Slovenia, << sloh VEE nee uh, >> is a small, mountainous country in central Europe that gained its independence in 1991. Ljubljana, Slovenia’s capital and largest city, is the center of cultural and political life in the nation. Other important towns in Slovenia are Maribor, the second largest city, and the port city of Koper.
Slovenes make up about 80 percent Slovenia’s population. Most of the other residents of Slovenia are ethnic Bosnians, Croats, or Serbs. A small number of Italians, as well as members of other nationalities, also live in Slovenia.
Tourists visit Slovenia throughout the year. The mountains have ski resorts and beautiful lakes, and the short coastline has sunny beaches that attract many vacationers. In addition, tourists go to see the caves at Postojna, located near Ljubljana, which are the largest caverns in Europe.
Another tourist attraction is the village of Lipica, near the Italian border in southwestern Slovenia. For more than 400 years, Lipizzaner horses have been raised at a farm in this village for the Spanish Riding School of Vienna, Austria.
Slovenia has existed since the 600’s, though it was often ruled by other countries. In 1918, Slovenia became part of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, later renamed Yugoslavia. In 1946, Yugoslavia became a federal state consisting of six republics, one of which was Slovenia. The republic declared its independence in 1991.
Government.
A National Assembly makes Slovenia’s laws. The voters elect the members of the National Assembly to four-year terms. The National Assembly also appoints all judges in Slovenia, including those in the Supreme Court. The government also has a Council of State, which has no legislative authority but may propose laws or ask the National Assembly to reconsider a vote. Council members serve five-year terms. The assembly elects a prime minister to head the government. The prime minister serves a four-year term. The voters elect a president to a five-year term, but the office is largely ceremonial. All citizens 18 years old or older can vote. People aged 16 to 18 can vote if they have jobs.
Slovenia adopted its first constitution as an independent state in December 1991. The Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, assembly, press, and religion, as well as other civil rights.
Slovenia has many small political parties, and no party has much chance of gaining power alone. The country’s political parties include the Democratic Party of Pensioners of Slovenia, the Freedom Movement party, the Slovenian Democratic Party, the Slovenian National Party, the Slovenian People’s Party, the Social Democrats, and The Left (Levica).
People.
About 80 percent of the people are Slovenes, a Slavic people who speak Slovenian. Slovenian is written in the Roman alphabet, not the Cyrillic system of writing used for many Slavic languages. Most Slovenes also speak another language, usually Croatian, German, Hungarian, Italian, Serbian, or English. Most Slovenes are Roman Catholics, though some belong to Protestant churches.
About half of the people live in rural areas. Rural families usually live in single-family homes with steep roofs. Many city dwellers live in high-rise apartment buildings.
Slovenian cooking resembles that of Austria. Veal and pork are favorite meats. One of the best-known Slovenian dishes is Ljubljana veal cutlet, breaded slices of veal served with a cheese sauce. Slovenia produces some excellent wines.
Nearly all adults can read and write. Children are required to attend eight years of elementary school and four years of secondary school. Slovenia has universities in Ljubljana, Maribor, Koper, and Nova Gorica.
Slovenia has produced many fine writers. Primoz Trubar is considered the father of Slovenian literature. He wrote several religious works and translated the New Testament into Slovenian during the 1500’s. France Preseren was an important lyric poet of the 1800’s. Ivan Cankar was one of the best Slavic short-story writers of the early 1900’s. Important writers of the late 1900’s included Andrej Hieng, Drago Jancar, Ciril Kosmac, Tomas Salamun, and Rudi Seligo.
Festivals play an important part in Slovenian life. Every February, the town of Ptuj in northeastern Slovenia holds a Kurenti festival, a celebration that dates from the pre-Christian era. During the festival, people dress up in animal masks and furs and perform rituals designed to drive away the “evil spirits” of winter.
Land and climate.
Mountains make up much of Slovenia, and thick forests cover about half the land. The Julian Alps lie in Slovenia’s northwest corner. Slovenia’s highest point, Mount Triglav, rises 9,393 feet (2,863 meters) in this range. The mountains are home to many types of game animals, such as small antelopes called chamois. Hilly plains spread across central and eastern Slovenia. The central part of the country also includes a limestone region called the Karst. The Karst is characterized by caves and underground channels that cause rainwater and even lakes to appear and disappear. A small strip of coastline lies along the Adriatic Sea.
Slovenia’s climate varies greatly from region to region. The mountains have exceptionally cold winters with much snow. Heavy rains fall in early summer. Summers are warm in the mountain valleys but cooler at higher elevations. The coastline has a mild climate. The temperature rarely falls below freezing in winter, and summers are hot and dry. Northeastern Slovenia has cold winters and hot summers. Temperatures can get as high as 100 °F (38 °C) in the summer and frequently fall below freezing in the winter.
Economy.
When Slovenia was part of Yugoslavia, it had the strongest economy of the six republics. But Slovenia’s economy lagged under Communism, especially during the 1980’s. After Slovenia gained its independence in 1991, it began to establish a free enterprise system, in which businesses could operate without extensive government control. Today, Slovenia has one of the strongest economies in Eastern Europe.
The leading manufactured products include automobiles, chemicals, metal goods, and textiles. The most important crops are corn, potatoes, and wheat. The major fruits grown in Slovenia are apples, cherries, grapes, pears, and plums. Farmers also raise beef and dairy cattle, chickens, hogs, and sheep. Mining plays a small role in Slovenia’s economy. Slovenia’s major trading partners include Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, and Italy.
Slovenia has many good roads, especially those linking the country with Austria and Italy. Railroads serve the main cities and towns. Ljubljana has an international airport. Koper is Slovenia’s only commercial port.
Slovenia’s newspapers are privately owned. Radio and television stations operate under both private and state ownership.
History.
During the A.D. 500’s, a people called the Lombards lived in present-day Slovenia. At that time, the Lombards left Slovenia and resettled in Italy. During the late 500’s, the Slovenes, the westernmost branch of a people known as the South Slavs, settled in Slovenia.
The Slovenes were ruled by a people called the Avars until 623. That year, Samo, a former merchant of a Germanic people known as the Franks, drove out the Avars and established an independent Slovenian state. In 748, the Slovenes came under Bavarian-Frankish rule. In 1278, the Habsburgs (also spelled Hapsburgs), an Austrian royal family, gained control of Slovenia. Slovenia remained under Austrian rule until 1918, except for a period of French control that lasted from 1809 to 1815.
After World War I ended in 1918, Slovenia became part of a new state called the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. The name of the country was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. In 1941, during World War II, Germany and Italy conquered Slovenia and divided it among themselves and Hungary. After the war ended, the Communists came to power in Yugoslavia, and Slovenia became one of the country’s six republics. 
During the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, some Slovenes called for the republic to secede (withdraw) from Yugoslavia. But in 1972 and 1973, Yugoslav president Josip Broz Tito eliminated the liberals from the Slovenian Communist Party. With this move, Tito tried to secure Slovenia more tightly to Yugoslavia.
In 1990—as Communism collapsed throughout Eastern Europe—the Communists voted to end their monopoly on power in Yugoslavia. Numerous non-Communist political parties began to form. In April 1990, Slovenia held its first multiparty elections.
In June 1991, Slovenia and another Yugoslav republic, Croatia, declared their independence. The Yugoslav government strongly opposed the declaration. Some fighting took place between the Slovene militia and the Yugoslav military. In December, Slovenia’s Assembly approved a new constitution.
In late 1991, the Yugoslav republic of Macedonia declared independence. Bosnia-Herzegovina did so early in 1992. In April 1992, Serbia and Montenegro established a new Yugoslavia and thus seemed to recognize the independence of Slovenia and the other republics. (Serbia and Montenegro separated into independent countries in 2006.)
In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s, Slovenia worked toward joining the European Union (EU)—an economic and political coalition—and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)—a defense alliance. Slovenia became a member of both the EU and NATO in 2004. Slovenia adopted the EU currency—the euro—in 2007. 
See also Ljubljana; Montenegro (History); Serbia (History).
