Where The Streets Do Have a Name

Whenever I spend any length of time in a new location (on a trip, move to a new town, etc), I start noticing the names of the streets. I ask myself, “Who is this person?”, “Why are they important enough to have a street named after them?”, and “Why is their name associated with this type of street?”

I ask myself a lot of silly things. And sometimes I answer myself. (But that is another article, I fear).

Using Chile as an example, most cities have the following three street names: San Martin, O’Higgins and Freire. There’s a lot of history in those names, but you can just click on those links and Wikipedia it all.

O’Higgins and Freire, to say the least, were not collaborators. So is it a surprise, or accident, that these streets always cross each other?  San Martin and O’Higgins were important liberators of Argentina, Chile, and other countries. They definitely worked together. I can not recall a city in Chile where these streets do not run parallel one another.

In another city I have visited, the Main Street name is Urrutia. Unsavory military leader tasked with the Occupation of Araucanía and the attempted subjugation of the Mapuche.  And the names of all the streets in this town that cross Urrutia?  Of course - various Mapuche chiefs and leaders: Chincolef, Coliñanco, Millaqueo, to name a few.

Surely not an accident in urban planning. Just stuff one thinks about when walking around, looking at the street names.

Photo Used: magnific.com