No, the two words do not describe different things. Stolperstein is the German word, and it means “stumbling stone”. In Dutch people often say struikelsteen, which means the same thing. Both words refer to the small memorial stones in the pavement that commemorate people persecuted by the Nazis.
What the German word means
Stolperstein is German for “stumbling stone”. The stones lie flush with the pavement, so you do not trip over them physically. Gunter Demnig’s point is that you stumble with your head and your heart. To read the name, you have to bow.
Which word is used where?
The project is the work of the German artist Gunter Demnig. This website uses the German name Stolperstein, with the plural Stolpersteine. Many people in the Netherlands say struikelsteen. In French the stone is called pavé de mémoire. All three names refer to the same stone, so the word you prefer is a matter of language.
The stones lie in about 30 European countries, including Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy. The name is German because the project comes from Germany. Gunter Demnig set the first stone on 16 December 1992 in front of the historic town hall in Cologne.
What the stone looks like
A Stolperstein is a concrete block of about 10 by 10 by 10 centimetres with a brass plate on top. The text is stamped into the brass by hand, letter by letter. Since 2005 the stones have been made by hand by the sculptor Michael Friedrichs-Friedlaender in Berlin. It is a small, flat object set in the pavement, not a statue or a plaque on a wall. The brass carries the text about one person: the name, the year of birth and what happened.
The word Stolperschwelle
In places where very many people became victims, there is sometimes a Stolperschwelle. It is a long brass strip with one text for the whole group. Schwelle means threshold, so the name is a stumbling threshold. It is a different kind of memorial from a single Stolperstein.
To find the stones near you, open the map on Stolpersteine.app.
Read on
Who is Gunter Demnig, the artist behind the Stolpersteine?
Gunter Demnig is a German artist, born in 1947 in Berlin. He had the idea for the Stolpersteine in 1992 and laid most of the stones himself for many years.
How is a Stolperstein made, and by whom?
A Stolperstein is a concrete block with a brass plate, and the text is stamped into the brass by hand, letter by letter.
Where is a Stolperstein placed, and why in front of that house?
A Stolperstein lies in front of the last home the person chose freely, before they were forced to move, go into hiding or were arrested.
