Kočevje

Kočevje (German: Gottschee, Italian: Cocevie) is a city and a municipality in southern Slovenia. In terms of area it is the largest municipality in Slovenia. It is located between the rivers Krka and Kolpa and is part of the traditional region of Lower Carniola. It is now included in the Jugovzhodna Slovenija statistical region.^[2] The name also refers to the former Gottschee county in the Habsburg Empire and its German speaking population that was settled in the area from the 14th century onwards. Until the mid 20th century it remained a German linguistic enclave. Their language was a dialect of Bavarian called Gottscheerish or Granish. The German speakers were known for their folk songs. The Gottscheerish dialect is now considered to be critically endangered, with few remaining native speakers.The area is well known for its ancient forest and wild animals, including brown bears.

The parish church in the city is dedicated to Saint Bartholomew (Slovene: Sveti Jernej) and belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Mesto. It is a Neo-Romanesque building erected between 1887 and 1903 on the site of an earlier church.^[3]

Kočevje was also the location where the summary executions of thousands people believed to be collaborators of the Nazi regime such as the Slovene Home Guard and their families took place immediately after the end of the war. They were thrown into various pits and caves, which were then sealed with explosives.

Notable inhabitants

Natives

• Roman Erich Petsche (1907–1993), teacher, painter and Righteous Among the Nations
• Michael Ruppe (1863–1951), professor and academic painter, born in nearby Ovčjak (Schäflein)
• Milan Butina (1923–1999), academic painter, Kunstpädagoge und -theoretiker
• Ivan Jurkovič (b.1952), apostolic nuncio to Russia

Non-Natives

• Zofka Kveder (1878–1926), writer
• Viktor Parma (1858–1924), composer
• Alois Loy (1860–1923), long time mayor
• Franjo Uršič (1898-?), geologist, taught at the Gymnasium before WW2
• Jože Šeško (1908–1942), Gymnasium professor, social revolutionary, communist resistance fighter
• Matej Bor (1913–1993), poet and author

Bibliography

• Karl-Markus Gauß: Die sterbenden Europäer. Unterwegs zu den Sepharden von Sarajevo, Gottscheer Deutschen, Arbëreshe, Sorben und Aromunen. Zsolnay, Wien 2001, ISBN 3-552-05158-9 (Taschenbuchausgabe: dtv, München, ISBN 3-423-30854-0)
• Mitja Ferenc: Kočevska, Bleak And Empty

References

External links

• Kočevje on Geopedia
• Kočevje Official Site
• Pokrajinski Muzej Kočevje site - Local Museum with a permanent exhibit on the history of the German population around Gottschee.
• gottschee.at - Die Internationale Gottscheer Web-Site - die offizielle Web-Site der Gottscheer Organisationen in aller Welt.
• gottschee.de - Comprehensive Website on the topic of Kočevje / Gottschee. Extensive background information on the resettlement of the Gottscheer and the related removal of the resident Slovene from their rightful homeland in Lower Styria.
• Endangered languages in Europe and adjacent areas