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Nitra
Nitra (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈɲitra] ⓘ; also known by other alternative names) is a city in southwestern Slovakia, situated at the foot of the Zobor Mountain in the Nitra River Valley about 90 km (56 mi) northeast of the country's capital, Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth-largest city in Slovakia. Nitra stands on varied terrain, which features both rolling hills and vast plains, particularly to the south. Nitra is one of the oldest cities in Slovakia. It was the center of the Principality of Nitra, a duchy of great historic significance. Today, the city serves as the administrative center of Nitra Region (kraj) and Nitra District (okres). Nitra is the agricultural capital of Slovakia due to its long tradition of farming, favorable climate, and geography.
The first mention of Nitra dates back to the 9th century. The name of the city is derived from the Nitra River. The name is Indo-European, but the question of its pre-Slavic or Slavic origin has not been satisfactorily answered. Nitra might be derived from the old Indo-European root neit-, nit- 'to cut' or 'to burn' using the derivational element -r- (see also slash-and-burn agricultural technique). The same root is still present in the Slovak verb nietiť 'to make a fire', but also in other Indo-European languages like Latin nitere 'to burn' or in German schneiden 'to cut'. Another view of the origin of the name is related to Latin Novi-iter or Neui-iter 'new territory behind the limes'. The hypothetical Latin name could have been adopted by the Quadi and later by the Slavs.
The first written records also contain the suffix -ava (Nitrava). Particularly in older literature, the suffix is interpreted as deriving from the Proto-Germanic root *ahwa 'water'. However, the suffix -ava can also be found in numerous toponyms with a clearly Slavic origin and without any relationship to rivers. The existence of the hydronym Nitrava remains hypothetical and all versions with the suffix are related to a location, not a river. Thus, the form Nitrava can refer to a larger property or territory around the Nitra River. Both forms were probably used concurrently and were already recorded in the 9th century (Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum: in loco vocata Nitraua, but in 880 ecclesie Nitrensis).
The name in different languages includes Latin: Nitria, German: Neutra (ⓘ), and Hungarian: Nyitra and Nyitria.
The oldest archaeological findings in Nitra are dated to around 25,000-30,000 years ago. The locality has been inhabited in all historical periods in the last 5,000-7,000 years. Several European archaeological cultures and groups were named after important archaeological discoveries in Nitra or its near surroundings - Nitra culture, Brodzany-Nitra group, or Lužianky group of Lengyel culture.
The people of Madarovce culture had built the first fortification on Castle Hill by around 1,600 BCE. In the Iron Age, a large hillfort was built on Zobor Hill and additional smaller hillforts on the Lupka Hill and in Dražovce (700-500 BCE). Several Celtic settlements are known from the 5th-1st centuries. The Celts minted silver tetradrachms known as coins of the Nitra type and probably also built a hillfort in the locality Na Vŕšku. In the Roman period (1st-4th centuries CE), the Germanic tribe of Quadi settled in the area, which is also mentioned as their possible capital (396 CE). The largest Germanic settlement from the migration period in the territory of modern-day Slovakia was unearthed in Nitra-Párovské Háje.
The first Slavs arrived in the territory of present Slovakia at the end of the 5th and early 6th centuries. The early Slavs settled mainly in the lowlands near the water flows; the highest density of their settlements is documented just in the area of Nitra. As the Avars expanded into the territory of modern-day Slovakia in the latter half of the 7th century and early 8th century, the border between Slavic and Slavo-Avaric territory shifted toward Nitra. A biritual cemetery in Nitra-Dolné Krškany lies on the northern border of the mixed settlement area.
The importance of Nitra for the Slavs began to grow in the 8th century, and thereafter it evolved to the administrative centre of the wider region. Nitra became the center of the Principality of Nitra. Three of the eleven extant copies of the Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum contain a reference to a church consecrated for Pribina in his domain called Nitrava. The problem of Pribina's church and the dating of this event was addressed by numerous scholars; most of them do not doubt the reliability of the information and associate this event with Nitra. In 833, Pribina was ousted by the Moravian prince Mojmír I and both regions were united into the early medieval empire of Great Moravia.
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Nitra
Nitra (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈɲitra] ⓘ; also known by other alternative names) is a city in southwestern Slovakia, situated at the foot of the Zobor Mountain in the Nitra River Valley about 90 km (56 mi) northeast of the country's capital, Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth-largest city in Slovakia. Nitra stands on varied terrain, which features both rolling hills and vast plains, particularly to the south. Nitra is one of the oldest cities in Slovakia. It was the center of the Principality of Nitra, a duchy of great historic significance. Today, the city serves as the administrative center of Nitra Region (kraj) and Nitra District (okres). Nitra is the agricultural capital of Slovakia due to its long tradition of farming, favorable climate, and geography.
The first mention of Nitra dates back to the 9th century. The name of the city is derived from the Nitra River. The name is Indo-European, but the question of its pre-Slavic or Slavic origin has not been satisfactorily answered. Nitra might be derived from the old Indo-European root neit-, nit- 'to cut' or 'to burn' using the derivational element -r- (see also slash-and-burn agricultural technique). The same root is still present in the Slovak verb nietiť 'to make a fire', but also in other Indo-European languages like Latin nitere 'to burn' or in German schneiden 'to cut'. Another view of the origin of the name is related to Latin Novi-iter or Neui-iter 'new territory behind the limes'. The hypothetical Latin name could have been adopted by the Quadi and later by the Slavs.
The first written records also contain the suffix -ava (Nitrava). Particularly in older literature, the suffix is interpreted as deriving from the Proto-Germanic root *ahwa 'water'. However, the suffix -ava can also be found in numerous toponyms with a clearly Slavic origin and without any relationship to rivers. The existence of the hydronym Nitrava remains hypothetical and all versions with the suffix are related to a location, not a river. Thus, the form Nitrava can refer to a larger property or territory around the Nitra River. Both forms were probably used concurrently and were already recorded in the 9th century (Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum: in loco vocata Nitraua, but in 880 ecclesie Nitrensis).
The name in different languages includes Latin: Nitria, German: Neutra (ⓘ), and Hungarian: Nyitra and Nyitria.
The oldest archaeological findings in Nitra are dated to around 25,000-30,000 years ago. The locality has been inhabited in all historical periods in the last 5,000-7,000 years. Several European archaeological cultures and groups were named after important archaeological discoveries in Nitra or its near surroundings - Nitra culture, Brodzany-Nitra group, or Lužianky group of Lengyel culture.
The people of Madarovce culture had built the first fortification on Castle Hill by around 1,600 BCE. In the Iron Age, a large hillfort was built on Zobor Hill and additional smaller hillforts on the Lupka Hill and in Dražovce (700-500 BCE). Several Celtic settlements are known from the 5th-1st centuries. The Celts minted silver tetradrachms known as coins of the Nitra type and probably also built a hillfort in the locality Na Vŕšku. In the Roman period (1st-4th centuries CE), the Germanic tribe of Quadi settled in the area, which is also mentioned as their possible capital (396 CE). The largest Germanic settlement from the migration period in the territory of modern-day Slovakia was unearthed in Nitra-Párovské Háje.
The first Slavs arrived in the territory of present Slovakia at the end of the 5th and early 6th centuries. The early Slavs settled mainly in the lowlands near the water flows; the highest density of their settlements is documented just in the area of Nitra. As the Avars expanded into the territory of modern-day Slovakia in the latter half of the 7th century and early 8th century, the border between Slavic and Slavo-Avaric territory shifted toward Nitra. A biritual cemetery in Nitra-Dolné Krškany lies on the northern border of the mixed settlement area.
The importance of Nitra for the Slavs began to grow in the 8th century, and thereafter it evolved to the administrative centre of the wider region. Nitra became the center of the Principality of Nitra. Three of the eleven extant copies of the Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum contain a reference to a church consecrated for Pribina in his domain called Nitrava. The problem of Pribina's church and the dating of this event was addressed by numerous scholars; most of them do not doubt the reliability of the information and associate this event with Nitra. In 833, Pribina was ousted by the Moravian prince Mojmír I and both regions were united into the early medieval empire of Great Moravia.