About Slovakia
Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's mostly mountainous territory spans about 49,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi), with a population of over 5.4 million. The capital and largest city is Bratislava, and the second-largest city is Košice.
Slovakia is a developed country, with an advanced high-income economy, ranking very high in the Human Development Index. It also performs favourably in measurements of civil liberties, press freedom, internet freedom, democratic governance and peacefulness. The country maintains a combination of a market economy with a comprehensive social security system, providing citizens with a universal health care, free education, and one of the longest paid parental leaves in the OECD.[13] Slovakia is a member of the European Union and the Eurozone, as well as a member of the Schengen Area, NATO, the United Nations, the OECD, the WTO, CERN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, and the Visegrád Group.
The postal history of Slovakia is varied. Before 1918, the territory of modern Slovakia was part of the Kingdom of Hungary within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and stamps of the Kingdom of Hungary were in use. After World War I and the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Slovakia and the regions of Bohemia, Moravia, and Carpathian Ruthenia formed the Czechoslovak Republic. From 1918 to 1939, stamps of the Czechoslovak Republic inscribed either Česko-Slovensko or Československo were used in Slovakia. Between 1939 and 1945, the Slovak Republic, a client state of Nazi Germany, issued stamps inscribed Slovensko. After World War II, Slovakia was again part of the re-established Czechoslovakia from 1945 to 1992. Czechoslovakian stamps inscribed Československo were used during that time. In 1989 the Velvet Revolution ended the Communist rule in Czechoslovakia, with its peaceful dissolution taking effect on the 1st of January 1993. From 1 January 1993, Slovakia became independent after splitting from the Czech Republic and stamps were issued from that date inscribed Slovensko. Stamps of the former Czechoslovakia continued to be valid until 30 September 1993.
