The Folk Ballad in Slovenia

Abstract

Slovenia is the western most republic of the Yugoslav federation, bordered by Austria to the north, Italy to the west, and Croatia to the south and southeast. Slovenes are South Slavs and the Slovene language, one of the most archaic Slav languages, is divided into many dialects. Although a small country, Slovenia is geographically very diverse, with high mountainous regions, low hills, valleys and lowlands, a section of the Adriatic coastline, lakes, and the limestone karst. An adequate rural economy influenced the life of the people, and this is reflected in their customs and folk songs. Folk-song content has also been influenced by the lot of Slovenes throughout their history.