Lhota is a Czech geographical name. It is the most common name for

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 ...

s in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Geography

There are 309 villages that contain

Lhota Lhota is a Czech geographical name. It is the most common name for villages in the Czech Republic. Geography There are 309 villages that contain Lhota or Lhotka (diminutive form of Lhota) in their name, which makes it the most common name of vil ...

or Lhotka (

diminutive A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...

form of Lhota) in their name, which makes it the most common name of villages in the

. In addition, there are dozens of villages with derivations of those names (Lhotice, Lhoty, Lhůta and Lhůty in the Czech Republic, Lehota and Lehôtka in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

). The largest Lhotas are Dolní Lhota and

Komorní Lhotka Komorní Lhotka (, ) is a municipality and village in Frýdek-Místek District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,500 inhabitants. The municipality has a significant Polish minority. The folk architecture in the ...

in the

Moravian-Silesian Region The Moravian-Silesian Region () is one of the 14 administrative regions of the Czech Republic. Before May 2001, it was called the Ostrava Region (). The region is located in the north-eastern part of its historical region of Moravia and in most ...

, and Francova Lhota and

Ostrožská Lhota Ostrožská Lhota () is a municipality and village in Uherské Hradiště District in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,500 inhabitants. Geography Ostrožská Lhota is located about south of Uherské Hradiště and southwest ...

in the

Zlín Region Zlín Region () is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the south-eastern part of the historical region of Moravia. It is named after its capital Zlín. Together with the Olomouc Region it forms a cohesion area of Central M ...

, all of which have about 1,500 inhabitants.

History and etymology

Lhotas were founded during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

colonization in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

and

. Most of them were founded in the 13th century and the first half of the 14th century. The name was first mentioned in 1199, but this first documented Lhota was later renamed

Svatý Jiří Svatý Jiří is a municipality and village in Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 300 inhabitants. Svatý Jiří lies approximately west of Ústí nad Orlicí, east of Pardubice, and east of ...

. The inhabitants of newly-founded villages had obligations towards suzerains, but those duties were usually suspended for a certain period (such as 5–8 years) as a compensation for felling of forests and making the land available for agriculture. The period used to be called "lhóta" (i.e. 'grace period') and often became a part of the village name. The villages were usually established by local inhabitants: lower noblemen close to their own village. The name of the founder, usually of a

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

origin, became sometimes a part of village name such as

Vlachova Lhota Vlachova Lhota is a municipality and village in Zlín District in the Zlín Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 200 inhabitants. Vlachova Lhota lies approximately south-east of Zlín and east of Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital ...

("Vlach's Lhota"). In other cases, the adjective in village name relates to its size (Dlouhá Lhota = "Long Lhota") or other characteristics (Dolní Lhota = "Lower Lhota", Písková Lhota = "Sandy Lhota").

References

External links

342 villages
on a map server of the Czech Republic {{authority control Names of places in the Czech Republic Villages in the Czech Republic

Geography

History and etymology

See also

References

External links