The document provides information about Slovakia, including its history, geography, culture, and people. Slovakia was once part of Czechoslovakia and ruled by the Soviet Union for 75 years before gaining independence in 1993. It is a landlocked country located in Central Europe, bordered by Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary and Austria. The document also discusses Slovak cuisine, traditional clothing, folk villages, holidays and traditions, famous people with Slovak ancestry, and interesting facts about Slovakia.

1. Welcome to Slovakia

2. Slovakia is a country in central Europe. This tiny country was once part of Czechoslovakia and was
ruled by the Soviet Union for 75 years.
We broke away from the Soviets in 1990 and separated from the Czech Republic in 1993 to become
its own independent nation.
Bordering Countries: Czech
Republic, Poland, Ukraine,
Hungary, Austria
Slovakia is a landlocked nation
in Central Europe. This means
that it has no access to the
ocean, and is surrounded by
land on all sides.

3. We did not elect “a woman” but “the woman”
Slovakia joined the few countries in the world with
female presidents.
President-elect Zuzana Čaputová became not only the
first Slovak female president but also the first female
president among the countries of central Europe.
It is an important message for a country where part of
the public maintained the opinion that it is not possible
for a woman to be elected in Slovakia.

4. Slovakia is noted primarily for its mountainous nature. The Carpathian Mountains are in the north,
and various lowlands are in the south.
The highest mountain range is the Tatra Mountains. The Danube, Vah, and Hron are the major rivers.
The varied landscape of Slovakia
supports a wide variety of animal
life. This includes bears, wolves,
lynx, wildcats, marmots and
beavers.

5. As with many European countries, the family is very important in Slovakia. It is not uncommon for
families in rural areas to have children, parents, and grandparents under one roof. This arrangement
allows grandparents, especially grandmothers, to help care for children so their parents can work.
Families in urban settings have started to focus more on the nuclear family. While grandparents are
nearby, they do not always live in the same home.
Although family always was and
still is important, nowadays
more and more people get
divorce. Many families also lives
separately, but happily.

6. Slovakian food is unique. True Slovak food and recipes,
unlike another type of cuisine, cannot be found outside
of Slovakia.
Slovakian dishes use items such as pork, poultry,
cabbage, wheat, cheese, potatoes, onions, and garlic.

7. Dumplings with sheep cheese
Potato pancakes
Funnel cake
Cabbage soup
Fried cheese with crisps and tatar sause

8. Traditional folk clothing - Slovak costume
represented the clothes of the people living on
the village. Its evolution was peaking in the
second half of the 19th to the end of the first
half of the 20th century. An image of the
traditional clothing was formed by several
important factors (geographical and climatic
conditions, social status, financial abilities).
Traditional materials for the Slovak folk
costume production were linen, hemp, fur and
wool. Except for these, also imported materials
(cotton,silk) and textiles produced in factories
(brocades, soft cotton textiles or woolen cloth)
became popular.

9. The clothes were always divided by sex and age.
Among female clothes there was the lower part
more segmented than in the masculine lower
part. It consisted of several underskirts, rubáš (a
type of underwear), blouse or female shirt,
rukávce (a shirt with embroidered sleeves) and
skirt. The upper part consisted of upper skirt,
apron, scarf, bodice, short or long coats,
mentieka (a type of the coat) or fur coat. The
oldest type of wraparound leather shoes are
krpce. They symbolized the farmers, but after the
First World War they stopped to wear them.
Boots became a new type of the leather footwear.
Jewellery were also the significant accessory.

10. Čičmany
Village of Čičmany in Northern Slovakia
has a status of world’s first reservation of
folk architecture. Surrounded by
mountains the village is famous
especially for its traditional wooden
houses.The walls of these timber houses
are decorated with white geometrical
patterns, same shapes can be found on
the folk costumes of the villagers. More
than 130 houses belong to the historic
preservation area.

11. A little bit of traditions
Cold water and wicker whips for Easter
This holiday tradition dates back to the ninth century, when it was believed that dowsing women with
cold water would make them healthy for the upcoming spring season and ensure their fertility in the
year ahead. Men also hit the women with wicker sticks to ensure vitality. Today, it’s unlikely that young
men have this goal in mind when they receive permission to act like little demons for a day. Girls are
expected to give the boys a boiled egg, candy bar or money as a thanks for being soaked with cold
water.
Keeping fish in the bathtub before Christmas
This tradition came about because eating carp at Christmas is supposed to bring good luck, but since
they are bottom feeders, they taste better if kept in clean water in a tub for several days before eating.

12. Slovakia is very closely related to Czech Republic.
Political circumstances beginning nearly a
thousand years ago separated populations, but
Slovak and Czech are still mutually intelligible.
Our languages are similar so we understand each
other very well.
There are three main dialects in Slovakia,
corresponding to the western, central,
and eastern regions. It is said that the
pronunciation of particular sounds in the
western region is hard, while the dialect
of central Slovakia is said to be softer
sounding and was adopted historically as
the norm. It is common that we do not
understand each other.

13. Slovakia has good genes. World-famous people
with Slovak parents or grandparents include
Angelina Jolie, Audrey Hepburn, Andy Warhol,
Paul Newman, Jon Bon Jovi and Ivan Reitman.
Andy Warhol’s parents, for example, came from
Medzilaborce, an obscure Slovakian town,
which as a result became the unlikely home of
the world’s second-largest collection of his
works (after Pittsburg).
Slovakia is the world’s (joint) eighth
newest country
Slovakia and the Czech Republic have
been two separate nations since
January 1, 1993, after the Velvet
Revolution was followed by the
Velvet Divorce. The only newer
countries are Eritrea, Palau,
Timor-Leste, Montenegro, Serbia,
Kosovo and South Sudan.
Short term for main
international airport
of Slovakia is BTS.
Coincidence? Of
course it is.

14. Slovakia often gets confused
with Slovenia
“The only thing I know about
Slovakia is what I learned
first-hand from your foreign
minister, who came to Texas,”
George W. Bush once said.
Except he’d met the Slovenian
minister, not the Slovakian. In Slovakia, you can ride the
national rail system for free if you
meet the proper requirements.
This includes students, children,
and the elderly on a fixed income.
The capital city of
Slovakia, Bratislava, lies on
the borders of Austria and
Hungary. This makes it the
only capital city in the
world that borders two
countries.

15. Bridge of the Slovak National
Uprising is a road bridge over the
Danube in Bratislava, the capital of
Slovakia. It is the world's longest
bridge to have one pylon and one
cable-stayed plane. A special
attraction is the flying
saucer-shaped structure atop the
bridge's pylon, housing an
observation deck and a restaurant.
There is an attraction between the
Vrakuňa and Podunajské Biskupice
districts, which few people know
about. On a raised hill in the middle
of the park stands the structure of a
flying saucer. This non-traditional
work of art was built in the 1970s.

16. Question time
1. Which one is not the
bordering country of
Slovakia?
- Hungary
- Poland
- Ukraine
- Slovenia
3. Which colour is not on
slovak flag?
- blue
- white
- yellow
- red
2. What is the short
term for our airport?
- EXO
- BTS
- NCT

17. Question time
4. How many main
dialects are in
slovakia?
- two
- three
- four
6. What animal is not on
the nature slide?
- bear
- wolf
- beaver
5. Which of these
dishes is not
traditional for
Slovakia?
-funnel cake
-cabbage soup
-sausages

18. Question time
7. What symbolizes the
old shoes called krpce?
- farmers
- dancers
- students
9. What was the name
of that green alien?
-Bob
-Dave
-Brian
8. What was the name
of the village which
has the world’s first
reservation of folk
architecture?
- Bardejov
- Čičmany
- Galanta

19. resources
https://bratislava.dnes24.sk/neverite-na-ufo-v-bratislave-mozete-vidiet-dokonca-dve-257829
https://www.slovakia.com/facts/interesting/
https://factcity.com/20-super-fun-facts-about-slovakia/
https://www.slovakia.com/facts/
http://blog.timeforslovakia.com/10-interesting-facts-about-slovakia-3/
https://www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/Slovakia.html#ixzz6eXnDzeNK
https://theculturetrip.com/europe/slovakia/articles/8-traditions-only-slovaks-will-understand/
https://magnifique-brunette.blogspot.com/2015/12/traditional-folk-clothing-in-slovakia.html#:~:text=%20Traditional%20folk%
Zuzana Čaputová is the first Slovak female president - spectator.sme.sk
Slovenské nárečia a dialekty - nárečie.sk (narecie.sk)
Bratislava Airport - Wikipedia

20. Right answers
1. Slovenia
2. BTS
3. yellow
4. three
5. sausages
6. wolf
7. farmers
8. Čičmany
9. Dave

21. Thank you for your
attention
Eliška Mlynáriková Žofia Hüblerová