Záhorie
Encyclopedia
Záhorie is a region in western Slovakia
bordered by the Little Carpathians
in the east and the Morava River in the west. Although not an administrative region in its own right, it is one of the 21 official tourism regions in Slovakia. Záhorie lies in the area of three administrative regions: Bratislava Region
(Malacky District
plus Záhorská Bystrica
in Bratislava
), Trnava Region
(Senica
and Skalica
districts) and Trenčín Region
(southern part of Myjava District
). The region also creates the borders between Slovakia, the Czech Republic
and Austria
.
A military district of the same name
is located around Malacky.
mountains that separate Záhorie from the rest of Slovakia.
The west border of the region represents the river Morava. The east border is Carpathian Mountain Range. On the north side is Chvojnická pahorkatina. Through the region flows the river Myjava. Almost every village has a dam or a lake.
and red wine. Other grown corps are corn
, sunflowers and grain
.
, Holíč
, Malacky
, Senica
, Skalica
, Stupava
and Šaštín-Stráže
.
The people here were for many years in the past farmers, so there are no big towns, most of the people lived in small villages not far from each other. The average distances between the villages are less than 3 km. Between the villages are very often small settlements, especially around Myjava and Brezová pod Bradlom, called kopanice, osady or samoty.
The people are well known for drinking and producing alcohol such as wine and schnapss or liquer made from various fruit(pear, apple, plum...) with high concentration of alcohol, 40% and more, especially slivovica, a popular local speciality.
Because the region was separated from the rest of the Slovakia, the people are Moravia
ns rather than Slovaks so they speak distinct dialect of Slovak language similar to the Moravian one and they are referred to as "Záhoráci". They are the target of frequent region-specific jokes from the rest of Slovaks, in a similar way that e.g. the Irish
are mocked by the British
, and the people from Appenzell
, Switzerland
are being laughed at by the rest of the Swiss.
, the first lowland protected landscape area in Slovakia. The Landscape Area takes 275.22 km² (106.3 mi²) and is divided into two separate parts – north-eastern and western. The Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area
and Biele Karpaty Protected Landscape Area
are partly situated in Záhorie.
Largest part of Záhorie takes Záhorie Lowland, which is divided into Bor Lowland and Chvojnica Hills. Bor Lowland (slov.) is named after big artificial forest called Bor (eng. Pinewood (?)).
The forest was planted with Scots Pine in 18th century on the largest blown sands of Slovakia.
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
bordered by the Little Carpathians
Little Carpathians
The Little Carpathians are a low, about 100 km long, mountain range, part of the Carpathian Mountains. The mountains are situated in Western Slovakia, covering the area from Bratislava to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, a very small part called Hundsheimer Berge is situated south of Devín Gate in...
in the east and the Morava River in the west. Although not an administrative region in its own right, it is one of the 21 official tourism regions in Slovakia. Záhorie lies in the area of three administrative regions: Bratislava Region
Bratislava Region
The Bratislava Region is one of the administrative regions of Slovakia. Its capital is Bratislava. It is the smallest of the eight regions of Slovakia.-Geography:...
(Malacky District
Malacky District
The Malacky District is a district inthe Bratislava Region of western Slovakia. Until 1918, the district was part of the Hungarian county of Pressburg.-Municipalities:*Borinka*Gajary*Jablonové*Jakubov*Kostolište*Kuchyňa*Láb...
plus Záhorská Bystrica
Záhorská Bystrica
Záhorská Bystrica is a borough in northern Bratislava. It is a small borough with preserved peasants' houses and more recent modern villas and estates....
in Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
), Trnava Region
Trnava Region
The Trnava Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions.-Geography:It is located in the middlewest part of Slovakia and forms a territorial band between the Bratislava Region and the rest of Slovakia, between Austrian and Czech borders in the north and Hungarian border in the south...
(Senica
Senica District
Senica District is adistrict inthe Trnava Region of western Slovakia.Until 1918, the district was mostly part of theHungarian countyof Nitra, with a small portionforming part of the county of Pressburg.-Municipalities:...
and Skalica
Skalica District
Skalica District is adistrict inthe Trnava Region of western Slovakia.Until 1918, the district was part of theHungarian countyof Nitra.-Municipalities:*Brodské*Dubovce*Chropov*Gbely*Holíč*Kátov*Kopčany...
districts) and Trenčín Region
Trencín Region
The Trenčín Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of 9 districts .-Geography:It is located in the north-western Slovakia, has an area of 4,502 km² and a population of 600,386 . The Danubian Lowland reaches the region to Nové Mesto nad Váhom and Partizánske areas...
(southern part of Myjava District
Myjava District
Myjava District is adistrict inthe Trenčín Region of western Slovakia.Until 1918, the district was part of theHungarian countyof Nitra.- Municipalities :*Brestovec*Brezová pod Bradlom*Bukovec*Hrašné*Chvojnica*Jablonka...
). The region also creates the borders between Slovakia, the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
.
A military district of the same name
Záhorie (military district)
Záhorie is a military district in western Slovakia in the Malacky District in the Bratislava Region.-External links:*...
is located around Malacky.
Name
The word "Záhorie" means "(The land) behind the mountains", referring to the Little CarpathiansLittle Carpathians
The Little Carpathians are a low, about 100 km long, mountain range, part of the Carpathian Mountains. The mountains are situated in Western Slovakia, covering the area from Bratislava to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, a very small part called Hundsheimer Berge is situated south of Devín Gate in...
mountains that separate Záhorie from the rest of Slovakia.
Geography
In the middle of the region is Záhorská nížina, a plain between Senica and Malacky towns. The most of the area is forested because of its sandy subsoil that is not suitable for farming. The forested area is used as testing range for military vehicles, especially tanks and artillery. The testing range is called Vojenský technický skúšobný ústav Záhorie (Military technical testing institute), and it contains the testing range, Kuchyňa airbase, and the village Záhorie that was built for the workers of the testing range. Headquarters are located in the village Záhorie and contains storage facilities and research facilities.The west border of the region represents the river Morava. The east border is Carpathian Mountain Range. On the north side is Chvojnická pahorkatina. Through the region flows the river Myjava. Almost every village has a dam or a lake.
Climate and agriculture
The region is a plain behind mountains, so the climate is much drier than on the rest of Slovakia. The region is well known for its wide yellow fields of rapeseedRapeseed
Rapeseed , also known as rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rappi, rapaseed is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae...
and red wine. Other grown corps are corn
Corn
Corn is the name used in the United States, Canada, and Australia for the grain maize.In much of the English-speaking world, the term "corn" is a generic term for cereal crops, such as* Barley* Oats* Wheat* Rye- Places :...
, sunflowers and grain
GRAIN
GRAIN is a small international non-profit organisation that works to support small farmers and social movements in their struggles for community-controlled and biodiversity-based food systems. Our support takes the form of independent research and analysis, networking at local, regional and...
.
Population
The population in the area is around 170,000. Towns in the region are GbelyGbely
Gbely is a town in the Skalica District, Trnava Region in western Slovakia, close to the Czech border.-History:The first written record about Gbely was in 1392. It gained town rights in the 16th–17th centuries...
, Holíč
Holíc
Holíč is a town in western Slovakia.-History:The oldest archaeological findings are from the Neolithic, and there are findings from the Bronze Age, Iron Age and the Roman time. The town was first mentioned in 1205 as Wywar, meaning "New Castle". The Árpád dynasty built a stone castle after Mongol...
, Malacky
Malacky
Malacky is a town and municipality in western Slovakia around 35 km north from capital Bratislava. From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the Kingdom of Hungary...
, Senica
Senica
Senica is a city in Trnava Region, western Slovakia. It is located in the north-eastern part of the Záhorie lowland, close to the Little Carpathians.-History:...
, Skalica
Skalica
Skalica is the largest city in Skalica District in western Slovakia in the Záhorie region. Located near the Czech border, Skalica has a population of 14,963 .-History:...
, Stupava
Stupava, Malacky District
Stupava is a small town in western Slovakia. It is situated in the Malacky District, Bratislava Region.-Geography:The town is located in the Záhorie lowland, under the Little Carpathians, around north of Bratislava at an altitude of 182 metres. It has 8,400 inhabitants as of 2005 and has a land...
and Šaštín-Stráže
Šaštín-Stráže
Šaštín-Stráže is a town in the Senica District, Trnava Region in western Slovakia. Originally two separate villages, now it is one of the youngest towns in Slovakia, having received town privileges on 1 September 2001.-Geography:...
.
The people here were for many years in the past farmers, so there are no big towns, most of the people lived in small villages not far from each other. The average distances between the villages are less than 3 km. Between the villages are very often small settlements, especially around Myjava and Brezová pod Bradlom, called kopanice, osady or samoty.
The people are well known for drinking and producing alcohol such as wine and schnapss or liquer made from various fruit(pear, apple, plum...) with high concentration of alcohol, 40% and more, especially slivovica, a popular local speciality.
Because the region was separated from the rest of the Slovakia, the people are Moravia
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
ns rather than Slovaks so they speak distinct dialect of Slovak language similar to the Moravian one and they are referred to as "Záhoráci". They are the target of frequent region-specific jokes from the rest of Slovaks, in a similar way that e.g. the Irish
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
are mocked by the British
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
, and the people from Appenzell
Appenzell
Appenzell is a region and historical canton in the northeast of Switzerland, entirely surrounded by the Canton of St. Gallen....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
are being laughed at by the rest of the Swiss.
Environment and ecology
Some parts of Záhorie are protected by Záhorie Protected Landscape AreaZáhorie Protected Landscape Area
Záhorie Protected Landscape Area is the first lowland protected landscape area in Slovakia. It is located in the non-administrative Záhorie Region in West Slovakia. The Landscape Area protects 275.22 km² and is divided into two separate parts – western and north-eastern...
, the first lowland protected landscape area in Slovakia. The Landscape Area takes 275.22 km² (106.3 mi²) and is divided into two separate parts – north-eastern and western. The Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area
Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area
Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. The Landscape Area is situated in the Little Carpathians, part of the Carpathian Mountains, in West Slovakia...
and Biele Karpaty Protected Landscape Area
Biele Karpaty Protected Landscape Area
White Carpathians Protected Landscape Area is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. The Landscape Area protects the Slovak part of the White Carpathians, part of the Slovak-Moravian Carpathians, in West Slovakia...
are partly situated in Záhorie.
Largest part of Záhorie takes Záhorie Lowland, which is divided into Bor Lowland and Chvojnica Hills. Bor Lowland (slov.) is named after big artificial forest called Bor (eng. Pinewood (?)).
The forest was planted with Scots Pine in 18th century on the largest blown sands of Slovakia.