Pekel ( or ) is a settlement north of

Maribor Maribor ( , , , ; also known by other #Name, historical names) is the second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Styria (Slovenia), Lower Styria. It is also the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor, th ...

in northeastern

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 ...

. It belongs to the

City Municipality of Maribor The City Municipality of Maribor (), also the City of Maribor ( sl, Mestna občina Maribor, acronym MOM), is one of twelve city municipalities in Slovenia. Its seat is Maribor, the second-largest city in Slovenia. The population of the municipali ...

Name

Pekel was attested in written sources circa 1500 as ''in der Hell''. The name is pronounced ''Pêkel'' (corresponding to the dialect pronunciation of the common noun ''pêkel'' 'Hell') rather than the more standard ''Pekèl''. Across Slovenia there are many oronyms, regional names, and microptoponyms named ''Pekel''. In folk geography, the name was used to metaphorically designate chasms, caves, shafts, and other narrow, dark places; for example, in

Kropa Kropa () is a settlement in the Municipality of Radovljica in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. Name The settlement was first attested in 1498 as ''Chropp'' or ''Krupp''. It is believed to derive from the identical hydronym (now Kroparica Cr ...

there is an

oeconym An oeconym, also econym, or oikonym (from el, οἶκος, , 'house, dwelling' and , , 'name') is a specific type of toponym that designates a proper name of a house or any other residential building, and in the broader sense, the term also refer ...

''Pekel'' originally referring to a blacksmith's shop. Semantically related names in Slovenia include Devil's Hole ( sl, Vragova luknja) in the settlement of Okrog and Devil's Ravine ( sl, Hudičev graben) in the settlement of Parož. See also Pekel, Trebnje,

Hell Cave Hell Cave ( sl, Jama Pekel) is a karst cave in the settlement of Zalog pri Šempetru in Slovenia. Name Across Slovenia there are many oronyms, regional names, and microtoponyms named ''Pekel'' or 'hell'. In folk geography, the name was used to ...

, and Hell Gorge.

References

External links

Pekel on Geopedia
Populated places in the City Municipality of Maribor {{Maribor-geo-stub