Zala

Zala is a department ( megye ) of the west of the Hungary. It draws its name from the river Zala which crosses it. It is bordering on the Slovenia, of the Croatia and of the megyék of Vas, Veszprém and of Somogy. The Lac Balaton is partially located in this department. Since 1998, the megye of Zala belongs to the Eurorégion of Pannonia Occidentale.

Regional structure

(the populations are those of the census of 2001)

Cities having the statute of megye

Zalaegerszeg (chief town) (pop 62.158)
Nagykanizsa (pop 51.102)

Communes

tourist Kesthely city on the edges of the Lake Balaton (pop 21.944)
Lenti (pop 8559)
Zalaszentgrót (pop 7944)
Letenye (pop 4613)
Héviz thermal spa comprising a warm water lake (pop 4523)
Zalalövő (pop 3256)
Zalakaros thermal spa made up of a dozen basins (pop 1519)

Notable villages

Bocfölde (pop 1046)
Misefa (pop 319)

Old Comitat de Zala

Zala was a Comitat Royaume of Hungary. Its territory was located in the west of current the Hungary, the north of the Croatia and is Slovenia. That corresponds to the current Hungarian departments of Zala and, partially, Veszprém, with the Croatian area of the Međimurje until the Drave and in the neighborhoods of Lendava in Slovenia. Zalaegerszeg was its capital. The areas bordering were the duchy of Styrie (today in Austria and Slovenia) and the Comitat S Hungarian of Vas, Veszprém, Somogy, Varasd (this last being now Croatian). The Wall and the Zala crossed it. It was limited to the south by the Drave and reached the Lac Balaton with the est.
In 1918 (confirmed by the Treated of Trianon in 1920), the south-west of the Comitat became part of the Royaume of Serb, Croatian and Slovenien the (which was going to take the name of Yugoslavia in 1929). The remainder of the county remained Hungarian but, in 1950, the Communist government redrew the limits of the departments. A small portion of the department of Vas located at the north of Zalaegerszeg was attached to the department of Vas whereas the northern bank of the Lac Balaton was detached from the department of Zala to join the department of Veszprém.
In 1991, when the Slovenia and the Croatia became independent, the old part of the county of Zala located between the Mur and the Drave (Međimurje) became Croatian whereas the neighborhoods of Lendava became Slovenien.

Subdivisions

At the beginning of the XXe century, the Comitat of Zala was divided into:

The towns of Prelog and Čakovec are nowadays in Croatia; Lendava is, as for it, in Slovenia.

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