The Slovak Academy of Sciences (, or SAV) is the main scientific and

research institution A research institute, research centre, or research organization is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often implies natural ...

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 ...

fostering basic and strategic basic

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

. It was founded in 1942, closed 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 ...

, and then reestablished in 1953. Its primary mission is to acquire new knowledge of

nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...

society A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. ...

and

technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

, specifically targeted at ensuring scientific basis for the advancement in Slovakia. It comprises 58 scientific institutes and 13 ancillary institutions. The SAV edits 44 scientific and scholarly journals and 100–120

monograph A monograph is generally a long-form work on one (usually scholarly) subject, or one aspect of a subject, typically created by a single author or artist (or, sometimes, by two or more authors). Traditionally it is in written form and published a ...

s per annum. Moreover, 41 scientific and scholarly societies, which associate

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

s and

scholar A scholar is a person who is a researcher or has expertise in an academic discipline. A scholar can also be an academic, who works as a professor, teacher, or researcher at a university. An academic usually holds an advanced degree or a termina ...

s from various disciplines, are affiliated with SAV.

History

The commencement of modern science in the 16th and 17th centuries resulted in the establishment of new institutions that supplemented classical

universities A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

and created a broader forum for fostering

science communication Science communication encompasses a wide range of activities that connect science and society. Common goals of science communication include informing non-experts about scientific findings, raising the Public awareness of science, public awar ...

. These institutions, which were built on the ancient Platonic traditions, became the starting point of our present day academies of sciences.

Matej Bel Matthias Bel or Matthias Bél (; ; ; ; 22–24 March(?), 1684 – 29 August 1749) was a Lutheran pastor and polymath from the Kingdom of Hungary. Bel was active in the fields of pedagogy, philosophy, philology, history, and theoretical theology ...

’s project, submitted in 1735, marked the first attempt to establish such an institution on the territory of modern Slovakia. He suggested the founding of a Societas litteraria in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

. His project, however, never materialized. In 1792, upon a proposal issued by a group of patriotic philologists, (The Slovak Learned Society) was founded. In 1844, under the impetus of Ludovit Stur, the nationwide cultural association, Tatrin, was instituted. A few years later, in 1892, Andrej Kmet published in Narodne noviny (National News) his appeal to establish (Slovak Scientific Association), or (Slovak Academy of Sciences). This idea led to the formation of (Slovak Association of Museums). On 2 July 1942, the Parliament of the

Slovak Republic 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 ...

instituted (Slovak Academy of Sciences and Arts), which developed into a representative and, concomitantly, working institution fostering scientific scholarly research. During the post-World War II period the SAVU was transformed into (Slovak Academy of Sciences; hereinafter the Academy or the SAS as an abbreviation). Its establishment was legally grounded in an act passed by the

Slovak National Council The Slovak National Council (, SNR) was an organisation that was formed at various times in the 19th and 20th centuries to act as the highest representative of the Slovak nation. It originated in the mid-19th century as a focus for Slovak nationali ...

on 18 June 1953. The arrangement of its operation was regulated further by appurtenant legislation. On 17 November 1989, significant changes at the Academy were introduced. Since then, far–reaching transformations enabled the Academy to become similar to counterpart organisations of science and research in advanced countries abroad.

Present

Nowadays, the Slovak Academy of Sciences successfully presents itself nationally and worldwide through the results in basic and applied research. It consists of 69 organisations, of which 48 are budgetary and 21 are subsidised. The Academy publishes 57 scientific and professional journals and 8 yearbooks. There are 51 scientific and scholarly associations, societies and unions affiliated with the SAS, which operate in accordance with the Law on Civic Associations. The Assembly, the Scientific

Council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

, and the

Presidium A presidium or praesidium is a council of executive officers in some countries' political assemblies that collectively administers its business, either alongside an individual president or in place of one. The term is also sometimes used for the ...

are the Academy’s self-governing bodies. The Assembly is the supreme self-governing Academy’s body. Its members are elected by the

academic staff Academic staff, also known as faculty (in North American usage) or academics (in British, Australia, and New Zealand usage), are vague terms that describe teachers or research staff of a school, college, university or research institute. In ...

of the respective scientific organisations from the academic staff of the SAS. The Scientific Council is a self-governing body of the Academy that deliberates upon scientific and conceptional tasks. It is composed of the President of the Academy and other members of the Academy’s Presidium, representatives delegated from the

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

sector, and a representative from the sector of business enterprising engaged in scientific research and development. Membership of the Scientific Council also includes representatives from organisations and institutions engaged in scientific research and development outside the Academy, appointed by the Chair of the Academy’s Assembly on the basis of elections of the members in the Scientific Council held by the Assembly. The Presidium is an executive self-governing body of the Academy. The Presidium is composed of the President, vice-presidents, Scientific Secretary, and other members of the Presidium, appointed by the Chair of the Academy’s Assembly on the basis of the electoral returns for the Academy’s Presidium. The Academy is presided by the President, who is appointed and recalled by the

President of the Slovak Republic The president of the Slovak Republic () serves as the head of state of Slovakia and commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The people directly elect the president for five years, for a maximum of two consecutive terms. The presidency is essent ...

. The Presidium of the Academy coordinates and supervises the activities of the Academy and the performance of its organisations via the sections for the respective groups of science branches.

Presidents

* 19531955:

Ondrej Pavlík Ondrej is a Slovak male given name, equivalent to Andrew. Notable people with the name include: * Ondrej Duda (born 1994), Slovak football player * Ondrej Otčenáš (born 1987), Slovak ice hockey player * Ondrej Nepela (1951–1989), Slovak figure ...

* 19551961:

Andrej Sirácky Andrej Sirácky (9 December 1900 – 29 September 1988) was a Slovak sociologist, philosopher, political scientist and communist official. Biography After graduating from the grammar school in Vrbas in 1921, he applied to study philosophy at Ch ...

* 19611965: Dionýz Blaškovič * 19651970: Štefan Schwarz * 19701974: Karol Šiška * 19741989: Vladimír Hajko * 19901992: Ladislav Macho * 19921995: Branislav Lichardus * 19952009: Štefan Luby * 20092015: Jaromír Pastorek * 20152025:

Pavol Šajgalík Pavol Šajgalík (born 30 June 1955) is a Slovak physicist, specialized in materials science. He has served as the president of the Slovak Academy of Sciences from 2015 to 2025. Biography Pavol Šajgalík was born on 30 June 1955 in Bratis ...

* Since 2025:

Martin Venhart Martin Venhart is a Slovak nuclear physicist. He specializes in the study of atomic nucleus shapes. Since 2025 he has served as the President of the Slovak Academy of Sciences Biography Martin Venhart was born in Trnava. His father worked in t ...

External links

* {{Authority control Slovak Academy of Sciences Members of the International Council for Science Members of the International Science Council

History

Present

Presidents

See also

External links