Sečovlje (; it, Sicciole) is a settlement in the Municipality of Piran in the Littoral region of Slovenia.

Name

The modern Slovene name ''Sečovlje'' is an artificial creation dating from after 1945. It was coined from the Italian name of the settlement, ''Sicciole'', influenced by the name of the neighbouring village of

Seča Seča (; it, Sezza) is a settlement in the Municipality of Piran in the Littoral region of Slovenia. Name The Slovene name of the settlement was changed from ''Sveti Jernej'' (literally, 'Saint Bartholomew') to ''Seča'' in 1958. The name was ch ...

. The origin of the Italian name of the village, ''Sicciole'', is uncertain.

Overview

Sečovlje is the last Slovenian settlement before the Slovenia–Croatia border on the highway south from Portorož. Its main source of income is tourism at

Sečovlje Saltpans Natural Park Sečovlje Saltpans Natural Park ( sl, Krajinski park Sečoveljske soline, it, Parco ambientale delle saline di Sicciole) is a natural park in southwestern Slovenia covering the Sečovlje Saltpans Sečovlje (; it, Sicciole) is a settlement in th ...

. The section of the Parenzana railway path that runs through Sečovlje is now a recreational path for tourists. Nearby is the Portorož Airport, which offers panoramic flights over Slovenian Istria. The Sečovlje international border crossing is one of the main crossings from Slovenia into Croatian

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian, Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the larges ...

History

Archaeological finds and text sources point to a settlement in the area of Sečovlje that dates back to the Roman times, the nearby salt pans in the 12th century. Modernisation of the salt pans occurred in the 14th century, and salt production drastically increased in the times of Austria-Hungary, when the mines expanded to an area of 508 hectares and were from the 24 April (St George) to 24 August (St Bartholomew) the source of income for about 500 families.

Economy

Solinair Solinair d.o.o. is a Slovenian airline based at Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport. It mainly operates charter cargo services for various logistics companies such as DHL and also offers aircraft maintenance. Overview The airline was establish ...

has its head office in Sečovlje, on the property of Portorož Airport.

Churches

The parish church in the settlement is dedicated to

Saint Martin Saint Martin may refer to: People * Saint Martin of Tours (c. 316–397), Bishop of Tours, France * Saint Martin of Braga (c. 520–580), archbishop of Bracara Augusta in Gallaecia (now Braga in Portugal) * Pope Martin I (598–655) * Saint Mart ...

. There is a second church in the hamlet of Krog in the hills west of the village centre. A Benedictine monastery was established at the site in 1432, and the church is dedicated to

Saint Onuphrius Onuphrius ( el, Ὀνούφριος, Onouphrios; also ''Onoufrios'') lived as a hermit in the desert of Upper Egypt in the 4th or 5th centuries. He is venerated as Saint Onuphrius in both the Roman Catholic and Eastern Catholic churches, as Ven ...

. The monastery was active until 1957, when the monks were expelled and the property was nationalised. The church and monastery were then allowed to fall into decay.

References

External links

*
Sečovlje on Geopedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Secovlje Populated places in the Municipality of Piran Slovenian Riviera Croatia–Slovenia border crossings