Vrútky (; (rare); ) is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in northern

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 ...

, close to the city of

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

. It lies in the historic

Turiec Turiec is a region in central Slovakia, one of the 21 official tourism regions. The region is not an administrative division today, but between the late 11th century and 1920 it was the Turóc County in the Kingdom of Hungary. Etymology The re ...

region.

Geography

The town lies at the confluence of

Váh The Váh (; , ; ; Wag
w Słowniku geograficznym Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich (''in Geograph ...

and the

, in the Turčianska kotlina, near the

Malá Fatra Malá Fatra (; also Little Fatra or Lesser Fatra, , ) is a mountain range in the Western Carpathians in the north-west of Central Slovakia. In the geomorphological system, it is a part of the Fatra-Tatra Area.Craig Stephen Cravens ''Culture And Cu ...

mountain range. It is located north of the city of Martin, with which it shares a public transport system, and from

Žilina Žilina (; ; ; ; Names of European cities in different languages: U-Z#Z, names in other languages) is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the List of cities ...

Etymology

The name is derived from a plural form of

Proto-Slavic Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately from the 2nd millennium BC through the 6th ...

''*vьrǫ tъkъ > vrútok'' meaning "a hot spring".

History

The town was first mentioned in 1255 as ''villa Vrutk''. However, a settlement had previously existed, and had the old Slavic name ''vrutok''.http://www.vrutky.sk/drupal-5.2/?q=node/15 (Slovak) By the end of the 13th century, the settlement had been divided into Dolné Vrútky and Horné Vrútky. By 1332, the settlement gained independence and in 1809, the town had almost 300 inhabitants. The construction of the Košice-Bohumín Railway in 1870 and the

Salgótarján Salgótarján (; , German: ''Schalgau'') is a city with county rights in Hungary, the capital of Nógrád County, north-eastern Hungary, making it the third least populous county capital. The nearby Salgó Castle is a well-known tourist attra ...

in 1872, brought economic development and Vrútky gained the status of being a key railway junction. This new status was also reflected in the increased number of inhabitants, which rose from 915 in 1869, to 1,944 in 1880 and 4,345 in 1900. Before the establishment of independent

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

in 1918, Vrútky was part of

Turóc County Turóc (Hungarian language, Hungarian, historically also spelled ''Túrócz''), , /''comitatus Thurociensis'', ) was an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in north-we ...

within the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. From 1939 to 1945, it was part of the

Slovak Republic 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 ...

. Between the years 1949-1954 and 1971-1990 the town was amalgamated with Martin under the name Martin-Vrútky. Vrútky regained independence in the year 1990, when it separated from

Demographics

According to the 2001

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, the town has 7,298 inhabitants; 96.01% of inhabitants are

Slovaks The Slovaks ( (historical Sloveni ), singular: ''Slovák'' (historical: ''Sloven'' ), feminine: ''Slovenka'' , plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history ...

, 1.33%

Czechs The Czechs (, ; singular Czech, masculine: ''Čech'' , singular feminine: ''Češka'' ), or the Czech people (), are a West Slavs, West Slavic ethnic group and a nation native to the Czech Republic in Central Europe, who share a common Bohemia ...

0.47%

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

and 0.33

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

. This same census shows that

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

account for 50.34%, people with no religious affiliation account for 24.86% and

Lutherans Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

account for 19.01% of the total town population. In the Slovak educational system, gymnáziums are secondary or high schools which prepare students for university study. Over 85% of students at the local four-year, co-educational Gymnázium Vrútky attend university.

Twin towns — sister cities

Vrútky is twinned with: *

Bebra Bebra () is a small town in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in northeastern Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Bebra lies some south of Kassel on the Fulda River, Fulda. The town is easy to find on most maps thanks to its prominent location on the ' ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Fulnek Fulnek () is a town in Nový Jičín District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,500 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zone ...

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 ...

Łaziska Górne Łaziska Górne (, ) is a town in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Outer town of the Metropolis GZM – metropolis with a population of 2 million. Located in the Silesian Highlands. It is situated in the Silesian Voivodeship since its f ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Nymburk Nymburk (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 16,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the Elbe River. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Mo ...

Notable people

* Ján Bodenek – writer, translator * Emanuel Böhm – politician, writer *

Radoslav Brzobohatý Radoslav Brzobohatý (; 13 September 1932 – 12 September 2012) was a Czech actor. He acted in film, television and theatre, portraying around 200 roles during his career. Life and career Radoslav Brzobohatý was born on 13 September 1932 in ...

– film and television actor *

John D. Hertz John Daniel Hertz Sr. (April 10, 1879October 8, 1961) was an American businessman, thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder, and philanthropist. Biography Hertz was born Sándor Herz to a Jewish family in Szklabinya, Austria-Hungary (today Skl ...

– founded the

Yellow Cab Company The Yellow Cab Company was a taxicab company in Chicago which was co-founded as the Walden W. Shaw Livery Company in 1907 by Walden W. Shaw and John D. Hertz. The Yellow Cab Company's rapid growth in the late 1910s and 1920s innovated a new ...

* Zora Mintalová – Zubercová – ethnographer, historian and museologist *

Hana Zelinová Hana Zelinová (20 July 1914 in Vrútky – 16 March 2004 in Bratislava) was a Slovak prose writer and dramatist. She wrote several novels influenced by the Slovak social novel Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interact ...

– prose writer and dramatist * František Zvarík - film and theater actor * Tomáš Galis – Bishop of Zilina

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vrutky Cities and towns in Slovakia Martin District Turiec