Kleč (; in older sources also ''Kleče'',''Intelligenzblatt zur Laibacher Zeitung'', no. 141. 24 November 1849, p. 26.''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 38.''Krajevni leksikon Dravske Banovine''. 1937. Ljubljana: Zveza za tujski promet za Slovenijo, p. 224. ,Ferenc, Mitja. 2007. ''Nekdanji nemški jezikovni otok na kočevskem''. Kočevje: Pokrajinski muzej, p. 4. also ''Kletsch bei Altlack'') is a settlement in the

Municipality of Kočevje The Municipality of Kočevje (; ) is a Municipalities of Slovenia, municipality in southern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the city of Kočevje. Today it is part of the Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region. In terms of area, it is t ...

in southern

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 ...

. The area is part of the traditional region of

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region in 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 an ...

and is now part of the

Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region The Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region () is a statistical region in southeast Slovenia. It is the largest statistical region. The development of this region is largely the result of industry (the auto industry, pharmaceuticals, and other light ...

. It no longer has any permanent residents.

Name

The origin of the name ''Kleč'' is uncertain. Snoj observes that settlements named ''Kleč(e)'' generally lie along rivers and he connects this with the Slovene common noun ''kleč'' 'sandy or gravely river bank; gravely area covered with thin soil', referring to the local geology. Bezlaj also mentions the possibility of derivation from *''klękъ'' 'small branching hills'. Another possibility is that it is derived from ''kleč'' with the meaning 'cliff'. Petschauer suggests that the name is derived from ''klet'' with the meaning 'shed, shack'.Petschauer, Erich. 1980. "Die Gottscheer Siedlungen – Ortsnamenverzeichnis." In ''Das Jahrhundertbuch der Gottscheer'' (pp. 181–197). Klagenfurt: Leustik.

History

Kleč was a Gottschee German village. In the land registry of 1574 it had four full farms divided into eight half-farms, corresponding to a population between 35 and 40. In the 1770 census there were 23 houses in the village. Kleč had a maximum population of 125 in 1880, which gradually decreased due to emigration.Ferenc, Mitja, & Gojko Zupan. 2012. ''Izgubljene kočevske vasi'', vol. 2 (K–P). Ljubljana: Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani. Before the Second World War, the village had 21 houses and a population of 89. At that time, the economy of the village was based on farming, making wooden tubs, troughs, shovels, and railway ties, selling firewood, lumber, and logs, and gathering berries. There was an inn in the settlement. The original inhabitants were evicted on 23 and 24 November 1941. In August 1942 Italian troops burned the village and now it is difficult to discern the traces of the former houses.Savnik, Roman, ed. 1971. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 2. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, p. 224. The village was not rebuilt after the war, and the meadows were used by the Kočevje collective farm. Since about 1990 the farmland has been worked by the Robida family of Stari Log. A sign with information about the village in Slovenian, German, and English was erected at the site of the former church in 2012.

Church

The church in Kleč was a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...

dedicated to Saint Andrew. It stood at the southeast edge of the village. It probably dated to the mid-16th century and was mentioned in visitation records dating to 1753. It had a rectangular nave, a painted wooden ceiling, and a vaulted

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

walled on three sides. There was a square stone belfry. The church and its furnishings were burned in 1943. The site of the former church is registered as cultural heritage.Slovenian Ministry of Culture register of national heritage
reference number ešd 2313

References

External links

*
Kleč on GeopediaPre–World War II map of Kleč with oeconyms and family names
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klec, Kocevje Populated places in the Municipality of Kočevje