Wikijunior:Europe/Slovenia
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Slovenia is a small country in central and southern Europe. It shares borders with Italy, Austria, Austria and Croatia. The capital city is Ljubljana. Other big cities are Maribor (in the east) and Koper (on the coast, next to the Italian border).
[edit] Slovenia's History
Long ago Slovenia was part of the Roman Empire, Austria-Hungary and the Kingdom of Serbs (renamed later as Yugoslavia). Slovenia became an independent country in 1991 after a 10 day war with the Yugoslavian Army and joined the European Union in 2004. Slovenia started using the Euro as its currency on January 1st, 2007.
[edit] Slovenia's Geography
Slovenia is very small but a land of contrasts. The coastal regions have a Mediterranean climate and the inland areas have a continental and alpine climate. The highest mountain in Slovenia is Triglav (2,864m). Almost half of the land is covered by forests.
[edit] Slovenia's People
The majority of people living in Slovenia speak Slovenian as their native language. There are sizable communities of Italian and Hungarian speakers close to the borders with Hungary and Italy. English and German are widely spoken and many older Slovenes have a knowledge of Serbian and often Russian too. The Slovenian language is also spoken in the Trieste area of Italy. The literacy rate in Slovenia is about 100 percent. The current life expectancy of the people of Slovenia is around 76 years of age.
