Zgornja Velka () is a

dispersed settlement A dispersed settlement, also known as a scattered settlement, is one of the main types of settlement patterns used by landscape historians to classify rural settlements found in England and other parts of the world. Typically, there are a numb ...

in the

Slovene Hills The Slovene Hills or the Slovenian Hills ( sl, Slovenske gorice, german: Windische Bühel or ) is the largest hilly region of Slovenia, a smaller part is located in the Austrian province of Styria. It is situated in the northeast of the country and ...

( sl, Slovenske gorice) southeast of

Sladki Vrh Sladki Vrh (, german: Süssenberg) is a rural settlement in the Municipality of Šentilj in northeastern Slovenia, on the Austrian border. The main part of the settlement is concentrated on the right bank of the Mura River with the remainder disp ...

in the

Municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

of Šentilj 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 ...

Name

The name ''Zgornja Velka'' literally means 'upper Velka', contrasting with neighboring '' Spodnja Velka'' (literally, 'lower Velka'), which lies about lower in elevation. The two settlements were attested in written sources as ''Welich'' in 1319, ''Welik'' in 1324, and ''Weliken'' in 1360. The toponym is derived from a hydronym, *''Velika (voda/reka)'' 'big (creek/river)', referring to Velka Creek, a left tributary of the Pesnica River.

Church

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, ...

, built on a hill in the southern part of the settlement, is dedicated to Our Lady of the Snows and belongs to the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maribor The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Maribor ( la, Archidioecesis Mariborensis, sl, Nadškofija Maribor) is an archdiocese located in the city of Maribor in Slovenia. History * 1859 : Maribor (then Marburg) became the see of the Diocese of Lavant ...

. It was originally built in the late 17th century and rebuilt as a

pilgrimage church A pilgrimage church (german: Wallfahrtskirche) is a church to which pilgrimages are regularly made, or a church along a pilgrimage route, like the Way of St. James, that is visited by pilgrims. Pilgrimage churches are often located by the graves ...

in 1791.Slovenian Ministry of Culture register of national heritage
reference number 7781

References

External links

Zgornja Velka on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Šentilj {{Šentilj-geo-stub