Bratislava Totally Explained

Everything about Bratislava totally explained

Bratislava (: [ˈbracɪslava], historically known by foreign and alternative names) is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of 426,000, the country's largest city. Bratislava is in the south-west of Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it's the only national capital that borders two other countries.
Bratislava is the political, cultural, and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak presidency, the parliament, and the government. It is also home to several universities, museums, theatres, galleries and other important economic, cultural, and educational institutions. The headquarters of many of Slovakia's large businesses and financial institutions are in Bratislava as well.
The history of the city, long known by the German name Pressburg, has been strongly influenced by various peoples, including Austrians, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Jews and Slovaks. The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary under the Habsburg monarchy from 1536 to 1783. Bratislava was home to the Slovak national movement of the 19th century and to many Slovak, Hungarian and German historical figures.

Names

The first written reference (as Brezalauspurc, another variant is Preslavaspurc) comes from the Salzburg Annals, in relation to the battles between the Bavarians and the Hungarians, fought outside the walls of Bratislava Castle in 907. The castle was probably named after Predslav, third son of King Svätopluk I; however, Brezalauspurc literally means "Braslav's Castle" and therefore the town was probably named after Braslav, the last military commander of Pannonia, a province in East Francia. This ancient name reappears under the variant Braslava or Preslava on coins minted by King Stephen I of Hungary and dated around 1000. Later in the Middle Ages, it found its final form in the German name Pressburg and the Slovak name Prešporok derived from it. and it's occasionally so used even today. The Hungarians used Pozsony Its Hungarian and Latin denominations might have come from the Hungarian name Poson, or from the name of Božaň, an 11th-century ruler (1053–99) of Bratislava Castle. from old names, believing that they were derived from that of Bohemian ruler Bretislav I. The name was used for the first time by members of the Slovak movement in 1844 as Bratislav.
The city has a total area of, making it the second-largest city in Slovakia by area (after the township of Vysoké Tatry). Bratislava straddles the Danube River, which crosses the city from the west to the south-east. The Middle Danube basin begins at Devín Gate in western Bratislava. Other rivers are the Morava River, which forms the north-western border of the city and enters the Danube at Devín, the Little Danube, and the Vydrica, which enters the Danube in the borough of Karlova Ves.
The Carpathian mountain range begins in city territory with the Little Carpathians (Malé Karpaty). The Záhorie and Danubian lowlands stretch into Bratislava. The city's lowest point is at the Danube's surface at AMSL, and the highest point is Devínska Kobyla at . The average altitude is .

Climate

Bratislava lies in the north temperate zone and has a continental climate with four distinct seasons. It is often windy with a marked variation between hot summers and cold, humid winters. The city is in one of the warmest and driest parts of Slovakia. Recently, the transitions from winter to summer and summer to winter have been rapid, with short autumn and spring periods. Snow occurs less frequently than previously. Some parts of Bratislava, particularly Devín and Devínska Nová Ves, are vulnerable to floods from the Danube and Morava rivers. New flood protection is being built on both banks.

Education and science

The first university in Bratislava and also in the territory of present-day Slovakia was Universitas Istropolitana, founded in 1465 by King Matthias Corvinus. It was closed in 1490 after his death.
   Bratislava is the seat of the largest university (Comenius University, 27,771 students), the largest technical university (Slovak University of Technology, 18,473 students), and the oldest art schools (the Academy of Performing Arts and the Academy of Fine Arts and Design) in Slovakia. Other institutions of tertiary education are the public University of Economics and the first private college in Slovakia, City University of Seattle. In total, about 56,000 students attend university in Bratislava.
   There are 65 public primary schools, nine private primary schools and ten religious primary schools. Overall, they enroll 25,821 pupils. 37 specialized high schools with 10,373 students, and 27 vocational schools with 8,863 students (data as of 2007).
   The Slovak Academy of Sciences is also based in Bratislava. However, the city is one of the few European capitals to have neither an observatory nor a planetarium. The nearest observatory is in Modra, away, and the nearest planetarium is in Hlohovec, away. CEPIT, the Central European Park For Innovative Technologies, is slated for development in Vajnory. This science and technology park will combine public and private research and educational institutions. Construction is expected to begin in 2008.

Transport

The geographical position of Bratislava in Central Europe has long made it a natural crossroads for international trade traffic.
Public transport in Bratislava is managed by Dopravný podnik Bratislava, a city-owned company. The transport system is known as Mestská hromadná doprava (MHD, Municipal Mass Transit) and employs buses, trams, and trolleybuses. An additional service, Bratislavská integrovaná doprava (Bratislava Integrated Transport), links train and bus routes in the city with points beyond.
As a rail hub, the city has direct connections to Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and the rest of Slovakia. The motorway system provides direct access to Brno in the Czech Republic, Trnava and other points in Slovakia, and Budapest in Hungary. The A6 motorway between Bratislava and Vienna was opened in November 2007. The Port of Bratislava provides access to the Black Sea via the Danube and to the North Sea through the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal. M. R. Štefánik Airport is north-east of the city centre. It served 2,024,000 passengers in 2007.

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