Szombathely

 

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.

 

Geography

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.

 

Climate

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.