Show description

Slovakia shares boundaries with Poland, the Czech Republic, Ukraine, Austria, and Hungary. The Danube River serves as the border for 109 miles of the common frontier with Hungary, and Slovakia’s capital city, Bratislava, is situated on both banks of this critical European waterway. Historically, Slovakia has been divided into three regional cultural areas—western, central, and eastern—marked by a common culture, but with distinct regional dialects of the Slovak language and local cultural characteristics.

The High Tatras, the highest mountains in Slovakia and the only range in the country with Alpine characteristics, form part of the border with Poland in the north and include the highest point in Slovakia, Gerlach Peak, at 8,710 feet. The Little, or White Carpathians, divide Slovakia 10 The History of the Czech Republic and Slovakia from the Czech Republic and then continue south into Austria, where they join the Alpine system. The Slovak Ore Mountains stretch from Zvolen in central Slovakia to Kosice in the east, a distance of approximately 90 miles.

The Celtic phase of history was characterized by technological advances in ironwork and crafts as the iron ploughshare, potter’s wheel, and stone wheels for grinding corn contributed to the development of specialized production. The Celts were effective at producing simple, everyday goods, which was especially true of a La Te`ne culture based on the extensive use of iron for the production of tools and weapons. Blacksmiths, potters, and jewelers inspired the growth of exchange and trade, and by the end of the second century BCE, the Celts were minting coins of gold and silver.