Jakob Aljaž (July 6, 1845 – May 4, 1927) was a Slovene

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

and

mountaineer Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...

. Aljaž was born in a small

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( ; ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The largest town in the region is Kranj, and other urban centers include Kamnik, Jesenice, Jesenice, Jesenice, Domžale and ...

n village of

Zavrh pod Šmarno Goro Zavrh pod Šmarno Goro (; ) is a settlement in the Municipality of Medvode in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. Name Zavrh pod Šmarno Goro was attested in written sources as ''Newdorf'' in 1372, ''Kollenperg'' in 1420, ''Padwercham'' in 1436 ...

, northeast of

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, in what was then the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

. He was a priest and also a successful composer, singer and choir master. His works are still very popular among Slovenes. He became known for his role fostering the development of

mountaineering Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...

in the

Slovene Lands The Slovene lands or Slovenian lands ( or in short ) is the historical denomination for the territories in Central and Southern Europe where people primarily spoke Slovene. The Slovene lands were part of the Illyrian provinces, the Austrian Empi ...

. By far his most well known construction is the

Aljaž Tower Aljaž Tower () or the Triglav Tower () is a tower, a storm shelter and a triangulation point on the summit of Mount Triglav in northwestern Slovenia. Along with Triglav, it is a landmark of Slovenia and a symbol of the Slovenehood. The tower was ...

(), built on the summit of Mount

Triglav Triglav (; ; ), with an elevation of , is the highest mountain in Slovenia and the highest peak of the Julian Alps. The mountain is the pre-eminent symbol of the Slovene nation, appearing on the Coat of arms of Slovenia, coat of arms and Flag ...

, the highest mountain of the

Julian Alps The Julian Alps (, , , , ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps that stretches from northeastern Italy to Slovenia, where they rise to 2,864 m at Mount Triglav, the highest peak in Slovenia. A large part of the Julian Alps is inclu ...

and of

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 ...

, which he purchased to secure the area for Slovene rather than German mountaineers. He also designed shelters and huts, and worked with the Slovene Mountaineering Society to improve use of the land on Triglav. The endeavours of Jakob Aljaž had a very influential role in the emergence of Mount Triglav as one of the central symbols of the Slovene people. The first verse from the patriotic poem '' Oh, Triglav, My Home'' () by Matija Zemljič, put into music by Jakob Aljaž, is engraved in the Slovenian 50 cent euro coin. Since 2007, its first stance has been the anthem of the

Alpine Association of Slovenia The Alpine Association of Slovenia () is the association of volunteer Alpine clubs () providing the conditions for the development and exercising of mountaineering and hill walking in Slovenia and abroad. It is among the Slovenian non-governmenta ...

. Jakob Aljaž died in the village of

Dovje Dovje (; ) is a village in the Municipality of Kranjska Gora in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia, located on the southern slopes of the Karawanks at an elevation of 703 m. It has a rich history and rural tradition and is known as one of the s ...

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 ...

References

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External links

* 1845 births 1927 deaths People from the Municipality of Medvode Slovenian composers Slovenian male composers Slovenian mountain climbers 20th-century Slovenian Roman Catholic priests Yugoslav mountain climbers Triglav 19th-century Slovenian Roman Catholic priests Slovenian male musicians {{Slovenia-musician-stub