Vyškov

Geobox | Settlement
name = Vyškov
other_name =
category = Town

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image_caption =

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symbol = Znak Vyškova.png etymology =
official_name =
motto =
nickname =
country = Czech Republic
country_

state =
region = South Moravian
region_type = Region
district = Vyškov
district_type = District
commune = Vyškov
municipality =
part =
river =
location =
elevation = 254
lat_d = 49
lat_m = 16
lat_s =
lat_NS = N
long_d = 16
long_m = 59
long_s =
long_EW = E
highest =
highest_elevation =
highest_lat_d =
highest_long_d =
lowest =
lowest_elevation =
lowest_lat_d =
lowest_long_d =
area = 50.40
area_round = 2
population = 22374
population_date = 2006
population_density = auto
established = 1141
established_type = First mentioned
mayor = Petr Hájek
timezone =

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map_background = Czechia - background map.png map_caption = Location in the Czech Republic
map_locator = Czechia
commons = Vyškov
statistics = [http://www.statnisprava.cz/ebe/ciselniky.nsf/i/592889 statnisprava.cz]
website = [http://www.vyskov-mesto.cz/ www.vyskov-mesto.cz]
footnotes =

Vyškov (IPA2|ˈvɪʃkof) (German: "Wischau", until 1918) is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,300 inhabitants.

History

By the middle of the 14th century, pest epidemics and starvation had virtually depopulated the entire area. The Catholic Church, the owners of the lands, administrated their properties via its cloisters in Bamberg, Augsburg and Brixen. These cloisters called upon German farmers to resettle the place. In those days the German language area comprised about 60 villages. But only 8 of these, with a total of about 3500 inhabitants, still existed before the eviction of the Germans after the World War II.

The inhabitants were mostly farmers. Their lives consisted mainly of hard work. The population was Roman Catholic. Therefore, the rhythm of life was mainly governed by the church and its festivities. An education in a German school was considered to be of great importance. Six villages had their own German elementary school and the town of Lissowitz even had a grammar school.

Peculiarities

The geographic separation from other German settlements was the reason why that their language could, to a great extent, retain its original form. It is a variety of a Southern German dialect. One peculiarity is that a "w" was pronounced very much like a "b." The farmhouses were built on both sides of a common green area. ( The Commons ). They consisted of one story structures with thatched roofs. A salient part of its architecture was the two story entrance. Stables and other dependances were built in a rectangle around a court yard on the back of the farmhouse. The women's dresses were very colorful and they displayed a great many hand made embroideries. A striking feature was the stiffly starched, frilled collar called "Tatzl."

The Wischauer people today

After their eviction following the end of the Second World War, in 1945-1946, the former inhabitants of the language island found new homes in Germany, Austria and in other countries. In the year 1949 an association, "Language Island of Wischau," was formed in the German town of Aalen in order to help the scattered families move together again.

Tourist attractions

In 2006 "Dinopark" - new attraction - was opened for the public. It is located about 2,5 km off the city in former "Marchanice" park. There are currently around 30 life-size dinosaur models to be seen and it is one of the most visited attractions in the area.

Sport

Most popular sport in Vyskov is RUGBY. Team JIMI RC Vyskov is one of the best rugby teams in Czech Republic.

External links

* [http://www.vyskov-mesto.cz/ Municipal website] (cz)
* [http://milza.rajce.idnes.cz/Vyskov/ Photo by Milan Kusala] (cz)
* [http://www.dinopark.cz/ Dinopark web site] (cz, en)
* [http://www.rugbyclubvyskov.cz/ JIMI Rugby Club Vyškov]