Slovenia is situated at the crossroads of central and southeast Europe, touching the Alps and bordering the Adriatic Sea. The Alps—including the Julian Alps, the Kamnik-Savinja Alps and the Karawank chain, as well as the Pohorje massif—dominate northern Slovenia along its long border to Austria. Slovenia's Adriatic coastline stretches approximately 47 km (29 mi) from Italy to Croatia. Its part south of Sava river belongs to Balkan peninsula – Balkans.
Istria, formerly Histria (Latin), Ἴστρια, is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Kvarner Gulf. It is shared by three countries: Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy. Croatia encapsulates most of the Istrian peninsula with its Istria County.
Koper is the fifth largest city in Slovenia. Located in the Istrian region in the southwestern part of the country, approximately five kilometres south of the border with Italy and 20 kilometres from Trieste, Koper is the largest coastal city in the country. It is bordered by the satellite towns of Izola and Ankaran. With a unique ecology and biodiversity, it is considered an important natural resource. The city's Port of Koper is the major contributor to the economy of the Municipality of Koper. With only one percent of Slovenia having a coastline, the influence that the Port of Koper also has on tourism was a factor in Ankaran deciding to leave the municipality in a referendum in 2011 to establish its own. The city is a destination for a number of Mediterranean cruising lines. Koper is the main urban centre of the Slovenian Istria, with a population of about 25,000. Ales Brzan is the current mayor, serving since 2018.
Piran is a town in southwestern Slovenia on the Gulf of Piran on the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the three major towns of Slovenian Istria. The town is known for its medieval architecture, with narrow streets and compact houses. Piran is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Piran and one of Slovenia's major tourist attractions. Until the mid-20th century, Italian was the dominant language, but it was replaced by Slovene following the forced expulsion of Italians after World War II.
The Gulf of Trieste is a very shallow bay of the Adriatic Sea, in the extreme northern part of the Adriatic Sea. It is part of the Gulf of Venice and is shared by Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. It is closed to the south by the peninsula of Istria, the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea, shared between Croatia and Slovenia. The entire Slovenian sea is part of the Gulf of Trieste.
The Gulf of Venice is a gulf that borders modern-day Italy, Slovenia and Croatia; it is at the north of the Adriatic Sea between the delta of the Po River in Northern Italy and the Istria peninsula in Croatia.
The Gulf of Piran or Piran Bay is located in the northern part of the Adriatic Sea, and is a part of the southernmost tip of the Gulf of Trieste.
The Slovene Littoral is one of the five traditional regions of Slovenia. Its name recalls the former Austrian Littoral, the Habsburg possessions on the upper Adriatic coast, of which the Slovene Littoral was part.
Muggia is an Italian town and comune in the extreme south-east of the Province of Trieste in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia on the border with Slovenia. Lying on the eastern flank of the Gulf of Trieste in the northern Adriatic Sea, Muggia is the only Italian port town in Istria. The town's architecture is marked by its Venetian and Austrian history, and its harbour hosts a modern 500-berth marina for yachts.
San Dorligo della Valle is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Trieste in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 4 kilometres southeast of Trieste, on the border with Slovenia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 6,019 and an area of 24.5 square kilometres (9.5 sq mi).
The Italian language is an officially recognized minority language in Slovenia, along with Hungarian. Around 3,700 Slovenian citizens speak Italian as their mother tongue. Italian has a strong presence in Slovenia, both historical and current. An estimated 15% of Slovenians speak Italian as a second language, which is one of the highest percentages in the European Union.
The Slovene lands or Slovenian lands is the historical denomination for the territories in Central and Southern Europe where people primarily spoke Slovene. The Slovene lands were part of the Illyrian provinces, the Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary. They encompassed Carniola, southern part of Carinthia, southern part of Styria, Istria, Gorizia and Gradisca, Trieste, and Prekmurje. Their territory more or less corresponds to modern Slovenia and the adjacent territories in Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia, where autochthonous Slovene minorities live. In the areas where present-day Slovenia borders to neighboring countries, they were never homogeneously ethnically Slovene.
The Dragonja is a 30-kilometre (19 mi) long river in the northern part of the Istrian peninsula. It is a meandering river with a very branched basin and a small quantity of water. It has a pluvial regime and often dries up in summer. It features very diverse living environments and is home to a number of animal and plant species. The Dragonja has been a matter of a territorial dispute between Croatia and Slovenia, with its lowest portion de facto the border of the two countries.
Ankaran is a town in the Municipality of Ankaran, located near the border with Italy, in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is less than 5 km from the Italian town of Muggia near Trieste, about 2.5 km from the Italian-Slovenian border, 6.5 km from Koper, and 33 km from the nearest Croatian town, Buje. In the entire municipality both Slovenian and Italian are official languages.
Plavje is a village in the City Municipality of Koper in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located on the northernmost edge of the Istrian peninsula, on the border with Italy, on a small hill overlooking the Gulf of Trieste.
Istrian Italians are an ethnic group from the Adriatic region of Istria in modern northwestern Croatia and southwestern Slovenia. Istrian Italians descend from the original Latinized population of Roman Histria, from the Venetian-speaking settlers who colonized the region during the time of the Republic of Venice, and from the local South Slavic people who culturally assimilated.
Slovene Istria is a region in southwest Slovenia. It comprises the northern part of the Istrian peninsula, and it is part of the wider geographical-historical region known as the Slovene Littoral. Its largest urban center is Koper. Other large settlements are Izola, Piran, and Portorož. The entire region has around 120 settlements. In its coastal area, both Slovene and Italian are official languages.
The Slovene Riviera is the coastline of Slovenia, located on the Gulf of Trieste, by the Adriatic Sea. It is part of the Istrian peninsula and is 46.6 km long. The region comprises the towns of Koper and Piran with Portorož, and the municipality of Izola. It is a seaside tourist destination, with a vibrant multiethnic Slovenian and Italian heritage.
Istria is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner. It is shared by three countries: Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy.
The Municipality of Piran is a municipality in the traditional region of the Littoral in southwestern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Piran. Piran became a municipality in 1994.
