Kiez

Kiez (German pronun­cia­tion: [ˈkiːts]) (also: Kietz) is a German word that refers to a city neighbourhood, a relatively small community within a larger town. The word is mainly used in Berlin and northern Germany. Similar quarters are called Veedel in Cologne and Grätzl in Vienna.

The word Kietz originated in the time of the eastward expansion of German settlers in the Middle Ages into West Slavic territories (Germania Slavica), when in many places both communities existed side by side. The word possibly is of Slavonic origin (chyza meaning hut or cottage, cf. Kessinians) and referred to a Slavic settlement (typically of fishermen) near a German town. Some placenames are reminiscent of this meaning, for example Küstrin-Kietz or the Kietz quarter of Berlin-Köpenick.

Medieval Kietz settlements were first documented in the 14th century. They were often located near a castle or a river crossing and initially inhabited by Slavic vassals ("Wends"). They were prevalent in the Margraviate of Brandenburg as well as in Mecklenburg and in the Duchy of Pomerania. For a long time Kietze formed a distinct community beside the neighbouring peasant villages, though evidences of a specific Slavic population become rare in the course of an increasing Germanisation. From the late 18th century onwards, the denotation Kietz was generally applied to fishermen's villages and remote settlements. In its transferred sense, the word became a (sometimes mocking) denotation for Berlin neighbourhoods.

...
Wikipedia