismarck Avenue, Surrey HillsWarwick AvenueDecember 1918Bismarck Street, DoncasterVictoria Street February 1916Bismark Street, Malvern EastHughes StreetFebruary 1916Fischer Street, Malvern EastFisher StreetFebruary 1916Frankfort Street, RichmondBurgess StreetMarch 1916GermantownGrovedale1 March 1916Originally authorised to be renamed to 'Cornwall'. GrünwaldArkona Hamburg Street, RichmondCotter StreetOctober 1940Originally proposed to be renamed to 'Anzac Street' in 1916 but did not proceed.Hanover Street, PrahranMcIlwrick StreetMarch 1917 HochkirchTarrington1 March 1918Mount BismarckMount KitchenerReinholtz's POReynold's PO5 November 1920Waldau Road, DoncasterGeorge StreetFebruary 1916 WaldkirchFreshwater Creek (Anglesea Road, south-west of Grovedale) Weinberg Road, HawthornWattle Road West Prussia Road, WantirnaWantirna RoadWilhelm Street, DoncasterKing StreetFebruary 1916

Western Australia Old nameNew nameDate of name changeNotesHeidelbergBickleyMueller ParkKitchener Parkreverted to Mueller Park 1981

See also German Australian German settlement in Australia Berlin to Kitchener name change, parallel phenomenon in Canada Kitchener bun

References

External links Adelaide Co-operative History – German Place Names South Australian History – German placenames Australian Bureau of Statistics – Changing of German Place Names in Australia Victorian counties map