Slovakia: Map & History
Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe.
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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 mostly mountainous territory spans about 49,000 km2 (19,000 sq mi), hosting a population exceeding 5.4 million. The capital and largest city is Bratislava, while the second largest city is Košice.
Modern Countries Once Part of Slovakia
At its mapped extent, Slovakia covered territory in 1 present-day country. The period shown is when the mapped borders include that country, and the note says how much of it.
Largest Present-Day Cities in Its Territory
Each opens on the live map inside Slovakia's borders of that time.
Derived by testing mapped cities against this polity's dated territorial polygons, so the list is indicative and follows the borders in the source dataset.
Slovakia in Depth
History
The oldest surviving human artefacts from Slovakia are found near Nové Mesto nad Váhom and are dated at 270,000 BCE, in the Early Paleolithic era. These ancient tools, made by the Clactonian technique, bear witness to the ancient habitation of Slovakia.
Other stone tools from the Middle Paleolithic era (200,000–80,000 BCE) come from the Prévôt (Prepoštská) cave in Bojnice and from other nearby sites. The most important discovery from that era is a Neanderthal cranium (c. 200,000 BCE), discovered near Gánovce, a village in northern Slovakia.
Government and politics
Slovakia is a parliamentary democratic republic with a multi-party system. The last parliamentary elections were held on 30 September 2023 and two rounds of presidential elections took place on 23 March and 6 April 2024.
The Slovak head of state and the formal head of the executive is the president (currently Peter Pellegrini), though with very limited powers. The president is elected by direct, popular vote under the two-round system for a five-year term. Most executive power lies with the head of government, the prime minister (currently Robert Fico), who is usually the leader of the winning party and who needs to form a majority coalition in the parliament. The prime minister is appointed by the president.
Economy
Slovakia has a high-income developed economy. In 2026, with a population of only 5 million, it ranked as the 47th richest country with a per capita gross domestic product based on purchasing power parity of $49,376, and the 58th largest economy in the World with a GDP of $167,730 billion. Its GDP per capita equalling 74% of the average of the European Union in 2023. Major privatisations are completed, the banking sector is almost completely in private hands, and foreign investment has risen.
In 2024, more than 80% of Slovak exports went to the European Union, and more than 65% of Slovak imports came from other European Union member states. Main export partners are Germany (23% of total exports), Czech Republic (12.4%), Poland (8.3%) and Austria (5.7%).
Culture
Folk tradition has rooted strongly in Slovakia and is reflected in literature, music, dance and architecture. The prime example is the Slovak national anthem, "Nad Tatrou sa blýska", which is based on a melody from the "Kopala studienku" folk song.
The manifestation of Slovak folklore culture is the "Východná" Folklore Festival. It is the oldest and largest nationwide festival with international participation, which takes place in Východná annually. Slovakia is usually represented by many groups but mainly by SĽUK (Slovenský ľudový umelecký kolektív—Slovak folk art collective). SĽUK is the largest Slovak folk art group, trying to preserve the folklore tradition.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Slovakia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Slovakia: Key Facts
| Capital | Prague |
|---|---|
| Official languages | Czech, Slovak |
| Form of government | republic |
| Currency | Czechoslovak koruna |
| Founded | 28 October 1918 |
| Dissolved | 31 December 1992 |
Preceded by
Facts from Wikidata Q33946 (CC0).
Slovakia: Frequently Asked Questions
When did Slovakia exist?
Slovakia is dated to 1992 CE – 2024 CE, in the Industrial era.
What was the capital of Slovakia?
The capital of Slovakia was Bratislava.
How large was Slovakia at its peak?
At its peak in 2024 Slovakia covered about 49,241 km².
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