Where the Streets Have Male Names

 

Over 92% of the streets in Leipzig which are named for people are named for men. Only 6.94% of those streets are named for women. You can view all the male and female named roads in Leipzig on EqualStreetNames: Leipzig. EqualStreetNames: Leipzig is an interactive map which colors the streets of the German city based on whether they are named for men or women. 

The map is a clear visualization of the shocking lack of recognition for women in the place-names of Leipzig. Streets named for women are colored purple, so they should really stand out on the map. In truth what really stands out is the disparity between the huge number of lime green streets (named for men) and the handful of purple streets. 

If you click on one of the colored roads on the map you can view the street's name and click through to read more about the named person on Wikipedia. One of the few women honored in the street names of Leipzig is Rosa Luxemburg, the German revolutionary who was executed in 1919.

The Leipzig map uses a methodology first developed for EqualStreetNames: Brussels, an interactive map which visualizes the inequality between male and female street names in the Belgium capital. The code and methodology developed for the Brussels map has also been used to create:

• EqualStreetNames: Berlin 
• EqualStreetNames: Belgrade
• EqualStreetNames: Assen
• EqualStreetNames: Gronigen

Geochicas has been at the forefront of efforts around the world to reveal the under-representation of women in place-names. Their Las Calles de las Mujeres is an interactive map which reveals all the streets named for men and women in a number of cities in Spain, Argentina, Mexico, Bolivia, Cuba, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. 

A number of other interactive mapping projects have explored the sexist culture of naming streets in cities around the world: 

Street Names in Vienna visualizes all the streets named for men and women in the Austrian capital.
From Pythagoras to Amalia analyzes 5,400 Amsterdam street names - including exploring how many are named for women compared to the number named after men.
Recognizing Women with Canadian Place Names shows 500 locations in Canada which have been named for women from lots of different backgrounds.