The Slovak Republic has been an independent state since January 1st, 1993. It is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. The country is predominantly mountainous with the Western Carpathians and the high mountain range of the High Tatras. The climate is temperate continental with cold winters and warm summers. The country’s forests are severely affected by forest dieback.
The country’s population consists of 86% Slovaks who belong to the Western Slavs. After the collapse of socialism and the dissolution of the Czech-Slovak Federation, the Slovak economy had to be gradually converted to market economy principles with great difficulty. Slovakia has been a member of the European Union and NATO since 2004.
Abbreviated as SK by ABBREVIATIONFINDER, the Slovak Republic is one of the youngest states in Eastern Europe and is only about the size of Lower Saxony. The capital Bratislava (Pressburg) is located in the southwest of the country near the border with Austria.
Slovakia borders the Czech Republic in the west and Austria in the southwest. The northern neighbor of Slovakia is Poland, the eastern neighbor Ukraine. In the south, the Danube forms the border with Hungary for around 170 km. It is also the country’s main shipping route.
Surface shape
The Slovak Republic is a mountainous country. Four fifths of the country are higher than 750 m above sea level. d. M.
Most of the country is of the forested Western Carpathians taken. These are divided into individual mountain ranges and mountain ranges by basins and broad valleys. The most important mountain ranges are the Low Tatras and the Slovak Ore Mountains, which are predominantly low mountain range characteristics, as well as the alpine high mountains of the High Tatras with mountains of more than 2500 m height.
In the southern parts of Slovakia, there are larger lowland areas: the Danube Plain in the southwest, which is traversed by the Waag, the longest river in Slovakia, and the Hungarian lowlands Kisalföld (Small Hungarian Lowland) and Alföld (Great Hungarian Lowland), which extend into Slovakia in the southeast.
Climate and vegetation
Slovakia has a predominantly temperate continental climate. It is characterized by warm summers and cold winters. In the state capital, the mean temperature in January is -3 °C, in July it is 20 °C (Fig. 3). Up to 2000 mm of precipitation falls annually in the mountains. East of the mountains, however, it is quite dry. For example, on the plains in the rain shadow of the Slovak Ore Mountains, less than 500 mm of precipitation per year.
Around 40% of the country is still covered by forest. Coniferous forests with spruce and fir trees have replaced the once predominant deciduous forests. As in the Czech Republic and Poland, forest death caused by smoke from industry has already affected large parts of the forest.
The plains and lower parts of the country are almost exclusively used for agriculture today.
Important data about the country
| Surface: | 49,012 km² |
| Residents: | 5.4 million |
| Population density: | 110 residents / km² |
| Growth of population: | 0.1% / year |
| Life expectancy: | 73 years |
| State capital: | Bratislava (Pressburg) |
| Form of government: | Democratic Republic |
| Languages: | Slovak, Hungarian, Czech |
| Religions: | Catholics 60% |
| Climate: | temperate continental climate |
| Land use: | not specified |
| Economic sectors: (share of employees) |
Agriculture 6.2%, industry 38.4%, services 55.4% |
| Export goods: | Machines and means of transport, chemical products, fuels, raw materials |
| Gross domestic product: | $ 32,519 million (2003) |
| Gross National Product: | US $ 4,940 / residents (2003) |
Economy
Since the collapse of the Eastern Bloc, Slovakia and its economy have experienced a profound structural change, which is characterized by the gradual introduction of market economy principles.
The chemical industry and mechanical engineering, which had expanded particularly strongly after 1945, were particularly hard hit by the restructuring measures.
In addition, the textile, glass and ceramic industries have traditional significance in the country.
Bratislava is the most important of the industrial locations. It is the center of the petrochemical industry, which mainly processes Russian oil and natural gas. Mechanical engineering and vehicle construction are also located in Bratislava.
The main trading partners of the Slovak Republic are the Czech Republic and Germany.
In the Agriculture Slovakia one tenth of the workforce are employed about. The plains in the south-west and east of the country in particular are used intensively for the cultivation of grain, sugar beet and potatoes.
Wine, tobacco and hops thrive in favorable locations.
History
In the 5th century: Slavic tribes immigrate into the area of today’s Slovakia and displace Germanic tribes.
1918: After an eventful history, the Czechoslovak Republic is proclaimed, one of the successor states to the Austro-Hungarian monarchy.
1945: After the end of World War II, the communists take power and Slovakia becomes a part of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic in 1948.
1990: Conversion of the into a federation with the formation of a Czech and a Slovak Federal Republic.
1992: Dissolution of the federation and establishment of the Slovak Republic as independent state
2004: Accession of Slovakia to the EU and NATO