‘Ostkreuz’ means ‘east cross’: a crossing of railway lines.
In this two-level interchange the Ringbahn, on the upper level, crosses the Schlesische Bahn and the Ostbahn on the lower level. The station opened in 1882 as Stralau-Rummelsburg, after the neighbouring villages. On 15 March 1933 it was renamed Ostkreuz, matching Westkreuz, renamed a year earlier, where the Stadtbahn and the Ringbahn cross in the west.