| Karviná Karwina |
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| Coordinates: 49°51′15″N 18°32′34″E / 49.85417°N 18.54278°E | |||
| Country | Czech Republic | ||
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| Region | Moravian-Silesian | ||
| District | Karviná | ||
| First mentioned | 1268 | ||
| Town rights | 1923 | ||
| City parts |
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| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Tomáš Hanzel (ČSSD) | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 57.49 km2 (22.2 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 221 m (725 ft) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| - Total | 63,045 | ||
| - Density | 1,096.6/km2 (2,840.2/sq mi) | ||
| Postal code | 733 01 or 735 06 | ||
| Website | http://www.karvina.org/ | ||
Karviná (pronounced 
[ˈkarvɪnaː] (help·info), Polish: Karwina , German: Karwin) is a city in Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic, on the Olza River. It is administrative center of Karviná District. Karviná lies in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia and is one of the most important coal mining centers in the Czech Republic. Together with neighboring towns it forms industrial Ostrava-Karviná Coal Basin.
It has 65,141 inhabitants (2001 census). 8.5% of the population are Slovaks and 8% of the population are Poles.[1] Polish population is historically declining. There is also a growing Roma community.
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History
Till 19th century it was a low importance village of Cieszyn Silesia, lying near the important town of Fryštát. Discovery of coal led to rapid development of Karviná and surrounding villages, railroad tracks were soon built. After the split of Cieszyn Silesia in 1920 it became a part of Czechoslovakia as a main mining center of the country. In 1923 it gained city rights. In October 1938 was annexed by Poland, together with whole region known as Zaolzie and during World War II was a part of Nazi Germany. After the war it became again a part of Czechoslovakia. In 1948 occurred merger of Karviná, Fryštát and surrounding villages of Darkov, Ráj and Staré Město to the one city named Karviná. Coat of arms of Fryštát was chosen as the coat of arms of Karviná. Fryštát became a historical center of this industrial city.
The period after war is characterized by economic orientation on heavy industry. Currently the town ranks among the ones with the dense heavy industry but slow restructuralization of heavy industry influence and the development of othee spheres of economic acitivites. At the same time Karviná is the center of education in this region with its wide range of specialized secondary schools and, especially, the Faculty of Commerce and Business of Silesian University. Since 1995 Karviná became the member of the national network of statutary towns in the Czech Republic.
Karviná is also an important cultural and educational center of the Polish minority in the Czech Republic.
People
- Jaroslav Bába, Czech athlete
- Emanuel Grim, Polish Catholic priest and writer
- Zuzana Jandová, Miss Czech Republic 2008
- Louis Kentner, Hungarian pianist
- Eva Kurfürstová, Czech alpine skier
- Gustaw Morcinek, Polish writer
- Petra Němcová, Czech model
- Wilhelm Przeczek, Polish writer
- Denisa Ščerbová, Czech athlete
- Radek Štěpánek, Czech tennis player
- Dana Zátopková, Czech athlete
Twin Towns - Sister Cities
Karviná is twinned with:
Footnotes
- ^ "2001 census data". Czech Statistical Office. http://www.czso.cz/sldb/sldb2001.nsf/obce/598917?OpenDocument.
- ^ "Rybnik Official Website - Twin Towns".
(in English) © 2008 Urząd Miasta Rybnika, ul. Bolesława Chrobrego 2, 44-200 Rybnik. http://www.rybnik.pl/index.php?id=324. Retrieved on 2008-11-01.
References
- Cicha, Irena; Kazimierz Jaworski, Bronisław Ondraszek, Barbara Stalmach and Jan Stalmach (2000). Olza od pramene po ujście. Český Těšín: Region Silesia. ISBN 80-238-6081-X.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Karviná |
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Coordinates: 49°51′15″N 18°32′34″E / 49.85417°N 18.54278°E
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