Slovenia 🇸🇮

Quick facts

• Capital: Ljubljana
• Continent: Europe
• Population: 2,119,675
• Area: 20,273 km²
• Density: 105 people per km²
• Currency: EUR
• Languages: Slovene
• ISO code: SI

Where Slovenia sits

Slovenia 🇸🇮 is one of 46 countries in Europe, with its capital at Ljubljana. It covers 20,273 square kilometres — 151st in the world — and is home to about 2,119,675 people, 146th globally.

The countries it shares a continent with include Russia, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Italy. If you are learning geography region by region — which works far better than alphabetically, because memory for places is spatial — those are the ones to learn alongside it.

How Slovenia compares

Raw figures are hard to hold on their own, so it helps to anchor them. In population, Slovenia sits closest to Guinea-Bissau and North Macedonia. In land area, its nearest counterparts are Israel and El Salvador.

At 105 people per square kilometre it is somewhat above the world average of 59.4. It ranks higher by population than by area, so it is more crowded than its size alone suggests.

Slovene is listed as official in Slovenia alone. The EUR is shared with 25 other countries, including Andorra, Austria and Belgium, and 22 others.

To see Slovenia next to every other country, sort the country rankings by population, area or density; its currency and languages are listed alongside every other country's in world currencies and world languages.

How to remember Slovenia

There is 'love' in sLOVEnia, and in Ljubljana too: 'ljub' is close to the Slovene word for love. For the flag, Slovakia uses the same three colours, but Slovenia's shield shows three mountain peaks and sits in the corner.

The flag of Slovenia: white, blue and red

🇸🇮 The flag is three horizontal stripes of white, blue and red, with the coat of arms in the top-left showing Mount Triglav, wavy blue lines and three gold stars. The three peaks are Mount Triglav, the highest mountain and a national symbol. The wavy lines stand for the sea and rivers, and the stars come from an old noble family, the Counts of Celje.

Region and neighbours

Slovenia is a small country in Central Europe where the Alps meet the Adriatic Sea, with a short coastline. It shares land borders with 4 countries: Italy, Austria, Hungary and Croatia.

• Italy 🇮🇹 — capital Rome
• Austria 🇦🇹 — capital Vienna
• Hungary 🇭🇺 — capital Budapest
• Croatia 🇭🇷 — capital Zagreb

Three facts about Slovenia

1. Mount Triglav, about 2,864 m high, is the highest peak in Slovenia and appears on its flag.
2. About three-fifths of Slovenia is covered by forest, so you are never far from the woods there.
3. The Škocjan Caves, with one of the largest underground river canyons in the world, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sources: Wikipedia: Slovenia, Wikipedia: Flag of Slovenia, Wikipedia: Ljubljana, CIA World Factbook.

Quiz yourself on Slovenia

• European capitals quiz — match Slovenia to Ljubljana
• European flags quiz — spot the Slovenia flag among its neighbours

Quizzes that include Slovenia

Three angles are worth covering for any country — where it is, what its flag looks like, and what its capital is. For Slovenia those are:

• Europe map quiz — place it on a blank map
• Europe flags quiz — identify its flag among its neighbours
• Europe capitals quiz — match it to Ljubljana
• Slovenia capital quiz — five quick questions starting with Slovenia, plus the answer quizzes most often try to trick you with
• Daily Map Challenge — five countries to find on a blank world map, the same five for everyone each day

Doing all three for one continent before moving on is far more efficient than learning flags globally, then capitals globally, then the map.

Read more about Slovenia

• Capital of Slovenia: Ljubljana — the capital in detail, with size and density rankings
• All 46 countries of Europe

Nearby countries

• Albania 🇦🇱 — capital Tirana
• Andorra 🇦🇩 — capital Andorra la Vella
• Austria 🇦🇹 — capital Vienna
• Belarus 🇧🇾 — capital Minsk
• Belgium 🇧🇪 — capital Brussels
• Bosnia and Herzegovina 🇧🇦 — capital Sarajevo
• Bulgaria 🇧🇬 — capital Sofia
• Croatia 🇭🇷 — capital Zagreb
• Cyprus 🇨🇾 — capital Nicosia
• Czechia 🇨🇿 — capital Prague
• Denmark 🇩🇰 — capital Copenhagen
• Estonia 🇪🇪 — capital Tallinn

Frequently asked questions

What are the colours of the Slovenia flag?

The flag of Slovenia is three horizontal stripes of white, blue and red, with the coat of arms in the top-left showing Mount Triglav, wavy blue lines and three gold stars. The three peaks are Mount Triglav, the highest mountain and a national symbol. The wavy lines stand for the sea and rivers, and the stars come from an old noble family, the Counts of Celje.

Which countries border Slovenia?

Slovenia shares land borders with Italy, Austria, Hungary and Croatia.

How can I remember the capital of Slovenia?

There is 'love' in sLOVEnia, and in Ljubljana too: 'ljub' is close to the Slovene word for love. For the flag, Slovakia uses the same three colours, but Slovenia's shield shows three mountain peaks and sits in the corner.