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Bratislava (Pozsony in Hungarian; until 1919 Preporok in Slovak and Pressburg in German [also used in English]) is the capital of Slovakia and the country’s largest city, with a population of some 430,000. Bratislava lies on the River Danube, at Slovakia’s borders with Austria and Hungary, and relatively close to the border with the Czech Republic. It is only 60 km (45-65 minutes by train) from Vienna. The city is the most densely populated in Central Europe. The Carpathian mountain range begins within the territory of the city with the Mal Karpaty (or Little Carpathians) mountains (part of the Carpathians).
Bratislava is the seat of the Slovak presidency, parliament and government. The city is home to universities, a relatively large number of museums, and to theatres and other cultural institutions (for example, the famous Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra).
Historically, the town has been influenced by several nations (among others, Austria, Hungary, and Slovakia). Shortly before WWI, it partly functioned as a relaxation place for people from Vienna, even connected by a high-speed tram(since 1914). As is common for former cities of Austria-Hungary, Bratislava had other names, out of which the following ones were the only used or official forms before the end World War I (1919):
The Old Town Hall viewed from the Main Square
Pressburg, its old German name. This was also the primary name used in English until 1919.
Pozsony, its name in Hungarian (still used in Hungarian today)
Preporok, its old Slovak name
Koice (German: Kaschau, Hungarian: Kassa, Latin: Cassovia) is Slovakia’s second largest city. It lies in the eastern part of the country, in the valley of the river Hornd in the Koice basin, encircled by the spurs of the ?ierna Hora mountains to the north and the Volovsk vrchy hills to the west. Seat of a region (kraj) or Higher Territorial Unit (VC), and of a district (okres). Seat of universities and of the Slovak Constitutional Court. Seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric (since 1995), Evangelical Lutheran bishopric and a Greek Catholic bishopric. The town has a historic center.
Administrative division
Koice are divided into 4 District and 22 City Parts:
Koice I: Dung?a, Kave?any, Sever, Sdlisko ?ahanovce, Star mesto, ?ahanovce
Koice II: Lorin?k, Lunk I-XII, Myslava, Pere, Po?ov, Sdlisko KVP, aca, Zpad
Koice III: Dargovskch Hrdinov, Koick Nov Ves
Koice IV: Barca, Juh, Krsna, Nad jazerom, ebastovce, Vyn Optske
Preov (Hungarian: Eperjes, German: Preschau or Eperies) is a town in eastern Slovakia. It is the seat of the administrative Presov Region (Preovsk kraj) (see Regions of Slovakia). With a population of 93,000, it is the third largest town in the country.
Location
Preov is situated in the valley of the Torysa river, at the confluence with its tributary Sek?ov. Preov is only 38 kilometers north from Koice.
Characteristics
As of 2001, 93.7% of the inhabitants are Slovaks; significant minorities include Roma, Rusyns, Ukrainians, and Czechs. The average wage and the employment rate in Preov are below the national average. Significant industries in the town include mechanical and electrical engineering companies and clothing industry. Solivary, the only salt mining and processing company in Slovakia, also operates in the town.
More than 10,000 students are enrolled at the two instutions of post-secondary education in the town – the University of Preov with 8 faculties and the Faculty of Manufacturing Technologies of the Technical University of Koice. Preov is also seat of a Greek Catholic bishopric, a Lutheran Church bishopric and a Orthodox bishopric.
Nitra (in German: Neutra, in Hungarian: Nyitra [in the past frequently Nyitria]) is a city in western Slovakia (and the fourth largest urban settlement in Slovakia) situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the Nitra river valley. It is the seat of a region (kraj) or Higher Territorial Unit (VC).
Nitra alongside with Bratislava are the oldest cities in Slovakia. Origins of Nitra as a town(city) and the first sure historical reference date back to the early 9th century.
History
Nitra is a city of extraordinary historic importance. Inhabited since time immemorial, it was an important center of the Celts (last centuries B.C.), and later the seat of the first known rulers of what is today Slovak territory, i.e. of :
the Germanic Quadi around 396? (disputed)
the Slavic/Slovak Nitrian Principality:
independent Nitrian principality (late 8th century – 833)
Nitrian principality as part of Great Moravia (833 – ?907)
Nitrian principality under Hungarian supremacy (?925/970 – 1107) [between 1000 and 1030 temporarily under Polish supremacy ]
Nitra is the site of the first known Christian church in central and eastern Europe, which was built in 828 during the time of the Nitrian Principality, and of the first known bishopric in present-day Slovakia (established 880). Methodius and St. Cyril, creators of the Glagolitic alphabet, an early precursor of the modern Cyrillic alphabet, participated actively in the formation of the Church and the first bishopric in Slovakia.
ilina (Hungarian: Zsolna, German: Sillein, Polish: ?ylina) is a city in northwestern Slovakia. It is located on the confluence of the Vh and Kysuca rivers. Seat of a region (kraj) or a Higher Territorial Unit (VC), and of a district (okres).
There was a Slavic settlement in the 13th century at the place. It became a free royal town in 1312. Today ilina is the fifth largest town of Slovakia and houses a university (founded 1953). Since 1990 the historical centre of the city has been largely restored.
Bansk Bystrica (Hungarian: Besztercebnya, German: Neusohl) is a town in central Slovakia at the Hron river and at the Lower Tatra mountains. Seat of a region (kraj) or Higher Territorial Unit (VC) and of a district (okres).
In the past, Bansk Bystrica was an important mining town. In the 20th century it was the center of central Slovakia. The town has a historic center.
The Low Tatra mountain range nearby provides good opportunities for winter sports.
Trnava (Hungarian: Nagyszombat, German: Tyrnau) is a town in western Slovakia, 45 km to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnvka river, and at the main Bratislava-ilina railway and Bratislava-ilina limited-access highway. It is the capital of a region (kraj), a Higher Territorial Unit (VC) and the biggest town of a district (okres). It is the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric (1541-1820 and then again since 1978). The town has a historic center. Because of the many churches within its town walls, Trnava has often been called the “Slovak Rome.”
Name
The name of the town is derived from the Slovak word t?nie (=thornbush) which characterized the river banks in the region.
History
Permanent settlements on the town’s territory are known from the Neolithic period onwards. During the Middle Ages, an important market settlement arose here at the junction of two important roads- from Bohemia to Hungary and from the Mediterranean to Poland.
The first written reference to Trnava dates from 1211. In 1238, Trnava was the first town in Slovakia to be granted a town charter (civic privileges) by the king. The former agricultural center gradually became a center of manufacture, trade, and crafts. By the early 13th century, the king of Hungary had invited numerous Germans to settle in Trnava; this settlement increased after the Tatar invasion in 1242. At the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, a part of Trnava was enclosed by a very long town wall. The original Slovak market settlement and the Germans, however, stayed behind this wall.
The town was also the place of many important negotiations: Charles I, the king of Hungary, signed here a currency agreement with the Czech King John of Luxemburg in 1327, and King Louis I (who often stayed in the town and died there in 1380) signed here a friendship agreement with Emperor Charles IV in 1360.
Martin (Hungarian: Turcszentmrton, German: Sankt Martin in der Turz) is a town in northern Slovakia. It is located near the city of ilina.
Tren?n (Hungarian: Trencsn, German: Trentschin, Latin: Laugaricio) is a town in western Slovakia (close to the Czech border) at the Vh river. It is the seat of the Tren?n Region (kraj) or Higher Territorial Unit (VC) and of a district (okres).
The site has been inhabited since time immemorial. A typical medieval fortified castle is situated on a rock above the town. Tren?n is best known for a Roman inscription on the castle rock from 179, stemming from the era of the Markoman Wars, a war between the Roman Empire and the Germanic Quadi. It denotes the site as Laugaricio and it is the northernmost evidence of the presence of Roman soldiers in central Europe. Between 1302 and 1321, the castle was the seat of the Hungarian magnate Matthew Csk, who controlled Slovakia politically and militaristically and became a de-facto ruler of Slovakia for several years.
The city is dominated by its castle, which is the third-largest on Slovak territory. The castle is divided into upper and lower sections, with extensive fortifications. The upper castle has several palace buildings which surround the central medieval tower, which remains the highest point of the city. Below the castle on the hillside is the old parish church and a small upper square, which is reached by historic covered stairs as well winding side streets. The old town has a large main square, with a large baroque church and a variety of shops, as well as a town tower.
Ottawa Senators defenseman and NHL All-Star Zdeno Chra was born in Tren?n in 1977.
Poprad (Hungarian: Poprd, German: Deutschendorf) is a town in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains.
The town has a historic center, an international airport and is the starting point of the Tatransk elektrick eleznica (Tatra Electric Railway)—a set of special narrow gauge trains (trams) connecting the resorts in the High Tatra with each other and with Poprad. Main line trains link Poprad to other destinations in Slovakia and beyond; in particular, through trains run to Prague in the Czech Republic.
An important note for travellers: The airport is called “Tatry-Poprad” (TAT), but the railway station “Poprad-Tatry”.
History
Historically, the territory originally occupied by Slovak settlements was colonized in the 13th century by German settlers and became a largely German village (town). From 1412 to 1770, as one of the Spi towns, Poprad was pawned by the Kingdom of Hungary (to which Slovakia belonged between the 11th century and 1918) to the Kingdom of Poland, meaning that Poland was partially responsible for the developments there.
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