Snina
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| Snina | ||
| Town | ||
 View of Snina with Vihorlat Mts. in the background
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| Country |  Slovakia |
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| Region | Prešov Region | |
| District | Snina District | |
| River | Cirocha | |
| Elevation | 216 m (709 ft) | |
| Coordinates | ||
| Area | 59.41 km² (23 sq mi) | |
| Population | 21,326 (31 December 2005) | |
| Density | 359 /km² (930 /sq mi) | |
| First mentioned | 1364 | |
| Mayor | Štefan Milovčík | |
| Timezone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| - summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| Postal code | 069 01 | |
| Phone prefix | 421-57 | |
| Car plate | SV | |
   Location of Snina in Slovakia
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  Location of Snina in the Prešov Region
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| Wikimedia Commons: Snina | ||
| Statistics: MOŠ/MIS | ||
| Website: http://www.snina.sk | ||
Snina (Hungarian: Szinna) is a town in Slovakia placed at the confluence of the Cirocha river and the small river Pčolinka in the valley between the Beskydy foothills and the Vihorlat mountain. It is the closest town with rail and bus connections to the Poloniny National Park.
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[edit] History
The oldest written records mentioning Snina date back to 1343. Snina as an oppidum (small town) is mentioned in port records ("porta" meaning the gate to the court yard or several serf houses) beginning in 1585. In 1598 the first census of houses was done and in Snina there were 75 houses. Between 1570 and 1630, it is evident from port records that Snina was the seat of krajňa ("krajňa" meaning the administrative district of villages). Since 1646 Snina was called "Szinna Varossa" and later "Civitas Szinna" in the archives. In 1785 Snina had 195 houses and 1,430 inhabitants.
The rulers from 1321 to 1684 were of the Drugeth family, who came from Salerno near Naples. Later, the owner of the lordship of Snina was Terézia van Dernáthová, who was the granddaughter of Žigmung Drugeth. After her death in 1799, her five sons sold all the property to a businessman from Gemer named Jozef Rholl. His children improved this region until 1857. They built up iron and steel works in the Jozef valley in 1809.
From 1839 the traditional market took place in Snina four times a year. It meant development of business and trade. An iron foundry was built in the Jozef valley in 1841. A well-known moulded statue of Hercules was next to Snina manor-house and is the emblem of Snina to this day. During business depressions in 1873, iron and steel works completely vanished, so the life of dwellers of Snina and vicinity worsened rapidly and the group migration began. They left their homes and went to the USA, Canada and western Europe.
In 1876 Snina was a residence of 10th region of Zemplín area. The Roman Catholic classicist church from 1751 was modified in the beginning of the 19th century. Since 90th years of the 20th century there are pictures of M.Jordan and J.Koch from 1850. The Calvary from 1847, which is in the cemetery, is classicist. There is a manor-house from 1800 in the town with rest of authentic historical park, which is from the 19th century. On the court of the manor-house is a public fountain with a well known statue of Hercules from 1841. In the church's park there are monuments from World War II. There are two military cemeteries from World War I near the town too (Giglov 130 buried soldiers and Brehy 153 buried soldiers).
On May 1, 1949, the construction of the Vihorlat Enterprise began. On July 15, 1951 production started. The construction and extension of the enterprise, which was aimed at medium heavy engineering production, created further employment opportunities in construction organisations, services and trade.
Along with the development of industry and services, housing developed. Housing estates and new family houses were constructed. The largest number of flats and family houses were built here between 1975 – 1990 for families displaced by the construction of Starina reservoir seven villages had to be moved out.
[edit] Demographics
According to the 2001 census, the town had 21,235 inhabitants. 86.78% of inhabitants were Slovaks, 5.84% Rusyns, 2.51% Ukrainian, 1.86% Roma and 0.58% Czechs.[1] The religious make-up was 56.03% Roman Catholics, 19.21% Greek Catholics, 13.59% Orthodox, 5.90% people with no religious affiliation and 0.30% Lutherans.[1]
[edit] Surroundings
Sninský kameň (1005 m) the most visited mountain of the Vihorlat mountain range located 5 km from Snina, a protected natural formation which dominates the southern sky-line. This rock formation consists of two andesite blocks (Big and Small Stones). Nearby surroundings abound in rare endemic flora. Marked trails from Snina lead to the top.
Morské oko is a lake located in the Vihorlat Mountains in the east of Slovakia.
Wooden churches can be found in the villages of Snina region: Ruský Potok, Uličské Krivé, Topoľa and Hrabová Roztoka.
Parihuzovce ski-lift is 14 km from Snina.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Municipal Statistics. Statistical Office of the Slovak republic. Retrieved on 2008-01-12.
[edit] External links
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