Lazec (; formerly also ''Laze'';
[''Intelligenzblatt zur Laibacher Zeitung'', no. 141. 24 November 1849, p. 41.] [''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 34.] or ''Gehag (bei Obergrass)'',
: ''Gəhack''
[Petschauer, Erich. 1980. "Die Gottscheer Siedlungen – Ortsnamenverzeichnis." In ''Das Jahrhundertbuch der Gottscheer'' (pp. 181–197). Klagenfurt: Leustik.]) is a
village
A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...
in the
Municipality of Loški Potok
The Municipality of Loški Potok (; ) is a Municipalities of Slovenia, municipality in southern Slovenia. It is part of the traditional region of Lower Carniola and is now included in the Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region. The municipal admini ...
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 ...
, close to the border with
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 ...
. 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 included in 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 ...
. There is a pond along the road to
Hrib–Loški Potok
Hrib–Loški Potok (; ) is a village in the Municipality of Loški Potok in southern Slovenia. It is also the administrative centre of the municipality. The area is part of the traditional region of Lower Carniola and is now included in the Sout ...
and another on the road to
Stari Kot. The pond towards Stari Kot is walled and stands below Prištal Spring, which is also walled. Before the Second World War the pond was regularly cleaned and used for swimming by the locals. There are karst sinkholes near the pond below the road.
[Savnik, Roman, ed. 1971. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 2. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, pp. 230–231.]
Name
''Lazec'' and toponyms like it (e.g., ''
Laze'', ''
Novi Lazi'', ''
Ribčev Laz'') are derived from the common Slovene noun ''laz'' '
clearing', thus referring to a local geographical feature. It was named by loggers that founded the settlement while clearing the forest.
[Ferenc, Mitja, & Gojko Zupan. 2012. ''Izgubljene kočevske vasi'', vol. 2 (K–P). Ljubljana: Znanstvena založba Filozofske fakultete Univerze v Ljubljani, p. 99.] For the German name, cf. the common noun and microtoponym ''Gehack'' 'logged land, cleared land, lumbering'.
[Jung, Irene. 1985. ''Flurnamen an der mittleren Lahn''. Giessen: Schmitz, p. 60.]
History
Lazec was a
Gottschee German village. Although the settlement was not listed in the Gottschee land registry of 1574 or in the 1770 census,
it was mentioned by
Johann Weikhard von Valvasor
Johann Weikhard Freiherr von Valvasor or Johann Weichard Freiherr von Valvasor (, ) or simply Valvasor (baptised on 28 May 1641 – September or October 1693) was a natural historian and polymath from Carniola, present-day Slovenia, and a Li ...
in 1689.
In 1869 the village had 15 houses and a population of 78, and in 1880 a population of 89. No Slovene residents were recorded in the village until 1890. In 1931 Lazec had a population of 112, equally divided between ethnic Slovenes and Germans.
The Gottschee German residents were evicted in November 1941, after which the Slovene population allied itself with the
Partisans. On 11 August 1942, Italian forces transported all of the remaining men of the village to a concentration camp at
Treviso
Treviso ( ; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 87.322 inhabitants (as of December 2024). Some 3,000 live within the Venetian wall ...
. After the
armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces
The Armistice of Cassibile (Italian language, Italian: ''Armistizio di Cassibile'') was an armistice that was signed on 3 September 1943 by Kingdom of Italy, Italy and the Allies of World War II, Allies, marking the end of hostilities between It ...
, two families moved to Lazec from Stari Kot and one from
Novi Kot.
References
External links
Lazec on GeopediaPre–World War II list of oeconyms and family names in Lazec
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lazec, Loski Potok
Populated places in the Municipality of Loški Potok