Žirovnica (;
[''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 146.]) is a settlement in northwestern
Slovenia
Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
, in the
Municipality of Žirovnica. It is located in the historic
Upper Carniola
Upper Carniola ( ; ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The largest town in the region is Kranj, and other urban centers include Kamnik, Jesenice, Jesenice, Jesenice, Domžale and ...
region, on the southern slope of the
Karawanks
The Karawanks or Karavankas or Karavanks (; , ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps on the border between Slovenia to the south and Austria to the north. With a total length of in an east–west direction, the Karawanks chain is o ...
mountain range, close to the border with
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
.
Name
Žirovnica was first attested in written sources in 1253 as ''Zarnonize'' (and as ''Zaronitz'' in 1306–1309, ''Sernavnicz'' in 1344). The name developed from *''Žьrnovьnica'', derived from ''žьrny'' '
quern', a metaphorical reference to the shape of the valley where it is located. In the past the German name was ''Scheraunitz''.
History
During the Second World War, a battle took place between German units and the
Partisan Cankar Brigade on 20 February 1942 on nearby Mount Stol, during which the Prešeren Lodge () was also burned (it was not rebuilt until 1965). The Partisans burned the wooden railway station in the town on 13 September 1942.
After the Second World War, a Yugoslav labor camp for political prisoners operated in Žirovnica.
[Mrvič, Irena. 1999. "Taborišče." ''Enciklopedija Slovenije'', vol. 13 (Š–T), pp. 177–179. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, p. 179.]
Notable people
Notable people that were born or lived in Žirovnica include:
*
Janez Čop (1810–1846), writer
*
Matija Čop (1797–1835), linguist
*
Urban Gollmayr (1820–1905), priest
*
Tomo Kajdiš (1834–1914), politician
References
External links
*
Žirovnica on Geopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zirovnica
Populated places in the Municipality of Žirovnica