Žilina – anglicky

The town of Žilina is one of the most important and the largest  towns in Slovak Republic. It has almost 100 000 inhabitants. The town is located  at the confluence of the rivers Váh, Kysuce and Rajčanka in the middle of beautiful mountains. Today it is one of  Slovakia´s important industrial and communication centres. The town has also made a name for itself as a centre of tourism.

The first writing about the area dates from 1208. It was written in Latin. The territory of Žilina of that time is mentioned as Terra de Selinan. Slovaks living here acquired equal status with German colonists. The declaration – Privilegium pro Slavis – was edited by Ludwig from Anjou during his visit to our city.  Unique City Book can be considered the oldest and most important all Slovakia written document. The declaration of autonomy of the Slovak Republic which was an important event of our history, took place here

The heart of both, ancient and modern Žilina is St. Mary´s Square. It is the only square in Slovakia with the preserved arcades in the ground floor of burgher houses on all four sides of the square.  In the centre of it there is a column with statue of Virgin Mary.

There are several buildings in the square. But most dominant are  two tower  of St. Paul’s Church.  The present representative building is The Old Town Hall with bells which peal each hour. Another architectural monument of Žilina is the Parish Church of The Holy Trinity. This church together with balustrade, which offers beautiful view are dominant feature. Near it stands a separate Burian´s Tower. The Parish Stairs lead down to the Andrej Hlinka´s Square and then to the main commercial centre – The National Avenue.

The oldest architectural building  is church of St. Stephen, the King.

There are a lot of castles near Žilina. At the confluence of the Váh and  the Kysucea there can by found historical monuments called Budatín castle. It is famous for its unique exhibition of articles made of wire.

Old Castle and Castle of Strečno towering on the bank of the Váh. Next Lietava Castle – one of the largest of Slovakia´s castles. Its ruins offer a nice view over the surrounding area. And we must mention also Lietava castle and  Castle of Hričov

Near Žilina there are many places attractive for visitors. It is called the paradise of tourists.

To the northwest of the town lies  Malá Fatra national park. The most famous part of Malá Fatra is beautiful Vrátna Valley which is famous centre of summer and winter tourism, skiing and recreation. Terchová is the birth place of the folk hero Jánošík.

Súľovské vrchy with  Dam of Hričov, Rajecká dolina, Kunerad castle Čičmianska dolina are interesting too. Rajecké Teplice are the spa town.  Spa has been recently rebuilt. It is a pleasant place for rest. Near spa there is a lake with a restaurant where offer special food cooked of fish.

Žilina is the cultural, educational, economic centre of northwestern Slovakia. There are a lot of industry and companies. The most important are chemical, textile and paper industry. The construction of railroads  was  very important  for the development of the city.  Žilina became in important railway crossway in the area. There are a lot of industry and construction companies.. It is the seat of the University of Žilina, several secondary schools  and Považská gallery. There are also Town theatre, Puppet theatre, cinemas and amphitheatre.  Sports opportunity offers swimming pool, Hall of Sports, Winter stadium. Very important is also dam of Žilina.

A number of famous people, writers and artists lived and worked in Žilina

For example doctor and writer Dušan Makovický, the artist ľudovít Fulla and painter Vincent Hložník.