Hamburg to name street after Germany’s most famous dominatrix

Alongside Karneval and Oktoberfest, there is a place in Germany where tourists from around the globe come to seek the latest in adult entertainment: the red-light district of Hamburg or the Reeperbahn. Just over 900 meters long, the infamous corner of the St. Pauli district of western Hamburg is home to night clubs, peep shows, strip bars, theater houses, restaurants, comedy clubs, and brothels designed to meet almost any taste. This past month, Hamburg officials announced that it would be naming one of the busiest streets in the red-light district after one of its most influential residents: Domenica Niehoff, a former S&M dominatrix turned activist, who campaigned tirelessly for sex workers’ rights.

Iceland government challenges retail chain Iceland over name use

The tiny, frozen, nation of Iceland has filed legal action against a British grocery chain store that has taken the name “Iceland” as its company name. “Iceland Foods” is a privately owned frozen food chain owned and operated by Malcolm Walker and the South African investment group Brait. According to a recent article in the UK Guardian, “Iceland Foods” has already “won multiple cases against Icelandic companies which use ‘Iceland’” as a part of their onomastic trademark. Whether the nation of Iceland will emerge triumphant in the battle to control the use of their country’s name will be decided at the European Union’s Intellectual Property Office.