Orava is the traditional name of a region situated in northern

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 ...

(as ) and partially also in southern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

(as ). It encompasses the territory of the former (county) of Árva of

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. The northern part of is one of the regions that are part of the Goral Lands.

Etymology

The name arises from the Orava river (a major river flowing through the region).

History

The county arose before the 15th century. The county's territory was situated along the Orava River between Zázrivá and the Tatra Mountains. Its area amounted to around 1910. The original seat of the county was Orava Castle.

Geography

Orava is recognized as one of Slovakia's 25 tourist regions, but not an administrative region. In Slovakia, it is divided between

Dolný Kubín Dolný Kubín (; also known by #Names, other names) is a town in northern Slovakia in the Žilina Region. It is the historical capital and the largest settlement of the Orava (region), Orava region. Names The name is derived from the archaic Slov ...

Tvrdošín Tvrdošín (; ) is a town in Northern Slovakia. Geography The town is located at the confluence of the Orava and Oravica rivers, from the Polish borders and cca. from Dolný Kubín. It consists of the boroughs of Krásna Hôrka, Medvedzie, and ...

, and

Námestovo Námestovo (; ) is a town in northern Slovakia. It is the capital and largest town of Námestovo District in the Žilina Region. its population was 7,827. Etymology The name is derived from a word ''námesta'' (a representative, a deputy; like m ...

districts in the

Žilina Region The Žilina Region (; ; ) is one of the eight Regions of Slovakia, Slovak administrative regions and consists of 11 districts (okresy) and 315 municipalities, from which 18 have a town status. The region was established in 1923, however, in its p ...

. It has an area of , with the population on the Slovak side around 126,000. The village of

Oravská Polhora Oravská Polhora () is a large village and municipality in Námestovo District in the Žilina Region of northern Slovakia. The northernmost point of Slovakia is located close to the village. History In 1550, the Upper Hungarian Chamber, believi ...

is the northernmost settlement of Slovakia. The most important town on the Slovak side (and also the seat of the former county) is

. The Polish part of Orava belongs to the

Lesser Poland Voivodeship Lesser Poland Voivodeship ( ) is a voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship in southern Poland. It has an area of , and a population of 3,404,863 (2019). Its capital and largest city is Kraków. The province's name recalls the traditional name of a h ...

, to the

Nowy Targ County Nowy Targ County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, southern Poland, on the Slovak border. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government refor ...

, with the main village of the Polish side being Jabłonka.

Towns

Trstená Trstená ( or ''Árvanádasd''; ; German: ''Bingenstadt'') is a town in Tvrdošín District, Žilina Region, Northern Slovakia. Location Trstená is situated on the Orava River at the Orava (reservoir) in the Slovak part of the Orava valle ...

References

External links

Official regional website

Orava region
a
Slovakia.travel

Spectacular Slovakia – Orava
Traditional regions of Slovakia Regions of Poland {{Poland-geo-stub