At the Crossroads of Peoples and Lands
We inhabit a land where Latin, Slavic, and Germanic influences intertwine, in the far northeast of Italy, in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Our community stretches along the entire border area, from the Alps of Tarvisio/Trbiž to Muggia/Milje on the Adriatic. In total, we number between 60,000 and 80,000.
The Slovene settlement area is divided into six regions: Val Canale, Val Resia, the Torre Valleys, the Natisone Valleys, Gorizia, and Trieste with its surroundings. Today, the area traditionally inhabited by our community includes 39 municipalities.
Protected by Law
In the 32 municipalities of Friuli Venezia Giulia, where the Slovene community is historically rooted, National Law 38/2001 is applied. This law provides comprehensive protection for the Slovene linguistic minority, supplemented by other protective laws at the regional, national, and international levels.
Law 38/2001 guarantees Slovenes the right to use their language in public settings, receive education in their mother tongue, and have a bilingual identity card. It also ensures visible bilingualism in public spaces, the right to express their cultural identity, access to their own media, the ability to establish organizations, conduct economic activities, and protection against discrimination.
The Territory
In the far northeast of Italy, at the crossroads of the Latin, Slavic, and Germanic worlds.
We live in the region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, spanning the entire border area—from Tarvisio/Trbiž in the Alps to Muggia/Milje on the Adriatic Sea. Together, we number between 60,000 and 80,000.
The Slovene settlement in Italy is now spread across six territories: Val Canale/Kanalska
dolina, Resia/Rezija, the Torre and Natisone valleys/Terske in Nadiške doline, the Gorizia/Gorica area, and the Trieste/Trst area. Today, this historical settlement area covers
39 municipalities.
