Names are not just smoke and mirrors, but sometimes even develop unexpected mobilization potential.

In the southwest of North Rhine-Westphalia there was now a referendum to settle a name dispute that had been going on for months.

Around 83 percent of voters voted for the district of Düren to continue to be called the district of Düren.

The citizens overturned the decision of the district council, which had decided in December to rename the district to “Rurkreis Düren-Jülich” with a large majority.

The local politicians found that the new name stands much better for the entire district with its 15 municipalities.

It also brings to mind the world-renowned Research Center Jülich.

The river Rur, on the other hand – which should not be confused with the Ruhr and which, coming from the Eifel, flows through the district from south to north – is the connecting band.

Pure burger

Political correspondent in North Rhine-Westphalia.

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Since the beginning of the year, more and more opponents of the project have formed, initially primarily with the help of social media.

They considered the matter to be a pure waste of money and the arguments of the district council and the district administrator to be absurd - if only because 13 municipalities were still "ignored" under the collective name "Rurkreis Düren-Jülich".

It is important to stay with the “Düren district”, which has been tried and tested for 50 years.

How times have changed: When the district of Düren was formed from the old districts of Düren and Jülich in 1972, there were violent protests in the region because the people of Jülich felt neglected.