Streetsign reading "Tallinn Streets dot com" Header

Work in progress

A pile of ro ad signs half-trashed and piled up on a building-site, to indicate the site is in construction.

Website under construction, many entries missing, no photos with the streets yet, layout not finalized...

This started with a book (last few pages under review) and so far 1814 of the 1884 articles (A to Z, with 50-odd Ts remaining) entered so far, so some 5% of the links go nowhere.

Logo of the Tallinn Children's Hospital Foundation

The Book

All author earnings of A Rambling Dictionary of Tallinn Street Names to be donated to the foundation or donate here.

If anyone could help or advise as to the legal mechanism, it would be appreciated, thanks!

The Website

Not intended at the beginning, the present website is taking on a life of its own, with plans for relevant discussion forums, picture galleries and, over time, more non-streetname entries.

In theory, it will be funded by advertising relevant to people in Tallinn, to be determined.

A percentage of profits (also to be determined) to be donated to the foundation. 

Contact

Photograph of Simon Hamilton in Pikk street, Tallinn.

Apparently, a company that uses its owner's name is considered more trustworthy because they put themselves on the line.

This is me, in Tallinn this spring (2025), on a 3-month spree to check details, take photos (about 12K), explore (ave. 15K/day), and so on. I think I covered every street in Kesklinn (apart from Mõigu), most of Põhja-Tallinn and some Kristiine.

For information, please contact Simon at this address dot com, thanks!

Home

Pukspuu

Pukspuu (Pukspuu)

Box (shrub), boxwood (wood). Buxus spp. (prob. Buxus sempervirens), its oils used to be used for, amongst others, gout, headaches, leprosy, syphilis, worms, etc. A very hard wood, apparently used for parquet too. Puks, according to my daughters who ought to be ashamed of themselves, also means fart (poss. Hiiumaa dialect?). Renaming of the south, western or ‘bottom left’ end of Lõhmuse põik in 2016. Tree/shrub group, see Tuhkpuu.

Kiviräha

Kiviräha (Kivirähk)

Gravel. Bit of a pleonasm since rähk:räha means shingle already. An offshoot of Korese, also pending paving. Mini-group of road-material-related roads. Still under planning, for now just a mud track into the woods.

Kivipere

Kivipere (Kivipere)

Stone homestead, probably an old farm name.

Kivinuka

Kivinuka (Kivinukk)

Stone/Stony corner (or paddock, see Tuulenurga) or, why not, ‘nook’, next to a wood of the same name attached to a former poolmõis (see Mõisa) first recorded as Ges. Kiwwiauk (1798, lit. ‘stone hole’ dependency) and thence, perhaps by an erroneous trasmission into Ges. Kiwwinuk (1871, ‘stone corner’), after a local kurisu, (from kuri, originally poor or wretched, but evolving through Bible-speak to angry, evil, devil… + suu>su, mouth, see Kura) translated variously as ‘karst gorge (cleft or clough)’ or sinkhole. Now a transport hub.

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Advertise...

Your business, store or consultancy next to your street address and a percentage of your fee (to be determined) goes the the Children's Hospital fund.

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Post your favorite local photo and sponsor the foundation. Your entire sponsorship goes go the the Children's Hospital fund

Wanted!

Beautiful photos of your street or Tallinn! Send them in! No remuneration planned for now, but will be attributed according to your preferences.