Slovakia General Info

Slovakia lies in the Central Europe. The bordering countries are Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine, Hungary and Austria. Slovakia covers 49 035 sq kilometers and the population of Slovakia is 5 389 180 inhabitants. The density of population is 109 per sq kilometer. The majority of the inhabitants of Slovakia are ethnically Slovak, including 85.8% of the overall population of Slovakia. Hungarians are the largest ethnic minority including 9.7%. Other ethnic groups include Roma with 1.7%, Ukrainians with 1%, and other ethnical groups of 1.8%.

Slovakia is a member state of the European Union since 1 May 2004, NATO since 29 March 2004, a member of the United Nations since 1993 and Schengen Agreement since 21 December 2007.

Slovakia Flag	Slovakia State Symbol	Slovakia Seal

Slovak Anthem

Nad Tatrou sa blýska, hromy divo bijú,
Zastavme ich, bratia,
veď sa ony stratia,
Slováci ožijú.

To Slovensko naše posiaľ tvrdo spalo,
ale blesky hromu
vzbudzujú ho k tomu,
aby sa prebralo.

Official Language in Slovakia

The official language in Slovakia is Slovak language and is spoken by majority of people. As 10% of inhabitants are of Hungarian nationality there are areas in Slovakia where people speak mostly Hungarian. The regions include especially South parts around Komárno, Dunajská Streda, Šala, Štúrovo and Nové Zámky.

Primary education language in Slovakia is Slovak. Students learn foreign languages especially English and German, but also Spanish, French or Italian. Till 1989 the first foreign language in Slovak schools was Russian language and therefore older people are usually fluent in Russian but have problems communicating in other foreign languages. Slovak language belongs to the group of Slavic languages and similar languages include Croatian, Polish, Czech, Ukraine and Russian languages. If you wish to learn more about Slovak language and learn basic Slovak vocabulary, please visit Slovak language pages and basic Slovak vocabulary. 

Slovak Currency

The official currency in Slovakia is Slovak Koruna:

Slovak koruna (SKK)

1 SKK = 100 haliers

As Slovakia is a part of European Union and is going to accept EURO currency from 2009, in many supermarkets or shopping centres you can use EURO. In every shopping centre and supermarket you can find ATMs and exchange office or bank. Credit cards and debut cards are widely used in most shops in Slovakia including Visa, Maestro or Master card.

Time zone

Slovakia is lies in the Central European Time Zone (CET) which is 1 hour ahead of the Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) with summer time 2 hours ahead of UTC. Time changes into Summer time in April and in October it changes back to CET or Winter time.

Electricity

In Slovakia, voltage is 220V/50Hz.
Electric sockets are of Type E of two pin wih earth connector.
Plugs: Type E of two pin wih earth connector. Widely spread are also or tyep C plugs of two pin connectors.  

Drinking water

In all parts of Slovakia there is drinking water. Water coming from the tabs in households, restaurants or hotels is drinking and can be used for cooking as well as for drinking. In public places, water is usually signed whether drinking water (pitná voda) or non-drinking water (úžitková voda) intended for washing your hands only.

Public Holidays in Slovakia

1 January – Day of the Establishment of the Slovak Republic
6 January – Epiphany (The Three Magi and Christmas Day of Orthododox Christians)
March, April- Good Friday
March, April - Easter Monday
1 May - Labour Day
8 May - Day of victory over fascism
5 July - St. Cyril and Methodius Day
29 August - Slovak National Uprising anniversary
1 September - Day of the Constitution of the Slovak Republic
15 September - Day of Our Lady of Sorrows, patron saint of Slovakia
1 November - All Saints’ Day
17 November - Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day
24 December - Christmas Eve
25 December - Christmas Day
26 December - St. Stephen's Day