Cerknica (; , german: Zirknitz''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 120.) is a town in the

Karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, Dolomite (rock), dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathe ...

region of southwestern

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

, with a population of 4,018 (2016 census). It is the seat of the

Municipality of Cerknica The Municipality of Cerknica (; sl, Občina Cerknica) is a municipality in the Karst region of southwestern Slovenia, with a population of 11,350 in 2012. The seat of the municipality is the town of Cerknica. It belongs to the traditional region ...

. It belongs to the traditional region of

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( sl, Notranjska; german: Innerkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the ...

Name

Cerknica was first attested in written sources as ''Circhinitz'' in 1040 (and as ''Czirknicz'' in 1145, ''Cyrknitz'' in 1261, and ''Cirnizza'' in 1581). The name is derived from ''*Cerkvnica'', a

univerbation In linguistics, univerbation is the diachronic process of combining a fixed expression of several words into a new single word. The univerbating process is epitomized in Talmy Givón's aphorism that "today's morphology is yesterday's syntax". ...

of ''*Cerkvna (vas)'' 'church village'. A church was established very early in Cerknica, probably already in the 9th century. The original structure was burned down in an Ottoman attack in 1472.

Churches

There are three churches in Cerknica. The parish church is dedicated to the

Nativity of Mary The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Nativity of Mary, the Marymas or the Birth of the Virgin Mary, refers to a Christian feast day celebrating the birth of Mary, mother of Jesus. The modern canon of scripture does not record Mary's bi ...

.Parish of Cerknica
It stands at the top of a hill in the center of Cerknica at the site of a former fortification against Ottoman raids. It is a late Gothic

hall church A hall church is a church with a nave and aisles of approximately equal height, often united under a single immense roof. The term was invented in the mid-19th century by Wilhelm Lübke, a pioneering German art historian. In contrast to an archi ...

, a triple-naved structure with lierne vaulting built between 1480 and 1520 at the site of an earlier church that was burned during an Ottoman attack in 1472. A Baroque chapel was added to the church in the 18th century and the church's furnishings date from the 19th century. The other two churches are

chapels of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ease is deliberately bu ...

dedicated to

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

and

Saint Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79 (traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327, also called Rock in English, is a Catholic saint, a confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he is especially invoked a ...

. Saint John the Baptist Church is a cemetery church south of the main settlement. A chapel was mentioned at the site in a visitation report of 1581; the church itself was built in 1642. It has a rectangular nave, a polygonal chancel walled on three sides, and a bell tower. The interior combines groin vaulting and barrel vaulting with spandrels. Saint Roch's Church stands in the northern part of Cerknica. It was built between 1630 and 1644 at the site of a plague chapel dating to 1578. It has a rectangular nave, a polygonal chancel walled on three sides, and a bell tower. The altar painting of Saint Roch is a 1763 work by

Anton Cebej Anton Cebej, or Zebey (23 May 1722, Ajdovščina – after 1774) was a Slovenian painter, in the Baroque style. Biography Very little is known about his life. The information that is available is derived entirely from a history of his works, the ...

.Slovenian Ministry of Culture register of national heritage
reference number ešd 1704 File:Cerknica--cerkev.jpg, Nativity of Mary Church File:Cerknica Slovenia - John the Baptist Church.JPG, Saint John the Baptist Church

Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Cerknica include: *

France Arhar France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

(born 1948), banker and politician * Jože Udovič (1912–1986), poet

References

External links

*
Cerknica on GeopediaOfficial site of the municipality

{{Authority control Populated places in the Municipality of Cerknica Cities and towns in Inner Carniola