Let’s learn about Slovenia #4 – Piran
Piran is a town in southwestern Slovenia on the Gulf of Piran on the Adriatic Sea..
It is one of the three major towns of Slovenian Istria.
The town has much medieval architecture, with narrow streets and compact houses.
Piran is the administrative centre of the local area and one of Slovenia’s major tourist attractions.
Until the mid-20th century, Italian was the dominant language, but was replaced by Slovene as demographics shifted.
Piran is the birthplace of composer and violinist Giuseppe Tartini, who played an important role in shaping its cultural heritage.
The town’s main square, Tartini Square ( Slovene: Tartinijev trg ), is named after him. In 1892, the 200th anniversary of his birth, a monument to Tartini was erected in Piran. Venetian artist Antonio Dal Zotto was commissioned to create a larger-than-life bronze statue, which was mounted on its pedestal in 1896. The statue dominates the square, overlooked by the Cathedral of Saint George. The painter Cesare Dell’Acqua was also born in Piran.
Piran is the seat of the Euro-Mediterranean University of Slovenia (EMUNI), founded in 2008 as one of the cultural projects of the Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean. The Piran Coastal Galleries, a public institution encompassing a group of six public contemporary art galleries, is based in Piran.