Here are 20 facts that you maybe didn’t know about the Czech Republic.
1. The Czech Republic was formed in 1993, after the split of Czechoslovakia. Read more about Why and how did Czechoslovakia split?
2. Although a member state of the EU, the Czech Republic doesn’t use Euro. It’s official currency is called Czech Crown (Koruna česká, CZK).
3. Prague, which is the capital city, is home to one of the oldest universities in the world, the Charles University in Prague, established in 1348.
4. The capital is also home to the largest ancient castle in the world, the Prague Castle. The Czech Republic is a land of castles with over 2000 castles and châteaus on its territory!
5. It is also the land of many great beer brands such as Budweiser or Pilsner and a the highest beer consumption in the world.
6. The Czech language belongs to the West Slavic group of languages, its grammar is extremely complex and the pronunciation challenging. It’s the only language to have the phoneme “ř”.
7. The Moravian dance verbuňk is on the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the UNESCO.
8. Johann Gregor Mendel, the founder of modern genetics, was born in 1822 in what is now the Czech Republic and spent his life in Brno.
9. The world renown logician Kurt Gödel was also from the city of Brno.
10. Ever heard of the Art Nouveau painter Alfons (Alphonse) Mucha and his master work, the Slav Epic? Well, Mucha was also Czech.
11. Speaking of famous people, there are quite a few world-famous celebrities that are actually Czech or have Czech roots and you maybe didn’t know that! And some of them speak Czech although you wouldn’t expect them to.
12. There are many spa towns specialized in different ailments and relaxation treatments – Karlovy Vary, Františkovy Lázně, Mariánské Lázně and Teplice being the largest ones, followed by smaller but not less important ones.
13. The country embarked on a journey of extensive digitalization of the civil registry and other records. Therefore, those looking for their Czech ancestors can do a large part of the search online. I’ve written a Beginner’s Guide to Finding Ancestors in Czech Republic.
14. The song you might know as Beer Barrel Polka is actually a Czech song called Škoda lásky.
15. The Czech National Anthem is another song that stands out. Unlike most anthems, it’s not a march but rather a melancholic song.
16. Although a small country, the Czech Republic offers diverse landscapes and incredible views. You can see some of them in the articles Beautiful Natural Sights Around Czech Republic, Most Beautiful Views of Nature in Czech Republic and Beautiful Windmills in Czech Republic.
17. Czech filmmakers’ forte have always been fairy-tales. Here is a list of the most famous Czech fairy-tales.
18. There is a volcano in the country located near Františkovy Lázně.
19. One of the traditional industries is the glass making and crystal production. You might have heard of the prized Bohemian crystal but do you know that Preciosa, the famous brand of glass beads, is also Czech?
20. Baking Christmas cookies is one of the most prominent Czech traditions, some even joke it’s a national sport. Here are some of the recipes.
