Ajdovščina (; ,trilingual name "Haidenschaft, Aidussina, Ajdovščina" in
Gemeindelexikon, der im Reichsrate Vertretenen Königreiche und Länder. Bearbeit auf Grund der Ergebnisse der Volkszählung vom 31. Dezember 1900. Herausgegeben von der K.K. Statistischen Zentralkommission. VII. Österreichisch-Illyrisches Küstenland (Triest, Görz aund Gradiska, Istrien). Wien 1906
/ref> ) is a town in the

Vipava Valley The Vipava Valley (; , , ) is a valley in the Slovenian Littoral, roughly between the village of Podnanos to the east and the border with Italy to the west. The main towns are Ajdovščina and Vipava. Geography The narrow valley of the Vipav ...

(''Vipavska dolina''),

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 ...

. It is the administrative seat of the

Municipality of Ajdovščina The Municipality of Ajdovščina (; ) is a municipality with a population of a little over 19,000 located in the Vipava Valley, southwestern Slovenia. The municipality was established in 1994. Its seat is in the town of Ajdovščina. , its mayor ...

History

The first mentions of Ajdovščina go back to circa 2000 BC. In the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

and the

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

a fortified settlement stood on the nearby hill of Gradišče. In the early period of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

, after a road was built from

Aquileia Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river Natiso (modern Natisone), the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times. Today, the city is small ( ...

towards

Emona Emona (early ) or Aemona (short for ) was a Roman castrum, located in the area where the navigable Nauportus River came closest to Castle Hill, In the late 3rd century and the early 4th century a fortification system, '' Claustra Alpium Iuliarum'', which run from the Kvarner Gulf to

Cividale Cividale del Friuli (, locally ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in the Province of Udine, Regional decentralization entity of Udine, part of the Northern Italy, North-Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The town lies above sea-level in th ...

, was built by the Roman Empire. Its centre was the fortress of ''

Castra ''Castra'' () is a Latin language, Latin term used during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire for a military 'camp', and ''castrum'' () for a 'Fortification, fort'. Either could refer to a building or plot of land, used as a fortified milita ...

'' or ''Castrum ad Fluvio Frigido'', the remains of which are today still visible in Ajdovščina. Despite the fact that the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

border is less than 20 km away and that Ajdovščina was under Italian administration from 1918 to 1947, and from 1927 as a commune of the

Province of Gorizia The province of Gorizia (; ; ) was a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy. Initially disbanded on 30 September 2017, it was reestablished in 2019 as the regional decentralization entity of Gorizia (; ; ), and was reacti ...

(as ''Aidussina''), during Italian rule (1918–1943, nominally lasted to 1947), the style of the town does not resemble that of a typical Italian town. The strong bora winds would cause damage to the usual Italian house construction. Thus the population adopted and modified the classical

Karst Karst () is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble carbonate rocks such as limestone and Dolomite (rock), dolomite. It is characterized by features like poljes above and drainage systems with sinkholes and caves underground. Ther ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

for their own needs; for example, by putting stones on roofs to weight down the tiles against the strong winds. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Ajdovščina became the economic and cultural centre of the upper Vipava Valley. Major industries include textile fabrics, construction, food, beverages, and furniture. Ajdovščina annexed the formerly independent settlements of Gradišče and Šturje () in 1953.

Geography and climate

The Hubelj River is the dividing line between the two largest parts of Ajdovščina, locally known as Šturje and Ajdovščina. During the pre-

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

years the river was also the border between the Austrian lands of

Gorizia and Gradisca The Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca (; ; ), historically sometimes shortened to and spelled "Goritz", was a crown land of the Habsburg dynasty within the Austrian Littoral on the Adriatic Sea, in what is now a multilingual border area of ...

and

Carniola Carniola ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region still tend to identify with its traditional parts Upp ...

. The climate is

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

(minimum temperature in winter , maximum ; in the summer time maximum temperature , minimum . The town is located around 25 km from 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 ...

Landmarks

Churches

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

in Ajdovščina is dedicated to

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

and belongs to the Diocese of Koper. It is built on the site of a Roman cemetery. Its interior was painted by the local

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

painter Anton Čebej. A second

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

within the urban area of Ajdovščina is the Parish of Šturje, with the parish church dedicated to

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

and another church dedicated to

Saint Lawrence Saint Lawrence or Laurence (; 31 December 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the Persecution of Christians, persecution of the Christians that the Roman Empire, Rom ...

. The church in the hamlet of Fužine north of the main town, dedicated to

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 ...

, also belongs to this parish.

Notable residents

Ivo Boscarol Ivo Boscarol (; ), born 15 April 1956, is the founder of Pipistrel, a producer of Ultralight aviation, ultralight and light aircraft, based in Ajdovščina, Slovenia. Boscarol is most known as an aircraft designer and entrepreneur. Early career ...

(born 1957), businessman *

Arthur Casagrande Arthur Casagrande (August 28, 1902 – September 6, 1981) was an American civil engineer born in Austria-Hungary who made important contributions to the fields of engineering geology and geotechnical engineering during its infancy. Renowned for ...

(1902–1981), engineer * Anton Čebej (1722–1774), painter * Miša Cigoj (born 1982), dancesport athlete * Milan Klemenčič (1875–1957), puppeteer * Karel Lavrič (1818–1876), politician * Danilo Lokar (1892–1989), author * Julij Mayer (1891–1983), beekeeperBokal, Ljudmila, ed. 2008. ''Čebelarski terminološki slovar.'' Ljubljana: Založba ZRC, ZRC SAZU and Lukovica: Čebelarska zveza Slovenije, p. 255. *

Veno Pilon Veno Pilon (22 September 1896 – 23 September 1970) was a Slovene expressionist painter, graphic artist and photographer. He was born and died in Ajdovščina. Biography Pilon was born in Ajdovščina, then part of the Austro-Hungarian prov ...

(1896–1970), painter * Avgust Žigon (1877–1941), literary historian

References

External links

*
Municipality of Ajdovščina website

Ajdovščina on Geopedia

Ajdovščina Tourist Information Centre site

(virtual photos) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ajdovscina Cities and towns in the Slovene Littoral