Esperantoplatz (Berlin)
| Esperanto Square | |
|---|---|
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 View of Esperanto Square from the southwest |
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| Basic data | |
| place | Berlin |
| District | Berlin-Neukölln |
| Created | 1991 |
| Newly designed | 2005-2008 |
| Confluent streets | Braunschweiger Strasse, Schwarzastrasse, Schudomastrasse |
| use | |
| User groups | Pedestrians , cyclists |
| Technical specifications | |
| Square area | 1800 m² |
The Berlin Esperantoplatz is located in the Neukölln district , the district of Neukölln , at the Schudomastraße, in the area between the crossing Brunswick Street and of the coastal Schwarza road. The square was redesigned in 1991 by dismantling the traffic area on Schwarzastraße. The traffic-calmed area was laid out like a park to create an urban natural oasis with meadows, bushes, trees and flower beds.
History, location, description
On December 14, 1991, the small green area was named after the planned language Esperanto and ceremoniously opened to the public.
City councilor Bodo Manegold unveiled one of the two street signs together with Eva Hoffmann (1920–2008), whose suggestion for naming the place was followed by the district office. Ms. Hoffmann spoke Esperanto, as did her parents, who ran the "Conrad Noeske printing works" near the square in Teupitzer Strasse 111 (today Braunschweiger Strasse 26), in which some printed products were also published in Esperanto. Bodo Manegold said at the subsequent celebration in St. Richard's Church : “We have chosen today because tomorrow the 132nd birthday of Ludwig Lazarus Zamenhof will be celebrated ... and (to) point out that he has contributed a lot to it that this world is becoming more peaceful. ”He paid tribute to Ms. Hoffmann with the words:“ She is part of the neighborhood. It is an original. ”Pastor Hans-Jürgen Lischka (1941–2015) referred to newly flared up conflicts and warned:“ It is all the more important to recognize that understanding and understanding among people is the only thing that really serves people. And there, I think, the naming of Esperantoplatz is an important point. "Resident Eva Hoffmann said happily: Thank you for the fact that we now have this little green square of hope."
The town square is bounded by Braunschweiger Straße (northwest), the narrow side of a block perimeter development between Braunschweiger and Schwarzastraße (northeast), intersected by the bend Schwarzastraße with narrow gable sides of Schudomastraße (southeast) and Schudomastraße (southwest). It is about 60 × 30 meters. From Schwarzastraße, a footpath leads diagonally across the square directly to the intersection of Schudomastraße / Braunschweiger Straße. The edges of the square are lined with trees, some of which have been replanted. Other well-grown old maple trees have been included in the new design of the square. Since the Sonnenallee S-Bahn station, which was closed in 1980, was reopened in 1997, the square has served residents as a much-used passage to and from the Sonnenallee S-Bahn station . The adjacent residential areas can be reached via the square, including Richardplatz , the Bohemian Village and the Comenius Garden .
It is worth highlighting an oak planted on the square in 1992 , which was named in honor of the Esperanto founder Ludwig Zamenhof (picture). In front of the tree there is the inscription on a plaque: “Zamenhof oak, planted on April 14, 1992 on the 75th anniversary of the death of the founder of the international language Esperanto Dr. Ludwig Zamenhof. Esperanto League Berlin ”.
The planting of the Zamenhof oak was part of a Zamenhof Comenius honor of the Berlin Esperanto friends, which was also dedicated to the 400th birthday of Comenius. It began in the Saalbau Neukölln, where Henning Vierck, the scientific advisor and later managing director of the Comeniusgarten, used the exhibition to present the worldview of Comenius and his ideas about a universal language . He then led through the Comenius Garden that was just being created and explained the concept. The columnar oak planted in honor of Zamenhof on Esperantoplatz comes from the Späth'schen tree nurseries in Baumschulenweg .
The memorial plaque was unveiled on July 3, 1999 by Mayor Bodo Manegold during a celebration of the Esperanto League Berlin on the 50th anniversary of its foundation. Henning Vierck spoke about what connects the two humanists, theorists and practitioners of the idea of a universal language Comenius and Zamenhof, and Rudolf Rogler from the Neukölln Heimatmuseum paid tribute to the Neukölln reform pedagogue, school board member and first chairman of the Esperanto League Berlin Wilhelm Wittbrodt (1878–1961).
In 2005, the Berlin planning community Dubach Kohlbrenner created an "Integrated District Development Concept Action Space plus Neukölln-North" on behalf of the Neukölln administration. This envisaged a redesign for Böhmischer Platz , Esperantoplatz and the square on Kanner Straße. This took place in the period from 2005 to 2008 and was financed with funds from the EU and the federal state program Social City (total project sum 2.5 million euros).
On April 14, 2007, the responsible landscape architect, Bettina Longardt, explained the concept of the redesign on Esperantoplatz and in the youth meeting place "Die Scheune" on Richardplatz . The place should be sunnier, more open and manageable. That is why the tall bushes that had overgrown the square the previous year were already removed in 2006.
A path was laid diagonally from the corner of Schwarza at the corner of Schudomastraße across the middle of the square to the corner of Braunschweigerstraße 17. This created 4 triangular green areas, which were bordered by low metal railings. Ground cover ( Vinca ) were planted on the green areas .
As a final measure, the center of the square was given a floor mosaic that shows a star in a lighter circle. The green star is an Esperanto symbol, the circle stands for the globe. The Zamenhof oak now stood at the crossroads and was thus spatially upgraded. Benches invite you to linger and watch.
The completion of the redesign was celebrated with a three-place festival on May 5, 2007 on Böhmischer Platz, the square on Kanner Strasse (Friendship Square from late summer 2007) and Esperanto Square, although not all the work had been completed. Up until now there was only one big question mark where the star mosaic was supposed to be created, as a drawing competition for design was still going on in the Richardschule.
A board placed on the square on July 3, 2008 provided information in Esperanto and German about the name of the square and the Esperanto movement as a whole. In addition, the reader learned about the connection with the Neukölln district.
Wilhelm Wittbrodt taught Esperanto at the Rütli School in Neukölln in the 1920s and 1930s, and the Esperanto League Berlin was founded in the Sonnenallee 10 school in 1949. In the 1950s and 1960s, the office of the Esperanto Youth Berlin, which was particularly active in Neukölln, was at Richardstrasse 61. The Neukölln festival halls and the Neukölln town hall experienced the German Esperanto Congress of 1960 and the Nicodemus Church worship services and various cultural events in Esperanto. From 1978 to 2005, the Esperanto Center Berlin was located at Falkstraße 25.
For the 4th summer party on September 14, 2016, a new information poster was prepared for the showcase on Esperantoplatz (design: AG Urban, texts and images: Esperanto League Berlin), which speaks the language Esperanto and its initiator Ludwig Zamenhof, but also the square with its history and sights, as well as some local associations. District Mayor Franziska Giffey unveiled it together with many children.
On the side of Schudomastrasse opposite Esperantoplatz, there is a municipal children's playground measuring 45 × 50 meters, which was redesigned and equipped in 2014.
Diagonally across from the square is the listed Catholic St. Richard Church on Schudomastraße.
The residential complex Braunschweiger Strasse 7–17, Schwarzastrasse 3–4 is also a listed building. The Teupitzer Klause football bar on the corner of Braunschweiger Schudomastraße has retained the former name of Braunschweiger Straße.
AZ Hilfen Berlin gGmbH has had its office at Esperantoplatz (Braunschweiger Str. 17) since 2006. Since March 2015 the itz (Intercultural Theater Center) has been offering theater projects for children, young people and adults with different languages from different cultures on the square (Schudomastr. 32).
During the Neukölln culture festival 48 Hours Neukölln in 2012, the Munich-based trash artist ADLER AF also performed a performance on Esperantoplatz to draw attention to the desolate condition of the square and to improve it as a "symbol of understanding".
Summer festivals on Esperanto Square
18th August 2013
AZ Hilfen Berlin gGmbH and Esperanto-Liga Berlin are organizing the first of the meanwhile annual summer festivals on Esperantoplatz in order to network the clubs and institutions in the neighborhood, work with them to counter the neglect of the square and make it a place of understanding, getting to know one another and of dialogue.
The festivals are funded by the Richardplatz Süd district management and the Social City program.
ADLER AF opens the first festival with their performance “The city belongs to us”. Fritz Felgentreu , district chairman of the SPD in Berlin-Neukölln, Marco Schulze, managing director of AZ Hilfen Berlin, Sebastian Kirf, chairman of the German Esperanto Association , Ronald Schindler, deputy commented under the motto "Speech plain text under the Zamenhof oak!" Chairman of the Esperanto Association Berlin-Brandenburg, Father Alois Hofmann, pastor at the Catholic Church of St. Richard, Christoph agi Böhm, artist and director of the bauchhund gallery, Henning Vierck, manager of the Comeniusgarten, Nadine Lorenz for the “city agents”, Peter Bäß, evangelical pastor emeritus and Esperanto teacher in Berlin-Neukölln, was the first to talk about the situation on the square and in the neighborhood. Many others did so in the years that followed.
The Esperanto songwriter Stephan Schneider sings to the guitar and the music group QUERBEET (KLEZMER & MEHR) performs. During this festival, the square is tended and planted.
The maintenance and planting campaigns, accompanied by the “city agents”, currently from the “Kiez & Natur” project with the “Empowerment for environmental awareness” campaign, now take place several times a year, involve residents and improve the condition of the square.
In connection with the festival, the showcase will be repaired and the metal edging of the green areas will be renewed by the district's green areas office.
As part of the “Destroyed Diversity” campaign, an exhibition on the square commemorates Wilhelm Wittbrodt. The Neukölln Museum provided source material for this .
The opening of St. Richard's Church during the festival becomes a tradition.
3rd September 2014
The 2nd summer festival also begins with a performance by ADLER AF New associations are involved, such as the Intercultural Theater Center (itz) with its theater activities and the Roma Trial association, as well as the Löwenzahn primary school and the St. Richard day care center.
The exhibition "111 Years Esperanto - Language and Culture in Berlin and Brandenburg" can be visited.
The Neukölln District City Councilor for Social Affairs Bernd Szczepanski and Rainer Sodeikat from the Office for Green Spaces are available to speak to.
September 9, 2015
Neukölln's mayor Franziska Giffey has taken on the patronage of this festival with 150 participants, and thus combines her appreciation for the civic commitment of those involved. She says: "I'm happy to see how many people simply say: ... we do something together so that we can live better together." New are the AWO youth club "Die Scheune" with offers on the football field and the children's pavilion from Drory area with offers on the playground. The clubs involved and the Richardplatz Süd district management will provide information about their offers at stands.
This time children from the itz show the performance “Create your own world”, as does the exhibition “At second sight” about people from the neighborhood.
September 14, 2016
“Outreach - Mobile Youth Work Berlin” is a new addition with basketball for girls, and creative urban planners from AG Urban have installed a mobile zebra crossing between the Esperanto square and the playground and next to it “placeholders” - variable wooden elements for planting and sitting. New ideas for public spaces are in demand. You can listen to opinions on the course in German and Esperanto and add your own opinion. Mayor Franziska Giffey unveils the new information poster and emphasizes: The festival takes place “against the background of a language that brings people together worldwide”. She thanks everyone who works for the fact that communication in Neukölln, where over 150 languages are spoken, always works a little better.
This time an exhibition on the square is dedicated to Ludwig Zamenhof, the founder of Esperanto.
20th September 2017
The festival is characterized by World Children's Day under the motto “Give children a voice”, by the European mobility week and the 25th birthday of the Zamenhof oak on Esperantoplatz. The “Right of way for children” project is new. For the first time, the reggae singer Jonny M creates a lively atmosphere at the festival with his dedicated songs in Esperanto and German.
29th August 2018
District Councilor Jochen Biedermann comments on tenant problems, and the director of the Polish Institute Małgorzata Bochwic-Ivanovska sheds light on Poland's special relationship to Esperanto and its creator Ludwig Zamenhof. The fact that Poland is considered the birthplace of Esperanto, that it makes important contributions to the international Esperanto culture, and that this international language has been part of its intangible cultural heritage as the bearer of the Esperanto culture since 2014 is shown in the exhibition on the square “Esperanto culture in the European year of cultural heritage 2018 "clearly.
For the first time at the festival is Yopic eV, an association that gives visitors to the festival suggestions for recipes without meat, for waste separation and for a personal contribution to climate protection.
In the run-up to the festival, the benches on Esperantoplatz were repainted and decorated with greetings in Esperanto and German.
August 28, 2019
At the 7th Summer Festival, the previous motto “Neukölln speaks many languages, including Esperanto” will be changed to “Climate protection speaks many languages, including Esperanto”. Yopic eV plays an important role as an organizer alongside the Esperanto League Berlin-Brandenburg and the Intercultural Theater Center with its workshops in the project "Be Inspired" on sustainable climate protection in Neukölln, funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety within the framework of the national Climate protection initiative.
Safak Yildiz from the Neukölln district office, coordinator of the district management, hands over the new climate protection steles to the public on Esperantoplatz by cutting the ribbon. In preparation for the festival, they have already been installed on the square. City planner Michael Pinetzki explains the installation created by AG URBAN as part of the “Kool im Kiez” project: 10 steles symbolize the 10 trees on Esperanto Square, which produce oxygen for 20 people. Further connections are shown in a showcase in which the information poster also provides information about Esperanto Square, which is known from the dismantled showcase. The colored graphic that extends over all 10 steles provides information on the development of temperature, precipitation and CO 2 content in the air globally, in Germany and Berlin. Reggae singer Jonny M. sings in Esperanto, among other things, his song "Veganaj homoj manĝas ne la bestojn" (Vegan people do not eat animals), which is committed to animal welfare and against meat consumption.
The festival is financed from the action fund of the district management Richardplatz Süd and the project Empowerment for environmental awareness by Kiez & Natur as part of the Socially Integrative City program and the YOPIC eV association
Web links
- Esperanto Square. In: Street name lexicon of the Luisenstädtischer Bildungsverein (near Kaupert )
Individual evidence
- ↑ In the Official Gazette for Berlin, publisher: Senate Department for the Interior, Volume 41, No. 58, Berlin, December 13, 1991 it says: “In the Neukölln district, with effect from December 14, 1991, the square at the intersection of Braunschweiger Strasse, Schudoma- and Schwarzastraße with Esperantoplatz are named after the international universal language formed from the common cultural languages. The statistical key number is: 06047. "
- ↑ In a letter to Eva Hoffmann dated October 15, 1991, District Councilor Bodo Manegold wrote: “Dear Ms. Hoffmann, we are pleased to be able to inform you that, following your suggestion, the committee of the Neukölln District Office has approved your nomination proposal, to name the square area on Braunschweiger Straße / Schwarza- and Schudomastraße Esperanto-Platz. "In the letter, Ms. Hoffmann is asked to submit a suggestion for the explanatory sign and it is announced that she will be invited to a small naming ceremony. Letter in private ownership)
- ^ Fritz Wollenberg: Treffpunkt Berlin, Esperantoplatz, in: Esperanto-Informilo por Berlino kaj Brandenburgio 615 - 4/2007, pp. 1–5 (The article is in German.)
- ↑ Volker Hoffmann, Rudolf Rogler: Wilhelm Wittbrodt 1878–1961. In: School reform - continuities and breaks. The Berlin-Neukölln test field. Ed .: Gerd Radde, Werner Korthaase, Rudolf Rogler and Udo Gößwald on behalf of the Neukölln District Office, Department of Public Education, Art Office, Volume II: 1945 to 1972, Opladen 1993.
- ↑ AWO youth club "Die Scheune" [1]
- ^ Final report on the integrated urban district development concept “Action space plus” Neukölln-Nord; pdf ( Memento of the original from September 26, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; Retrieved February 5, 2013
- ↑ Bianka Spieß: Ĉu vi komprenas Esperanto? (Understand Esperanto) and "Ready to go ...", in: Richard. The quarter newspaper from Richardplatz Süd, issue 14, April 2007, p. 3
- ↑ Esperanto in the »problem area«? Interview with Peter Kühnel, chairman of the Esperanto League Berlin , In: Neues Deutschland , June 21, 2008 (full article against registration); Retrieved February 5, 2013
- ^ Wilhelm Wittbrodt - reform pedagogue and Esperanto teacher, in: Fritz Wollenberg (Red.): Esperanto. Language and Culture in Berlin, Jubilea LIbro 1903-2003 , Mondial, New York - Berlin 2006, pp. 272–278.
- ↑ Monument database Landesdenkmalamt Berlin [2]
- ↑ ADLER AF "The Eagle Universe" at alpha ard education channel [3]
- ↑ The Esperantoplatz in Neukölln - redesign - meetings - exhibitions - summer festivals !, in: Fritz Wollenberg (Red.): Esperanto. Language and culture in Berlin and Brandenburg. 111 years, Jubilea LIbro 1903-2014 , Mondial, New York - Berlin 2017, pp. 439–444
- ↑ Blog of AZ Hilfen Berlin gGmbH [4]
- ↑ ADLER AF on Esperantoplatz 2013
- ↑ The website yourkiez.de was developed for this purpose. [5]
- ↑ New information poster on Esperantoplatz 2016
- ↑ Blog of the reggae singer Jonny M [6]
- ↑ Report from the 6th summer festival on Esperantoplatz in the blog of the district management Richardplatz Süd
- ↑ Information on the Be Inspired project by Yopic eV [7]
- ↑ Esperantoplatz - August 2019 - a summer festival for climate protection - A review in the Esperanto blog in Berlin and Brandenburg
- ↑ Report on the information steles on Esperantoplatz in the blog of Quartiersmanagement Richardplatz Süd
Coordinates: 52 ° 28 '22.4 " N , 13 ° 27' 10.2" E