View source for Levoča

{{short description|Town in Slovakia}}
{{Infobox Slovak place
| name                    = Levoča
| other_name              = 
| settlement_type         = [[List of municipalities and towns in Slovakia|Municipality]]
<!-- images, nickname, motto -->
| image_skyline           = Leutschau - Rathaus und Dom.jpg
| image_caption           = [[Basilica of St. James, Levoča|Basilica of St. James]] and Old Town Hall
| image_flag              = Levoca-levoca-flag.svg
| image_shield            = Coat of Arms of Levoča.svg
<!-- location -->
| subdivision_type1       = [[Regions of Slovakia|Region]]
| subdivision_name1       = {{flag|Prešov Region}}
| subdivision_type2       = [[Districts of Slovakia|District]]
| subdivision_name2       = [[Levoča District]]
<!-- maps and coordinates -->
| pushpin_map             = Slovakia Prešov Region#Slovakia
| pushpin_relief          = 1
| pushpin_map_caption     = Location of Levoča in the [[Prešov Region]]##Location of Levoča in [[Slovakia]]
| coordinates             = {{coord|49.03|N|20.59|E|region:SK|display=inline,title}}
<!-- government -->
| leader_title            = Mayor
| leader_name             = Miroslav Vilkovský (elected November 2018)
| leader_party            = 
<!-- established -->
| established_title       = First mentioned
| established_date        = 1249
<!-- elevation -->
| elevation_footnotes     = <ref name="base_info">{{Cite web |url=http://datacube.statistics.sk/#!/view/sk/VBD_SK_WIN/om5001rr/v_om5001rr_00_00_00_sk |title=Základná charakteristika |language=sk |date=2015-04-17 |website=www.statistics.sk |publisher= Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic|access-date=2022-03-31}}</ref>
| elevation_m             = 628
<!-- postal codes, area code -->
| postal_code_type        = Postal code
| postal_code             = 540 1<ref name="base_info"/>
| area_code               = +421 53<ref name="base_info"/>
|registration_plate       = LE
<!-- website, footnotes -->
| website                 = {{URL|https://www.levoca.sk/}}
}}

[[File:Stspirittower.jpg|right|thumb|Tower of the Church of the Holy Spirit]]

'''Levoča''' ({{Audio|Sk-Levoča.ogg|pronunciation}}; {{langx|hu|Lőcse}}; {{langx|rue|Левоча}})
is the principal town of [[Levoča District]] in the [[Prešov Region]] of eastern [[Slovakia]], with a population of 14,256. The town has a historic center with a well-preserved town wall, a [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] church with the tallest wooden [[altar]] in the world, carved by [[Master Pavol of Levoča]], and many other Renaissance buildings.

On 28 June 2009, Levoča was added by [[UNESCO]] to its [[World Heritage List]].<ref>[https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/534 UNESCO Newswebsite]</ref>

==Geography==
{{Slovak municipality/geo|628|<ref name="base_info"/>}}

It is located in the northern part of the Hornád Basin at the foothills of the Levoča Hills, at the stream ''Levočský potok'', a tributary of [[Hornád]]. [[Poprad]] is {{convert|25|km|mi|0|abbr=off}} away to the west, [[Prešov]] {{convert|50|km|mi|0|abbr=in}} to the east, [[Košice]] {{convert|90|km|mi|0|abbr=in}} to the southeast and [[Bratislava]] {{convert|370|km|mi|0|abbr=on}} to the southwest.
Nearby settlements include:
*Levočská Dolina (=English: Levoča Valley). About {{convert|4|km|0|abbr=on}} out of town, on the way to Závada.
*Levočské Lúky (=English: Levoča Fields). Settlement on the road to Spišska Nová Ves.
*Závada. Village in the hills above Levočská Dolina.

==Population==
{{historical population|1970|9502|1980|11097|1991|12678|2001|14366|2011|14830|2021|14256|align=right|cols=1|source=Censuses<ref>{{cite web |title=Statistical lexikon of municipalities 1970-2011|url=https://slovak.statistics.sk/wps/wcm/connect/cd33d897-7314-41d0-a12b-a95e537d7a39/Statisticky_lexikon_obci_Slovenskej_republiky_2011.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy&CVID=kRHTpsy|language=sk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Census 2021 - Population - Basic results|url=https://www.scitanie.sk/obyvatelia/zakladne-vysledky/pocet-obyvatelov/|publisher=Statistical Office of the Slovak Republic|date=2021-01-01}}</ref>}}
{{Slovak municipality|pop}}

It has a [[population]] of {{Slovak municipality|p}} people (31 December {{Slovak municipality|y}}).{{Slovak municipality|P}}

=== Ethnicity ===
{{Slovak municipality|etno}}

=== Religion ===
{{Slovak municipality|relig}}

==Etymology==
The name is of Slovak origin and belongs to the oldest recorded Slovak settlement names in [[Spiš]].<ref>{{cite book | editor1-first = Martin | editor1-last = Štefánik | editor2-first = Ján | editor2-last = Lukačka | title = Lexikón stredovekých miest na Slovensku | trans-title = Lexicon of Medieval Towns in Slovakia | page = 252 | publisher = Historický ústav SAV | location = Bratislava | year = 2010 | isbn = 978-80-89396-11-5 | language = sk | url = http://www.forumhistoriae.sk/e_kniznica/Lexikon-stredovekych-miest.pdf | access-date = 2016-11-06 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140302114716/http://www.forumhistoriae.sk/e_kniznica/Lexikon-stredovekych-miest.pdf | archive-date = 2014-03-02 | url-status = dead }}</ref> {{refn|Below is a listing of names by which the town of Levoča has been known or recorded. The names were not necessarily at any time mutually exclusive, and often reflect minor linguistic differences:<ref>''Vlastivedný  Slovník Obcí na Slovensku'', VEDA,  vydavateľstvo Slovenskej akadémie vied, Bratislava 1978.</ref><ref>Milan Majtán (1998). ''Názvy Obcí  Slovenskej republiky (Vývin v rokoch 1773-1997)'',  VEDA, vydavateľstvo Slovenskej akadémie vied, Bratislava, {{ISBN|80-224-0530-2}}.</ref>
*1249: Leucha
*1268: Lyucha
*1271: Lewcha
*1277: Lyucha
*1284: Leuche, Lyuche, Leiuche
*1408: Lewscen
*1479: Lewcsouia
*1497: Leutschaw
*1773: Lewucža
*1786: Lewoče, Lőcse (Hungarian), Leutschau (German), Leuchovia (Latin), Leutschovia, Leutsaria
*1808: Leutsovia, Lőcse, Leutschau, Lewoča
*1863 – 1913: official name: Lőcse
*since 1918: official name: Levoča|group=n}}It was originally the name of the stream Lěvoča, a tributary of the river [[Hornád]] (present-day Levočský potok). The name probably derived from the adjective ''lěva'' (left, a left tributary); the linguist [[Rudolf Krajčovič]] has also suggested as an origin the word ''lěvoča'' meaning "regularly flooded area”.<ref>{{cite journal | first = Jaromír | last = Krško | title =  Lexikálne východiská starej slovenskej hydronymie z povodia Hornádu v slovanskom kontexte | trans-title = Lexical origin of the old Slovak hydronymy from the Hornád river basin in the Slavonic context | journal = Slavica Slovaca | publisher = Slavistický ústav Jána Stanislava SAV | year = 2015 | issue = 1 | page = 10 | language = sk | url = http://www.slavu.sav.sk/casopisy/slavica/2015_01/2015_1.pdf}}</ref>

== History ==
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2024}}
[[File:Levoca11Slovakia85.JPG|right|thumb|"Cage of Shame", punishment cage outside the old Town Hall]]
Levoča is located in the historical region of [[Spiš]], which was inhabited as early as the [[Stone Age]]. In the 11th century, this region was conquered and, subsequently, became part of the [[Kingdom of Hungary]] and remained such until 1918. After the [[Mongol]] invasions of 1241/1242, the area was also settled by [[Carpathian Germans|Germans]] (later known as [[Zipser Germans]]). The town became the capital of the Association of Spiš Germans, with a form of self-rule within the Kingdom of Hungary. The oldest written reference to the city of Levoča dates back to 1249. In 1317, Levoča (at that time generally known by the [[German language|German]] name of Leutschau - see Chronology below for lists of changing names) received the status of a royal town. In 1321, a wide-ranging right was granted, enticing merchants, craftsmen, and mine owners to settle in this town.

In the 15th century, the town, located on an intersection of trade routes between Poland and Hungary, became a rich center of commerce. It exported iron, copper, furs, leather, corn, and wine. At the same time, the town became an important cultural centre. The English humanist [[Leonard Cox]] taught around 1520 in a school in Levoča. The bookseller Brewer from [[Wittenberg]] transformed his bookstore into a prolific printing plant that lasted for 150 years. Finally, one of the best-known medieval woodcarvers [[Master Pavol of Levoča]] settled here.

The town kept this cultural and economic status until the end of the 16th century, despite two damaging fires: the first in 1550 destroyed nearly all of the [[Gothic architecture]] and another in 1599. In this period of prosperity, several churches were built, and the town had a school, library, pharmacy, and physicians. There was a [[printing press]] as early as 1624. Levoča was a center of the [[Protestant Reformation]]. The town started to decline during the anti-[[Habsburg]] uprisings in the 17th century.

In a lurid sequence of events in 1700, the mayor of the town was accidentally wounded by a local nobleman during a hunt, generating a series of revenge attacks, finally resulting in the murder of the mayor, Karol Kramler, a [[Ethnic Germans|Saxon]] magistrate. The mayor's arm was then cut off, embalmed, and preserved in the town hall as a call to further revenge. This became the subject of a [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] novel about the town, ''[[The Black City]]'', by the writer [[Kálmán Mikszáth]].<ref>Jan Lácika, ''Spiš'', 1999, p. 57</ref>

At the southern end of the main square, the [[Evangelical Church, Levoča]] was constructed from 1823 onwards, and consecrated in 1832. It replaced an earlier [[articular church]] outside the walls of the city.<ref>Jan Lácika, ''Spiš'', 1999, p. 60</ref>

The economic importance of the town was diminished in 1871 when the important new [[Košice–Bohumín Railway]] was built just {{convert|8|km|mi|abbr=on}} to the south, bypassing Levoča and going through the nearby town of Spišská Nová Ves. Later, in 1892, only [[Spišská Nová Ves–Levoča railway|a spur line]] was built from [[Spišská Nová Ves railway station]] to Levoča. Before the establishment of independent [[Czechoslovakia]] in 1918, Levoča was part of [[Szepes County]] within the [[Kingdom of Hungary]]. From 1939 to 1945, it was part of the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]]. On 27 January 1945, the [[1st Czechoslovak Army Corps in the Soviet Union|1st Czechoslovak Army Corps]] dislodged the [[Wehrmacht]] and the [[Royal Hungarian Army|Hungarian Army]] from Levoča, and it was once again part of Czechoslovakia. It has been part of independent [[Slovakia]] since 1993.

On July 3, 1995, Levoča was visited by [[Pope John Paul II]]. He celebrated a [[Mass in the Catholic Church|Mass]] for 650,000 worshippers at the traditional pilgrim site of [[Basilica of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Levoča|Mariánska hora]], a hill about {{convert|2|km|0|abbr=off}} north of Levoča with views of the town.

==Historical features==
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2024}}
The old town is picturesquely sited and still surrounded by most of its ancient walls. In associating the town with [[Spiš Castle]] and [[Žehra]] in June 2009 as the renamed [[World Heritage Site]] of “Levoča, Spišský Hrad, and the Associated Cultural Monuments”, [[UNESCO]] cites the town's historic center, its fortifications, and the works of [[Master Paul of Levoča]] preserved in the town.

The main entrance to the old town is via the monumental ''[[Košice]] Gate'' (15th century), behind which is located the ornate baroque Church of the Holy Spirit and the New [[Franciscan|Minorite]] Monastery ({{circa|1750}}).

The town square (''Námestie Majstra Pavla'' - Master Paul's Square) boasts three major monuments; the quaint [[Old Town Hall (Levoča)|Old Town Hall]] (15th-17th century) which now contains a museum, the domed Evangelical Lutheran Church (1837) and the 14th century of [[Basilica of St. James, Levoča|Basilica of St. James]] (in [[Slovak language|Slovak]]: ''Bazilika svätého Jakuba'', often mistakenly referred to in English as St. Jacob's). It houses a magnificently carved and painted wooden [[Gothic art|Gothic]] [[Altar#Catholic Church|altar]], the tallest in the world, ({{convert|18.62|m|2|abbr=on|lk=out}}), created by [[Master Paul of Levoča|Master Paul]] around 1520. The square is very well-preserved (despite one or two modern incursions) and contains several striking buildings which were the townhouses of the local nobility in the late Middle Ages. Also notable in the square is the wrought iron “Cage of Shame”, dating back to the 17th century, used for public punishment of miscreants. A plaque on one of the houses records the printing and publication in the town of the most famous work of [[Comenius]], the ''[[Orbis Pictus]]''. Other buildings on the square house a historical museum and a museum dedicated to the work of Master Paul.

Behind the square on Kláštorská Street are the 14th-century church and remains of the old monastery of the Minorites, now incorporated into a Church grammar school. Nearby is the town's ''Polish Gate'', a Gothic construction of the 15th century.

From the 16th century to the end of 1922, Levoča was the administrative center of the province of Szepes (Spiš). Between 1806 – 1826, the Hungarian architect from Eger, Antal Povolny, built a grandiose administration building, the Large Provincial House, as the seat of the town's administration. He adjusted its Classicist style to Levoča's Renaissance character by emphasizing the building's horizontal lines. The House is considered among the most beautiful Provincial Houses in the former Kingdom of Hungary. Today, it is reconstructed and it is the seat of the administration.

The State Regional Archives (''Štátny oblastný archív'') are in a tan stone building on the north side of the square at nám. Majstra Pavla 60.

==Jewish community==
{{More citations needed section|date=June 2024}}
Compared to other places in the region, Jewish settlement began comparatively late in Levoča. The city's [[census]] data from 1768 and 1828 indicated a lack of Jewish presence, suggesting a prohibition against Jewish settlement until around 1840. The 1840s marked the beginning of Jewish migration to Levoča, mainly from [[Huncovce]] and other parts of [[Východné Slovensko|Eastern Slovakia]]. This wave of migration led to the establishment of the first Jewish households and sparked the formation of a Jewish community ([[Kehilla (modern)|kehila]]).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Encyclopaedia of Jewish communities, Slovakia |url=https://www.jewishgen.org/Yizkor/pinkas_slovakia/slo288.html |access-date=2023-05-18 |website=www.jewishgen.org}}</ref>

During the 1870s, the kehila saw considerable expansion, leading to the incorporation of additional structures, like a cemetery, in the 1880s.<ref name=":0" /> In 1899, the Jewish community inaugurated an expansive synagogue, designed in an [[Moorish architecture|Oriental architectural style]], situated beyond the city's perimeter.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=jhe |date=2016-08-26 |title=Slovakia: Clean-up at Jewish cemetery Levoča (& video) |url=https://jewish-heritage-europe.eu/2016/08/26/slovakia-clean-up-at-jewish-cemetery-levoca-video/ |access-date=2023-05-18 |website=Jewish Heritage Europe |language=en-US}}</ref> Accompanying this significant structure, a school and a ritual bath, known as a mikveh, were constructed nearby.<ref name=":0" />

Following Slovakia's attainment of autonomy in October 1938, the Jewish population began to face increasing discrimination. On 4 November 1938, 55 Jewish individuals from Levoča, who lacked citizenship, were forcefully relocated to an unclaimed region along the Slovakia-Hungary border, near [[Plešivec, Slovakia|Plešivec]]. Held for several weeks without adequate shelter and under challenging conditions, the majority were able to return to their homes only through the concerted efforts of Jewish organizations.<ref name=":0" />

Upon the formation of the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] on March 14, 1939, Jewish homes and businesses were subjected to rampant looting and destruction by the Nazi-aligned German minority. A repeat of these incidents occurred on March 23, with further devastation in August when a [[Hashomer Hatzair]] summer camp was attacked and subsequently dissolved. That same year saw the revocation of licenses for numerous Jewish professionals, the closure of Jewish taverns, and dismissals from community service roles.

During World War II, 981 local Jews were deported. The first deportations began in March 1942, at first primarily targeting young women, who were sent to a transit camp in [[Poprad]] and then to [[Auschwitz extermination camp|Auschwitz]]. More young people were sent to [[Majdanek concentration camp|Majdanek]], via a transit camp in [[Žilina]].

Starting in March 1942, Jews from Levoča were systematically deported to [[Concentration camp|concentration]] and [[extermination camp]]s, beginning with a group of young women sent to Auschwitz. Despite escape attempts, further rounds of deportation included families, hospital patients, and psychiatric care patients, with about 80% of the Jewish population being deported by the end of the year.<ref name=":0" />

Following this wave, a small number of Jews remained in the district, some possessing exemption letters or having [[Religious conversion|converted]] to escape deportation. However, with the German capture of Levoča in September 1944, the remaining Jews faced intensified persecution. Many were deported or executed, while others found refuge in remote areas or joined [[partisan group]]s. Despite resistance, the [[synagogue]], [[mikveh]], school building, and [[Jewish cemetery|cemetery]] were desecrated, and widespread hunting of Jews and partisans led to further deportations and executions.

Post-war, some surviving Jews returned to Levoča, reviving kehila life and repairing public buildings. Zionist activities resumed until most Jews immigrated to Israel in 1949. By the 1960s, a small kehila of about 60 people remained, with the once-desecrated cemetery left neglected. As of 1990, only a few Jewish families resided in Levoča.

In 2016, the historic Jewish cemetery was cleared of rubbish and tidied up thanks to the collaborative efforts of local Catholic youth organization Spoločenstvo Pavol, the Slovak Association of Christian Youth Movements, the Union of Slovak Jewish Communities, and the Town of Levoča.<ref name=":1" />

==Twin towns — Sister cities==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Slovakia}}

Levoča is [[town twinning|twinned]] with:<ref>{{cite web |title=Partnerské mestá|url=http://www.levoca.sk/?id_menu=60630&limited_level=1|website=levoca.sk|publisher=Levoča|language=sk|access-date=2019-09-08}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|POL}} [[Stary Sącz]], [[Poland]]
*{{flagicon|POL}} [[Łańcut]], [[Poland]]
*{{flagicon|POL}} [[Kalwaria Zebrzydowska]], [[Poland]]
*{{flagicon|HUN}} [[Keszthely]], [[Hungary]]
*{{flagicon|CZE}} [[Litomyšl]], [[Czech Republic]]
{{div col end}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Levoca from mh.jpg|Levoča from [[Basilica of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Levoča|Mariánska hora]]
File:Lőcse - Town guild hall.jpg|Levoča - Town hall from above
File:Levoca main square 02.jpg|Levoča main square
File:Župný dom, Levoča.jpg|The Large Provincial House
File:Levoca main square 03.JPG|Levoča main square
File:Levoca Last Supper.jpg|Sculptures from Master Paul's altar in [[Basilica of St. James, Levoča|St. James]]
File:Kosicegate.jpg|The Košice Gate
File:Minoritesdoorway.jpg|Doorway of the New Minorite Cloisters
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Szepes county]]
* [[Spiš]]

==References==
===Notes===
{{Reflist|group=n}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage|Levoča}}
{{Commons category|Levoča}}
* [https://www.levoca.sk/ Official website of Levoča]
* [http://www.chramsvjakuba.sk/en.html Basilica of St. James]
* [http://ik.levoca.eu Official website of Tourist Information Centre in Levoča]
* [http://www.spectacularslovakia.sk/ss2002/levoca.html Article about Levoča at Spectacular Slovakia]
* [http://www.lblfestival.eu Levoča International Music Festival ('Indian Summer in Levoča')]
* [http://www.martiner.own.cz/model.php The Large Provincial House (student work)]{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

{{Levoča District}}
{{World Heritage Sites in Slovakia}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Levoca}}
[[Category:Cities and towns in Slovakia]]
[[Category:Spiš]]
[[Category:Catholic pilgrimage sites]]
[[Category:Fortified settlements]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Slovakia]]
[[Category:Levoča]]