The etymology of the name "Carinthia", similar toCarnia orCarniola, has not been conclusively established. TheRavenna Cosmography (about AD 700) referred to aSlavic "Carantani" tribe as the eastern neighbours of theBavarians. In hisHistory of the Lombards, the 8th-century chroniclerPaul the Deacon mentions "Slavs inCarnuntum, which is erroneously called Carantanum" (Carnuntum, quod corrupte vocitant Carantanum) for the year 663.[4]
"Carantani" may have been formed from a toponymic basecarant- which ultimately derives from pre-Indo-European root *karra 'rock'.[5] (cf.Friulian:carantàn), or that it is ofCeltic origin and derived from *karantos 'friend, ally'.
Likewise, the Slovene name*korǫtanъ may have been adopted from theLatin *carantanum. The toponymCarinthia (Slovene:Koroška <Proto-Slavic*korǫt’ьsko) is also claimed to be etymologically related, deriving from pre-Slavic *carantia.[6]
Carinthia is known asKoruška/ Корушка in Croatian and Serbian,Korutany in Czech,Kärnten in German,Karintia in Hungarian,Carinzia in Italian,Carintia in Spanish,Karyntia in Polish,Korutánsko in Slovak, andKoroška in Slovene.
The state stretches about 180 km (110 mi) from east to west, and 70 km (43 mi) in a north–south direction. With 9,536 km2 (3,682 sq mi), it is the fifth-largest Austrian state by area. Most of the larger Carinthian towns and lakes are situated within the Klagenfurt Basin in the southeast, an inner Alpinesedimentary basin covering about one-fifth of the area. These Lower Carinthian lands differ from the mountainous Upper Carinthian region in the northwest, stretching up to theAlpine crest.
Carinthia has ahumid continental climate (Köppen), with hot and moderately wet summers and long harsh winters. In recent decades, winters have been exceptionallyarid. The summerprecipitation maxima often takes the form of heavy rain andthunderstorms, especially in the mountainous regions. The main Alpine ridge in the north is a meteorological divide with pronouncedwindward and leeward sides wherefoehn occurs regularly.
Due to the diversifiedterrain, numerous distinctmicroclimates exist. Nevertheless, the average amount of sunshine hours is the highest of all states in Austria. In autumn and winter, temperatureinversion often dominates the climate, characterized by air stillness, a densefog covering the frosty valleys and trapping pollution to formsmog, while mild sunny weather is recorded higher up in the foothills and mountains.
The settlement history of Carinthia dates back to thePaleolithic era. Archaeological findings of stone artifacts in a stalactite cave nearGriffen are older than 30,000 years; larger settlements in theLavanttal,Maria Saal andVillach regions are documented from about 3000 BC. Remains of a prehistoricstilt house settlement were discovered atLake Keutschach, today part of thePrehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps World Heritage Site. Skeleton finds from about 2000 BC (nearFriesach) denote a permanent population, and intensive arable farming, as well as trading with salt and Mediterranean products, was common already during the periods of theUrnfield andHallstatt culture. Hallstattgrave fields were discovered nearDellach (Gurina),Rosegg (Frög), and on the Gracarca mountain southeast ofLake Klopein.
About 300 BC, severalIllyrian andCeltic tribes joined in theKingdom of Noricum, centered on the capitalNoreia, possibly located in theZollfeld basin near the later Roman city ofVirunum. Known for the production of salt and iron, the Kingdom maintained intensive trade relations withEtruscan peoples and over the centuries extended the borders of its realm up to theDanube in the north. TheRoman Empire incorporated Noricum in 15 BC. Besides the administrative seat of Virunum, the cities ofTeurnia, Santicum (Villach) and Iuenna (Globasnitz) arose as centres of Roman culture. The Noricumprovince remained strategically important as a mining area for iron, gold, and lead and as an agricultural region. In the reign of the EmperorDiocletian (245–313) Noricum split into two provinces:Noricum ripense ("Noricum along the river", the northern part southward from the Danube), andNoricum mediterraneum ("landlocked Noricum", the district south of theAlpine crest). Teurnia became the administrative seat of the latter, as well as anEarly Christianepiscopal see.
As the Roman Empire declined in the 5th century AD, the Noricum region was exposed to recurring campaigns ofGermanic tribes, whereupon the population retired to hilltop settlements. In 408Visigoth troops under KingAlaric I entered Noricum from Italy across theCarnic Alps and allied with the Roman commanderStilicho, who as a result was deposed and executed for high treason (August 408). From 472Ostrogoth andAlemannic forces campaigned in Noricum, which became a province ofOdoacer'sKingdom of Italy in 476 and of theOstrogothic Kingdom from 493. On the death of KingTheoderic the Great in 526, the Italian kingdom finally collapsed and the East RomanByzantine empire underJustinian I temporarily conquered the Noricum region in the course of theGothic War of 535 to 554.
Prince's Stone, exhibited at theLandhaus Klagenfurt
From 591 onwards, theFrankish kingTheudebert I tried to break into the former Noricum region, andBavarian settlers entered the area from thePuster Valley in the west. They were however repulsed bySlavic tribes, who, beset byAvar horsemen moved into present-day Carinthia from the east. About 600 the Slavic principality ofCarantania arose, stretching along the valleys of theDrava,Mur andSava rivers. The remaining Celto-Roman population was largely assimilated, jointly challenging Avar and Frankish advance. The nameCarontani was first mentioned about 700; the lands ofCarantanum were documented by the chroniclerPaul the Deacon (d. 799). The principality was again centered on the historic Zollfeld valley, where thePrince's Stone bears witness to the ritual of the investiture of the Carantanian rulers exclusively in Slovene.
While the Carantanian rulers initially joined the tribal union ofSamo's Empire, PrinceBoruth turned to DukeOdilo ofBavaria in around 743 to ask for support against the Avar invaders. Aid was granted, however at the price of Bavarian overlordship. The Carantanian principality became part of the Bavarianstem duchy, while the area wasChristianised for the second time by missionaries from theSalzburg diocese. BishopVergilius had Prince Boruth's son Cacatius and his nephew Cheitmar brought up in the Christian faith. In 767, at their request, the bishop sentModestus to Carantania as avicar and had churches built at Teurnia andMaria Saal. Upon a pagan uprising in 772, the forces of Odilo's son DukeTassilo III of Bavaria again subdued the Carantanian lands.
In 788, Duke Tassilo III was finally deposed by the Frankish kingCharlemagne, and his territories were incorporated into theCarolingian Empire. By the 843Treaty of Verdun, the former Carantanian lands fell to the kingdom ofEast Francia ruled by Charlemagne's grandsonLouis the German. The ritual of installation of the Carantanian dukes at the Prince's Stone near Karnburg in Slovenian was preserved until 1414, whenErnest the Iron was enthroned as Duke of Carinthia.
TheMarch of Carinthia arose in 889 from the territory bequeathed by Louis's sonCarloman, king ofBavaria from 865 to 880, to his natural sonArnulf of Carinthia. Arnulf had already assumed the title of a Carinthian duke in 880 and followed his uncleCharles the Fat as King of East Francia in 887. TheDuchy of Carinthia was finally split from the vast Bavarian duchy in 976 byEmperor Otto II, having come out victorious from his quarrels with DukeHenry II the Wrangler. Carinthia, therefore, was the first newly created duchy of theHoly Roman Empire and for a short while comprised lands stretching from theAdriatic Sea almost to theDanube. In 1040, theMarch of Carniola was separated from it, and c. 1180 Styria, the Carinthian March, became a duchy in its own right. After the death of DukeHenry VI of Gorizia-Tyrol in 1335, Carinthia passed to the Habsburg brothers Albrecht II. andOtto IV, and was ruled by this dynasty until 1918. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, Carinthia was incorporated in theAustrian Empire'sKingdom of Illyria which succeeded Napoleon'sIllyrian Provinces, but recovered its previous status in 1849 and in 1867 became one of theCisleithaniancrown lands ofAustria-Hungary.
In late 1918, the breakup of the Habsburg monarchy was imminent, and on 21 October 1918 the members of theReichsrat for the German-speaking territories of Austria met in Vienna to constitute a "Provisional National Council forGerman-Austria". Before the meeting, the delegates agreed that German-Austria should not include "Yugoslav areas of settlement", which referred toLower Styria and the two Slovene-speaking Carinthian valleys south of theKarawanken range, Seeland (Slovenian: Jezersko) andMießtal (Meža Valley). On 12 Nov. 1918, when the Act concerning the foundation of the State of German-Austria was formally passed by the Provisional National Assembly in Vienna this was worded by the State Chancellor,Karl Renner, "...to encounter the prejudices of the world as though we wanted to annex alien national property".[7] The day before, on 11 Nov. 1918 the Provisional Diet of Carinthia had formally declared Carinthia's accession to the State of German-Austria.[8] The Federal Act concerning the Extent, the Borders and the Relations of the State Territories of 22 Nov. 1918 then clearly stated in article 1: "...the duchies of Styria and Carinthia with the exclusion of the homogenous Yugoslav areas of settlement".[9] Apart from one Social-Democrat, Florian Gröger, all the other delegates from Carinthia—Hans Hofer, Jakob Lutschounig, Josef Nagele, Alois Pirker, Leopold Pongratz, Otto Steinwender, Viktor Waldner—were members of German national parties and organizations.[10]
Road bridge across theFerlach reservoir of theDrava River at Unterschlossberg, Koettmannsdorf, Klagenfurt, Carinthia, Austria
After the end of theWorld War I, however, Carinthia became a contested region. On 5 November 1918, the first armed militia units led by the Slovene volunteerFranjo Malgaj invaded Carinthia and were then joined by Slovene troops underRudolf Maister. With the subsequent assistance of the regular Yugoslav army, they occupied southern Carinthia claiming the area for theKingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (Kraljevina Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca, or SHS) also known asYugoslavia. The provisional state government of Carinthia had fled toSpittal an der Drau and given the ongoing fighting between local volunteers and invaders on 5 December decided to declare armed resistance. The resistance encountered by the Yugoslav forces especially north of theDrava River around the town ofVölkermarkt with its violent fighting alarmed the victoriousAllies at theParis Peace Conference.
An Allied Commission headed by U.S. Lt.Col.Sherman Miles inspected the situation in situ and recommended the Karawanken main ridge as a natural border to keep the Klagenfurt basin intact but, in agreement with item no. 10 ofWoodrow Wilson'sFourteen Points, suggested a referendum in the disputed area. An armistice was agreed upon on 14 January and by 7 May 1919 the Yugoslav forces had left the state, but Slovene troops underRudolf Maister returned to occupying Klagenfurt on 6 June. Upon the intervention of the Allied Supreme Council in Paris, they retreated from the city but remained in the disputed part of Carinthia until 13 September 1920.
In theTreaty of Saint-Germain of 10 September 1919, the two smaller Slovene-speaking Carinthian valleys south of theKarawanken range,Jezersko and theMeža Valley, together with the town ofDravograd—together 330 square kilometres (128 sq mi)[11]—were attached to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later known as theKingdom of Yugoslavia): These areas are today part ofSlovene Carinthia. The Canale Valley (German:Kanaltal,Italian:Val Canale) as far south asPontebba, at that time an ethnically mixed German–Slovene area,[citation needed] with the border town ofTarvisio (German:Tarvis,Slovene:Trbiž) and its holy place of pilgrimage of Maria Luschari (Slovene:Svete Višarje) (450 km2 or 172 sq mi[11]), was ceded toItaly and included in theProvince of Udine.
According to the same treaty, areferendum was to be held in southern Carinthia as suggested by the Allied Commission, which was to determine whether the area claimed by the SHS-State was to remain part of Austria or go to Yugoslavia. Much of southern Carinthia was divided into two zones. Zone A was formed out of predominantly Slovene-inhabited zones (approximately corresponding to today'sDistrict of Völkermarkt, the district ofKlagenfurt-Land south of lakeWörthersee, and the south-eastern part of the present district ofVillach-Land), while Zone B included the City of Klagenfurt,Velden am Wörthersee and the immediately surrounding rural areas where German speakers formed a vast majority. If the population in Zone A had decided for Yugoslavia, another referendum in Zone B would have followed. On 10 October 1920, theCarinthian Plebiscite was held in Zone A, with almost 60% of the population voting to remain in Austria, which means that about 40% of the Slovene-speaking population must have voted against a division of Carinthia. Given the close supervision of the referendum by foreign observers, as well as the Yugoslav occupation of the area until four weeks before the referendum, irregularities alleged by the deeply disappointed Yugoslav supporters would not have substantially altered the overall decision. Yet, after the plebiscite, the SHS-State again made attempts to occupy the area, but owing to demarches by the United Kingdom, France, and Italy it removed its troops from Austria so that, by 22 November 1920, the State Diet of Carinthia was at last able to exercise its sovereignty over the entire state.[12]
DuringWorld War II,Slovene Partisan resistance was active in the southern areas of the region, reaching around 3,000 armed men. The cities ofKlagenfurt andVillach suffered fromair raids, but theAllied forces did not reach Carinthia beforeMay 8, 1945. Toward the end of the war, Gauleiter Rainer tried to implement a Nazi plan for Carinthia to become part of the projected Nazi national redoubt, theAlpenfestung; these efforts failed and the forces under Rainer's control surrendered to the forces of theBritish Army. Once again at the end of World War II, Yugoslav troops occupied parts of Carinthia, including the capital city of Klagenfurt, but were soon forced to withdraw by the British forces with the consent of theSoviet Union.
Carinthia, East Tyrol, and Styria then formed the UK occupation zone ofAllied-administered Austria. The area was witness to theturnover of German-allied Cossacks to the Red Army in 1945. The Allied occupation was terminated in 1955 by theAustrian State Treaty, which restored Austria's sovereignty. The relations between the German- and the Slovene-speaking Carinthians remained somewhat problematic. Divergent views over the implementation of minority protection rights guaranteed by Article 7 of the Austrian State Treaty have created numerous tensions between the two groups in the past fifty years.[when?]
The largest part of Carinthia's population settles in theKlagenfurt Basin betweenVillach andKlagenfurt. In 2008, the proportion of the population with amigration background in Carinthia was 9.3% of the total population, about half the Austrian figure of 17.5%.[14] By 2020, the proportion of the population with amigration background in Carinthia had risen to 14.5%, yet this figure remains lower than the Austrian average, where close to a quarter of the population has amigration background.[15]
The majority of Carinthia's population is today German-speaking. In the south of the province (mainly in the districts ofVillach-LandKlagenfurt-Land andVölkermarkt) live Carinthian Slovenes where they speakSlovene and are recognized as an autochthonous ethnic minority. The discussion about ethnic group rights (e.g. bilingual place-name signs) can be very emotional and the rights of Slovenes in Carinthia are still not fully implemented.
The state is divided into eight rural and two urbandistricts (Bezirke), the latter being thestatutory cities (Statutarstädte) of Klagenfurt and Villach. There are 132municipalities, of which 17 are incorporated astowns and 40 are of the lessermarket towns (Marktgemeinden) status.
KlagenfurtLandhaus, seat of the Carinthian Landtag
The state assemblyKärntnerLandtag, ("Carinthian State Diet"), is aunicamerallegislature. Its 36 members are elected fromparty lists according to the principle ofproportional representation and serve five-year terms, with elections held every five years. Austrian nationals over the age of 16 residing in Carinthia are eligible to vote. TheLandtag has athreshold of 5%.
The most recent election, the2023 Carinthian state election, was held on 5 March 2023. TheSPÖ, the party of the incumbent governorPeter Kaiser, won a plurality of the vote at 38.9%, giving them a plurality of seats. Thus, Carinthia (alongside Burgenland, Styria and Vienna) is one of the four states of Austria not to have an ÖVP-led government. The ÖVP acts as the junior coalition member in Kaiser's government.
The legislature also elects the state government, composed of aminister-president or Governor, whose ancient title isLandeshauptmann ("State Captain"), his two deputies, and further fourLandesräte ministers. The members of thecabinet used to form an all-party government elected under a system of proportional representation based on the number of representatives of the political parties in theLandtag in a system known asProporz, however this system was abolished in Carinthia in 2017.[16]
TheGross domestic product (GDP) of the state was 20.9 billion € in 2018, accounting for 5.4% of Austria's economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was €33,000 or 110% of the EU27 average in the same year.[17]
The people are predominantly German-speaking with a unique (and easily recognizable)Southern Austro-Bavariandialect typical of which is that all short German vowels before double consonants have been lengthened ("Carinthian vowel stretching").[citation needed]
ASlovene-speaking minority, known as theCarinthian Slovenes, is concentrated in the southern and southeastern parts of the state. Its size cannot be determined precisely because the representatives of the ethnic group reject a count.[citation needed] Recommendations for a boycott of the 2001 census, which asked for the language used in everyday communication, reduced the count of Slovene speakers to 12,554 people, 2.38% of a total population of 527,333.[19]
One of many customs that still subsists all over Carinthia are Kirchtage, a traditional type offair. The most famous isVillacher Kirchtag inVillach, which was first held in 1936 and is very popular among locals and tourists.
Carinthia has produced several internationally renowned writers in recent decades. In the early 20th century,Robert Musil, Josef Friedrich Perkonig, Dolores Viesèr, and Gerhart Ellert gained some notoriety.
After the Second World War, the poetsIngeborg Bachmann, Michael Guttenbrunner, andChristine Lavant first came to the fore. They were followed byPeter Handke, Gert Jonke, Josef Winkler, andPeter Turrini. Among other things, they took a very critical look at their homeland, like Josef Winkler in his trilogy "Das wilde Kärnten". Other important representatives of Carinthian literature include Janko Messner, Janko Ferk,Lydia Mischkulnig, Werner Kofler, Antonio Fian, and Florjan Lipus.
The most important publishers are Johannes Heyn, Carinthia, and the Carinthian printing and publishing company. Slovenian literature is primarily promoted by the Carinthian publishers Mohorjeva/Hermagoras, Drava, and the Wieser-Verlag founded by Lojze Wieser.
The most important literary event in Carinthia is the Days of German-language Literature in Klagenfurt, during which theIngeborg Bachmann Prize is awarded, which has been held annually since 1977 and particularly supports younger authors. The Ingeborg Bachmann Prize is one of the most important literary awards in the German-speaking world.
In the early 20th century, the Nötsch circle was active with the painters Sebastian Isepp, Franz Wiegele, Anton Kolig, and Anton Mahringer with its European orientation. The painter Herbert Boeckl was only loosely associated with the circle. An art-political controversy was the dispute over the Kolig frescoes in the Klagenfurt country house from 1931, which ended in the removal of the frescoes in 1938. In terms of architecture, Gustav Gugitz, the builder of the State Museum, should be mentioned, while the Wörthersee architecture with the villas and hotels is primarily characterized by Viennese architects. Switbert Lobisser is known for his woodcuts. Werner Berg made woodcuts and paintings, especially of his adoptive home in Bleiburg.
After 1945,Maria Lassnig, Hans Staudacher, and Hans Bischoffshausen initiated a radical new beginning. Important sites were and are the Carinthian Art Association, the Hildebrand Gallery, the Nötscher-Kreis-Museum, and the Museum of Modern Art Carinthia, which opened in 2003. Two high-profile "art scandals" were the frescoes by Giselbert Hoke in Klagenfurt main station in 1950 and the redesign of the meeting room in the country house in 1998 by Anton Kolig's grandson, Cornelius Kolig.
A fountain designed byKiki Kogelnik stands near the country house. Other visual artists are Valentin Oman, Bruno Gironcoli, Meina Schellander, and Karl Brandstätter. In Carinthia, the architect Günther Domenig designed the Steinhaus am Ossiacher See, the building for the state exhibition in Hüttenberg and the extension for the Klagenfurt city theater.
^France Bezlaj,Etimološki slovar slovenskega jezika (SlovenianEtymological Dictionary). Vol. 2: K–O / edited by Bogomil Gerlanc. – 1982. p. 68. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, 1976–2005.
^[1] Minutes of the Third Session of the Provisional National Assembly of German-Austria on 12 Nov. 1918], in: Austrian National Library,Minutes of the Parliamentary Sessions, p. 66
^Kurze Geschichte KärntensArchived 2009-11-27 at theWayback Machine, in:Deutschösterreich, du herrliches Land. 90 Jahre Konstituierung der Provisorischen Nationalversammlung. Broschüre zum Festakt der österreichischen LandtagspräsidentInnen am 20. Oktober 2008, p.24
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