This is a survey of the

postage stamps A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

and postal history of

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, an ...

. Slovenia is a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while ...

in Central

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

touching the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Swi ...

and bordering the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

. Slovenia borders

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

on the west, the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

on the southwest,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

on the south and east,

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

on the northeast, and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

on the north. The capital and largest city of Slovenia is

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...

. Slovenia covers an area of 20,271 square kilometres and has a population of over 2 million. The majority of the population speaks Slovene which is also the country's official language. Other local official languages are Hungarian and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Kingdom in 1918

Slovenia was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until 1918 when it became part of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

. Stamps were issued specifically for Slovenia, including the well known "chainbreakers" series, until the first stamps for use throughout the kingdom were issued in January 1921. The name of the kingdom was changed to the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

in 1929.Stanley Gibbons, Balkans catalogue, p.371.

World War II

On 8 July 1941 the Germans annexed parts of Slovenia, as

Lower Styria Styria ( sl, Štajerska), also Slovenian Styria (''Slovenska Štajerska'') or Lower Styria (''Spodnja Štajerska''; german: Untersteiermark), is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy o ...

, extending south to the River Sava and German stamps were used.

''Ljubljana Province''

Italy later occupied the rest of Slovenia as the Province of Lubiana. In September 1943 Italy ended hostilities with the allies and the Germans took over Lubiana, renaming it the Province of Laibach. Stamps were issued by both countries, most of which were

overprint An overprint is an additional layer of text or graphics added to the face of a Postage stamp, postage or revenue stamp, postal stationery, banknote or Ticket (admission), ticket after it has been Printing, printed. Post offices most often use ...

s on existing stamps. File:StampLubiana1941Michel6.jpg, A Yugoslav stamp overprinted ''Co. Ci.'' (abbreviations for the Civil Commissariat of the Occupied Slovenian Territories) for Ljubljana under Italian occupation in 1941 File:StampLubiana1941Michel34.jpg, A Yugoslav stamp overprinted "Royal Civil Commissariat of the Occupied Slovenian Territories of Lubiana" for Ljubljana under Italian occupation in 1941 File:StampLjubljanskaPokrajina1944Michel17.jpg, An Italian stamp overprinted for the Ljubljana province under German occupation in 1944 File:StampLjubjainskaPokrajina1945Michel51.jpg, A 1945 stamp for the Ljubljana province under German occupation

Post war

In 1945 Slovenia became part of the federal republic of Yugoslavia and used its stamps until 1991-92.

Independent Slovenia

The first stamp of independent Slovenia was issued on 26 June 1991. Yugoslav stamps were valid for postage in Slovenia until 25 April 1992.''Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue Part 3 Balkans''. 5th edition. London: Stanley Gibbons, 2009, pp.345-364.

References

External links

Yugoslavia Study Group
{{commons category, Postmarks of Slovenia Philately of Yugoslavia Philately of Slovenia Postal history of Slovenia