A small French town has won instant internet fame because its mayor – running for re-election in Sunday’s municipal elections – goes by the name of Hittler.
Not just that. One of his two opponents is called Zielinski.
It has gone completely crazy, lamented Charles Hittler, mayor of Arcis-sur-Aube (population 2,785), when contacted by the BBC.
All my life I've had the occasional joke made about my name. Sometimes people drew moustaches on my election posters. It was never a big deal. But now it's out of control. I've seen online articles saying '37% of the people of Arcis are Hitlerites!'. My wife is in tears.
French social media has been inundated with humorous posts about the battle between the late German dictator Adolf Hitler and Ukraine's modern-day hero Volodymyr Zelensky.
Hittler says the attention is getting too much. If people were talking about the town and our policies, that would be one thing. But all they're interested in is our names, he said.
So how did this retired French laboratory head come to be called Hittler? And why hasn’t he changed his name?
My family comes from northern Alsace [along the German border], and my father was a shepherd. In the war he was taken to Germany in their forced labour programme, Hittler said.
After he came back he met my mother. Everyone said, 'You've got to change your name.' This was 1949. The war was a recent memory. But it was a huge administrative headache and it would have cost a lot of money, so they didn't.
There are only a few of his tribe left in France, he says. His Hittler cousins in Alsace all had girls, so the name is disappearing there. One of his sons pronounces the name Hit-lay, in order to escape embarrassment, and his grandchildren have taken their mothers' names.
Hittler, who leads a centre-right list, is facing off against Renault-Zielinski, a customs officer recently arrived in Arcis known for his Polish lineage. Zielinski is also faced with questions about his name, joking that while people often ask if he is related to Ukraine's president, he has to clarify the difference in spelling.
Sunday’s run-off in Arcis-sur-Aube puts Hittler against Renault-Zielinski and a third candidate, Annie Soucat. In the first round, Hittler led by a small margin over the other two. While these unusual names have brought unexpected attention to the town, both candidates express a wish that discussions would center more on their policies rather than their names.
