Whenever you talk with some "Splićanin" (you know that, a someone living in, or originated from Split), there is a pretty big chance that at some point you will be introduced to endless string of something "former", or "old". It's more simple than it sounds. When in need to explain some location, average "Splićanin" will rarely use an address. More likely, we like to describe some building or a spot according to what it used to be. It's not limited only to things we witnessed during our lifetime, but can go to times generations before us. Sometime even centuries.

Let's take the biggest and the most important social spot in Split, its waterfront promenade. Since the beginning of 20th century it changed its name, if I count right, five times. Moreover, until the WW2 it was split in two, with two different names for eastern and western part. And yet, except for postmen, it's impossible to hear anyone using any other name but Riva. Same goes with the city's main square, officially known as Narodni trg, or People's Square. If you need not to get lost, better ask where is Piazza. How about Trg braće Radić (Radić Brothers Square)? Locals will more likely know it as Fruit Square, or Voćni trg in Croatian.

It goes on and on like that, and practice of changing street names with every regime or ruler change surely didn't help. After all, since the 1900 Split was part of no less than six different countries, and you can guess that each one of them had their own standards of who or what deserves to have some street named after.

But it's also very important to know what some building used to serve for to find where are you going. We just know what is it about when someone mentions "old courthouse", "old maternity hospital", "old hospital", "old Hajduk pitch", etc. Even local newspaper shares same destiny, and name "old Slobodna Dalmacija" (former newsroom, now residential building) is a legitimate location mark.

If it's too difficult to cope with this, use GPS. It's the only thing that (maybe) is more precise than local geography talk.