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Slovakia Country Guide

Explore Slovakia in Europe

Slovakia with the capital city Bratislava is located in Europe (Central Europe, south of Poland). It covers some 48,845 square kilometres (about twice the size of New Hampshire) with 5,455,000 citizens.

Interactive map of Slovakia

The topography includes rugged mountains in the central and northern part and lowlands in the south. The average density of population is approximately 112 per km². The notable climate conditions in Slovakia can be described as temperate with cool summers and cold, cloudy, humid winters. Possible natural disasters include NA.

To reach someone in Slovakia dial +421 prior to a number. There are 1,022,000 installed telephones. And there are 5,498,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 900/1800/3G MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".sk". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 230V - 50Hz.

About the flag and history of Slovakia

Slovakia Flag Icon

Three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red derive from the Pan-Slav colors; the Slovakian coat of arms (consisting of a red shield bordered in white and bearing a white double-barred cross of St. Cyril and St. Methodius surmounting three blue hills) is centered over the bands but offset slightly to the hoist side note: the Pan-Slav colors were inspired by the 19th-century flag of Russia.


Slovakia's roots can be traced to the 9th century state of Great Moravia. Subsequently, the Slovaks became part of the Hungarian Kingdom, where they remained for the next 1,000 years. Following the formation of the dual Austro-Hungarian monarchy in 1867, language and education policies favoring the use of Hungarian (Magyarization) resulted in a strengthening of Slovak nationalism and a cultivation of cultural ties with the closely related Czechs, who were under Austrian rule. After the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the close of World War I, the Slovaks joined the Czechs to form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar period, Slovak nationalist leaders pushed for autonomy within Czechoslovakia, and in 1939 Slovakia became an independent state allied with Nazi Germany. Following World War II, Czechoslovakia was reconstituted and came under communist rule within Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country''s leaders to liberalize communist rule and create "socialism with a human face," ushering in a period of repression known as "normalization." The peaceful "Velvet Revolution" swept the Communist Party from power at the end of 1989 and inaugurated a return to democratic rule and a market economy. On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a nonviolent "velvet divorce" into its two national components, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Slovakia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004 and the euro zone on 1 January 2009.



Geography Quick-Facts

SummaryContinent: Europe
Neighbours: Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Austria
Capital: Bratislava
Size48,845 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 18,859 square miles (mi² or sqmi)
about twice the size of New Hampshire
Population5,455,000
CurrencyName Koruna, Currency Code:SKK
Country Top Level Domain (cTLD).sk
Telephone Country Prefix+421
Mobile Phone Connections5,498,000
Landline Phone Connections1,022,000

Country Position in World Rankings

Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).

Geography

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Area49,035 (sq km)131

People and Society

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Population5,488,339 113
Population growth rate0.09 (%)184
Birth rate10.27 (births/1,000 population)189
Death rate9.69 (deaths/1,000 population)55
Net migration rate0.29 (migrant(s)/1,000 population)71
Maternal mortality rate6.00 (deaths/100,000 live births)171
Infant mortality rate6.35 (deaths/1,000 live births)168
Life expectancy at birth76.24 (years)80
Total fertility rate1.39 (children born/woman)207
Health expenditures8.80 (% of GDP)47
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate0.10 (%)143
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS500 150
HIV/AIDS - deaths100 139
Obesity - adult prevalence rate25.40 (%)54
Education expenditures4.10 (% of GDP)109
Unemployment, youth ages 15-2433.20 (%)19

Economy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
GDP (purchasing power parity)134,100,000,000 65
GDP - real growth rate2.00 (%)135
GDP - per capita (PPP)24,600 64
Labor force2,724,000 107
Unemployment rate12.80 (%)132
Distribution of family income - Gini index26.00 129
Investment (gross fixed)22.20 (% of GDP)69
Taxes and other revenues34.10 (% of GDP)66
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-4.90 (% of GDP)156
Public debt48.60 (% of GDP)66
Inflation rate (consumer prices)3.60 (%)99
Central bank discount rate1.75 (%)129
Commercial bank prime lending rate3.70 (%)172
Stock of narrow money35,310,000,000 55
Stock of broad money52,730,000,000 67
Stock of domestic credit63,870,000,000 61
Market value of publicly traded shares4,150,000,000 87
Industrial production growth rate6.90 (%)42
Current account balance535,200,000 45
Exports77,820,000,000 47
Imports74,290,000,000 41
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold2,676,000,000 112
Debt - external68,440,000,000 53
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home53,090,000,000 53
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad4,309,000,000 64

Energy

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Electricity - production27,700,000,000 (kWh)68
Electricity - consumption28,760,000,000 (kWh)64
Electricity - exports10,500,000,000 (kWh)20
Electricity - imports10,900,000,000 (kWh)19
Electricity - installed generating capacity7,155,000 (kW)66
Electricity - from fossil fuels37.10 (% of total installed capacity)174
Electricity - from nuclear fuels25.40 (% of total installed capacity)4
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants22.00 (% of total installed capacity)86
Electricity - from other renewable sources2.70 (% of total installed capacity)49
Crude oil - production5,781 (bbl/day)88
Crude oil - exports300 (bbl/day)69
Crude oil - imports114,100 (bbl/day)47
Crude oil - proved reserves9,000,000 (bbl)94
Refined petroleum products - production136,100 (bbl/day)68
Refined petroleum products - consumption83,910 (bbl/day)84
Refined petroleum products - exports78,640 (bbl/day)46
Refined petroleum products - imports25,630 (bbl/day)93
Natural gas - production116,000,000 (cu m)79
Natural gas - consumption6,468,000,000 (cu m)56
Natural gas - exports7,000,000 (cu m)50
Natural gas - imports6,743,000,000 (cu m)32
Natural gas - proved reserves14,160,000,000 (cu m)79
Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy34,540,000 (Mt)74

Communications

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Telephones - main lines in use1,056,000 75
Telephones - mobile cellular5,983,000 99
Internet hosts1,384,000 41
Internet users4,063,000 58

Transportation

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Airports37 108
Railways3,622 (km)48
Roadways43,761 (km)83
Waterways172 (km)100
Merchant marine11 111

Military

Value nameValueWorld Rank
Military expenditures1.08 (% of GDP)123

Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases

List of current world heritage sites

NameSince
Bardejov Town Conservation Reserve
Bardejov is a small but exceptionally complete and well-preserved example of a fortified medieval town, which typifies the urbanisation in this region. Among other remarkable features, it also contains a small Jewish quarter around a fine 18th-centur ...
2000
Historic Town of Banská Štiavnica and the Technical Monuments in its Vicinity
Over the centuries, the town of Banská Štiavnica was visited by many outstanding engineers and scientists who contributed to its fame. The old medieval mining centre grew into a town with Renaissance palaces, 16th-century churches, elegant squares an ...
1993
Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments
Spišský Hrad has one of the largest ensembles of 13th and 14th century military, political and religious buildings in eastern Europe, and its Romanesque and Gothic architecture has remained remarkably intact. ...
1993
Vlkolínec
Vlkolínec, situated in the centre of Slovakia, is a remarkably intact settlement of 45 buildings with the traditional features of a central European village. It is the region’s most complete group of these kinds of traditional log houses, often found ...
1993
Wooden Churches of the Slovak part of the Carpathian Mountain Area
The Wooden Churches of the Slovak part of Carpathian Mountain Area inscribed on the World Heritage List consist of two Roman Catholic, three Protestant and three Greek Orthodox churches built between the 16th and 18th centuries. The property presents ...
2008