Čakovec (; ; ; ) is a city in

Northern Croatia Northern Croatia or North Croatia (, ) refers to the northern parts of Croatia, encompassing Zagreb County, Zagreb, Varaždin County, Varaždin, Međimurje County, Međimurje, Krapina-Zagorje County, Zagorje and Koprivnica-Križevci County, Kopri ...

, located around north of

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, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, the Croatian capital, and close to the borders with

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

and

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. Čakovec is both the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

and the largest city of

Međimurje County Međimurje County (; ; ) is a triangle-shaped Counties of Croatia, county in the northernmost part of Croatia, roughly corresponding to the historical and geographical region of Međimurje (region), Međimurje. It is the smallest Croatian count ...

, the northernmost, smallest and most densely populated Croatian county. It is situated centrally in the lowland part of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

, along the

Trnava Trnava (, , ; , also known by other #Names and etymology, alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of the Trnava Region and the Trnava District. It is the seat o ...

river.

History

According to the geographer

Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-si ...

's reports in the 1st century, today's location of the city of Čakovec was the site of Aquama (''wet town'') in

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

times and at the time a marshland, a military post and a legionnaire camp. One popular legend describes a green pozoj (dragon) once dwelling beneath the city and causing natural disasters such as

hail Hail is a form of solid Precipitation (meteorology), precipitation. It is distinct from ice pellets (American English "sleet"), though the two are often confused. It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of which is called a hailsto ...

and

earthquakes An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they c ...

, with its head under the castle and its tail under the church, or vice versa. It could only be gotten rid of by a ''grabancijaš'' ( dark magic student) who would use a golden

bridle A bridle is a piece of equipment used to direct a horse. As defined in the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', the "bridle" includes both the that holds a bit that goes in the mouth of a horse, and the reins that are attached to the bit. It prov ...

to control the dragon and ride it out of the city. The name ''Čakovec'' (, or ) comes from the first name of the

ispán The ispánRady 2000, p. 19.''Stephen Werbőczy: The Customary Law of the Renowned Kingdom of Hungary in Three Parts (1517)'', p. 450. or countEngel 2001, p. 40.Curta 2006, p. 355. (, , and ),Kirschbaum 2007, p. 315. deriving from title of župan, ...

Csák Hahót. With the beginning of the 13th century he erected the timber fortification which was later named Csák's tower (). It was mentioned for the first time in 1328 and the place appeared in the official books in 1333. From 1350 to 1397, it was in the possession of the House of Laczkfy, from 1405 to 1461 of the

Counts of Celje The Counts of Celje () or the Counts of Cilli (; ) were the most influential late medieval noble dynasty on the territory of present-day Slovenia. Risen as vassals of the Habsburg dukes of Styria in the early 14th century, they ruled the County ...

and from 1473 to 1540 of the House of Ernušt. The town as well as Međimurje region was at the time part of the

Varaždin county Varaždin County () is a county in Hrvatsko Zagorje. It is named after its county seat, the city of Varaždin. Geography The county contains the city of Varaždin, the towns of: Ivanec, Ludbreg, Lepoglava, Novi Marof and Varaždinske Top ...

. The period of more significant economic and cultural growth of Čakovec is considered to have started on 15 March 1546, when Nikola IV Zrinski of

Szigetvár Szigetvár (; ; ) is a town in Baranya County in southern Hungary. The name is a compound word composed of ''Sziget'' (Island) + ''vár'' (castle). In October 2011, the city received the title ''Civitas Invicta'' from the Hungarian Parliament. T ...

became the owner of the area. At that time the castle was lavishly decorated, surrounded by a park and sculptures of famous army leaders and monarchs. Duke Juraj IV Zrinski granted privileges to the inhabitants of the Čakovec fortress and its suburbs on 29 May 1579. This was the starting point for Čakovec to become a free market town and the date is celebrated today as "City Day". The

Čakovec Castle Čakovec Castle or Zrinski Castle ( or or or ''Zrínyi-kastély'') is a medieval fortification in the middle of the town of Čakovec, the administrative seat of Međimurje County, northern Croatia. The castle is located in the Zrinski Park, n ...

which was owned by the House of Zrinski between the 16th and the 18th century is known today as the "Zrinski Old Town" () and is considered the main landmark of the city. It is located in the Zrinski Park () only a few steps from the central square. When count Johann Michael von Althan became the owner of Međimurje in 1719, the next year Čakovec and the whole region was detached from Croatia and included into

Zala county Zala (, ; ; ) is an administrative county (Counties of Hungary, comitatus or ''vármegye'') in south-western Hungary. It is named after the Zala River. It shares borders with Croatia (Koprivnica–Križevci County, Koprivnica–Križevci and Me� ...

(i.e. into the main part of the Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary). In 1738, the town was devastated by an earthquake, in 1741 by a large fire. At the end of the 18th century, the owners of the town became counts from the Festetics family, and the town was turned into a big estate where industry, crafts and trade developed. In 1848, the ban Josip Jelačić captured Čakovec from the Hungarians and annexed it with Croatia. The first railroad track was built here in 1860 to help connect

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

with the ports of

Fiume Rijeka (; Fiume ( �fjuːme in Italian and in Fiuman Venetian) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia. It is located in Primorje-Gorski Kotar County on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and in 2021 had a po ...

and

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

. Another earthquake hit the town in 1880. The town was connected by railroad with Mursko Središće and

Lendava Lendava (; formerly ''Dolnja Lendava'', in older sources also ''Dolenja Lendava''; , formerly ''Alsólendva''; , formerly ''Unter-Limbach'') is a town in Slovenia in the region of Prekmurje. It is the seat of the Municipality of Lendava. It forms ...

in 1889 and in 1893 electricity was introduced. The

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

"Čakovečki mlinovi" was founded in 1924, and the DVD "Čateks" in 1946. Čakovec was the seat of a district () in

of the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

until 1918 when it was captured by an armed force on behalf of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

. It again became part of Hungary between 1941-45 during World War II, until it was returned on 6 April 1945 by the Soviet Red Army with Marshal

Fyodor Tolbukhin Fyodor Ivanovich Tolbukhin (; 16 June 1894 – 17 October 1949) was a Soviet Union, Soviet military commander and Marshal of the Soviet Union. He is regarded as one of the finest Soviet generals of World War II. Born into a peasant family i ...

in command. During the

breakup of Yugoslavia After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, the constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia split apart in the early 1990s. Unresolved issues from the breakup caused a series of inter-ethnic Yugoslav ...

in the 1990s, Čakovec experienced limited military activity. At the beginning of the

Ten-Day War The Ten-Day War (), or the Slovenian War of Independence (), was a brief armed conflict that followed Slovenia's declaration of independence from Yugoslavia on 25 June 1991. It was fought between the Slovenian Territorial Defence together wi ...

in Slovenia in June 1991, a tank column of the JNA advancing from the barracks in

Varaždin Varaždin ( or ; , also known by #Name, alternative names) is a city in Northern Croatia, north-east of Zagreb. The total population is 46,946, with 38,839 in the city settlement itself (2011). The city is best known for its baroque buildings, ...

towards Gornja Radgona was met with resistance from the local population. With the onset of the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

in September 1991, the JNA barracks in the city were captured by Croatian forces during the

Battle of the Barracks The Battle of the Barracks () was a series of engagements that occurred in mid-to-late 1991 between the Croatian National Guard (ZNG, later renamed the Croatian Army) and the Croatian police on one side and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) on ...

. In retaliation, the

Yugoslav Air Force The Air Force and Air Defence ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Ратно ваздухопловство и противваздушна одбрана, Ratno vazduhoplovstvo i protivvazdušna odbrana ; abbr. sh-Cyrl-Latn, label=none, separator=/, РВ и ПВ� ...

launched missile attacks on the nearby Pribislavec airfield on several occasions later that year.

Recent years

In the late 1990s and throughout the 2000s, several modern buildings were built and opened to the public. In 1999, a brand new fitness complex including four indoor

swimming pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming and associated activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built abo ...

s was opened as part of "Mladost", the city's sports and recreation complex. In 2003 a renovated sports hall, originally built in the 1970s and belonging to the construction industry high school, was also opened as a part of the center for sports and recreation and hosted several group matches of the 2003 World Women's Handball Championship. Beginning in the late 1990s and early 2000s several large shopping centers and car showrooms emerged in the city, mostly in its northwestern part. Čakovec was rewarded The Green Flower award for the tidiest continental city in Croatia several times. Čakovec is the first city of the former Yugoslavia to have installed completely electronic information spots, located at the Republic Square and the Franciscan Square in the Center and at the Square of Saint Anthony of Padua in the Jug district. Čakovec is known as the city of traffic circles, because, during the late 1990s and early 2000s, all of its traffic lights in the inner part of the city were removed and replaced with traffic circles or rotaries, virtually eliminating traffic jams. Although Čakovec is a small city by global parameters, its large working force which comes from all over the county, its location and importance in the region caused many traffic jams on the crossroads. Čakovec is the home of prominent Croatian punk bands, including Bakterije and Motorno Ulje.

Population

The city administrative area of Čakovec includes the following settlements: * Čakovec, population 15,147 * Ivanovec, population 2,093 * Krištanovec, population 626 * Kuršanec, population 1,584 * Mačkovec, population 1,326 * Mihovljan, population 1,380 * Novo Selo na Dravi, population 634 * Novo Selo Rok, population 1,441 * Savska Ves, population 1,217 * Slemenice, population 244 * Šandorovec, population 335 * Totovec, population 534 * Žiškovec, population 543 The adjacent villages of Belica, Nedelišće, Pribislavec, Strahoninec and Šenkovec are seats of separate municipalities, although they are all located within of the city's centre. At the 2001 census, the city of Čakovec had a population of 15,790 within its limits, which was a slight decrease from the 1991 census, when it was 15,999. With its surrounding suburbs included it had a population of 30,455 at the 2001 census. The city's present day population primarily consists of ethnic

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

at 93.8%, with the largest minority being Romani at 3.8% of the municipality. Other ethnic groups are

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( ), are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, Slovenian culture, culture, and History of Slove ...

and

Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...

Climate

Between 1981 and 2019, the highest temperature recorded at the local weather station was , on 20 July 2007. The coldest temperature was , on 13 February 1985.

Education

The city of Čakovec currently has three elementary schools and several secondary schools including a Gymnasium and three high schools that offer education in the fields of technology, crafts,

economics Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

and

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

. The Teachers' Training College () is the city's only institution for higher education that lasts more than 3 years. In recent years, the city opened its own institution of higher education called MEV — Međimursko veleučilište u Čakovcu (Polytechnic of Međimurje in Čakovec), offering 3-year studies (180 ECTS points) in Computer Science and Management of Tourism and Sport. The city is also known for its School of

Animated Film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

(ŠAF - Škola Animiranog Filma), which has been hosting an annual international

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

summer workshop for several decades, bringing world-renowned animators to Čakovec.

Economy

The city of Čakovec has a highly developed

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

and it is the focal point for

communication Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

and

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

in the Međimurje County. The economy of the city is based on textile, footwear,

food processing Food processing is the transformation of agricultural products into food, or of one form of food into other forms. Food processing takes many forms, from grinding grain into raw flour, home cooking, and complex industrial methods used in the mak ...

and metal plants — in 2023, the total profit of entrepreneurs based in the city accounted to €1.36 billion. The Čakovec-based company TIZ

Zrinski The House of Zrinski or Zrínyi was a Croatian- Hungarian noble family, a cadet branch of the Croatian noble tribe of Šubić, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia's union wit ...

is the largest printing and

publishing company Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...

in the county as well as one of the major such companies in northern Croatia. Many books published in the country are printed in this factory. The city is also a base for several companies engaged in construction, production of building materials, and

plastics Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic materials composed primarily of polymers. Their defining characteristic, plasticity, allows them to be molded, extruded, or pressed into a diverse range of solid forms. This adaptab ...

. Some of the largest companies based in the city include the

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

and clothing manufacturers Čateks and Međimurska trikotaža Čakovec (MTČ) as well as the footwear manufacturer Jelen, while the companies Čakovečki mlinovi (milling) and Vajda (meat products) are major fresh food producers in the city. Promming is also one of the biggest factories in Čakovec, it produces metal shelves designed specially for supermarkets.

Sights, facilities and events

Most of the historical buildings in Čakovec are located in the town center or in the centrally located Zrinski Park, and the town's historical core has been well preserved. The

near the park houses a museum with some 17,000 exhibits. Other landmark buildings in the town centre are a palace built in the

Vienna Secession The Vienna Secession (; also known as the Union of Austrian Artists or ) is an art movement, closely related to Art Nouveau, that was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian painters, graphic artists, sculptors and architects, including Josef Ho ...

style (), and Saint Nicholas' Church (). The Southern Čakovec () is a relatively new neighborhood, with modern houses and buildings including the Church of

Saint Anthony of Padua Anthony of Padua, OFM, (; ; ) or Anthony of Lisbon (; ; ; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese Catholic priest and member of the Order of Friars Minor. Anthony was born and raised by a wealth ...

() and a new elementary school with a sports hall, outdoor

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

and

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor 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 thr ...

grounds and a running track. The city has a casino, designed by architect Henrik Böhm. At the central square there is a library, a theater, a cinema, a large

shopping center A shopping center in American English, shopping centre in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English (see American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, spelling differences), shopping complex, shopping arcade, ...

and a few confectioners' shops and restaurants. Other businesses in the town center are mostly clothing stores, bookshops, electronics stores and finance companies. A hospital and the central bus station are located only a few steps from town centre. The largest hotel in Čakovec is located across the park, about 300–400 meters from the central square, and there is also a smaller one in close proximity of the main square. Orao na spomeniku Nikoli Zrinskom Čakovečkom.jpg,

Eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

on the memorial column Perivoj Zrinskih, Čakovec - Palača Zrinskih u pozadini.jpg, Greenery in the city park Ulica kralja Tomislava in Cakovec.jpg, King Tomislav Street, a central promenade Stari grad Zrinskih, Čakovec - pogled iz zraka.JPG, Čakovec Castle of the Zrinski family - bird's eye view Porcijunkulovo, Čakovec, 2018. - kišobrani u Ulici kralja Tomislava.jpg, Porcijunkulovo manifestation Gradski bazeni 'Marija Ružić' u Čakovcu.jpg, Outdoor swimming pools Crkva sv. Antuna Padovanskog, Čakovec - jugoistok.jpg, Church of

Transportation

The city of Čakovec is easily accessible by road or a railroad track. The road infrastructure is good and includes a new expressway connecting the Hungary border-crossing point in

Goričan Goričan () is a municipalities of Croatia, municipality in Međimurje County, Croatia. Goričan is the only village belonging to the municipality. Its population in the 2011 census was 2,823. Of the entire population, 2,763 people identified them ...

with

Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...

and the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

coast. There is also a southern bypass which was built in the beginning of the second half of the first decade in the 21st century. The city is connected to local municipalities with an efficient public transportation system. It has two train stations: Čakovec main train station and Čakovec-Buzovec, as well as a central bus station with a taxi rank, located near the central square. In the adjacent village of Pribislavec there's a small sports airport, where an annual aero-meeting takes place, as well as panoramic flights over the city and county in the summer. The airport is located approximately three kilometers east from the downtown.

City districts and neighborhoods

The city districts/neighborhoods () of Čakovec are:
''I. Centar''
''II. Jug''
''III. Martane''
''IV. Buzovec''
''V. Sajmište''
''VI. Globetka''
''VII. Špice''

Sports

The sports-related activities in the city of Čakovec are mostly centered in its northwestern part, where the center for sports and recreation is located. The center includes a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and athletics stadium with 7,000 places, an indoor hall mostly used for handball, basketball and

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

matches and a swimming pool complex, where several

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

schools are organized throughout the year. The local chapter of the HPS is ''HPD "Železna Gora"'', which had 36 members in 1936 under the Blaž Ilijanić presidency. At the time, it had a ski section. Membership fell to 27 in 1937. Membership rose to 30 in 1938.

Sports clubs

* IHK Pozoji, inline hockey club * KK Željezničar Čakovec - ninepin bowling club * KK Međimurje, basketball club *

NK Međimurje NK Međimurje is a Croatian football club based in Čakovec. The club is named after Međimurje, the region in northern Croatia where the city of Čakovec is located. The club plays their home games at the Stadion SRC Mladost, Čakovec, whic ...

, football club in the Croatian Second League * ŽRK Zrinski, women's handball club in the Croatian First League * MRK Čakovec, handball club in the Croatian First League of Handball * TK Franjo Punčec,

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

club * Disc Golf club Zrinski

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Čakovec is currently twinned with these cities or municipalities:

Notable people

This list contains some of the notable people who were either born in Čakovec, lived in the city for a longer time or were in some significant way related to it. * Lidija Bajuk (born 1965) a Croatian singer-songwriter and poet. * Lujo Bezeredi (1898–1979) a Croatian-Hungarian sculptor and painter. * Stanka Gjurić (born 1956) a Croatian poet, essayist, actress and filmmaker. *

Sunčana Glavak Sunčana Glavak (born 1968) is a Croatian politician of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2019. Early career During her journalism studies, Glavak began her career as a journal ...

(born 1968) a Croatian politician and MEP * Barbara Kolar (born 1970) a Croatian actress and TV presenter * Ladislav Kralj-Međimurec (1891–1976) a Croatian painter and engraver. *

Josip Horvat Međimurec Josip Horvat (; 18 February 1904 – 2 June 1945) was a Croatian painter. Horvat was born to Dragutin and Marija Horvat in Čakovec. He attended elementary school in Čakovec, and grade school in Nagykanizsa and Pest, Hungary, Pest. He then ...

(1904–1945), a Croatian painter. * Josip Movčan (1924–2016) a Croatian forester with the

Plitvice Lakes National Park Plitvice Lakes National Park (, colloquially ''Plitvice'', ) is one of the oldest and largest national parks in Croatia. In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list, for its outstanding and picturesque se ...

. *

Rudolf Steiner Rudolf Joseph Lorenz Steiner (; 27 or 25 February 1861 – 30 March 1925) was an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect, esotericist, and claimed clairvoyant. Steiner gained initial recognition at the end of the nineteenth century ...

(1861–1925) an Austrian occultist, social reformer, architect and claimed clairvoyant. *

Josip Štolcer-Slavenski Josip Štolcer-Slavenski (Serbian Cyrillic: Јосип Штолцер-Славенски; 11 May 1896 – 30 November 1955 ) was a Croatia, Croatian composer and professor at the Music Academy in Belgrade. British musicologist Jim Samson descr ...

(1896– 1955) a Croatian composer and Music professor * Sandor Teszler (1903–2000), industrialist and philanthropist in the US *

Vinko Žganec Vinko Žganec (January 22, 1890 – December 12, 1976) was a Croatian ethnomusicologist. Žganec was born in Vratišinec in Međimurje. He started to be interested in music early in his childhood and jotted down his first folk song in 1908. In ...

(1890-1976) a Croatian

ethnomusicologist Ethnomusicology is the multidisciplinary study of music in its cultural context. The discipline investigates social, cognitive, biological, comparative, and other dimensions. Ethnomusicologists study music as a reflection of culture and investiga ...

and

folklorist Folklore studies (also known as folkloristics, tradition studies or folk life studies in the UK) is the academic discipline devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currency in the 1950s to distinguish the ac ...

* Juraj IV Zrinski (1549–1603), soldier, politician and patron * Juraj V Zrinski (1599–1626), soldier and politician * Nikola IV Zrinski (–1566), soldier and politician. * Nikola VII Zrinski (1620–1664), soldier, poet and

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

. *

Petar Zrinski Petar IV Zrinski () (6 June 1621 – 30 April 1671) was Ban of Croatia (Viceroy) from 1665 to 1670, general and a writer. A member of the Zrinski noble family, he was noted for his role in the attempted Croatian-Hungarian Magnate conspiracy to ...

(1621–1671), soldier, politician and poet

Sport

* Srećko Bogdan (born 1957), Croatian former footballer with 507 club caps *

Branko Ivanković Branko Ivanković (; born 28 February 1954) is a Croatian association football, football manager (association football), manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He was most recently the head coach of the China national football team ...

(born 1954), footballer with 269 club caps and manager in Iranian Pro League *

Robert Jarni Robert Jarni (born 26 October 1968) is a Croatian former professional footballer who played as a left winger or wingback. Jarni started his professional career with Hajduk Split in 1986, and went on to spend 10 years playing for various clubs ...

(born 1968), footballer with 391 club caps and manager * Dino Kresinger (born 1982), footballer with over 320 club caps * Dražen Ladić (born 1963), football goalkeeper with 420 club caps and 59 for

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

* Ladislav Legenstein (born 1926) an Austrian tennis player and a

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

doubles semifinalist * Ivana Lisjak (born 1987), retired tennis player * Nikola Pokrivač (1985–2025), footballer * Franjo Punčec (1913–1985), Yugoslav tennis player * Filip Ude (born 1986),

pommel horse The pommel horse, also known as vaulting horse, is an artistic gymnastics apparatus. Traditionally, it is used by only male gymnasts. Originally made of a metal frame with a wooden body and a leather cover, the modern pommel horse has a metal bo ...

gymnast; silver medallist at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

* Dario Vizinger (born 1998), footballer with almost 200 club caps

References

External links

*
Čakovec Online
news portal
Čakovec Tourist Board
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cakovec Populated places in Međimurje County Cities and towns in Croatia 13th-century establishments in Croatia