Laže (; it, Lase) is a village in the

Municipality of Divača The Municipality of Divača (; sl, Občina Divača) is a municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia, near the Italian border. The seat of the municipality is the town of Divača. The municipality was established on 6 November 1994, when the ...

in the

Littoral The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal areas ...

region of

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

Name

The name ''Laže'' is derived from the plural demonym ''*Laz′ane'' (in turn from the common noun ''laz'' 'clearing in or near a woods overgrown with grass'), referring to people living in a clearing. It is thus related to the Slovak toponym '' Lažany'' and

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places *Czech, ...

'' Lažany'', as well as to names such as '' Laz'', '' Lazi'', and '' Laze''.

History

The first settlers came to Laže from

Lipica Lipica may refer to several places: Poland *Lipica, Poland, a village in the Province of Warmia-Masuria Serbia *Lipica (Tutin), a village in the Municipality of Tutin Slovenia *Lipica (border crossing), a border crossing near Lipica betw ...

in the 17th century, when the bishops of

Trieste Trieste ( , ; sl, Trst ; german: Triest ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital city, and largest city, of the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, one of two autonomous regions which are not subdivided into provi ...

sold the territory in Lipica to the Austrian court; the farmers in Lipica were then evicted from their land and provided with substitute land in Laže. Seven families moved to Laže at that time and made their living as

charcoal burner A charcoal burner is someone whose occupation is to manufacture charcoal. Traditionally this is achieved by carbonising wood in a charcoal pile or kiln. Charcoal burning is one of the oldest human crafts. The knowledge gained from this industr ...

s. Ponds were formerly maintained in Laže for cutting ice for the brewery in

Senožeče Senožeče (; it, Senosecchia, german: Senosetsch) is a settlement in the Municipality of Divača in the Slovenian Littoral, Littoral region of Slovenia. Name Senožeče was attested in historical sources as ''Sehenossecsch'' in 1217, ''Senosensa ...

. After the brewery closed down, the ponds were allowed to dry up. During the Second World War, Laže was a center of

Partisan Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * ''Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also know ...

activity, and so Italian forces evicted the population of the village in April 1943. The villagers returned in 1944, and German forces burned two houses in the Laže before the end of the war.

Church

The local church is dedicated to Saint Ulrich and belongs to the

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

.Roman Catholic Diocese of Koper List of Churches May 2008

References

External links

*
Laže on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Divača {{Divača-geo-stub