Akhmatova poem

[Denis Akhapkin]

Dear Jack,

The right answer is #2. The arch between Rossi's Senate/Synod Bldgs is
very important topos in Silver age literature (not only Akhmatova
refers to it, but Mandelstam, Nabokov etc.).

For street/place names in St. Petersburg I can recommend K.
Gorbachevich and E. Hablo book:

Горбачевич К., Хабло Е. Почему так названы: О происхождении названий
улиц, площадей, островов, рек и мостов Санкт-Петербурга.

There were many editions, the last, as far as I know, in 2002.

There is online version of an old, Soviet time edition:
http://bukharapiter.ru/topo/toponim.html#ex2

Remember, that many streets changed their names in Soviet time, then
was renamed back after 1991. The printed version of the book have
index of old and new names, but in this online version it missed.

The name of the street in 1918-1991 was Красная. This is the entry
from the book:

Красная улица проходит от площади Декабристов до набережной
Ново-Адмиралтейского канала (Октябрьский район). В 1738 году этой
улице было присвоено наименование Исаакиевской, но в народе ее
называли Галерной, так как она вела к Галерной верфи -- месту постройки
галер (крупных многовесельных судов для Балтийского флота). Затем
название <<Галерная>> стало официальным, и оно сохранялось за улицей
почти два столетия.
В 1918 году Галерная улица была переименована в Красную. Новое ее
название имеет символическое значение. <<Красная>> в данном случае
означает <<советская>>, <<революционная>>.

Best,

Denis Akhapkin
Associate Professor of Russian Language and Literature
Saint-Petersburg State University, Smolny College

2012/6/2 Jack Kollmann <kolljack at stanford.edu>:
> O, wise colleagues:
>
>
>
> In Akhmatova's 1913 poem, "Stikhi o Peterburge," #2, she refers to the
> "Galernaia arka in verse #1:
>
> Serdtse b'etsia rovno, merno.
>
> Chto mne dolgie goda!
>
> Ved' pod arkoi na Galernoi
>
> Nashi teni navsegda.
>
>
>
> Is the "Galernaia Arch" (1) the one on Palace Square in the middle of
> Rossi's General Staff Bldg.; or (2) the one between Rossi's Senate/Synod
> Bldgs., the street behind which is Galernaia ulitsa; or (3) some other
> arch?  I'm guessing #2 because of the street name, although Roberta Reeder
> ("Anna Akhmatova: Poet and Prophet," St. Martin's, 1994) says #1 (p. 71).
> In any case, why "Galernaia"?  Meaning "galley, a type of boat" (extensively
> used at least during Peter's time), right?, and not "gallery"?
>
>
>
> I can't find reference to the origin and first use of the street name
> "Galernaia ulitsa," much less the arch, although I'm sure it's explained
> somewhere.  Can you suggest good reference works, either online or printed,
> re: street/place names in Petersburg?  I have a couple of books on origins
> of street and place names in Moscow, but not a comparable one for
> Petersburg.
>
>
>
> Many thanks.
>
>
>
> Jack Kollmann
>
> CREEES, Stanford University
>
>
>
>
>
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