Ravne na Koroškem
Encyclopedia
Ravne na Koroškem is a town and a municipality
in northern Slovenia
. Until 1918, the town was part of the Duchy of Carinthia
. It is the largest town in the traditional Slovenian province of Carinthia and its capital. Its Slovene name means 'Ravne in Carinthia', in order to distinguish it from other places with the same name. The word ravne means 'flat terrain' in Slovene, and is a common place name in the Slovene-inhabited territories
. Until 1952, the town was known as Guštanj. That year, the Communist authorities renamed it to its current name, together with several hundred other place names of German
origin.
It was granted town status in 1952. The area has a 380 year long history of steel industry.
The parish church
in the settlement is dedicated to Saint Giles
and belongs to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maribor. It is first mentioned in written documents dating to 1331. It was re-vaulted
in the 17th century.
It is the birthplace of the Slovene writer Prežihov Voranc
(Kotlje
), politician and historian Alojzij Kuhar
, and singer-songwriter
Adi Smolar
.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in northern Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. Until 1918, the town was part of the Duchy of Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
. It is the largest town in the traditional Slovenian province of Carinthia and its capital. Its Slovene name means 'Ravne in Carinthia', in order to distinguish it from other places with the same name. The word ravne means 'flat terrain' in Slovene, and is a common place name in the Slovene-inhabited territories
Slovene Lands
Slovene Lands or Slovenian Lands is the historical denomination for the whole of the Slovene-inhabited territories in Central Europe. It more or less corresponds to modern Slovenia and the adjacent territories in Italy, Austria and Hungary in which autochthonous Slovene minorities live.-...
. Until 1952, the town was known as Guštanj. That year, the Communist authorities renamed it to its current name, together with several hundred other place names of German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
origin.
It was granted town status in 1952. The area has a 380 year long history of steel industry.
The parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
in the settlement is dedicated to Saint Giles
Saint Giles
Saint Giles was a Greek Christian hermit saint from Athens, whose legend is centered in Provence and Septimania. The tomb in the abbey Giles was said to have founded, in St-Gilles-du-Gard, became a place of pilgrimage and a stop on the road that led from Arles to Santiago de Compostela, the...
and belongs to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maribor. It is first mentioned in written documents dating to 1331. It was re-vaulted
Vault (architecture)
A Vault is an architectural term for an arched form used to provide a space with a ceiling or roof. The parts of a vault exert lateral thrust that require a counter resistance. When vaults are built underground, the ground gives all the resistance required...
in the 17th century.
It is the birthplace of the Slovene writer Prežihov Voranc
Prežihov Voranc
Prežihov Voranc was the pen name of Lovro Kuhar, a Slovene writer and Communist political activist. Voranc's literary reputation was established during the 1930s with a series of Slovene novels and short stories in the social realist style, notable for their depictions of poverty in rural and...
(Kotlje
Kotlje
Kotlje is a village in the hills to the south of Ravne na Koroškem in the Carinthia region in northern Slovenia.The Parish Church in the village is dedicated to Saint Margaret and belongs to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maribor...
), politician and historian Alojzij Kuhar
Alojzij Kuhar
Alojzij Kuhar was a Slovenian and Yugoslav politician, diplomat, historian and journalist. Together with Izidor Cankar and Franc Snoj, he was an important exponent of the liberal conservative fraction of the Slovene People's Party.-Biography:Kuhar was born into a Carinthian Slovene family in...
, and singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Adi Smolar
Adi Smolar
Adi Smolar is a Slovenian singer-songwriter and composer.He made his first appearance in 1981 with a full repertoire of his own songs. He continued to perform for eight years before releasing his first tape Naš svet se pa vrti in 1989...
.