SLOVAKIA

1. Talk about geography, history and political system.

2. Speak about some natural beauties, towns, castles, monuments, cultural events....
we have in our country.
3. Speak about the traditions we keep in our families.
4. Describe typical wedding in Slovakia.
5. What is typical of our people? What are we like?
 SLOVAKIA – MY HOMELAND

The Slovak Republic is a new state which came into existence on 1st January 1993 when former Czechoslovakia was
divided and two sovereign states were formed: The Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.

Geography

Slovakia is situated in the heart of Europe, the geographical centre of Europe being on the hill Krahule, near
Kremnica. The Slovak Republic covers an area of 49,039 sq km and borders the Czech Republic to the West, Austria
to the Southwest, Hungary to the Southeast, Poland to the North and the Ukraine to the East. Lowlands are situated
around big rivers, for example Danube and Bodrog. We have connections with the Black sea with the river Danube.
Slovakia is a mountainous country. Its territory is rich in fauna and most animal species live in the mountainous
woodland regions. The climate is a mixture of continental and ocean climates with four seasons. The coldest month
is January, the warmest is July.

Population

The Slovak Republic has a population of 5,336,207 people. Most of the people living in Slovakia are Slovaks, then
Hungarians, Romanies, Czechs, Ruthenians, Ukrainians and Germans. The official language is Slovak. The majority of
the population is Roman Catholics religion.

The system of government

The system of government of the Slovak Republic is divided into three branches:

1. the legislative branch represented by the National Council of the Slovak Republic (Parliament) (the law
making body, it consists of 150 members elected every four years)
2. the executive branch represented by the Government (the Prime Minister and his cabinet – vice-prime
ministers and ministers) and the President (elected every five years and is a commander-in-chief of the
armed forces)
3. the judicial branch (the courts) – the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the courts at all levels of
regional and district government

The National flag consists of three horizontal stripes: white, blue and red. The left half of the flag bears the state
emblem of the Slovak Republic – a double cross with mountains in the backround.

The capital of the Slovak Republic is Bratislava – the largest city, the centre of political, governmental, economic,
educational and research institutions.

History

833 – The Great Moravian Empire was founded.

863 – Byzantine brothers Constantine and Methodius headed a mission to Great Moravia, devised the oldest Slavic
alphabet and translated the liturgical books into old Church Slavonic which they codified.

907 – The Great Moravian Empire disintegrated and Slovakia became a part of the early feudal Hungarian state.

19th century – The time of national revival.

1843 – Štúr codified the literary Slovak language.

1861 – The Memorandum of the Slovak nation was published.

October 28, 1918 – The Czechoslovak Republic was founded.

March 14, 1939 – The Declaration of the Slovak Republic – a puppet state of Nazi Germany.
August 29, 1944 – The Slovak National Uprising against the Nazi Germany started.

1968 – Prague Spring – led by Alexander Dubček.

August 21, 1968 – Invasion of the Warshaw Pact troops into Czechoslovakia.

November 17, 1989 – The Velvet Revolution, restoration of democracy

January 1, 1993 – The independence of the Slovak Republic was declared.

Bratislava

Many various festivals, and exhibitions take place regularly in Bratislava. The most famous are Bratislava Music
Festival, the flower exhibition Flóra, chemistry fair Incheba, international construction fair Coneco, and others.

There are many very important cultural monuments in Bratislava, for example the Bratislava Castle, ruins of the
Devín Castle, Slavín, the building of Academia Istropolitana (the first university in Slovakia established in 1465). Other
monuments worth seeing are the St. Martin´s Cathedral, the Old Town Hall from the end of 14th century, the
Archbishop´s Palace, Michael´s Gate also from 14th century, Grassalkowich Palac (now known under the name
Presidential Palace), and many others.

Bratislava Castle

Often referred to as an upside-down table, Bratislava Castle is certainly unique with an original design that is
unmistakeable. Parts of the castle are open to the public, and contain exhibitions of the Slovak National Museum.
There is very good exposition on the History of Musical Instruments, as well as a historical furniture exposition and
a collection of exhibits called “The Jewels of Slovakia´s Remote Past “.

Nový Most

Love it or hate it, the Novy Most certainly deserves a mention. The unusual design may or may not be an eyesore,
but what´s worse is the highway that leads from the bridge, which ripped up part of the old town when it was built.
You can take a lift to the Bystrica café, at the top of the bridge, for 10Sk, ant its well worth buying a coffee, so you
can take in the unbelievable panoramic view of the city.

St. Michael´s Tower

The only one of the Watch Tower Gates that is still standing, St. Michael´s Tower acts as the gateway into the old
town from the North. There is a very interesting exposition about Arms and Municipal Fortifications on six floors of
the tower. If you venture up to the very top of the tower you will be rewarded with outstanding views of Bratislava,
and an excellent photo opportunity of the castle.

St. Martin´s Cathedral

The biggest, oldest and finest church in Bratislava, St. Martin´s Cathedral was built in the gothic style. It was here,
during the time when Bratislava was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary, that a series of Hungarian Kings and
Queens, including Marie Theresa, were crowned.

Primational Palace

This beautiful palace has been its fair share of Kings and Queens over the years. It was here in 1805, when Napoleon
signed the Pressburg Peace Treaty. Today, the palace houses part of the Municipal Museum, and has an excellent
collection of English Tapestries, which were found hidden in the palace. The Hall of Mirrors is a delightful room, and
the chapel within the Palace can still be hired out for weddings.

Municipal Museum
On the Main Square, the interesting looking building that was the Old Town Hall, today houses the town´s Municipal
Museum. This is a museum with many different exhibitions about the history of Bratislava. The most interesting part
of the museum is the exposition on Medieval Justice, which displays the various different torture instruments that
were used at the time to bring people to justice.

Slovak National Museum

Situated on the banks of the Danube, the Slovak National Museum is easy to spot, because of the lion that stands in
front of the building. This huge museum features the usual Natural History, zoological and archaelogical exhibitions.
However, there are also some interesting art and photo expositions, and an excellent exhibit about Slovak Inventors.

Places worth seeing:

Banská Štiavnica, Spišský hrad, Vlkolínec (old-style wooden dwellings), Slovak Karst (Slovenský kras), Bardejov (royal
town), Čičmany (wooden abodes with white lime ornaments), Levoča (the huge Gothic Altar of the Church of St.
James), Devín (national cultural monument – it was a major military fortress of the Great Moravian Empire)

Caves (important part of the nation´s natural and cultural heritage): Domica, Ochtinská Aragonitová cave (spiky
aragonite formations that resemble flowers), Demänovská cave (hike 15 m uphill to reach the entrance), Icy cave

High Tatras: the Gerlach Peak, the peak Kriváň, the peak Lomnický štít, Štrbské pleso lake, Starý Smokovec (one of
the oldest settlements of the High Tatra), Nový Smokovec, Horný Smokovec (now Smokovce – administrative centre
and the most significant resort of mountain tourism, winter sports and recreation all the year around), Hrebienok on
the peak Slavkovský štít

Nitra

The first Slavonic settlements originated on its territory in the 5th century. The proof of this has been found in
Párovce and Martin´s Hill where Prince Pribina had built the first Christian church of the Slovak territory around 828-
829. The ancient history of Nitra is closely connected with the history of Great Moravian Princedom. The Nitra castle
was the residence of princes and sovereigns including Prince Svätopluk. The raids of old Hungarian tribes in the end
of the 9th and the beginning of the 10th centuries contributed to the final disintegration of the Great Moravian
Princedom.

Neverthless, Nitra remained an important administrative, political and social centre of the regionin the early feudal
period. In the 13th century the Nitra castle became the seat of military comitat and an important centre of the
district administration. In 1248, Nitra was granted the privileges of a free royal town and provided assistance to king
Béla IV in his fights against the Tartars. The castle became the seat of the Nitra bishopric and in the 13th century it
was burnt down by Matúš Čák Trenčiansky. Due to its strategic location the castle often changed its feudal lords. In
the following centuries it was devastated by frequent wars and as consequence of these events the town declined
considerably in the 15th century. But the most serious disaster in Nitra´s history took place on October 12, 1663
when the Turks conquered the town and the castle. They occupied the town and left it devastated at the end of April
1664.

The most important historical buildings of the old premises, situated on the castle rock and its surroundings are St.
Emeram´s Church (Pribina´s Church) and the Bishop´s Cathedral, which dominate the whole town, the Great
Seminary – St. Gorazd Theological School, the Franciscan Monastery and Church, and a rich diocesan library unique
in the Central Europe. Close to the entrance of the castle stands the plague pillar which ranks among the most
valuable in the country. Bishop Kluch´s house with the sculpture of Atlas, the giant, in its corner belongs to the most
frequently visited places of the historical part of the town.

Slovak manners, customs, traditions

Slovakia has few national annual events, and aside from the usual religiously oriented celebrations and mass
pilgrimages, most annual events are arts-and-music-based festivals, confined to a particular town or city. Worth
looking out for is the Folk Dance Festival held in July in Východná in Slovakia.

For the Orthodox and Uniate churches, which predominate in the east of the country, Easter is much more
important than Christmas, and the processions and services can be elaborate and lengthy affairs that are well worth
seeing. For the rest of the country, it´s a good excuse for the party, and also for the age-old sexist ritual of whipping
girls´ legs with braided birch twigs, tied with ribbons – objects which you will see being furiously bought and sold at
markets in the days leading up to Easter Sunday. In “thanks “for their whipping and watering, girls are supposed to
offer the boys coloured Easter eggs, or as is becoming more common these days, money.

Christmas is a time of feasting and family gatherings and, therefore, a fairly private occasion. On December 6, St.
Nicholas travels around the neighbourhood accompanied by an angel, handing out sweets and fruit to children who
´ve been good and probably at least one “demon “handing out coal and potatoes to those who´ve been naughty.
With a week to go, large tanks of water are set up in the streets from which huge quantities of carp, the traditional
Christmas dish, are sold. Christmas Eve is traditionally a day of fasting, broken only when the evening star appear,
signalling the beginning of the Christmas feast of carp, potato salad, and sweet breads. Only after the meal are the
children allowed to open their presents.

Jánošík and his outlaws have appeared in a lot of folk art such as songs, poems, stories, and legends, and also in
paintings on glass, and in wood carvings. Stories about Jánošík´s life, adventures and deeds are sure to be around for
a long time to come.

Slovaks

Some people might say that Slovaks are distrustful, disorganised and too lazy to change things. But I´m not one of
those people. I think that Slovaks deal with people with a mixture of warmth and suspicion. They are flexible and
willing to bend the rules when needed. And they often look at life not as a bunch of problems that need to be fixed,
but as a bunch in situations that need to be accepted.