Szombathely (German in Steinamanger, Savaria or Sabaria in Latin,
Sombotel in Slovenian, Somboteo in Vendian, Sambotel or Subotište in
Croatian) is a county town in the Western Transdanubia region. Vas
County, the seat of the Diocese of Szombathely and the District of
Szombathely, is one of the oldest cities in Hungary, also known as
the Queen of the West. It is the tenth most populous city in the
country and the third most densely populated county seat, the most
populous settlement in the foothills of the Alps. More than a
quarter of the population of Vas county lives in Szombathely.
The city was built on the banks of the Perint and Gyöngyös
streams, its ancient predecessor was the capital of the Roman
province of Pannonia Prima. Its regional role as a Hungarian city
increased in 1578, when it became the seat of Vas County. In the
XIX. It underwent significant development in the second half of the
19th century, became the most important railway center in Western
Transdanubia thanks to railway construction, its population began to
grow rapidly due to its transport significance, and the neo-baroque
and Art Nouveau buildings that still define the city's image.
Location
The town is located on the foothills of
the Alps, on the plain of the Perint and Gyöngyös streams, on the
western edge of the Gyöngyös plain, where the hilly landscape of the
Kisalföld is replaced by the hilly and mountainous landscapes of the
Alpokalja. Its altitude is approx. 220 m. Because the city was built
on hills, there are significant level differences within the city as
well.
Considering the average monthly average
temperatures of Szombathely for many years, it can be concluded that
the coldest month is January, while the warmest month is July. The
average annual temperature fluctuation is 20.6 ° C. The city has an
average annual rainfall of 590 millimeters, which shows a typical
annual system, with the summer semester being wetter and the winter
semester drier. The least rainfall falls in January-February, the
wettest months, so far with more than three times the amounts of the
months of June and July. In Szombathely, the average number of hours
of sunshine is 1850 hours per year, but this shows great variability
from year to year. There is also a characteristic annual course of
sunshine duration, the maximum in the summer months is 230-250 hours
per month, while in the winter period, in November-January, the
minimum is only between 50 and 70 hours per month.
The origin
of his name
It got its name from the fact that the weekly fair
was held in the city on Saturdays.
His German name,
Steinamanger, means ‘stone in the field’. The western border of the
city was also known in Hungarian as Kő, which refers to the ruins of
the Roman Savaria, which was destroyed in an earthquake and a storm
of migration.
The Latin name Savaria or Sabaria comes from
the ancient Latin name Sibaris of the Gyöngyös stream flowing
through the city, which also survived in the German name of the
stream (Zöbern). Its origin can be traced back to the Indo-European
word seu (= juice, wet).
Coat of arms
On the coat of arms
of the city, the municipality issued Decree No. 8/1991 (V.23.).
regulation is about. The coat of arms of the city, which appears on
the front page of a civil book from 1734, the Pearl Gate depicts a
part of the wall and a small tower above the gate. There is a star
on one side of the tower and a crescent moon on the other. This coat
of arms has also been used on old parchment documents issued by the
city as a hanging seal, such as on a county house purchase document
issued in the 17th century and kept in the county archives.
Mayor's coat of arms
The year 2016 - the 1700th anniversary of
the birth of Bishop St. Martin - was approved by the Government of
Hungary on 1170/2015. (III. 24.) declared it the Year of Remembrance
by St. Martin. Ancient Savaria and medieval Szombathely cannot be
separated in their symbols either. They lived together for millennia
and centuries. These two interconnected historical facts justified
the display of this relationship on a visual level as well. Taking
into account the above, we initiated that in addition to the city's
coat of arms, the city's flag, seal and the mayor's chain, the
symbols of the Municipality be expanded with the mayor's coat of
arms and the St. Martin's flag. The new mayor’s emblem shows the
coat of arms of the city expanded with the figure of St. Martin,
surrounding it as a shield holder, combining antiquity and the
Middle Ages. The St. Martin's flag was placed on the facade of the
City Hall, in the Ballroom, and in the mayor's office. On the
occasion of the St. Martin's Memorial Year, our Municipality donated
1-1 St. Martin's flags to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Sickle, St.
Martin's Parish, and the Savaria County Municipal City Museum. The
mayor's coat of arms was created by graphic artist László Kamper.
The development of the mayor's coat of arms was monitored and
assisted as an expert by: Imre Csáky, coat of arms historian, Péter
Balogh, president of the Rumi Rajki Art Support Circle, Dr. Miklós
Melega, director of the Vas County Archives, Lívia Bődi, president
of the Szombathely Beauty Association, Csaba Feörén artist historian
and artist Antal Marosfalvy.