Mački (; in older sources also ''Mačke''
[''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 44.]) is a small
clustered settlement west of
Velike Lašče
Velike Lašče (; )''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 42. is a town in Slovenia. It is the seat of the Municipality of Velike Lašče. I ...
in central
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 entire
Municipality of Velike Lašče
The Municipality of Velike Lašče (; ) is a municipality in Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Velike Lašče. It is part of the traditional region of Lower Carniola and is now included in the Central Slovenia Statistical Regi ...
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
Central Slovenia Statistical Region
The Central Slovenia Statistical Region () is a Statistical regions of Slovenia, statistical region in central Slovenia.
Geography
This is the second-largest region in terms of territory. It has a total area of 2,555 km2, with a central po ...
.
Geography
Mački stands on the northern slope of Strojan Hill (), which is the eastern part of Mačkovec Hill (911 m). The village is accessible by the road from
Rob to
Krvava Peč
Krvava Peč (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 44.) is a village in the hills west of Velike Lašče in central Slovenia. The entire ...
. The soil in the area is thin, loamy, and sandy, and there is little arable land.
[Savnik, Roman, ed. 1971. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 2. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije. p. 419.]
Name
The collective (plural) name of the settlement indicates that it may have developed from a single farm. Although the name Mački literally means 'cats', the name of the village and others like it (e.g., ''
Mačkovec,
Mačkovci'') is likely not directly named for animals, but via the nickname ''Maček'' (literally, 'cat'), which is still found as a surname in Slovenia and likely refers to an early inhabitant of the place.
History
In the past, because of limited agricultural opportunities, the economy of the village was linked to the production of bushel baskets, wooden spoons, and toothpicks, as well as the sale of wood and gathering mushrooms.
During the Second World War, several houses in the village were burned.
On 8 May 1944 the
Home Guard
Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense.
The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting ...
unexpectedly attacked the Velike Lašče command post in Mački. Twelve
Partisan
Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to:
Military
* Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line
** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII
** Ital ...
soldiers and the commandant of the post, Viktor Kraševec
[Grgić, Silvo. 1995. ''Zločini okupatorjevih sodelavcev''. Ljubljana: Društvo piscev zgodovine NOB Slovenije, p. 130.] (or Krašovec;
[Jakopič, Albert, & Franc Benedik. 1978. ''Vodnik po partizanskih poteh''. Ljubljana: Borec, p. 65.] born 1904
), were killed in the attack. Those killed included four
Liberation Front activists from the village of Mački itself. On 4 July 1964 a memorial plaque was placed on the Sterle house (or Tinček house
[Strle, Franci. 1975. ''Partizanski volk samotar''. Ljubljana: Partizanska knjiga, p. 234.]) at Mački no. 6, the site of the post headquarters, to commemorate the event.
References
External links
*
Mački on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Velike Lašče
{{VelikeLasce-geo-stub