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( Bratislava)
Bratislava (Slovak pronunciation&_160;(help·info) ['brac?slava], historically known by foreign and alternative names) is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of 426,000, the country's largest city.[1] Bratislava is in the south-west of Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two other countries.[2] Bratislava is the political, cultural, and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak presidency, the parliament, and the government. It is also home to several universities, museums, theatres, galleries and other important economic, cultural, and educational institutions.[3] The headquarters of many of Slovakia's large businesses and financial institutions are in Bratislava as well. The history of the city, long known by the German name Pressburg, has been strongly influenced by various peoples, including Austrians, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Jews and Slovaks.[4] The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary under the Habsburg monarchy from 1536 to 1783. Bratislava was home to the Slovak national movement of the 19th century and to many Slovak, Hungarian and German historical figures. The first written reference (as Brezalauspurc) comes from the Salzburg Annals, in relation to the battles between the Bavarians and the Hungarians, fought outside the walls of Bratislava Castle in 907.[5] The castle was probably named either after Predslav, third son of King Svätopluk I, or the local nobleman Braslav.[6] This ancient name reappears under the variant Braslava or Preslava on coins minted by King Stephen I of Hungary and dated around 1000.[7] Later in the Middle Ages, it found its final form in the German name Pressburg and the Slovak name Prešporok derived from it.[7][8] Pressburg was used to refer to the city by most English-speaking writers until 1919,[9] and it is occasionally so used even today. Although Pressburg was the official name until 1919, the Hungarians used Pozsony[8] (spelled Posony before the 19th century) and it is still in use among Hungarians. The name might have come from Božan, an 11th-century ruler of Bratislava Castle. The Latin name Posonium is derived from the Hungarian.[10] In addition to these names, Renaissance documents called the city Istropolis, meaning "Danube City" in Ancient Greek.
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