Velenje (; german: Wöllan''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 272.) is

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 ...

's sixth-largest city, and the

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

of the Municipality of Velenje. The city is located in northeastern Slovenia, among the rolling green hills of the Šalek Valley, with the

Kamnik–Savinja Alps The Kamnik–Savinja Alps ( sl, Kamniško-Savinjske Alpe) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps. They lie in northern Slovenia, except for the northernmost part, which lies in Austria. The western part of the range was named the Ka ...

to the west and the Pohorje Mountains to the east.

Name

Velenje was first attested in written sources in 1264 as ''Weln'' (and as ''Welan'' in 1270, and ''Belen'' and ''Welen'' in 1296). The name derives from *''Velen′e selo'' 'Velenъ's village'. A less likely hypothesis derives the name from the Slovene common noun ''velen(je)'' 'pasture for livestock'. The name of the town was changed to ''Titovo Velenje'' (literally, 'Tito's Velenje') in 1981 in honor of the Yugoslav leader

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...

. The name ''Velenje'' was restored in 1990, just before the declaration of Slovenian independence in 1991. In the past, the German name of the settlement was Wöllan.

History

Mass grave

The Koželj

Mass Grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of execution, although an exact ...

( sl, Grobišče Koželj) from the period immediately after World War II, is located in the Goll Woods () below Big Koželj Hill () beside a tributary of Trubušnica Creek. It contains the remains of a truckload of Slovene civilian prisoners, including many Velenje natives, that were transported from the prisons in

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

and shot on June 15, 1945. The site is marked by an official inventory sign and a small concrete plaque.

Modern history

The 1889 Old Velenje ( sl, Staro Velenje), the old part of today's city, was a small market town with 364 citizens, located downtown at the foot of Velenje Castle. The

lignite Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, is a soft, brown, combustible, sedimentary rock formed from naturally compressed peat. It has a carbon content around 25–35%, and is considered the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low heat ...

mining industry in the area contributed to the expansion of the town before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After the war, Velenje rapidly advanced and developed into a modern city. The city was planned and built in the 1950s, in the time of the

Socialist Republic of Slovenia The Socialist Republic of Slovenia ( sl, Socialistična republika Slovenija, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Slovenija, Социјалистичка Република Словенија), commonly referred to as Sociali ...

. The manufacturer of

home appliance A home appliance, also referred to as a domestic appliance, an electric appliance or a household appliance, is a machine which assists in household functions such as cooking, cleaning and food preservation. Appliances are divided into three ty ...

Gorenje Gorenje (); stylized as ''gorenje''), is a Slovenian major appliance manufacturer, founded in 1950 by Ivan Atelšek. It is based in Velenje, Slovenia. It is the fourth largest manufacturer of household appliances in Europe. Appliances are sold un ...

, moved its headquarters to the city from the nearby settlement of

. The central Tito Square officially opened on September 20, 1959, and features the tallest statue of Tito in the world (about ). It was designed by Antun Augustinčič and Vladimir Herljević. The square was once used as a meeting place of

Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...

and

Leonid Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev; uk, links= no, Леонід Ілліч Брежнєв, . (19 December 1906– 10 November 1982) was a Soviet Union, Soviet politician who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Gener ...

, as well as

Edward Gierek Edward Gierek (; 6 January 1913 – 29 July 2001) was a Polish Communist politician and ''de facto'' leader of Poland between 1970 and 1980. Gierek replaced Władysław Gomułka as First Secretary of the ruling Polish United Workers' Party (P ...

and

Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( , ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician and dictator. He was the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and the second and last Communist leader of Romania. He was ...

Geography

Velenje is located in northeast Slovenia, some 85 km from the capital

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, and the country's second- and third-largest cities

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 ...

and

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

, are 75 km and 25 km away, respectively, with

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

(Austria) around 130 km away. Velenje is well connected by train and bus to other destinations, and is also easy to reach by car.

Culture

The Velenje Cultural Center, in the northwestern part of the square, was built in 1959 according to plans by Oton Gaspari, and opened in November 1960. Its façade was decorated with a relief by Stojan Batič, and its interior by Riko Debenjak. The hall was the 1990s center of

subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...

s in Velenje. Today, it hosts the public institute Velenje Festival, which holds various cultural activities. The hall also houses a puppet theatre and a

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

theatre.

Economy and education

Velenje is one of the strongest economic centers in Slovenia, equipped with modern

infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and priv ...

. Economic development is based on the energy, metal-processing, and construction industries. The only operating

mine in Slovenia is located immediately west of the city. Environmental protection, craft, and trade services have been experiencing solid development. The city has three large shopping centers. These include Hypermarket

Mercator __NOTOC__ Mercator (Latin for "merchant") may refer to: People * Marius Mercator (c. 390–451), a Catholic ecclesiastical writer * Arnold Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer * Gerardus Mercator, a 16th-century cartographer ** Mercator 1569 ...

Velenje, Velenjka, and Velenje Shopping Center. Velenje is an employment, administrative, and educational center of the wider Savinja–Šalek region. It has six primary schools, seven secondary/high schools, a university, and a

music school A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

Transportation

The drive from Ljubljana takes about one hour. Velenje's city center is relatively easily covered on foot, or by bicycle. Bicycles can be rented from the tourist office in Villa Bianca. There are up to 15 trains per day to Ljubljana and Maribor during the week, all of which require a transfer in Celje and take about 2 to 3 hours. Fares cost between €8 and €13 one-way. There are only four trains on Saturdays, and none on Sundays. Velenje's train station is located just west of the city centre. Velenje's bus station is on Šalek Street ( sl, Šaleška cesta), just east of the Mercator shopping center. There are frequent local and regional buses during the week, with up to five direct buses on weekdays to Ljubljana and up to 22 to Celje. Public city bus transport in Velenje is cost-free. The nearest airport is

Ljubljana Airport Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, with Graz,

Klagenfurt Klagenfurt am WörtherseeLandesgesetzblatt 2008 vom 16. Jänner 2008, Stück 1, Nr. 1: ''Gesetz vom 25. Oktober 2007, mit dem die Kärntner Landesverfassung und das Klagenfurter Stadtrecht 1998 geändert werden.'/ref> (; ; sl, Celovec), usually ...

, and

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

airports relatively nearby.

Sports

Velenje holds the only long adventure race in Slovenia, called Adventure Race Slovenia, which is known across Europe and is held every weekend in June. It was first held in 2003 by the Lake Dragon Scout Group. The

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

club

RK Gorenje Velenje Rokometni klub Gorenje Velenje ( en, Gorenje Velenje Handball Club), commonly referred to as RK Gorenje Velenje or simply Gorenje, is a Slovenian handball club from Velenje that competes in the Slovenian First League, the top tier of Slovenian ...

and

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club

NK Rudar Velenje Nogometni klub Rudar Velenje ( en, Rudar Velenje Football Club), commonly referred to as NK Rudar Velenje or simply Rudar Velenje, is a Slovenian football club from Velenje which competes in the Slovenian Second League. History The club was f ...

are based in Velenje. The city is the birthplace of

Jolanda Čeplak Jolanda Batagelj (previously known as Jolanda Čeplak until 2002, born Jolanda Steblovnik on September 12, 1976) is a Slovenian middle distance athlete. She was born in Celje and lived in Velenje until briefly moving to Monaco. She ...

, a Slovenian middle distance athlete and Olympic bronze medalist. It is also the hometown of the Slovenian tennis player

Katarina Srebotnik Katarina Srebotnik (born 12 March 1981) is a Slovenian retired professional tennis player. She reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 20 on 7 August 2006. On 4 July 2011, she reached No. 1 of the WTA doubles rankings, holding this ...

Religion

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

in Velenje dates to the 13th century with 16th- and 17th-century additions. It is dedicated to Saint Martin, and belongs to the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Celje The Roman Catholic Diocese of Celje ( la, Dioecesis Celeiensis; sl, Škofija Celje) is a diocese located in the city of Celje in the Ecclesiastical province of Maribor in Slovenia. History * April 7, 2006: Established as Diocese of Celje from ...

. A significant portion of Velenje's populace today describe themselves as

atheists Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...

Twin towns and sister cities

Velenje is twinned with: *

Esslingen am Neckar Esslingen am Neckar ( Swabian: ''Esslenga am Neckor'') is a town in the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany, seat of the District of Esslingen as well as the largest town in the district. Within Baden-Württemberg it is t ...

, Germany *

Neath Port Talbot Neath Port Talbot ( cy, Castell-nedd Port Talbot) is a county borough in the south-west of Wales. Its principal towns are Neath, Port Talbot, Briton Ferry and Pontardawe. The county borough borders Bridgend County Borough and Rhondda Cynon Taf ...

, Wales *

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enterta ...

, Croatia * Pljevlja, Montenegro *

Udine Udine ( , ; fur, Udin; la, Utinum) is a city and ''comune'' in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps (''Alpi Carniche''). Its population was 100,514 in 2012, 176,000 with t ...

, Italy

References

External links

Official tourist guide to VelenjeTravel guide to Velenje
{{Authority control Populated places in the City Municipality of Velenje Cities and towns in Styria (Slovenia) 1959 establishments in Slovenia