Slovakia,[b] officially theSlovak Republic,[c] is alandlocked country inCentral Europe. It is bordered byPoland to the north,Ukraine to the east,Hungary to the south,Austria to the west, and theCzech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's mostly mountainous territory spans about 49,000 km2 (19,000 sq mi), hosting a population exceeding 5.4 million. The capital andlargest city isBratislava, while the second largest city isKošice.
TheSlavs arrived in the territory of the present-day Slovakia in the 5th and 6th centuries. From the late 6th century, parts of modern Slovakia were incorporated into theAvar Khaghanate. In the 7th century, the Slavs played a significant role in the creation ofSamo's Empire. When the Avar Khaghanate dissolved in the 9th century, the Slavs established thePrincipality of Nitra before it was annexed by thePrincipality of Moravia, which later becameGreat Moravia. When Great Moravia fell in the 10th century, the territory was integrated into thePrincipality of Hungary at the end of the 9th century, which later became theKingdom of Hungary in 1000.[12] In 1241 and 1242, after theMongol invasion of Europe, much of the territory was destroyed, but was recovered largely thanks to Hungarian kingBéla IV. During the 16th and 17th centuries, southern portions of present-day Slovakia were incorporated into provinces of theOttoman Empire.[13][14] The Ottoman-controlled areas were ceded to the Habsburgs by the turn of the 18th century. The Hungarian declaration ofindependence in 1848 was followed in the same year by theSlovak Uprising through the establishment of theSlovak National Council.[15] While the uprising did not achieve its aim, it played an important role in cementing a Slovak national identity. The Hungarian wars of independence eventually resulted in a compromise that established theAustro-Hungarian Empire.[16]
Slovakia's name means the "Land of theSlavs" (Slovensko inSlovak stemming from the older formSloven/Slovienin). As such, it is a cognate of the wordsSlovenia andSlavonia. In medieval Latin, German, and even some Slavic sources, the same name has often been used for Slovaks, Slovenes, Slavonians, and Slavs in general. According to one of the theories, a new form of national name formed for the ancestors of the Slovaks between the 13th and 14th century, possibly due to foreign influence; theCzech wordSlovák (in medieval sources from 1291 onward).[19] This form slowly replaced the name for the male members of the community, but the female name (Slovenka), reference to the lands inhabited (Slovensko) and the name of the language (slovenčina) all remained the same, with their base in the older form (compare to Slovenian counterparts). Most foreign translations tend to stem from this newer form (Slovakia in English,Slowakei in German,Slovaquie in French, etc.).
In medieval Latin sources, terms:Slavus,Slavonia, orSlavorum (and more variants, from as early as 1029)[19] have been used. In German sources, names for the Slovak lands wereWindenland orWindische Lande (early 15th century),[20] with the formsSlovakia andSchlowakei starting to appear in the 16th century.[21] The present Slovak formSlovensko is first attested in the year 1675.[22]
The oldest surviving human artefacts from Slovakia are found nearNové Mesto nad Váhom and are dated at 270,000 BCE, in theEarly Paleolithic era. These ancient tools, made by theClactonian technique, bear witness to the ancient habitation of Slovakia.[23]
Otherstone tools from theMiddle Paleolithic era (200,000–80,000 BCE) come from the Prévôt (Prepoštská) cave inBojnice and from other nearby sites.[24] The most important discovery from that era is aNeanderthalcranium (c. 200,000 BCE), discovered nearGánovce, a village in northern Slovakia.
Archaeologists have found prehistoric human skeletons in the region, as well as numerous objects and vestiges of theGravettian culture, principally in the river valleys ofNitra,Hron,Ipeľ,Váh and as far as the city ofŽilina, and near the foot of theVihorlat, Inovec, andTribeč mountains, as well as in theMyjava Mountains. The most well-known finds include the oldest female statue made ofmammoth bone (22,800 BCE), the famousVenus of Moravany. The statue was found in the 1940s inMoravany nad Váhom nearPiešťany. Numerous necklaces made of shells from Cypraca thermophilegastropods of theTertiary period have come from the sites of Zákovská, Podkovice, Hubina, and Radošina. These findings provide the most ancient evidence of commercial exchanges carried out between theMediterranean andCentral Europe.
Bronze Age
During theBronze Age, the geographical territory of modern-day Slovakia went through three stages of development, stretching from 2000 to 800 BCE. Major cultural, economic, and political development can be attributed to the significant growth in production of copper, especially in central Slovakia (for example inŠpania Dolina) and northwest Slovakia.Copper became a stable source of prosperity for the local population.
After the disappearance of theČakany andVelatice cultures, theLusatian people expanded building of strong and complex fortifications, with the large permanent buildings and administrative centres. Excavations of Lusatianhill forts document the substantial development of trade and agriculture at that period. The richness and diversity of tombs increased considerably. The inhabitants of the area manufactured arms, shields, jewellery, dishes, and statues.
Iron Age
Biatec, presumably a king, who appeared on the Celtic coins minted by theBoii at the current location of Bratislava, 1st century B.C.
Hallstatt Period
The arrival of tribes fromThrace disrupted the people of the Kalenderberg culture, who lived in the hamlets located on the plain (Sereď) and in the hill forts like Molpír, nearSmolenice, in theLittle Carpathians. During Hallstatt times, monumental burial mounds were erected in western Slovakia, with princely equipment consisting of richly decorated vessels, ornaments and decorations. The burial rites consisted entirely of cremation. Common people were buried in flat urnfield cemeteries.
A special role was given to weaving and the production of textiles. The local power of the "Princes" of theHallstatt period disappeared in Slovakia during the century before the middle of first millennium BCE, after strife between theScytho-Thracian people and locals, resulting in abandonment of the old hill-forts. Relatively depopulated areas soon caught the interest of emergingCeltic tribes, who advanced from the south towards the north, following the Slovak rivers, peacefully integrating into the remnants of the local population.
La Tène Period
From around 500 BCE, the territory of modern-day Slovakia was settled byCelts, who built powerfuloppida on the sites of modern-dayBratislava andDevín.Biatecs,silver coins with inscriptions in the Latin alphabet, represent the first known use of writing in Slovakia. At the northern regions, remnants of the local population of Lusatian origin, together with Celtic and later Dacian influence, gave rise to the uniquePúchov culture, with advanced crafts and iron-working, many hill-forts and fortified settlements of central type with the coinage of the "Velkobysterecky" type (no inscriptions, with a horse on one side and a head on the other). This culture is often connected with the Celtic tribe mentioned in Roman sources asCotini.
Roman Period
A Roman inscription at the castle hill ofTrenčín (178–179 AD)
From 2 CE, the expandingRoman Empire established and maintained a series of outposts around and just south of theDanube, the largest of which were known asCarnuntum (whose remains are on the main road halfway betweenVienna andBratislava) andBrigetio (present-daySzőny at the Slovak-Hungarian border). Such Roman border settlements were built on the present area ofRusovce, currently a suburb ofBratislava. The military fort was surrounded by a civilianvicus and several farms of thevilla rustica type. The name of this settlement wasGerulata. The military fort had an auxiliary cavalry unit, approximately 300 horses strong, modelled after theCananefates. The remains of Roman buildings have also survived inStupava,Devín Castle, Bratislava Castle Hill, and the Bratislava-Dúbravka suburb.
Near the northernmost line of the Roman hinterlands, theLimes Romanus, there existed the winter camp ofLaugaricio (modern-dayTrenčín) where the Auxiliary of Legion II fought and prevailed in a decisive battle over the GermanicQuadi tribe in 179 CE during theMarcomannic Wars. The Kingdom ofVannius, a kingdom founded by theGermanicSuebi tribes ofQuadi andMarcomanni, as well as several small Germanic andCeltic tribes, including the Osi andCotini, existed in western and central Slovakia from 8–6 BCE to 179 CE.
Great invasions from the fourth to seventh centuries
In the second and third centuries CE, theHuns began to leave theCentral Asian steppes. They crossed the Danube in 377 CE and occupiedPannonia, which they used for 75 years as their base for launching looting-raids into Western Europe. However,Attila's death in 453 brought about the disappearance of theHunnic empire. In 568, a Turko-Mongol tribal confederacy, theAvars, conducted its invasion into the Middle Danube region. The Avars occupied the lowlands of thePannonian Plain and established an empire dominating theCarpathian Basin.
In623, theSlavic population living in the western parts of Pannonia seceded from their empire after a revolution led bySamo, a Frankish merchant.[25] After 626, the Avar power started a gradual decline[26] but its reign lasted to 804.
TheSlavic tribes settled in the territory of present-day Slovakia in the fifth century. Western Slovakia was the centre ofSamo's empire in the seventh century. A Slavic state known as thePrincipality of Nitra arose in the eighth century and its rulerPribina had the first known Christian church of the territory of present-day Slovakia consecrated by 828. Together with neighbouringMoravia, the principality formed the core of theGreat Moravian Empire from 833. The high point of this Slavonic empire came with the arrival ofSaints Cyril and Methodius in 863, during the reign ofDukeRastislav, and the territorial expansion underKingSvätopluk I.
Great Moravia arose around 830 whenMojmír I unified theSlavic tribes settled north of theDanube and extended the Moravian supremacy over them.[28] When Mojmír I endeavoured to secede from the supremacy of the king ofEast Francia in 846, KingLouis the German deposed him and assisted Mojmír's nephewRastislav (846–870) in acquiring the throne.[29] The new monarch pursued an independent policy: after stopping a Frankish attack in 855, he also sought to weaken the influence of Frankish priests preaching in his realm.Duke Rastislav asked theByzantine EmperorMichael III to send teachers who would interpret Christianity in the Slavic vernacular.
On Rastislav's request, two brothers, Byzantine officials and missionariesSaints Cyril and Methodius came in 863. Cyril developed thefirst Slavic alphabet and translated the Gospel into theOld Church Slavonic language. Rastislav was also preoccupied with the security and administration of his state. Numerous fortified castles built throughout the country are dated to his reign and some of them (e.g., Dowina, sometimes identified withDevín Castle)[32][33] are also mentioned in connection with Rastislav by Frankish chronicles.[34][full citation needed][35]
During Rastislav's reign, thePrincipality of Nitra was given to his nephewSvätopluk as anappanage.[33] The rebellious prince allied himself with the Franks and overthrew his uncle in 870. Similarly to his predecessor, Svätopluk I (871–894) assumed the title of the king (rex). During his reign, the Great Moravian Empire reached its greatest territorial extent, when not only present-dayMoravia and Slovakia but also present-day northern andcentral Hungary,Lower Austria,Bohemia,Silesia,Lusatia, southern Poland andnorthern Serbia belonged to the empire, but the exact borders of his domains are still disputed by modern authors.[36] Svatopluk also withstood attacks of theMagyar tribes and theBulgarian Empire, although sometimes it was he who hired the Magyars when waging war againstEast Francia.[37]
Certain and disputed borders of Great Moravia underSvatopluk I (according to modern historians)
After the death of Prince Svatopluk in 894, his sonsMojmír II (894–906?) andSvatopluk II succeeded him as the Prince of Great Moravia and the Prince of Nitra respectively.[33] However, they started to quarrel for domination of the whole empire. Weakened by an internal conflict as well as by constant warfare withEastern Francia, Great Moravia lost most of its peripheral territories.
It is not known what happened with both Mojmír II and Svatopluk II because they are not mentioned in written sources after 906. Inthree battles (4–5 July and 9 August 907) nearBratislava, the Magyars routedBavarian armies. Some historians put this year as the date of the break-up of the Great Moravian Empire, due to the Hungarian conquest; other historians take the date a little bit earlier (to 902).
Great Moravia left behind a lasting legacy in Central and Eastern Europe. TheGlagolitic script and its successorCyrillic were disseminated to other Slavic countries, charting a new path in theirsociocultural development.
Foundation of theHungarian state is connected to theHungarian conquerors, who arrived from thePontic steppes as a confederation ofseven tribes. TheHungarians arrived in the frame of a strong centralized steppe-empire under the leadership of Grand PrinceÁlmos and his sonÁrpád, they became founders of theÁrpád dynasty, the Hungarian ruling dynasty and the Hungarian state. TheÁrpád dynasty claimed to be a direct descendant of the great Hun leader Attila.[38][39][40] TheHungarians took possession of theCarpathian Basin in a pre-planned manner, with a long move-in between 862 and 895.[41] Their armies' advance may have been promoted by continuous wars among the countries of the region whose rulers still hired them occasionally to intervene in their struggles.[42]
Just a few decades after the collapse of theAvar Khaganate in 822, once again a steppe empire, the Hungarian Grand Principality united the Carpathian Basin under its rule. Only theEast Frankish Empire had such military power that it could intervent in the formation of the new order. His leadership also wanted to eliminate the new steppe state because the East Frankish Empire lost Pannonia and its Christian Avar taxpayers, and his territory was hit by increasing attacks by the Hungarians, especially Bavaria, which was then the eastern province of the Eastern Frankish Kingdom. In 907, three East Francian armies led byLuitpold, Margrave of Bavaria, which entered the Hungarian territory in order to expel the Hungarians from the Carpathian Basin, is annihilated by the Hungarian army at theBattle of Pressburg. Luitpold, Margrave of Bavaria, Dietmar I, Archbishop of Salzburg, Prince Sieghard, 19 counts, 2 bishops, and 3 abbots are killed in the battle, together with the majority of the soldiers. The Hungarians secured the lands they gained during the Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin, and prevented a future German invasion, the Germans did not launch an imperial scale campaign against Hungary for 123 years until 1030.[43]
The Kingdom of Hungary, the Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire (1000–1918)
In the years 1001–1002 and 1018–1029, Slovakia was part of theKingdom of Poland, having been conquered byBoleslaus I the Brave.[44] After the territory of Slovakia was returned to Hungary, a semi-autonomous polity continued to exist (or was created in 1048 by kingAndrew I) calledDuchy of Nitra. Comprising roughly the territory ofPrincipality of Nitra andBihar principality, they formed what was called atercia pars regni, third of a kingdom.[45]
This polity existed up until 1108/1110, after which it was not restored. After this, up until the collapse ofAustria-Hungary in 1918, the territory of Slovakia was an integral part of the Hungarian state.[46][47][48] The ethnic composition of Slovakia became more diverse with the arrival of theCarpathian Germans in the 13th century and theJews in the 14th century.
A significant decline in the population resulted from theinvasion of the Mongols in 1241 and the subsequent famine. After the invasion, much of the territory was destroyed, but was recovered largely thanks to Hungarian kingBéla IV. However, in medieval times the area of Slovakia was characterised by German andJewish immigration, burgeoning towns, construction of numerous stone castles, and the cultivation of the arts.[49] The arrival of German element sometimes proved a problem for the autochthonous Slovaks (and even Hungarians in the broader Hungary), since they often quickly gained most power in medieval towns, only to later refuse to share it. Breaking of old customs by Germans often resulted in national quarrels. One of which had to be sorted out by the kingLouis I. with the proclamationPrivilegium pro Slavis (Privilege for Slovaks) in the year 1381. According to this privilege, Slovaks andGermans were to occupy each half of the seats in the city council ofŽilina and the mayor should be elected each year, alternating between those nationalities. This would not be the last such case.[50]
Owing to theOttoman Empire's expansion into Hungarian territory,Bratislava was designated the new capital of Hungary in 1536, ahead of the fall of the old Hungarian capital ofBuda in 1541. It became part of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy, marking the beginning of a new era. The territory comprising modern Slovakia, then known asUpper Hungary, became the place of settlement for nearly two-thirds of theMagyar nobility fleeing the Turks and became far more linguistically and culturally Hungarian than it was before.[52] Partly thanks to oldHussite families and Slovaks studying underMartin Luther, the region then experienced a growth inProtestantism.[52] For a short period in the 17th century, most Slovaks wereLutherans.[52] They defied the Catholic Habsburgs and sought protection from neighbouringTransylvania, a rival continuation of theMagyar state that practised religious tolerance and normally had Ottoman backing. Upper Hungary, modern Slovakia, became the site of frequent wars between Catholics in the west territory and Protestants in the east, as well as against Turks; the frontier was on a constant state of military alert and heavily fortified by castles and citadels often manned by Catholic German and Slovak troops on the Habsburg side. By 1648, Slovakia was not spared theCounter-Reformation, which brought the majority of its population from Lutheranism back toRoman Catholicism. In 1655, the printing press at theTrnava university produced the Jesuit Benedikt Szöllősi's Cantus Catholici, a Catholic hymnal in Slovak that reaffirmed links to the earlier works of Cyril and Methodius.
TheOttoman wars, the rivalry between Austria andTransylvania, and the frequent insurrections against theHabsburg monarchy inflicted a great deal of devastation, especially in the rural areas.[53] In theAustro-Turkish War (1663–1664) a Turkish army led by theGrand Vizier decimated Slovakia.[52] In 1682, thePrincipality of Upper Hungary, a short-lived Ottoman vassal state, was established in the territory of modern Slovakia. Prior to this, regions on its southern rim were already encompassed in theEgri,Budin andUyvareyalets.[13][54][14]Thököly'skuruc rebels from the Principality of Upper Hungary fought alongside the Turks against the Austrians and Poles at theBattle of Vienna of 1683 led byJohn III Sobieski. As theTurks withdrew from Hungary in the late 17th century, the importance of the territory composing modern Slovakia decreased, althoughPressburg retained its status as the capital of Hungary until 1848 when it was transferred back to Buda.[55]
During therevolution of 1848–49, theSlovaks started uprising, supporting theAustrian Emperor, hoping for independence from the Hungarian part of theDual Monarchy and greater autonomy within the empire. They failed to achieve their aim, but the conflict resulted in Slovak rights for language in certain administrative and educational areas.
Thereafter, relations between the nationalities deteriorated (seeMagyarisation), culminating in the secession of Slovakia from Hungary after World War I.[56]
During the chaos following the break-up of Austria-Hungary, Czechoslovakia was formed with numerousCzechs,Germans,Slovaks,Hungarians andRuthenians. The borders were set by theTreaty of Saint Germain in 1919 andTreaty of Trianon in 1920. By the treaties following the World War I, Czechoslovakia emerged as a sovereign European state.
During theInterwar period, democratic Czechoslovakia was allied with France, and also withRomania andYugoslavia (Little Entente); however, theLocarno Treaties of 1925 left East European security open. Both Czechs and Slovaks enjoyed a period of relative prosperity. There was progress in not only the development of the country's economy but also culture and educational opportunities. Yet theGreat Depression caused a sharp economic downturn, followed by political disruption and insecurity in Europe.[57]
In the 1930s, Czechoslovakia came under continuous pressure from therevanchist governments of Germany, Hungary and Poland who used the aggrieved minorities in the country as a useful vehicle. Revision of the borders was called for, as Czechs constituted only 43% of the population. Eventually, this pressure led to theMunich Agreement of September 1938, which allowed the majority ethnic Germans in theSudetenland, borderlands of Czechoslovakia, to join with Germany. The remaining minorities stepped up their pressures for autonomy and the State became federalised, with Diets in Slovakia and Ruthenia. The remainder of Czechoslovakia was renamed Czecho-Slovakia and promised a greater degree of Slovak political autonomy. This, however, failed to materialise.[58] Parts of southern and eastern Slovakia were also reclaimed by Hungary at theFirst Vienna Award of November 1938.
After theMunich Agreement and itsVienna Award,Nazi Germany threatened to annex part of Slovakia and allow the remaining regions to be partitioned by Hungary or Poland unless independence was declared. Thus, Slovakia seceded fromCzecho-Slovakia in March 1939 and allied itself, as demanded by Germany, withHitler's coalition.[59] Secession had created the first Slovak state in history.[60]
Thelocal Jewish population was heavily persecuted.[61] As part of theHolocaust in Slovakia, 75,000 Jews out of 80,000 who remained on Slovak territory after Hungary had seized southern regions were deported and taken to Germandeath camps.[62][63] Thousands of Jews, Gypsies and other politically undesirable people remained in Slovak forced labour camps inSereď, Vyhne, and Nováky.[64] Tiso, through the granting of presidential exceptions, allowed between 1,000 and 4,000 people crucial to the war economy to avoid deportations.[65]Under Tiso's government and Hungarian occupation, the vast majority of Slovakia's pre-war Jewish population (between 75,000 and 105,000 individuals including those who perished from the occupied territory) were murdered.[66][67] The Slovak state paid Germany 500RM per every deported Jew for "retraining and accommodation" (a similar but smaller payment of 30 RM was paid byCroatia).[68]
After it became clear that the SovietRed Army was going to push the Nazis out of eastern and central Europe, an anti-Naziresistance movement launched. Internal opposition to the fascist government's policies culminated in theSlovak National Uprising, near the end of summer 1944. A bloody German occupation and a guerilla war followed. Germans and theirlocal collaborators completely destroyed 93 villages and massacred thousands of civilians, often hundreds at a time.[69] Although the uprising was eventually suppressed,partisan resistance continued. The territory of Slovakia was liberated by Soviet and Romanian forces by the end of April 1945.
In February 1948, theCommunist Party of Czechoslovakia, with Soviet backing, assumed undisputed control over the government ofCzechoslovakia through acoup d'état and Czechoslovakia came under direct occupation of the Soviet Union and itsWarsaw Pact. It became apuppet state of the Soviet Union, but it was never part of the Soviet Union and remained independent to a certain degree.
Communist party rule in Czechoslovakia (1948–1989)
Soviet tank in Bratislava during the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968
Borders with the West were protected by theIron Curtain. About 600 people, men, women, and children, were killed on the Czechoslovak border with Austria andWest Germany between 1948 and 1989.[74] 8,240 people went to forced labour camps in 1948–1953.[75]
On 11 July 1960, theConstitution of Czechoslovakia was promulgated, changing the name of the country from the "Czechoslovak Republic" to the "Czechoslovak Socialist Republic".
Czechoslovak communist leaderGustáv Husák (right) withFidel Castro during his state visit of Czechoslovakia, 1972
Czechoslovakia was allied with communist regimes worldwide. As one of the first countries in the world acknowledgedKim Il-sung'sDemocratic People's Republic of Korea. After the beginning of theKorean War, Czechoslovakia protested against measures taken by the Security Council. Czechoslovak communist leaders considered the intervention against North Korean aggression illegal. During summer 1950, many resolutions against "American imperialism" were sent to the United Nations from Czechoslovakia. During the Korean War in 1952, Czechoslovakia sent a military hospital with two hospital teams consisting of 58 people to North Korea.[78]
WhenFidel Castro took power after theCuban Revolution in 1959, Czechoslovakia opened an embassy in Cuba and developed mutual relations. In August 1968, Castro denounced thePrague Spring as led by a "fascist reactionary rabble" and praised the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.[79][80] During theVietnam War, Czechoslovakia sentsignificant aid toNorth Vietnam.[81] The Czechoslovak government created committees which sought to not only promote and establish peace, but also to promote victory forViet Cong andVietnam People's Army forces.[81] Czech-made equipment and military aid would increase significantly following the Prague Spring.[82] Czechoslovakia continued to send tens of thousands of Czech-made rifles as well as mortar and artillery throughout the war.[82]
On 17 July 1992, Slovakia, led by Prime MinisterVladimír Mečiar, declared itself a sovereign state, meaning that its laws took precedence over those of the federal government. Throughout the autumn of 1992, Vladimír Mečiar andCzech Prime MinisterVáclav Klaus negotiated the details for disbanding the federation. In November, the federal parliament voted to dissolve the country officially on 31 December 1992.
Slovak independence (since 1993)
1990s
The Slovak Republic and theCzech Republic went their separate ways on 1 January 1993, an event sometimes called theVelvet Divorce, after 74 years of joint existence disrupted only by World War II.[83][84] Slovakia has, nevertheless, remained a close partner with the Czech Republic; the two countries are close European allies and both co-operate with Hungary and Poland in theVisegrád Group.[85] The first President of the Slovak Republic becameMichal Kováč, elected by theNational Council of Slovakia in February 1993.[86] Slovakia became a member of theUnited Nations on 19 January 1993, on 31 March 1993 ratified theUNESCO World Heritage Convention, making its historical sites eligible for inclusion on theUNESCO list and on 15 April 1993 joinedGATT (currentWorld Trade Organization).[87]
After the fall of communism and the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the country was unprepared for organised crime.[88]Crime rates in Slovakia soared in the 1990s, the first post-communist gangsters emerged andmafia became the major problem in the country.[89] Most of the law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and judges had no experience of investigating, trying, or sentencing criminals. Many officials lacked even basic knowledge of the leading criminal operators in their communities.[90] Between 1994–1998, during the government ofPrime MinisterVladimír Mečiar, organised crime became well established and it penetrated the highest political positions.[91] One of the major crime events was kidnapping of Slovak president's son Michal Kováč Jr. in 1995, organised bySlovak intelligence service and the government of Vladimír Mečiar.[92][93] Processes ofprivatization in Slovakia began, often criticized for lack of transparency and corruption. Hundreds of state assets came into private hands to only a selected group of businessmen.[94] In the 1990s, Slovakia had central Europe's worst-performing economy, marked by high unemployment rates and inflation with least democratic government.Madeleine Albright, theU.S. secretary of state, referred to it as"a black hole in the heart of Europe".[95] This time period in Slovakia is also known as"Wild 90s" ("Divoké 90.roky").[96] Since March 1998, the country was 14 months without a head of state, when the National Council of Slovakiamultiple times failed to elect the new president, which led to the introduction of adirect presidential election in 1999.[97]
After the1998 parliamentary election,Mikuláš Dzurinda went on to replace Vladimír Mečiar as Prime Minister, and during two successive governments between 1998–2006, relaunched the transformation processes that had stalled under Mečiar.[98] The country embarked on a reformist course that saw the introduction of a flat tax, liberalisation of the labour market, deregulation of business, and partial privatization of social security. Government of Mikuláš Dzurinda led Slovakia into OECD, NATO and the European Union.[99] In 1999, the second President of Slovakia becameRudolf Schuster, first directly-elected president.[100]
2000s
Slovakia became a member of the European Union in 2004 and signed theLisbon Treaty in 2007.
Slovakia became a member ofOECD on 14 December 2000,NATO on 29 March 2004 and of theEuropean Union on 1 May 2004.[101] The country used to be dubbed the"Tatra Tiger" in the 2000s as achieved, on average, roughly 6% per capita GDP growth each year from 2000 to 2008.[102][103]Ivan Gašparovič became the third president of Slovakia in 2004 and in 2009 became the first and the only Slovak re-elected president.[104]
In 2006,Robert Fico became Prime Minister, during his first government, Slovakia joined theSchengen area on 21 December 2007, allowing visa free travel and on 1 January 2009 adopted theEuro as its national currency at 30.1260korunas to the euro.[105] The Slovak economy was involved in a major slowdown during the2008 financial crisis, experiencing the deepestrecession in history.[106] At the beginning of 2009, Slovakia faced energy crisis and declared astate of emergency, after Russia cut gas supplies to Europe via Ukrainian pipelines as part of aprice dispute with Ukraine.[107]
2010s
Between 2010–2012, Slovak government was led by first female Prime MinisterIveta Radičová.[108] Her government lasted only two years, Radičová combined the vote on the strengthening of theEuropean Financial Stability Facility – a key anti-crisis mechanism in theeurozone – with a vote of confidence for her cabinet. Slovak parliament rejected the EFSF, which led to the collapse of the government.[109]
In 2012, Robert Fico became second time Prime Minister when his political partyDirection – Social Democracy wonelection and collected 83 of 150 seats inNational Council, becoming the first single party to win aclear majority in the Slovak parliament since the fall of communism.[110] In 2014,Andrej Kiska became the fourth President of Slovakia. For the first time was elected as President entrepreneur and first-time politician.[111] International crisis impacted Slovak politics and quickly started dominating the country's political life and media coverage, such asAnnexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in neighbouring Ukraine in 2014 orEuropean migrant crisis in 2015.[112]
After theparliamentary election in 2016, Robert Fico became third time Prime Minister, making him longest-serving prime minister in Slovak history, if the years are counted cumulatively.[113] Third term of Fico's government was characterised by social and political turmoil. On February 21, 2018, young Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée,were killed in their home inVeľká Mača.[114][115] Thousands of people protested in streets across Slovakia for independent investigation of journalist's murder and a 'trustworthy' government inlargest demonstrations in the country since the Velvet Revolution.[116] Due to protests, Robert Fico resigned, and the government continued under a new Prime MinisterPeter Pellegrini.[117] In 2019,Zuzana Čaputová became the fifth President of Slovakia, first female president.[118]
2020s
After theparliamentary election in 2020,Igor Matovič became the new Prime Minister of Slovakia.[119] Matovič and his government, with little to no previous government experience, was dealing with theCOVID-19 pandemic andCOVID-19 recession, during which more than21,000 people died in Slovakia between 2020–2023, the worst death toll in the country since the end of World War II.[120][121] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Slovak economy faced the worst economic crisis since the2008 financial crisis and fell into recession.[122]At the beginning of 2021, Matovič signed an agreement to acquire 2 million doses of Russia'sSputnik V COVID-19 vaccine, which has not been cleared byEuropean Union regulators.[123] Matovič orchestrated the deal despite disagreement among his coalition partners, which led to a government crisis and his resignation.[124][125] The government continued under a new Prime MinisterEduard Heger.[126] Heger and his government faced many challenges, such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,Russian invasion in neighbouring Ukraine,Ukrainian refugee crisis,Global energy crisis andInflation surge. After a strong economic recovery in 2021, growth slowed down markedly in 2022 and 2023 as a result of the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, notably the subsequentEU sanctions on Russia and Global energy crisis.[127] Slovakia became one of Ukraine's largestdonors of military aid during Heger's government in 2022 and 2023.[128] Government crisis in Slovakia continued with various disputes in the coalition. At the end of 2022, Heger's government collapsed, after a lost no-confidence vote in parliament.[129] In 2023, in the interim before the next election, President Zuzana Čaputová appointed the firsttechnocrat government in Slovak history andĽudovít Ódor became the new Prime Minister for only six months, the third Prime Minister of Slovakia in three years.[130]
After theparliamentary election in 2023, Robert Fico became for the fourth time Prime Minister.[131] The new government halted military aid to Ukraine, while still providing humanitarian aid and electricity supplies.[132][133] On May 15, 2024, Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot several times and wounded in anassassination attempt.[134] The suspect stated during interrogation that he acted primarily because of the Fico government's opposition to military assistance to Ukraine.[135] In 2024,Peter Pellegrini became the sixth President of Slovakia.[136] Pellegrini is the first Slovak politician to have held all three highest constitutional posts (President, Prime Minister and Speaker of Parliament) in the country. Fourth term of Fico's government is characterized by political instability with fragile coalition, worsening relations with European Union, diplomatic disputes with the closest allyCzech Republic and growing Russian influence.[137][138][139] Pro-Russia policies of Slovak government[140], questioning Slovakia's future in the European Union and NATO[141][142], criticism of Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy[143] and Fico's good relationship with Russian PresidentVladimir Putin[144], led towidespread demonstrations across the country.[145] Slovakia fell significantly in the media freedom ranking and corruption ranking.[146][147] Crisis of democratic society was followed by economic decline, underlined by downgrade rating from credit rating agencyMoody's and laterStandard & Poor's.[148][149][150] In 2025, the government amended constitution to recognizeonly two genders (male and female), sparking human rights concerns.[151][152]
The Tatra Mountains, with 29 peaks higher than 2,500 metres (8,202 feet)AMSL, are the highest mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains. The Tatras occupy an area of 750 km2 (290 sq mi), of which the greater part 600 km2 (230 sq mi) lies in Slovakia. They are divided into several parts.
To the north, close to the Polish border, are theHigh Tatras which are a popularhiking andskiing destination and home to many scenic lakes and valleys as well as the highest point in Slovakia, theGerlachovský štít at 2,655 metres (8,711 ft) and the country's highly symbolic mountainKriváň. To the west are theWestern Tatras with their highest peak ofBystrá at 2,248 metres (7,375 ft) and to the east are theBelianske Tatras, smallest by area.
Separated from the Tatras proper by the valley of theVáh river are theLow Tatras, with their highest peak ofĎumbier at 2,043 metres (6,703 ft).
The Tatra mountain range is represented as one of the three hills on thecoat of arms of Slovakia.
Slovakia has hundreds of caves and caverns under its mountains, of which 30 are open to the public.[156] Most of the caves havestalagmites rising from the ground andstalactites hanging from above.
Most of the rivers arise in the Slovak mountains. Some only pass through Slovakia, while others make a natural border with surrounding countries (more than 620 kilometres [390 mi]). For example, theDunajec (17 kilometres [11 mi]) to the north, theDanube (172 kilometres [107 mi]) to the south or theMorava (119 kilometres [74 mi]) to the West. The total length of the rivers on Slovak territory is 49,774 kilometres (30,928 mi).
The longest river in Slovakia is theVáh (403 kilometres [250 mi]), the shortest is the Čierna voda. Other important and large rivers are theMyjava, theNitra (197 kilometres [122 mi]), theOrava, theHron (298 kilometres [185 mi]), theHornád (193 kilometres [120 mi]), theSlaná (110 kilometres [68 mi]), theIpeľ (232 kilometres [144 mi], forming the border with Hungary), theBodrog, theLaborec, theLatorica and theOndava.
The biggest volume of discharge in Slovak rivers is duringspring, when the snow melts from the mountains. The only exception is the Danube, whose discharge is the greatest during summer when the snow melts in theAlps. The Danube is the largest river that flows through Slovakia.[157]
The Slovak climate lies between the temperate andcontinental climate zones with relatively warmsummers and cold, cloudy and humidwinters. Temperature extremes are between −41 and 40.3 °C (−41.8 and 104.5 °F) although temperatures below −30 °C (−22 °F) are rare. The weather differs from the mountainous north to the plains in the south.
The warmest region isBratislava and Southern Slovakia where the temperatures may reach 30 °C (86 °F) in summer, occasionally to 39 °C (102 °F) inHurbanovo. During night, the temperatures drop to 20 °C (68 °F). The daily temperatures in winter average in the range of −5 °C (23 °F) to 10 °C (50 °F). During night it may be freezing, but usually not below −10 °C (14 °F).
In Slovakia, there are fourseasons, each season (spring, summer,autumn and winter) lasts three months. The dry continental air brings in the summer heat and winter frosts. In contrast, oceanic air brings rainfalls and reduces summer temperatures. In the lowlands and valleys, there is often fog, especially in winter.
Spring starts with 21 March and is characterised by colder weather with an average daily temperature of 9 °C (48 °F) in the first weeks and about 14 °C (57 °F) in May and 17 °C (63 °F) in June. In Slovakia, the weather and climate in the spring are very unstable.
Summer starts on 22 June and is usually characterised by hot weather with daily temperatures exceeding 30 °C (86 °F). July is the warmest month with temperatures up to about 37 to 40 °C (99 to 104 °F), especially in regions of southern Slovakia. Showers or thunderstorms may occur because of the summer monsoon called Medardova kvapka (Medard drop – 40 days of rain). Summer in Northern Slovakia is usually mild with temperatures around 25 °C (77 °F) (less in the mountains).
Autumn in Slovakia starts on 23 September and is mostly characterised by wet weather and wind, although the first weeks can be very warm and sunny. The average temperature in September is around 14 °C (57 °F), in November to 3 °C (37 °F). Late September and early October is a dry and sunny time of year (so-calledIndian summer).
Winter starts on 21 December with temperatures around −5 to −10 °C (23 to 14 °F). In December and January, it is usually snowing, these are the coldest months of the year. At lower altitudes, snow does not stay the whole winter, it changes into the thaw and frost. Winters are colder in the mountains, where the snow usually lasts until March or April and the night temperatures fall to −20 °C (−4 °F) and colder.[158]
The biodiversity of Slovakia comprisesanimals (such as annelids, arthropods, molluscs, nematodes and vertebrates),fungi (Ascomycota,Basidiomycota,Chytridiomycota,Glomeromycota andZygomycota), micro-organisms (includingMycetozoa), andplants. The geographical position of Slovakia determines the richness of the diversity of fauna and flora. More than 11,000 plant species have been described throughout its territory, nearly 29,000 animal species and over 1,000 species of protozoa.Endemic biodiversity is also common.[161]
Over 4,000 species of fungi have been recorded from Slovakia.[165][166] Of these, nearly 1,500 arelichen-forming species.[167] Some of these fungi are undoubtedly endemic, but not enough is known to say how many. Of the lichen-forming species, about 40% have been classified as threatened in some way. About 7% are apparently extinct, 9% endangered, 17% vulnerable, and 7% rare. The conservation status of non-lichen-forming fungi in Slovakia is not well documented, but there is a red list for its larger fungi.[168]
The entire population of Slovakia has access to a safe-drinking water source.[169] The country has one of the best quality tap water in the world, it is the second country in Europe (afterAustria) with the largest reserves of drinking water. Groundwater is the drinking water source of the highest quality protected byConstitution of Slovakia. Since 2014, it is banned the export ofdrinking andmineral waters in pipelines and water tanks. The ban excludes bottled water and water for personal use. Both, groundwater (82.2%) as well as surface water (17.8%) are exploited as drinking water sources.Žitný ostrov is the biggest natural groundwater source in Slovakia and as well in Central Europe.[170]
The Slovakhead of state and the formal head of the executive is the president (currentlyPeter Pellegrini), though with very limited powers. The president is elected by direct, popular vote under thetwo-round system for a five-year term. Mostexecutive power lies with thehead of government, the prime minister (currentlyRobert Fico), who is usually the leader of the winning party and who needs to form a majority coalition in the parliament. The prime minister is appointed by the president. The remainder of the cabinet is appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister.
Slovakia's highestjudicial body is theConstitutional Court of Slovakia (Ústavný súd), which rules on constitutional issues. The 13 members of this court are appointed by the president from a slate of candidates nominated by parliament.
In 2025, Slovak citizens had visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to 184 countries and territories, putting theSlovak passport at the 8th rank of travel freedom (tied with Croatia, Estonia, Slovenia, UAE and UK) on theHenley Passport Index.[174]
Slovakia maintainsdiplomatic relations with 134 countries, primarily through itsMinistry of Foreign Affairs. Slovakia maintained 90 missions abroad, including 64 embassies, seven missions to multilateral organisations, nine consulates-general, one consular office, one Slovak Economic and Cultural Office and eight Slovak Institutes.[175] Bratislava hosts 41 foreignembassies and 22consulates.[176]
Largest trading partners are countries of the European Union. In 2024, more than 80% of Slovak exports went to theEuropean Union, and more than 65% of Slovak imports came from other European Union member states.[177]
Slovakia and theUnited States retain strong diplomatic ties and cooperate in themilitary andlaw enforcement areas. U.S. Department of Defence programmes has contributed significantly to Slovak military reforms. The two countries have a long history tracing back to theAmerican Revolutionary War, when a Slovak Major, Ján Ladislav Polerecký, fought alongsideGeorge Washington inYorktowne to win the colonies' independence.[178] PresidentWoodrow Wilson and the United States played a major role in the establishment of the originalCzechoslovak state on 28 October 1918. Around one million Americans have their roots in Slovakia, and many retain strong cultural and familial ties to the Slovak Republic. American steel producerU. S. Steel is the largest employer in Eastern Slovakia inKošice with 12,000 employees.
Slovak members ofUNFICYP peacekeepers patrolling thebuffer zone in Cyprus
The president is formally thecommander-in-chief of the Slovak armed forces.
Slovakia joinedNATO in March 2004.[179] From 2006, the army transformed into a fully professional organisation and compulsory military service was abolished. Slovak armed forces numbered 19,500 uniformed personnel and 4,208 civilians in 2022.[180]
The SlovakGround Forces are made up of two activemechanised infantrybrigades. TheAir and Air Defence Forces comprise onewing offighters, one wing of utilityhelicopters, and one SAM brigade. Training and support forces comprise a National Support Element (Multifunctional Battalion, Transport Battalion, Repair Battalion), a garrison force of the capital city Bratislava, as well as a training battalion, and various logistics, communication, and information bases. Miscellaneous forces under the direct command of theGeneral Staff include the5th Special Forces Regiment.
The government generally respected the human rights of its citizens; however, there were problems in some areas. Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: corruption; violence and threats of violence against Roma and members of other ethnic and racial minorities; and violence and threats of violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex persons.[183]
According to theEuropean Roma Rights Centre (ERRC),Romani people in Slovakia "endure racism in the job market, housing and education fields and are often subjected to forced evictions, vigilante intimidation, disproportionate levels of police brutality and more subtle forms of discrimination."[184]
According toInternational IDEA’s Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Indices and Democracy Tracker, Slovakia performs in the mid-range on overall democratic measures, with particular strengths in political equality and judicial independence.[185][186][187]
Slovakia is divided into 8kraje (singular—kraj, usually translated as "region"), each of which is named after its principal city. Regions have enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy since 2002. Theirself-governing bodies are referred to as Self-governing (or autonomous) Regions (sg.samosprávny kraj, pl.samosprávne kraje) or Upper-Tier Territorial Units (sg.vyšší územný celok, pl.vyššie územné celky, abbr. VÚC).
Thekraje are subdivided intookresy (sg.okres, usually translated as districts). Slovakia currently has 79 districts.
Theokresy are further divided intoobce (sg.obec, usually translated as "municipality"). There are currently 2,890 municipalities.
In terms of economics andunemployment rate, the western regions are richer than eastern regions. Bratislava is the 19th-richest region of theEuropean Union by GDP (PPP) per capita;[188] GDP at purchasing power parity is about three times higher than in other Slovak regions.[189][190]
In 2024, more than 80% of Slovak exports went to theEuropean Union, and more than 65% of Slovak imports came from other European Union member states.[194][195] Main export partners are Germany (23% of total exports), Czech Republic (12.4%), Poland (8.3%) and Austria (5.7%).
The country has difficulties addressing regional imbalances in wealth and employment.[196] GDP per capita ranges from 188% of EU average in Bratislava to 54% in Eastern Slovakia.[197] Bratislava is the 19th-richest region of theEuropean Union by GDP (PPP) per capita.[198] Although regional income inequality is high,90% of citizens own their homes.
Slovakia is part of theSchengen Area, the EU single market, and since 2009, theeurozone (dark blue).
The country used to be dubbed the"Tatra Tiger" in the 2000s as it successfully transformed from a centrallyplanned economy to a market-driven economy and achieved, on average, roughly 6% per capita GDP growth each year from 2000 to 2008.[199][103]
Unemployment, peaking at 19% at the end of 1999, decreased to 4.9% in 2019, lowest recorded rate in Slovak history.[200] Unemployment rate was 5.3% as per June 2025.[201][202]
The ratio of government debt to GDP in Slovakia reached 60.5% in 2024.[203]
A high dependence on global supply chains and energy imports makes the Slovak economy vulnerable to external shocks. As a consequence, the economy was hit hard by the globalCOVID-19 pandemic crisis (−3.3% decline in 2020), despite sizeable economic policy support. And after a strong recovery in 2021 (+4.8% growth), growth slowed down markedly in 2022 (+1.9%) and 2023 (+1.6%) as a result of the consequences of theRussian invasion of Ukraine, notably the subsequentEU sanctions on Russia and soaring energy prices.
High-rise buildings in Bratislava's business districts
The Slovak government encourages foreign investment since it is one of the driving forces of the economy. Slovakia is an attractive country forforeign investors mainly because of its low wages, low tax rates, well educatedlabour force, favourable geographic location in the heart of Central Europe, strong political stability and good international relations reinforced by the country's accession to the European Union. Some regions, mostly at the east of Slovakia have failed to attract major investment, which has aggravated regional disparities in many economic and social areas.
Slovakia adopted theeuro currency on 1 January 2009 as the 16th member of the eurozone. The euro in Slovakia was approved bythe European commission on 7 May 2008. TheSlovak koruna was revalued on 28 May 2008 to 30.126 for 1 euro, which was also the exchange rate for the euro.[204][205]
The electronics manufacturing industry also thrives.Foxconn has a factory atNitra forLCD TV manufacturing,Samsung atGalanta forcomputer monitors and television sets manufacturing. Steel producerU. S. Steel inKošice is the largest employer in the east of Slovakia with 12,000 employees.
Bratislava's geographical position in Central Europe has long made Bratislava a crossroads forinternational trade traffic.[215][216] Various ancienttrade routes, such as theAmber Road and theDanube waterway, have crossed territory of present-day Bratislava. Today, Bratislava is a road, railway, waterway and airway hub.[217]
Slovakia is self-sufficient in electricity production following the launch of the third unit of the Mochovce nuclear power plant in 2023.[218]
In 2020, Slovakia produced a total of 29,322GWh ofelectricity.Nuclear energy accounted for 54% (15 400 GWh) of total electricity production, followed by 16% byhydro power energy, 16% natural gas, 8% coal, biofuel 3% and 3% bysolar energy,[219][220]
The two nuclear power-plants in Slovakia are inJaslovské Bohunice andMochovce. Jaslovské Bohunice containing two operating reactors. Mochovce containing three operating reactors, unit Mochovce-3 came on-line in January 2023 and unit Mochovce-4 will be completed at the end of 2025.[219] The additional reactors in Mochovce returned Slovakia to being a net exporter of electricity.[221][222]
In 2024, Slovak government approved a plan to build another new nuclear reactor inJaslovské Bohunice.[223]
Slovenský plynárenský priemysel (Slovak Gas Industry) is the biggest natural gas seller in Slovakia. In 2024, domestic gas production covers roughly 2% of Slovak consumption.[224] An average of around 65 million m³ of natural gas is produced, while 4,2 billion m³ of natural gas is imported.[225] As of 2025, most of gas imports to Slovakia is from Russia viaTurkStream pipeline. TurkStream connects Russia and Turkey, with gas flowing through the Balkans and Hungary before reaching Slovakia.[226]
The oil production in Slovakia is even lower than the gas production. In 2021 it reached a volume of 4,500 tons per year with a total oil consumption of around 6 million tons per year.[227] Among European Union countries, Slovakia is the most dependent on Russian oil and petroleum products.[228] In 2020, Russia was the origin country for 78 percent of the country's total oil imports.Slovnaft, with 4,000 employees, is the largest oil refining company in Slovakia, located in Bratislava. The company refines 5.5 to 6 million tonnes of crude oil per annum and produces a broad range of motor fuels, fuel oils and petrochemical products.
There are four main motorway D1 to D4 and eight expressways R1 to R8. Many of them are still under construction.
The major motorway in Slovakia isD1, the motorway connects major cities across Slovakia from west to east, from Bratislava toTrnava,Nitra,Trenčín,Žilina and beyond. As of 2025, some sections of D1 are still under construction. TheD2 motorway connects it toPrague,Brno andBudapest in the north–south direction. A large part ofD4 motorway (an outer bypass), which ease the pressure on Bratislava's highway system, opened in 2021.[229] TheA6 motorway toVienna connects Slovakia directly to the Austrian motorway system and was opened on 19 November 2007.[230]
Slovakia has three international airports.Bratislava Airport is the main and largestinternational airport. It is located 9 km northeast of the city centre. It serves civil and governmental, scheduled and unscheduled domestic and international flights. The current runways support the landing of all common types of aircraft currently used. The airport has enjoyed rapidly growing passenger traffic in recent years; it served 279,028 passengers in 2000 and 2,292,712 in 2018.[231]Košice International Airport is an airport servingKošice. It is the second-largestinternational airport in Slovakia. ThePoprad–Tatry Airport is the third busiest airport, the airport is located 5 km west-northwest ofPoprad. It is an airport with one of the highest elevations in Central Europe, at 718 m, which is 150 m higher thanInnsbruck Airport in Austria.
Railways of the Slovak Republic (Železnice Slovenskej Republiky) provides railway transport services on national and international lines.
ThePort of Bratislava is one of the two internationalriver ports in Slovakia. The port connects Bratislava to international boat traffic, especially the interconnection from theNorth Sea to theBlack Sea via theRhine-Main-Danube Canal.Additionally, tourist boats operate from Bratislava's passenger port, including routes toDevín,Vienna and elsewhere. The Port of Komárno is the second largest port in Slovakia with an area of over 20 hectares and is located approximately 100 km east of Bratislava. It lies at the confluence of two rivers – theDanube andVáh.
Tourism is one of the main sectors of the Slovakia's economy, although still underserved. It is based on domestic tourism, as most of the tourists are the Slovak nationals and residents travelling for leisure within the country. Slovakia features natural landscapes, mountains,caves, medievalcastles and towns, folk architecture, spas andski resorts. More than 5,4 million tourists visited Slovakia in 2017. The most attractive destinations are the capital ofBratislava and theHigh Tatras.[232] Most visitors come from theCzech Republic (about 26%), Poland (15%) and Germany (11%).[233]
Slovakia's position in Europe and the country's past (part of theKingdom of Hungary, theHabsburg monarchy andCzechoslovakia) made many cities and towns similar to the cities in theCzech Republic (such asPrague), Austria (such asSalzburg) or Hungary (such asBudapest). A historical centre with at least one square has been preserved in many towns. Large historical centres can be found inBratislava,Trenčín,Košice,Banská Štiavnica,Levoča, andTrnava. Historical centres have been going through a restoration in recent years.
Very precious structures are the complete wooden churches of northern and northern-eastern Slovakia. Most were built from the 15th century onwards byCatholics,Lutherans and members ofeastern-rite churches.
Typical souvenirs from Slovakia are dolls dressed in folk costumes, ceramic objects, crystal glass, carved wooden figures, črpáks (wooden pitchers),fujaras (afolk instrument on the UNESCO list) andvalaškas (a decorated folk hatchet) and above all products made fromcorn husks and wire, notably human figures. Souvenirs can be bought in the shops run by the state organisation ÚĽUV (Ústredie ľudovej umeleckej výroby—Centre ofFolk Art Production).
Science
Observatory at the top of the peakLomnický štít, at the altitude above sea level of 2,632 m (8,635 ft).
TheSlovak Academy of Sciences has been the most important scientific and research institution in the country since 1953. Slovaks have made notable scientific and technical contributions during history.[234] In 1999, astronautIvan Bella, became the first and only Slovak citizen to fly in space.[235]
Observer status toEuropean Space Agency (ESA) was granted in 2010, when Slovakia signed the General Agreement on Cooperation in which information about ongoing education programmes was shared and Slovakia was invited to various negotiations of the ESA.[236] In 2015, Slovakia signed the European Cooperating State Agreement based on which Slovakia committed to the finance entrance programme named PECS (Plan for the European Cooperating States) which serves as preparation for full membership. Slovak research and development organisations can apply for funding of projects regarding space technologies advancement. Slovakia became European Space Agency associate member state in 2022.[237] In 2024, the country signed theArtemis Accords withNASA.[238]
Population density in Slovakia. The two biggest cities are clearly visible, Bratislava in the far west and Košice in the east.
The population is over 5.4 million and consists mostly ofSlovaks. The average population density is 110 inhabitants per km2.[240] According to the 2021 census, the majority of the inhabitants of Slovakia areSlovaks (83.8%).Hungarians are the largestethnic minority (7.8%). Otherethnic groups includeRoma (1.2%),[241]Czechs (0.5%),Rusyns (0.4%) and others (1.9) or unspecified (5.4%).[242]
In 2024, themedian age of the Slovak population was 42.8 years.[243]
The largest waves of Slovak emigration occurred in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In the 1990 US census, 1.8 million people self-identified as having Slovak ancestry.[244][needs update]
In the 2024 Global Hunger Index, Slovakia is one of 22 countries with a GHI score of less than 5.[245]
Theofficial language isSlovak, a member of theSlavic language family.Hungarian is widely spoken in the southern regions, andRusyn is used in some parts of the Northeast.Minority languages hold co-official status in the municipalities in which the size of the minority population meets the legal threshold of 15% in two consecutive censuses.[246]
Slovakia is ranked among the top EU countries regarding the knowledge of foreign languages. In 2007, 68% of the population aged from 25 to 64 years claimed to speak two or more foreign languages, finishing second highest in the European Union. The best known foreign language in Slovakia isCzech.Eurostat report also shows that 98.3% of Slovak students in the upper secondary education take on two foreign languages, ranking highly over the average 60.1% in the European Union.[247] According to aEurobarometer survey from 2012, 26% of the population have knowledge of English at a conversational level, followed by German (22%) and Russian (17%).[248]
TheSlovak constitution guaranteesfreedom of religion. In 2021, 55.8% of population identified themselves asCatholics (Latin Church), 5.3% asLutherans, 1.6% asCalvinists, 4% asGreek Catholics, 0.9% asOrthodox, 23.8% identified themselves asatheists or non-religious, and 6.5% did not answer the question about their belief.[249] In 2004, about one third of the church members regularly attended church services.[250] TheSlovak Greek Catholic Church is an Eastern ritesui iuris Catholic Church. Before World War II, an estimated 90,000 Jews lived in Slovakia (1.6% of the population), but most were murdered during theHolocaust. After further reductions due to postwaremigration and assimilation, only about 2,300 Jews remain today (0.04% of the population).[251]
There are 18 state-registered religions in Slovakia, of which 16 are Christian, one is Jewish, and one is theBaháʼí Faith.[252] In 2016, a two-thirds majority of the Slovak parliament passed a new bill that would obstructIslam and other religious organisations from becoming state-recognised religions by doubling the minimum followers threshold from 25,000 to 50,000; however, Slovakia's then-presidentAndrej Kiska vetoed the bill.[252] In 2010, there were an estimated 5,000Muslims in Slovakia representing less than 0.1% of the country's population.[253] Slovakia is the only member state of the European Union to not have anymosques.[254]
Education in Slovakia is compulsory from age 6 to 16. Primary school in Slovakia lasts for nine years, which is divided into two parts, the first stage (age 6–10) and the second stage (age 10–15), which is finished by taking nationwide testing calledMonitor (in Slovak language and math).
For most students, secondary education (high school) lasts four years, from ages 15 to 19. This is the typical length for students who complete the full nine years of primary school and then enroll in a secondary school. High school is finished by school-leaving exam calledMaturita, orMaturitná skúška. TheProgramme for International Student Assessment, coordinated by theOECD, currently ranksSlovak secondary education the 30th in the world (placing it just below the United States and just above Spain).[255]
After finishing high school, students can go to university. Slovakia has a wide range of universities. The biggest university isComenius University, established in 1919. Although it is not the first university ever established on Slovak territory, it is the oldest university that is still running. Most universities in Slovakia are public funded, where anyone can apply. Every citizen has a right to free education in public schools. The country has also several privately funded universities. Anyone can apply to any number of universities.
Folk tradition has rooted strongly in Slovakia and is reflected in literature, music, dance and architecture. The prime example is the Slovak national anthem,"Nad Tatrou sa blýska", which is based on a melody from the"Kopala studienku" folk song.
The manifestation of Slovak folklore culture is the "Východná" Folklore Festival. It is the oldest and largest nationwide festival with international participation,[256] which takes place inVýchodná annually. Slovakia is usually represented by many groups but mainly by SĽUK (Slovenský ľudový umelecký kolektív—Slovak folk art collective). SĽUK is the largest Slovak folk art group, trying to preserve the folklore tradition.
An example of wooden folk architecture in Slovakia can be seen in the well-preserved village ofVlkolínec which has been theUNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993.[257] ThePrešov Region preserves the world's most remarkable folk wooden churches. Most of them are protected by Slovak law ascultural heritage, but some of them are on theUNESCO list too, in Bodružal, Hervartov, Ladomirová and Ruská Bystrá.
The best known Slovak hero, found in many folkmythologies, isJuraj Jánošík (1688–1713) (the Slovak equivalent ofRobin Hood). The legend says he was taking from the rich and giving to the poor. Jánošík's life was depicted in a list of literary works and many movies throughout the 20th century. One of the most popular is a filmJánošík directed byMartin Frič in 1935.[258] He is commemorated mainly inTerchová, his family's place of living.
Art
Main altar in the Basilica of St. James, crafted byMaster Paul of Levoča, 1517. It is the tallest wooden altar in the world
Ľudovít Štúr codified the Slovak standard language.
Christian topics include poemProglas as a foreword to the fourGospels, partial translations of the Bible intoOld Church Slavonic,Zakon sudnyj ljudem.
Medieval literature, in the period from the 11th to the 15th centuries, was written inLatin, Czech and Slovakised Czech. Lyric (prayers, songs and formulas) was still controlled by the Church, while epic was concentrated on legends. Authors from this period includeJohannes de Thurocz, author of theChronica Hungarorum and Maurus, both of them Hungarians.[261] The worldly literature also emerged and chronicles were written in this period.
Two leading persons codified Slovak. The first wasAnton Bernolák, whose concept was based on the western Slovakdialect in 1787. It was the codification of the first-ever literary language of Slovaks. The second wasĽudovít Štúr, whose formation of the Slovak took principles from the central Slovak dialect in 1843.
The traditional Slovak meals arebryndzové halušky, bryndzové pirohy and other meals with potato dough andbryndza. Bryndza is a salty cheese made of sheep milk, characterised by a strong taste and aroma. Bryndzové halušky especially is considered a national dish, and is very commonly found on the menu of traditional Slovak restaurants.
A typical soup is asauerkraut soup ("kapustnica"). Ablood sausage called "krvavnica", made from any parts of a butchered pig, is also a specific Slovak meal.
Wine is enjoyed throughout Slovakia.Slovak wine comes predominantly from the southern areas along the Danube and its tributaries; the northern half of the country is too cold and mountainous to grow grapevines. Traditionally, white wine was more popular than red or rosé (except in some regions), andsweet wine more popular than dry; however, in recent years tastes seem to be changing.[263] Beer (mainly of thepilsener style, thoughdark lagers are also consumed) is also popular.
^abÁgoston, Gábor (1998). "HABSBURGS AND OTTOMANS: Defense, Military Change and Shifts in Power".Turkish Studies Association Bulletin.22 (1):126–141.ISSN0275-6048.JSTOR43385414.
^Uličný, Ferdinand (2014). "Toponymum Slovensko – pôvod a obsah názvu" [The name Slovakia (Slovensko) – its origin and content]. Historický časopis. Historický ústav SAV (3): 548. ISSN 0018-2575.
^Museum of Prehistoric Prepoštská Cave (2011)."Museum of Prehistoric".muzeumpraveku.sk.Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved25 November 2011.
^Benda, Kálmán (1981).Magyarország történeti kronológiája("The Historical Chronology of Hungary"). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó. p. 44.ISBN963-05-2661-1.
^Kristó, Gyula (1994).Korai Magyar Történeti Lexikon (9–14. század) [Encyclopedia of Early Hungarian History – 9th–14th centuries]. Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó. p. 467.ISBN963-05-6722-9.
^Bóna, István (2001)."Conquest, Settlement, and Raids".History of Transylvania Volume I. From the Beginnings to 1606 – II. From Dacia to Erdőelve: Transylvania in the Period of the Great Migrations (271–896) – 7. Transylvania in the Period of the Hungarian Conquest and Foundation of a State. New York: Columbia University Press, (The Hungarian original by Institute of History Of The Hungarian Academy of Sciences).ISBN0-88033-479-7.
^Kosáry Domokos,Bevezetés a magyar történelem forrásaiba és irodalmába 1, p. 29
^Poulik, Josef (1978). "The Origins of Christianity in Slavonic Countries North of the Middle Danube Basin".World Archaeology.10 (2):158–171.doi:10.1080/00438243.1978.9979728.ISSN0043-8243.
^abcČaplovič, Dušan; Viliam Čičaj; Dušan Kováč; Ľubomír Lipták; Ján Lukačka (2000).Dejiny Slovenska. Bratislava: AEP.
^Tóth, Sándor László (1998).Levediától a Kárpát-medencéig("From Levedia to the Carpathian Basin"). Szeged: Szegedi Középkorász Műhely. p. 199.ISBN963-482-175-8.
^Kristó, Gyula (1996).Magyar honfoglalás – honfoglaló magyarok("The Hungarians' Occupation of their Country – The Hungarians occupying their Country"). Kossuth Könyvkiadó. pp. 84–85.ISBN963-09-3836-7.
^Steinhübel, Ján (2016).Nitrianské kniežatstvo: počiatky stredovekého Slovenska = The duchy of Nitra, the beginnings of the medieval Slovakia (Druhé prepracované a doplnené vydanie ed.). Bratislava: Vydavatel̕stvo Rak.ISBN978-80-85501-64-3.OCLC966315215.
^Tibenský, Ján; et al. (1971).Slovensko: Dejiny. Bratislava: Obzor.
^Richard Marsina (2002).Žilina v slovenských dejinách : zborník z vedeckej konferencie k 620. výročiu udelenia výsad pre žilinských Slovákov: Žilina 7. mája 2001. Žilina: Knižné Centrum Vyd.ISBN80-8064-158-7.OCLC164889878.
^J. V. Polisencky,History of Czechoslovakia in Outline (Prague: Bohemia International 1947) at 113–114.
^Documents on British Foreign Policy 1919–1939 edited by Professor E. L. Woodward, Roham Butler, M.A., andMargaret Lambert, PhD., Third Series, vol.iv, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1951, pps:94–99: 'Memorandum on the Present Political Situation in Slovakia'.
^Gerhard L. Weinberg,The Foreign Policy of Hitler's Germany: Starting World War II, 1937–1939 (Chicago, 1980), pp. 470–481.
^"Obžaloba pri Národnom súde v Bratislave".Spis Onľud 17/46. 20 May 1946.
^Daxner, Igor (25 July 1946). "Rozsudok Národného súdu v Bratislave".Spis Tnľud 17/1946.
^Leni Yahil,The Holocaust: The Fate of European Jewry, 1932–1945 (Oxford, 1990), pp. 402–403.
^For the higher figure, see Milan S. Ďurica,The Slovak Involvement in the Tragedy of the European Jews (Abano Terme: Piovan Editore, 1989), p. 12; for the lower figure, see Gila Fatran, "The Struggle for Jewish Survival During the Holocaust" inThe Tragedy of the Jews of Slovakia (Banská Bystrica, 2002), p. 148.
^Nižňanský, Eduard (2010).Nacizmus, holokaust, slovenský štát [Nazism, holocaust, Slovak state] (in Slovak). Bratislava: Kalligram.ISBN978-80-8101-396-6.
^Rock, David; Stefan Wolff (2002).Coming home to Germany? The integration of ethnic Germans from central and eastern Europe in the Federal Republic. New York; Oxford: Berghahn.
^abBischof, Günter; Karner, Stefan; Ruggenthaler, Peter (2010).The Prague Spring and the Warsaw Pact Invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 293.ISBN978-0-7391-4304-9.
^abFrancev, Vladimir (2015).Československé zbraně ve světě: V míru i za války (in Czech). Grada Publishing. p. 166.ISBN978-80-247-5314-0.
^Pavel Lizoň & Kamila Bacigálová,Huby – Fungi in F. Hindák [ed.] Checklist of Non-vascular and Vascular Plants of Slovakia (Bratislava, 1998), pp. 102–227.
^Ivan Pišút,Lichenizované Huby (Lišajníky) – Lichen-forming Fungi (Lichens) in F. Hindák [ed.] Checklist of Non-vascular and Vascular Plants of Slovakia (Bratislava, 1998), pp. 229–295.
^Pavel Lizoň,Threatened macrofungi in Slovakia Biologia (Bratislava) 50: 9–12(1995).
^"Global Hunger Index Scores by 2024 GHI Rank".Global Hunger Index (GHI) – peer-reviewed annual publication designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels. Retrieved3 January 2025.
^Vogelsang, Peter; Brian B. M. Larsen (2002)."Deportations".The Danish Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. Archived fromthe original on 10 August 2011. Retrieved26 April 2008.
^centrum, Národné osvetové."Folklórny festival Východná".Folklórny festival Východná.Archived from the original on 9 April 2021. Retrieved7 November 2012.
^Centre, UNESCO World Heritage."Vlkolínec".UNESCO World Heritage Centre.Archived from the original on 1 August 2023. Retrieved8 February 2020.
^"Venues".webarchive.iihf.com.Archived from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved22 September 2023.
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