Styria is a state or Bundesland, located in the southeast of Austria. In area it
is the second largest of the nine Austrian federated states, covering
16,401 km². It borders Slovenia as well as the other Austrian states of Upper
Austria, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Burgenland, and Carinthia. The
population was 1,210,700. The capital city is Graz which had 276,526
inhabitants at the beginning of 2015. Etymology
The March of Styria derived its name from the original seat of its ruling
Otakar dynasty: Steyr, in today's Upper Austria. In German, the area is still
called "Steiermark" while in English the Latin name "Styria" is used. The ancient
link between Steyr and Styria is also apparent in their nearly identical coats
of arms, a white Panther on a green background.
Geography The term "Upper Styria" used by an
Austrian refers to the northern and northwestern parts of the federal-state.
The term "West Styria" is used for the districts to the west of Graz; the
districts east of Graz are referred to as "East Styria". The western and
eastern parts of the district Graz-Umgebung may or may not be
considered parts of West and East Styria, respectively. The southern parts
of the Duchy of Styria, which have formed part of Yugoslavia or Slovenia
since 1918, were referred to as "Lower Styria".
History During early Roman times, Styria was
inhabited by Celtic tribes. After its conquest by the Romans, the eastern part
of what is now Styria was part of Pannonia, while the western one was
included in Noricum. During the Barbarian invasions, it was conquered or
crossed by the Visigoths, the Huns, the Ostrogoths, the Rugii, the Lombards, the
Franks and the Avars. In 595 the latter were defeated by the Slavs, who
thenceforth ruled it. In 1180 Styria separated from the Duchy
of Carinthia and became a Grand Duchy of its own; in 1192 it became part of
Austria. After the hereditary subdivision of the latter, Styria formed
the central part of Inner Austria. Styria developed culturally and
economically under Archduke John between 1809 and 1859. In 1918, after World War
I, it was divided into a northern section, and a southern one, called
Lower Styria, inhabited mostly by ethnic Slovenians, and which was annexed to
Yugoslavia, and later in Slovenia. Economy
As elsewhere in the developed world, there has been a shift away from the
manufacturing sector towards the service sector in Styria. This has had negative
consequences for the industrial regions of upper Styria which have suffered a
steady decline in population in recent years.
In 2004 Styria had the strongest economic growth rate in Austria at
3.8%—mainly due to the Graz area which saw strong economic growth that year and
has continued to grow in economic and population terms since then.
Styria is home to more than 150 cleantech companies, of which one dozen
are world technology leaders in their field. The cleantech revenue of Styrian
companies totals €2.7 billion. This equals to 8 percent of the Gross
Regional Product, and is one of the highest concentrations of leading clean
technology companies in Europe. The companies have an average growth rate of
22 percent per year—well above the worldwide cleantech market growth of 18
percent per year. The region created roughly 2,000 additional green jobs in
2008 alone. Administrative divisions
The state is divided into 13 districts, one of them a statutory city.
= Statutory city= Graz
= Other districts= Bruck-Mürzzuschlag
Deutschlandsberg Graz-Umgebung
Hartberg-Fürstenfeld Leibnitz
Leoben Liezen
Murau Murtal
Südoststeiermark Voitsberg
Weiz Politics
The state had been a stronghold of the Austrian People's Party since 1945. Graz
however is a stronghold of the left-wing Communist Party. The governor has
usually been an ÖVP member. = 2005 elections=
In the latest elections for state parliament the Social Democrats under
their regional chairman Franz Voves won the majority after the ÖVP had damaged
its credibility through scandals and the secession of a high-ranking party member
who took part in the 2005 elections after setting up his own party. In these
elections, the KPÖ also received many votes after it had gained much
popularity through its role in local politics in Graz during the preceding
few years. The two right-wing populist parties, the Freedom Party of Austria
and the Alliance for the Future of Austria, failed to win seats.
Notable people Palman, knight and mercenary commander
of the Serbian Empire Johann Joseph Fux, composer and music
theorist, wrote Gradus ad Parnassum – a composition manual used by Beethoven and
Mozart Archduke John of Austria
Johann Puch, founded Johann Puch Erste Steiermärkische
Fahrrad-Fabriks-Aktiengesellschaft at Graz in 1899.
Peter Rosegger, honoured poet Jochen Rindt, Formula 1 World Champion
Bert Isatitsch, first president of the International Luge Federation
Frank Stronach, founder of Magna International, billionaire
Dr. Helmut Marko, former racing driver Klaus Maria Brandauer, actor and
director Dietrich Mateschitz, founder and CEO of
Red Bull, billionaire Elfriede Jelinek, Nobel Prize in
Literature winner Arnold Schwarzenegger, film actor and
former Governor of California Wolfgang Muthspiel, jazz composer and
guitarist Thomas Muster, former World No. 1 tennis
player Ulla Weigerstorfer, Miss Austria 1987
and Miss World 1987 Renate Götschl, alpine skiing World
Champion Elisabeth Görgl, professional alpine
skier Eva Rueber-Staier, Miss Austria 1969,
Miss World 1969 Josef Allerberger, Austrian-German
sniper 3. Gebirgsdivision Robert Stolz, composer born in Graz
Getty Kaspers, lead vocals of Dutch band Teach-In, who won the 1975 Eurovision
Song Contest. Conchita Wurst, winner Eurovision Song
Contest 2014, European superstar See also
Lower Styria References
External links Imperial Austria: Treasures of Art, Arms
and Armor from the State of Styria – The Canadian Museum of Civilization
Official Tourism Website of Styria