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Nitra (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in southwestern Slovakia, situated at the foot of the Zobor in the Nitra River Valley about northeast of the country's capital, Bratislava. With a population of about 78,353, it is the fifth-largest city in Slovakia. Nitra stands on varied terrain, which features both rolling hills and vast plains, particularly to the south. Nitra is one of the oldest cities in Slovakia. It was the center of the Principality of Nitra, a duchy of great historic significance. Today, the city serves as the administrative center of Nitra Region ( kraj) and Nitra District ( okres). Nitra is the agricultural capital of Slovakia due to its long tradition of farming, favorable climate, and geography.
The first written records also contain the suffix -ava ( Nitrava). Particularly in older literature, the suffix is interpreted as deriving from the Proto-Germanic root *ahwa 'water'. However, the suffix -ava can also be found in numerous toponyms with a clearly Slavic origin and without any relationship to rivers. The existence of the hydronym Nitrava remains hypothetical and all versions with the suffix are related to a location, not a river. Thus, the form Nitrava can refer to a larger property or territory around the Nitra River. Both forms were probably used concurrently and were already recorded in the 9th century (Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum: in loco vocata Nitraua, but in 880 ecclesie Nitrensis).
The name in different languages includes , (), and and Nyitria.
The people of Madarovce culture had built the first fortification on Nitra Castle by around 1,600 BCE. In the Iron Age, a large hillfort was built on Zobor Hill and additional smaller hillforts on the Lupka Hill and in Dražovce (700-500 BCE). Several Celtic settlements are known from the 5th-1st centuries. The Celts minted silver known as coins of the Nitra type and probably also built a hillfort in the locality Na Vŕšku. In the Roman period (1st-4th centuries CE), the Germanic tribe of Quadi settled in the area, which is also mentioned as their possible capital (396 CE). The largest Germanic settlement from the migration period in the territory of modern-day Slovakia was unearthed in Nitra-Párovské Háje.
The importance of Nitra for the Slavs began to grow in the 8th century, and thereafter it evolved to the administrative centre of the wider region. Nitra became the center of the Principality of Nitra. Three of the eleven extant copies of the Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum contain a reference to a church consecrated for Pribina in his domain called Nitrava. The problem of Pribina's church and the dating of this event was addressed by numerous scholars; most of them do not doubt the reliability of the information and associate this event with Nitra. In 833, Pribina was ousted by the Moravian prince Mojmír I and both regions were united into the early medieval empire of Great Moravia.
In the 9th century, Nitra was one of the largest agglomerations in Central Europe. The agglomeration consisted of fortified centres and more than twenty non-fortified villages. It spread out on a territory exceeding the present town. The Slavs, Slovak ancestors, built a large castle on an area of . on Castle Hill,. Further important locations, Na vŕšku and Martinský Vrch, were probably also fortified. Other hills, some of them fortified already in prehistoric times, had a guarding and refuge function. Surrounding villages were used as an agricultural hinterland for the princely retinue and for specialised production (jewellery production, forges, pottery kilns, etc.). More than forty burial sites are documented on 2. In all burial sites, exclusively inhumation rite (compliant with Christian belief) was practised, instead of cremation, typical for earlier Slavs. The known necropolises with military equipment around the perimeter of the agglomeration probably belonged to the settlements guarding access roads to the centre.
The city reached its height during the reign of Svätopluk I. During his rule, the first known Christian Diocese in Slovakia was established in Nitra in 880 (with Wiching as the bishop). The question of the origin of the Monastery of St. Hippolytus (the oldest Benedictine Monastery in Kingdom of Hungary) has not been sufficiently answered yet. Even if findings of ceramics documented a settlement in the location, its character is unclear.
Political affiliation of the territory in the 10th and the early 11th century is unclearthe influence of the Hungarian Árpáds, the Czech Přemyslids, and the Polish Piast dynasty is being considered. Finally, Nitra became an integral part of the Kingdom of Hungary and the seat of several Árpáds princes. The town survived the invasion of Mongols in 1241. In 1248, Béla IV gave Nitra the privileges of a free royal town. In 1271–1272, Nitra was heavily damaged by the Czech king Ottakar II. The raids also damaged the bishop's property and, therefore, as compensation, Nitra was put under his administration in 1288. The town lost its royal privileges, and in the next centuries, it was unable to recover, mainly because of frequent military conflicts.
The town became a target of Hussite attacks in the 15th century, at the time defended by Ispán of Nitra county, Stibor of Stiboricz, and later his son Stibor de Beckov. After the Hungarian defeat at the Battle of Mohács in 1526 and subsequent Ottoman advances into the Hungarian territory, Nitra was under threat of Ottoman attacks. In 1563, the town became the seat of the Captaincy of Lower Hungary. The Turkish forces failed to capture the castle three times before they conquered it in 1663. Habsburg troops under Jean-Louis Raduit de Souches recaptured it on 2 May 1664 before the Battle of Léva. The Turks returned at the start of the Great Turkish War and held the town until 1685. The town was also affected by anti-Habsburg uprisings, from Stephen Bocskay and Gabriel Bethlen uprisings in the 17th century to the Kuruc uprisings from 1703 to 1711, and the town burned down in 1708 as a result of fights. It was renovated in the 18th century in the Baroque style. As a consequence of the Revolutions of 1848, Nitra was awarded an independent self-government for the first time since 1288 and became independent from the Diocese of Nitra and its bishops. Still an agricultural and handicraft town, Nitra started to industrialize. Before World War I, a distillery, an agricultural machinery factory, a brewery, a dairy, and other works were established. The first indirect connection to a railway was a road built in 1850 to the closest station in Trnovec nad Váhom. The railway arrived in Nitra in 1876, when a connection from Šurany was built. Later, lines were built to Topoľčany, Hlohovec and Nové Zámky. As a part of Magyarization, from 1883 to 1919, Nitra was the seat of the Upper Hungarian Teaching Association (FEMKE), a government-sponsored association whose main goal was to apply Magyarization policies on Slovaks. Kislexikon online encyclopedia: Felvidéki Magyar Közművelődési Egyesülete
After the break-up of Czechoslovakia in 1939, Nitra became a part of the First Slovak Republic and once again a seat of Nitra county until 1945. The period of the First Slovak Republic was tragic for the Jewish population of Nitra, which was first victimized by the anti-Jewish law and then mostly exterminated in German concentration camps (90% of Jewish citizens). The city was liberated by the Soviet Red Army in 1945, for only three years of restored democracy in Czechoslovakia.
Slovak historians believe that Nitra is the location of the oldest Slovak Jewish community. Nitra JVL
The Communist period from 1948 to 1989 was marked by the oppression of the Catholic church, which had traditionally had a strong presence in Nitra. Catholic seminaries, monasteries, and other properties were nationalized and converted to museums, schools, and offices. This period experienced extensive growth, the building of housing projects, and the annexation of formerly independent villages. After the Velvet Revolution of 1989 and dissolution of Czechoslovakia, Nitra became part of newly established Slovakia and became the seat of the Nitra Region in 1996.
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Notable religious structures located in Nitra are St. Emmeram's Cathedral in Nitra castle, a Piarists church of St. Ladislaus and the adjacent monastery. The oldest church of the city is the Saint Stephen church, which was built in the 11th-12th century, although the foundation of the building was constructed in the 9th century.
The monastery on Piaristicka street was founded in the 13th-14th century. Its dominant church of St. Ladislaus was later destroyed by a fire and remodelled in 1742–1748 in baroque style. Two towers were also added. The main altar has a statue ornamentation with the portraits of Saint Stephen and Ladislaus I of Hungary. The interior was renovated in 1940, and three modern depicting themes from the Slovak history of Nitra were created.
The old town (Staré Mesto) is dominated by the castle ( Hrad), which is one of the most interesting ancient structures in Slovakia. Archaeological findings indicate that a large fortified castle had already stood here at the time of Samo's Empire, in the seventh century. Archaeological findings prove the existence of a church from the ninth century beneath the more recent Gothic St. Emmeram's Cathedral. The construction of the stone castle began during the 9th century during the reign of the Prince of Nitra Svätopluk. The castle currently serves as the seat of one of Roman Catholic bishoprics in Slovakia, which was founded in 880 as the first bishopric of western and eastern Slavs, which continued its existence since then, with a break from the 10th century until around 1110.
The Dražovce church is a remarkable example of the early Romanesque architecture.
The Nitra Synagogue was built in 1908-1911 for the Neolog Judaism. It was designed by Lipót (Leopold) Baumhorn (1860–1932), the prolific Budapest-based synagogue architect. Located in a narrow lane, the building is typical of Baumhorn's style. A mélange of Moorish, Byzantine, and Art Nouveau elements, it faces the street with a two-tower façade. The sanctuary is a domed hall supported by four pillars that also support the Ezrat Nashim. After more than a decade of restoration by the municipality of Nitra, the building is now used as a center for cultural activities. The women's gallery houses "The Fate of Slovak Jews" – Slovakia's national Holocaust memorial exhibition. The Nitra Synagogue serves as a permanent exhibition space for graphic works by the Nitra-born Israeli artist Shraga Weil. Slovak Jewish Heritage , an NGO web page
The most powerful medium wave transmitter of Slovakia, running on 1098 kHz , was situated in Nitra at Velke Kostolany until recently. This transmitter could broadcast throughout all of Europe at night. Since 2003, however, it has operated on lower output to save energy costs and has transmitted regional programming only.
The Virgin Mary's mission house at Calvary Hill was built in 1765 for the Spanish order of Nazarens. They were taking care of the church and the pilgrims. Later, the building served as an orphanage. In 1878-85, this building was rebuilt in the Novoromanesque style, and in 1925, a new floor was added to the building. The building as we know it today is a work of the Slovak architect M. M. Harminec. Nowadays, the whole building is the mission house of The Divine Word Society.[4] The Mission museum of nations and cultures is located in this building.
The flight operator Aero Slovakia has its head office on the grounds of Nitra Airport." About ." Aero Slovakia. Retrieved on 3 March 2010.
The city is divided into 13 urban districts (boroughs): Dolné Krškany, Horné Krškany, Staré Mesto, Čermáň, Klokočina, Diely, Párovské Háje, Kynek, Mlynárce, Zobor, Dražovce, Chrenová, and Janíkovce.
Nitra used to be the site of the Jewish school Yeshiva of Nitra, the last surviving yeshiva in occupied Europe during World War II, associated with famous rabbis Chaim Michael Dov Weissmandl and Shmuel Dovid Ungar. The yeshiva was moved to Mount Kisco, New York, US, after the Second World War, where it still exists.
The Nitra railway station forms part of the railway line between Nové Zámky/Šurany and Prievidza, which passes through Nitra, but is not a main line. There is a railway junction a short distance north of the town, connecting the city with Leopoldov, Topoľčany, and Radošina. Nitra has one train connection with Prague via Piešťany, Trenčín, Uherský Brod, Olomouc and Pardubice. This connection is operated by Arriva (AEx).
Nitra also has its own recreational airfield; it hosts the factory of the Aeropro Eurofox ultralight. However, the closest international airport is Bratislava Airport.
Local public transport is based on buses with 28 lines, covering the whole city, as well as extending to the neighbouring municipalities of Lužianky, Nitrianske Hrnčiarovce, Štitáre, Ivanka pri Nitre and Branč (as of April 2016).
There are two theaters in Nitra: the Andrej Bagar Theatre (Divadlo Andreja Bagara) and the Old Theatre of Karol Spišák (Staré Divadlo Karola Spišáka) staredivadlo.sk (Karol Spišák Old Theatre). The Nitra Amphitheater is one of the largest in Slovakia.
Nitra's main arts museum is the Nitra Gallery. nitrianskagaleria.sk Another popular gallery is The Foyer Gallery, a part of the Old Theatre of Karol Spišák. A permanent exhibition of prestigious Jewish painter Shraga Weil is installed in the Exhibition Hall of the Nitra Synagogue.
Nitra is the home town of popular Slovak music bands Gladiátor, Horkýže Slíže, Desmod, Zoči Voči and Borra.
Nitra hosted the final tournament of the 2019 rink bandy league.
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