The Vipava Valley (Slovene: Vipavska dolina, German: Wippachtal, Italian: Valle del Vipacco) is a valley located in the Slovenian Littoral, between the towns of Nova Gorica and Vipava.
Contents |
It is a narrow valley, serving as the main passage between Friulian lowland and central Slovenia, and thus also an important corridor connecting Northern Italy to Central Europe. It is closed to the north by the high Trnovo Forest, and to the south by the Karst Plateau and the narrow Branica Valley, a geographical sub-unit of the Vipava Valley. It is named after the Vipava River. Its main urban center is Ajdovščina. Administratively, it is subdivided into the municipalities of Ajdovščina, Vipava, Nova Gorica, Renče-Vogrsko, and Miren-Kostanjevica. Part of the municipality of Savogna d'Isonzo in the Province of Gorizia (Italy) is also located in the valley.
The Vipava Valley comprises five microregions:[1]
The region has a relatively mild, sub-Mediterranean climate, suitable for the cultivation of different kinds of fruits (especially peaches, apricots, persimmons, and figs). The Vipava Valley is also renowned for its quality wines, especially white ones. Among white grapes, the most common varieties in the region are Chardonnay, Sauvignon, and the indigenous types Zelen, Pinela, and Vitovska Garganja, while red varieties include Merlot, Barbera, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
The valley is also famous for the sometimes extremely strong Bora (burja) wind, which is particularly strong in the area between the towns of Vipava and Ajdovščina.
Historically, the upper eastern part of the valley, including the town of Vipava and half of the town of Ajdovščina, used to belong to the Duchy of Carniola (more precisely, to Inner Carniola), while the lower western part was incorporated in the County of Gorizia and Gradisca and thus to the Austrian Littoral. Today, the inhabitants mostly feel part of the Goriška region of the Slovenian Littoral, and the Carniolan identity has almost completely disappeared.
Famous people who were born or lived in the region include the painters Zoran Mušič and Veno Pilon, the poets Stanko Vuk, Simon Gregorčič, Nevin Birsa, and Josip Murn, the diplomat and writer Sigismund von Herberstein, the historian Martin Baučer, the preachers Sebastijan Krelj and Janez Svetokriški, the author of the music for the Slovenian National anthem Stanko Premrl, the partisan hero Janko Premrl Vojko, the author Danilo Lokar, the literary historian Avgust Žigon, and the designer Oskar Kogoj.
|
|||||||||||||||||||