| Zala County | |
|---|---|
| County of theKingdom of Hungary (11th century-1596, 1715-1946) | |
.svg) Coat of arms | |
 | |
| Capital | Zalavár;Zalaegerszeg (1730-1946) |
| Area | |
| • Coordinates | 46°51′N16°51′E / 46.850°N 16.850°E /46.850; 16.850 |
• 1910 | 5,995 km2 (2,315 sq mi) |
• 1930 | 4,877 km2 (1,883 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• 1910 | 466,333 |
• 1930 | 365,266 |
| History | |
• Established | 11th century |
• Merged to Zala-Somogy County | 1596 |
• County recreated | 1715 |
• Međimurje (Muraköz) to Croatia | 1850 |
• Muraköz restored to Zala | 1860 |
| 4 June 1920 | |
| 11 April 1941 | |
• Monarchy abolished | 1 February 1946 |
| Today part of | Hungary (4,877 km2) Croatia (389 km2) |
Zala was an administrative county (comitatus) of theKingdom of Hungary, bordered by the riverDrave to the south. The territory of the former county is now divided betweenHungary,Croatia andSlovenia. The capital of the county wasZalaegerszeg.
Zala county shared borders with theAustrian landStyria and the Hungarian countiesVas,Veszprém,Somogy,Belovár-Körös andVarasd (the latter two in Croatia-Slavonia). The riverDrava (Hungarian: Dráva) river formed its southern border,Lake Balaton its eastern border. The riversMura andZala flowed through the county. Its area was 5974 km2 around 1910.
Zala county arose as one of the firstcomitatus (counties) of the Kingdom of Hungary.
In 1850, shortly after the1848 revolutions, the mostly Croatian-speaking area between theMur andDrava rivers – theMeđimurje region (Hungarian:Muraköz;German:Murinsel,lit. 'Mur island') – was transferred to theHabsburg Kingdom of Croatia;[1] it wasreturned to Zala in 1860 and remained until 1918.
In 1920, by theTreaty of Trianon, the south-west of the county (the Međimurje region and southeastern parts ofPrekmurje (Hungarian:Muravidék)) became part of the newly formedKingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (from 1929 as Yugoslavia). The award recognised the1918 occupation of Međimurje and1919 occupation of Prekmurje.[2] The remainder stayed in Hungary. The Yugoslavian part wasoccupied and annexed again by Hungary between 1941 and 1945 duringWorld War II. In 1950, as part of the Communist reforms of local government, the county's borders were re-drawn again. A small part of formerVas county, north of Zalaegerszeg, went toZala County. The part of Zala county north ofLake Balaton went toVeszprém County.
Since 1991, whenSlovenia andCroatia became independent fromYugoslavia, most of Međimurje is part of Croatia (mostly inMeđimurje County;Legrad is inKoprivnica-Križevci County);Razkrižje,Globoka and Prekmurje (the area aroundLendava) is in Slovenia.
In 1900, the county had a population of 437,116 people and was composed of the following linguistic communities:[3]
Total:
According to the census of 1900, the county was composed of the following religious communities:[4]
Total:
In 1910, the county had a population of 466,333 people and was composed of the following linguistic communities:[5]
Total:
According to the census of 1910, the county was composed of the following religious communities:[6]
Total:
In the early 20th century, the subdivisions of Zala county were:
| Districts (járás, pluraljárások) | |
|---|---|
| District | Capital |
| Alsólendva | Alsólendva,SILendava |
| Balatonfüred | Balatonfüred |
| Csáktornya | Csáktornya,HRČakovec |
| Keszthely | Keszthely |
| Letenye | Letenye |
| Nagykanizsa | Nagykanizsa |
| Nova | Nova |
| Pacsa | Pacsa |
| Perlak | Perlak, HRPrelog |
| Sümeg | Sümeg |
| Tapolca | Tapolca |
| Zalaegerszeg | Zalaegerszeg |
| Zalaszentgrót | Zalaszentgrót |
| Urban districts (rendezett tanácsú város) | |
| Nagykanizsa | |
| Zalaegerszeg | |
Today, the towns ofPrelog andČakovec are inCroatia;Lendava is inSlovenia.
In the early 19th century Zala County was divided into:[7]
In 1854 Zala county (which at that time excludedMeđimurje/Muraköz) comprised the followingStuhlbezirke (presented as they appear in the defining act):[8]
