Already in 1569 a "confusion of languages" was noticed: German, Lithuanian, Latvian-Curonian (Nehrungs-Kurisch) and Prussian.
Traditions of the Old Prussians, the indigenous people of the region prior to the Prussian Crusade and influx of German colonists, were used in an attempt to find a common ground.
According to legend, the name Heiligelinde (Holy Linden tree) Święta Lipka - Holy Tilia (lime tree) - referred to a tree with a wooden statue of Mary under which miracles took place, though it may stem from a sacred grove of the Old Prussians.