Kvilda () is a municipality and village in Prachatice District in the

South Bohemian Region The South Bohemian Region () is an administrative unit (''Regions of the Czech Republic, kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It has about 100 inhabitants. At an altitude of , it is the highest municipality in the Czech Republic. It is also one of the coldest places in the country.

Administrative division

Kvilda consists of five municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Kvilda (126) *Bučina (0) *Františkov (1) *Hraběcí Huť (0) *Vydří Most (3)

Etymology

The name Kvilda is derived from the

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; or ; , shortened as ''Mhdt.'' or ''Mhd.'') is the term for the form of High German, High German language, German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High ...

word ''gevilde'', meaning 'plain' or 'wide meadow'.

Geography

Kvilda is located about west of

Prachatice Prachatice (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urban monumen ...

and west of

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 97,000 inhabitants. The city is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is the largest ...

. It lies in the

Bohemian Forest The Bohemian Forest, known in Czech as () and in German as , is a low mountain range in Central Europe. Geographically, the mountains extend from Plzeň Region and the South Bohemian Region in the Czech Republic to Austria and Bavaria in Germ ...

and in the

Šumava National Park The Šumava National Park (, usually shortened as NP Šumava), or Bohemian Forest National Park, is a national park in the South Bohemian regions of the Czech Republic along the border with Germany (where the smaller adjacent Bavarian Forest Na ...

. The village of Kvilda lies at an average altitude of above sea level, which makes it the highest municipality in the country. The highest point in the municipality is the Černá hora mountain at . The

Teplá Vltava The Teplá Vltava is a river in the Czech Republic, the main source of the Vltava River. It flows through the South Bohemian Region. Until its confluence with the Studená Vltava when it further continues as the Vltava, the Teplá Vltava is long. ...

(the headwater of the

Vltava The Vltava ( , ; ) is the longest river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Elbe River. It runs southeast along the Bohemian Forest and then north across Bohemia, through Český Krumlov, České Budějovice, and Prague. It is com ...

, which is the longest Czech river) originates in the municipality. The municipal territory is rich in small watercourses. In the northern part of the municipality is the large moor of Jezerní slať.

Climate

Kvilda enjoys a version of wet

Subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(Dfc) with cold and wet conditions year round. The municipality, specifically the moor Jezerní slať and its weather station named Perla, holds several temperature records. It is one of the coldest places in the country with average annual temperature of . The lowest measured temperature is recorded on 30 January 1987. It also holds the record of the highest average of below-zero days per annum, which is 252 days. The total annual amount of precipitation is up to 1,300 mm. The station Perla has been in operation since October 1985. The average annual temperature in the village of Kvilda is , The total annual amount of precipitation is 1,100 mm. The coldest month is January with an average temperature of , the warmest month is July with . The average number of days with snow cover is 150.

History

The first written mention of Kvilda is from 1569. Most of the population were ethnic

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the German inhabitants were expelled.

Demographics

Transport

There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality.

Sights

The Church of Saint Stephan was built in 1892–1894 and replaced an old wooden church destroyed by fire. On the edge of Jezerní slať is a lookout tower and an educational trail.

References

External links

* {{authority control Villages in Prachatice District Bohemian Forest