August 13, 2010 – Government Attempts Ban on Offensive Route Names

The Swedish newspaper DN is reporting that a local politician is threatening to close down a Swedish crag unless the route names are changed. The cliff in question uses Nazi era names like Hitler, Treblinka and Crystal Night. The Swedish climbing association has agreed to create a route-naming policy but admits there is little else they can do.

Many famous climbs have sexist or racist names or are named after historic events that some climbers might consider offensive. While guidebook authors may choose to omit these routes from future publication, it may be difficult for governments to ban these off-colour naming schemes.