Oudezijds Achterburgwal Amsterdam

The Oudezijds Achterburgwal, often abbreviated as OZ Achterburgwal, is both a street and a canal in De Wallen, Amsterdam's red light district. It sits in the centre of Amsterdam, making the name refer to a specific canal-and-street setting rather than to Amsterdam's red-light district as a whole.

What is Oudezijds Achterburgwal in Amsterdam?

Oudezijds Achterburgwal is the street and canal that runs through De Wallen in central Amsterdam. Its identity is therefore twofold: Oudezijds Achterburgwal names the waterway and the adjoining street, within the part of the city known as Amsterdam's red light district.

Why are the red lights associated with Oudezijds Achterburgwal?

The available explanations come from the Red Light District Amsterdam Tour, which presents several possible origins rather than one independently verified answer.

One proposed association reaches back to the biblical story of Rahab, a prostitute in Jericho described in the book of Joshua. In that story, she made her house known with a red rope; the tour material says this has been claimed as an origin for the association between the colour red and prostitution.

A second explanation involves early railway workers in the United States, who carried red lanterns so they could be found in an emergency at night. After work, some visited prostitutes, and the lanterns were left on porches or placed behind windows.

The tour also gives a third possibility: red paper lanterns used to designate brothels in China, both for legal reasons and for atmosphere, may have influenced the tradition in the West. Finally, a former prostitute offers a practical explanation: red light combined with black light can give skin a healthy peach colour and make the eyes stand out. The same explanation describes red light as more attractive and less flammable than candles.

How can you explore Oudezijds Achterburgwal?

The Red Light District Amsterdam Tour visits Oudezijds Achterburgwal as stop 4 of 14. Use the interactive route to encounter this specific canal and street in the context supplied by the tour, without reducing it to a generic description of De Wallen.