Blatné is a mid-sized village in Senec District

Senec District

Senec District is a district inthe Bratislava Region of western Slovakia. Until 1918, the district was part of the Hungarian county of Pressburg.-Municipalities:*Bernolákovo*Blatné*Boldog*Čataj*Dunajská Lužná*Hamuliakovo...

 in the Bratislava Region

Bratislava Region

The Bratislava Region is one of the administrative regions of Slovakia. Its capital is Bratislava. It is the smallest of the eight regions of Slovakia.-Geography:...

 of western Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

, about 5 km north of Senec

Senec, Slovakia

Senec is a town in the Bratislava Region of south-western Slovakia. It is a well known summer tourism and recreation center. The town is attractive not only because of the proximity of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, but also because of the healthy environment and summer resort "Slnečné...

. It lies on the fork of roads connecting Senec with Trnava

Trnava

Trnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...

 and Senec with Modra

Modra

Modra is a city and municipality in the Bratislava Region in Slovakia. It has a population of 8,704 as of 2005. It nestles in the foothills of the Malé Karpaty and is an excellent centre of hiking.Modra is famous for its pottery industry...

 and Pezinok

Pezinok

Pezinok is a city in southwestern Slovakia. It is roughly northeast of Bratislava and has a population of 21,334 .Pezinok lies near the Little Carpathians and thrives mainly on viticulture and agriculture, as well as on brick making and ceramic production.-History:From the second half of the 10th...

. Currently, the village has around 1,500 inhabitants.

History

The name of the village, Blatné, was derived from the Slovak word for mud, Blato. The area around the town has been very flat and muddy, thus the name. Prior to 1948, the village has often been referred to as Šarfia, an approximate Hungarian translation. Even though the current name has been officially established in 1948 and the town has a negligible Hungarian minority, most inhabitants still refer to the village as Šarfia.

Recent archeological digs found marks of habitation as early as sixth millennium BC. In addition to habitation marks, a burial ground was found. In 2001, another burial ground, this time from Bronze Age

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

, was found.

The first written reference to Blatné was made in the 13th century. In 1390, a Gothic

Gothic architecture

Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....

 church was built. It survived until today, after an extensive baroque

Baroque architecture

Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...

 renovation in the 18th century. The town also boasts a number of religious sculptures, dating from 1736 (John of Nepomuk

John of Nepomuk

John of Nepomuk is a national saint of the Czech Republic, who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus, King of the Romans and King of Bohemia. Later accounts state that he was the confessor of the queen of Bohemia and refused to divulge the secrets of the confessional...

), 1801 (main cemetery cross), 1801 (Saint Florian

Saint Florian

Florian lived in the time of the Roman emperors Diocletian and Maximian, and was commander of the imperial army in the Roman province of Noricum. In addition to his military duties, he was also responsible for organizing firefighting brigades....

) and more.

Infrastructure and Industry

In the past, Blatné was known for its vineyards. Currently, people grow wine primarily for their own use. The village has several grocery stores and restaurants. In addition, one can find here small firms focusing on car repair, carpentry and the refurbishment of fire extinguishers.

Nearly the entire village has access to water and gas; currently almost a third of the inhabitants is also connected to the town's sewage system, which is still being under construction. The village is preparing 30 plots for new houses, out of which a half is already electrified and has access to water and gas. Blatné also operates a kindergarten and grade school (grades 1 through 8).

Culture and Entertainment

Blatné has a movie theater that operates in summer months (due to lack of heating it is closed in winter). In addition, there is a library and a dance hall. The latter is used for two village-sponsored dances every year. The town is also well known for its folk music group Šarfianka.

The town also features an equestrian course and bowling. A nearby artificial lake is used for water skiing. Blatné's soccer team, Družstevník Blatné, has advanced into the 3rd division of the Slovak soccer league in 2005. Every December 31st, the town organizes a cross-country race to the nearest village, Šenkvice

Šenkvice

Šenkvice is a village and municipality in western Slovakia in Pezinok District in the Bratislava region. The town of roughly 4400 people lies east of Pezinok and south of Modra, and is connected to each via a main road. Another road connects Šenkvice to Blatné, which lies about five kilometers ...

, and back.

Demographics

In 2004, there were 1506 inhabitants: 801 women and 705 men. 60% (895) of them were in the productive age category, defined as age 15 to 55 (women) and 15 to 60 (men). 97.3% of inhabitants declared their nationality to be Slovak, and neither of the two largest minorities, Roma and Czech, have approached 1%. 89.8% of inhabitants declared their religion to be Roman Catholic. The only other significant groups were atheists with 5.7%.

Out of the 493 houses in Blatné, 407 were inhabited.

Population by nationality:

Nationality	1991	2001
Slovaks	98.93%	97.28%
Hungarians	0.53%	0.93%
Czechs	0.53%	0.79%