Čataj () is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in western

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

Senec District Senec District (''okres Senec'') is a district in the Bratislava Region of western Slovakia. It was established in 1996. The district is largely a bedroom community for Bratislava and is also known for its recreational possibilities, foremost the ...

in the

Bratislava region The Bratislava Region (, ; (until 1919); ) is one of the Regions of Slovakia, administrative regions of Slovakia. Its capital is Bratislava. The region was first established in 1923 and its present borders exist from 1996. It is the smallest of ...

. This typical agricultural village has fewer than 1000 inhabitants and is located aside from major roads, roughly between Senec and

Trnava Trnava (, , ; , also known by other #Names and etymology, alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of the Trnava Region and the Trnava District. It is the seat o ...

Etymology

''Čata'': the archaic name for residents responsible for guarding the assigned area (in the modern Slovak ''čata'': a squad). Chatey ''1244'', Czataj ''1773''. See also

Čata Čata () is a village and municipality in the Levice District in the Nitra Region of south-west Slovakia. History In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1386. Geography The village lies at an altitude of 132 metres and covers a ...

in the

Levice District Levice District (; ) is a district in the Nitra Region of western Slovakia. It is the largest of Slovakia's 79 districts. The west of the district was in the Hungarian county of Bars until 1918, while the east of the district was in Hont County ...

History

Early archaeological digs show that people settled the area around Čataj as early as 5000 BC. The town was mentioned for the first time in 1244, under the name "posesio Chatey". In the next few centuries the town and surrounding lands were given as gifts to several different families loyal to the Hungarian crown. In the 14th century, German colonists settled in Čataj, and until the 18th century the town was almost exclusively German. During this period, the town built a Catholic

rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...

(1397) and a church in 1721. Later, in 1845 the current church was built in

Neoclassical style Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...

. The church was repaired twice in the second half of the twentieth century, and along with a much newer

Catholic Evangelical The term Evangelical Catholic (from ''Catholic (term), catholic'' meaning ''universal'' and ''evangelical'' meaning ''Gospel-centered'') is used in Lutheranism, with those calling themselves Evangelical Catholic Lutherans or Lutherans of Evangelic ...

church serve the local community.http://www.cataj.sk Official home page

Culture and entertainment

Čataj is famous primarily for its ornamental

embroidery Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...

of blouses and tablecloths. These artworks have been sold all over the world, and one of them is said to have served as

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

's tablecloth. Folk art also survives in the form of two music bands, the brass band ''Čatajanka'' and the gypsy folk band ''Farkašovci'', which have toured beyond the borders of Slovakia. In addition, the village has a local folk dance group, ''Tulipán''. Due to its quiet and slow life and its agricultural character, Čataj has been often used as backdrops for movies and other art by movie directors

Martin Slivka Martin Slivka (1 November 1929 in Spišský Štiavnik – 23 September 2002 in Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the f ...

and

Martin Ťapák Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

, the cinematographer, photographer and folk art collector

Karol Plicka Karol may refer to: Places * Karol, Gujarat, a village on Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat, west India ** Karol State, a former Rajput petty princely state with seat in the above town * Karol Bagh, neighbourhood of Central Delhi, Delhi, India ** ...

and others. In addition to folk art, the village organizes annual hunts and has a soccer team, which is regularly on the last place of Slovakia's lowest, sixth division of its soccer league. The village also organizes numerous dances in its cultural center.

Demographics

In 2004 the town had 972 inhabitants: 471 men and 501 women. 99.1% were of Slovak ethnicity; the only two declared minorities were Hungarian and Czech. 64.3% of inhabitants were Roman Catholic, 24.8% Evangelical Catholic and 7.3% atheist. Of the 314 houses in the village 261 were permanently inhabited

References

Genealogical resources

The records for genealogical research are available at the state archive "Statny Archiv in Bratislava, Slovakia" * Roman Catholic church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1728-1895 (parish A) * Lutheran church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1701-1896 (parish B)

External links

Official page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cataj Villages and municipalities in Senec District Archaeological sites in Slovakia