Carinthia (state)

Carinthia (German Kärnten, Slovenian Koroška) is a federal state or Bundesland, located in the south of Austria.

It covers an area of 9,536 km² with 559,404 inhabitants (2001).

It consist mostly of a basin inside the Alps, with the Carnian Mountains making up the border to Italy and Slovenia. The Tauern mountains divide it from Salzburg. To the East lies the state of Styria and it makes up a continuous valley with the eastern part of the Tirol to the West. Its lakes are a major tourist attraction. The main river is the Drau.

The capital is Klagenfurt (Slovenian Celovec). The next important town is Villach (Slovenian Beljak); these two towns are strongly linked economically. Other towns and villages include Malta.

The people are predominantly German-speaking with a unique (and easily recognizable) dialect. A Slovenian minority of about 15,000 people is concentrated in the southeast of the country.

The current governor (German: Landeshauptmann) is Jörg Haider of the Alliance for the Future of Austria.

The once-independent Duchy of Carinthia was historically part of the Holy Roman Empire until it was dissolved in 1806, then a crownland of Austria-Hungary. The Carinthian Plebiscite on October 10, 1920, determined the lines of division between what is today Austria and Slovenia.

Carinthia's main industries are tourism, electronics, engineering, forestry and agriculture. The multinational corporations Philips and Siemens have large operations there.

Carinthia has a continental climate, with hot and moderately wet summers and long harsh winters. In recent decades winters have been exceptionally arid. Average sun index is the highest in Austria. In autumn and winter temperature inversion often dominates the climate, characterised by air stillness, a dense fog covering the frosty valleys and trapping pollution to form a smog, while mild sunny weather obtains higher up in the foothills and mountains.

Tourist attractions

Major tourist attractions are Klagenfurt, the lakes Wörthersee (Slovenian Vrbsko jezero), Ossiachersee, Faaker See (Slov: Baško jezero), ski resorts Nassfeld / Hermagor (Slov: Šmohor), Bad Kleinkirchheim, Heiligenblut, Gurk cathedral, Hochosterwitz castle, the Grossglockner (Slov: Veliki Kleč) mountain and the Nockberge for alpine sport.

See also

• Slovenian Carinthia.

External links

• Official website of the Carinthian government (in German)
• Carinthia Travel Guide
• Kaernten.at, Tourism information, 360º Panoramas, Webcams and much more (in English, German, Italian, Dutch and other languages)