Mačkovec pri Škocjanu ( or ; in older sources also ''Mačkovc''''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 82.) is a small settlement in the

Municipality of Škocjan The Municipality of Škocjan (; ), established in October 1994, is a municipality in the traditional region of Lower Carniola in southeastern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is Škocjan. The Municipality of Škocjan is now included in the ...

in southeastern

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 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 ...

). Within the municipality, it belongs to the Village Community of Dole. It lies north of Škocjan, just off the road to Dolenje Dole. The municipality 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 ...

. The surname ''Hočevar'' is frequent in the village.Savnik, Roman, ed. 1971. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 2. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, p. 509.

Geography

Mačkovec pri Škocjanu is a clustered settlement on the west slope of Lapor Hill (391 m) and east of Little Creek (, also known as Dole Creek, ''Dolski potok''). The soil is mostly sandy, with field areas named ''Zadnje njive'' (literally, 'last fields'), ''Kamenca'' ('stony'), and ''na Laporju'' ('on Lapor Hill'), and meadows in the ''Zadole'' ('beyond Dole') area. There is wooded land to the northeast.

Name

Mačkovec pri Škocjanu was attested in written sources circa 1400 as ''Kaczendorff'' (and as ''Matschendorff'' before 1406). Morphological evidence indicates that the name is not derived directly from ''maček'' '(tom)cat', but instead from ''Maček'' used as a nickname for an individual (which itself is based on the name for the animal). The name is less likely to be derived from the noun ''mačkovec'' '

pussy willow Pussy willow is a name given to many of the smaller species of the genus '' Salix'' (willows and sallows) when their furry catkins are young in early spring. These species include (among many others): * Goat willow or goat sallow ('' Salix cap ...

'. The name of the settlement was changed from ''Mačkovec'' to ''Mačkovec pri Škocjanu'' in 1953.''Spremembe naselij 1948–95''. 1996. Database. Ljubljana: Geografski inštitut ZRC SAZU, DZS.

References

External links

Mačkovec pri Škocjanu on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Škocjan {{Škocjan-geo-stub