"Fucking good name", say Austrians

Sorry to spoil the fun, but the proper German pronunciation of "Fucking" -- a village in Austria -- rhymes with "booking". Today, Franz Meindl, the Fucking mayor, has again denied reports that the good burgers (look it up) of his village were agitating for a name change.

Despite having a population of only 104, the village has become famous for its name in the English-speaking world. Its road signs are a popular visitor attraction, and were often stolen by souvenir-hunting tourists until 2005, when they were modified to be theft-resistant. If you want to have a try anyway, go north from Salzburg for about 21 miles, and you'll find the Fucking sign about 2.5 miles east of the German boarder. ["Border", surely! Ed.]

Burgermeister Franz Meindl dismissed news reports that residents were pushing to change the name to something less controversial. "I don't know where you're getting the idea that we want to change the Fucking name," the annoyed-sounding mayor told Reuters today. "A couple of years ago some people suggested alternate spellings like 'Fuking' or 'Fugging'. An Irishman suggested 'Fooking', the way it should be said. But nothing came of it."

It is believed that the settlement was founded in the 6th century by a Bavarian nobleman named Focko. The existence of the village was documented for the first time in 1070 and historical records show that some twenty years later the lord was Adalpert von Vukkingen. The spelling of the name has evolved over the years, having been spelled Fukching in 1303 and Fugkhing in 1532. The modern Fucking spelling dates from the 18th century.