New Street Names for Seestadt
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By naming streets after female personalities, aspern Seestadt once again makes a visible statement for equality. Eight more women are now part of the city map. Seestadt is growing – and with it, the network of streets and paths. Eight more women will give their names to future streets and paths in Seestadt.
East of the future co-creative mile between Zaha Hadid Square and Nelson Mandela Square, the great Austrian artists Senta Wengraf and Friederike Mayröcker are honored. The inventor Mária Telkes and the researcher Edith Neumann are the new namesakes in the southeastern business district focused on production & innovation. This area is already home to the geothermal plant of Wien Energie, technology giant HOERBIGER, and the internationally successful biopharmaceutical company Biomay. On the opposite side of Seestadtstraße, adjacent to the eastern green corridor of Seestadt, sports enthusiasts will soon think of football pioneer Edith Klinger and swimmers Judith Deutsch and Bertha Zahourek when heading to the ÖFB training campus and, from 2030, to Vienna’s new indoor swimming pool.
In 2023, Jina Mahsa Amini was honored in the west of Seestadt, with the street section between Sonnenallee and Zaha Hadid Square named after her. The avenue bearing her name stands for solidarity with all Iranians fighting for freedom and democracy.
About the namesakes of the newly named streets:
- Friederike-Mayröcker-Straße: Friederike Mayröcker (1924–2021) is considered one of the most important voices in Austrian literature. Among other honors, she received the Georg Büchner Prize and the Austrian Book Prize.
- Senta-Wengraf-Gasse: Theater and film actress Senta Wengraf (1924–2020) appeared in around 20 films and shaped the stages and TV screens of Austria and Germany for decades.
- Judith-Deutsch-Weg: Multiple swimming champion Judith Deutsch-Haspel (1918-2004) became Austrian champion at just 15 and held numerous national records. In 1935, she was named Sportswoman of the Year and in 1936 received the “Golden Medal of Honor of the Republic of Austria.”
- Bertha-Zahourek-Weg: Bertha Zahourek (1896–1967) was also an Austrian pioneer of women's swimming and one of the first Austrian Olympic medalists.
- Edith-Klinger-Weg: Vienna-born Edith Klinger (1911-1993) is regarded as a pioneer of women's football. She was not only an active player but also the first woman to be certified as a referee by the Austrian Football Association.
- Mária-Telkes-Weg: Mária Telkes (1900–1995) earned doctorates in chemistry and physics. While working in the USA, she designed, among other things, a solar-powered desalination plant that made seawater drinkable, and contributed to the development of the first house heated exclusively by solar energy.
- Edith-Neumann-Straße: Austrian-American microbiologist Edith Neumann (1902–2002) was considered one of the most respected scientists in the medical laboratory field of the 20th century. After fleeing to the USA, she served, among other roles, as Medical Director of the Jetti-Katz Clinical Laboratory.
- Jina-Mahsa-Amini-Allee: Student Jina Mahsa Amini (1999-2022) was fatally injured during her arrest by the Iranian morality police, sparking worldwide protests against the mullah regime and for women's rights.
Updated edition of the publication "Die Seestadt ist weiblich"
The biographies of all the women who gave their names can be found in the updated digital brochure “Die Seestadt ist weiblich”. The attached map shows the exact locations of the new names.
In total, 64 streets, squares, parks, and buildings in Seestadt are now named after women. “The streets and squares in Seestadt are dedicated to women whose life’s work has left a lasting mark. Whether in science, culture, politics, sports, or social engagement—not only well-known personalities are honored. We especially like to bring those into the public eye who have long lacked visibility,” says Ingrid Spörk, Head of Communications at Wien 3420.
Across the entire Vienna street network, there are currently 620 female names compared to 4,080 male names, which corresponds to a share of 13 percent of all namings. Since the decision to increasingly use women as namesakes, around 220 female namings have been implemented in Vienna between 2013 and 2025. Seestadt accounts for a significant share of this.
City Naming à la Seestadt
With two exceptions (Sonnenallee and Nelson-Mandela-Platz), all traffic areas in Seestadt are named after women. The contribution to improving gender balance in the naming of Vienna’s streets is small, but Seestadt is making a big statement.
The Vienna Institute for Social Science Documentation and Methodology (WISDOM) initially developed strategies for street naming in the new district on behalf of the Seestadt development company, Wien 3420 aspern Development AG. In a participatory, scientifically guided process with 30 experts, six thematic name groups were developed—always under the premise that if a person’s name is used, it must be female. Following the decision by the Donaustadt district council to give the streets in Seestadt female names, a total of 22 street names were established for the first phase of Seestadt on February 28, 2012. As the city develops, more names are gradually being added.
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