Czechia
The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia (historically Bohemia) is a landlocked country in Southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The capital is Prague.
History
The Duchy of Bohemia was founded in the late 9th century under Great Moravia. It was formerly recognized within the Holy Roman Empire in 1002 and became a kingdom in 1198. After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, Czech lands became part of the Austrian Empire.
The First Czechoslovak Republic was established following the collapse of Austria-Hungary after World War I. At the time it was the only country to remain a parliamentary democracy during the interwar period. Czechoslovakia was restored in 1945 and became part of the Eastern Bloc in 1948. The Velvet Revolution ended communist rule in 1989. On December 31, 1992, Czechoslovakia was peacefully dissolved into the independent states of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Czechia is the name used by most of the population.
Language
The official language is Czech, known historically as Bohemian. It is a Slavic language of the Czech-Slovak group, closely related to Slovak to the point of mutual intelligibility. It is somewhat related to other Slavic languages, such as Polish. It uses the Latin script.
Magical Culture
HP Wiki article on the Bohemia region HP Wiki article on Prague
Prague (cz: Praha) is noted for its astronomical clock in the historic town center. First installed in 1410, it is the third-oldest astronomical clock in the world and the only to remain in operation to this day. A small sect of wix secretly assist with keeping the clock (Prague Orloj) operational. The oldest active synagogue was said to house the Golem of Prague in the attic. Whatever was housed here was removed by area wix before an exploration of the attic by the non-magical populace in August 2014.
The wizarding district in Prague is also known for reputable library housing several ancient spellbooks and historical artifacts.
Wilhemina Twigge, a Bohemian witch known for her use of the crystal ball, had her portrait painted in 1610. It hangs in the Hogwarts grand staircase. She is a contemporary of Princess Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia and Electress Palatine, who also had her portrait painted in the same year.
Education
Czech wixes have been known to attend Durmstrang.
Ministry of Magic
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Quidditch
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Creatures
Reference
Some information in this article was sampled from the Wikipedia entry for the Czech Republic
At Absit Omen
- Czechia was one of the European countries affected in a string of violent hag attacks in the mid 2000s. Ursula Strougler was rescued from a hag as a toddler. She was raised in a muggle child home (Dětský domov) and later with a wix family under the name Jana Novákova.
- Ursula's pet rat Lolmis is named after Lolmischo, the Red Mouse in Romani mythology, part of a set of demons that spread diseases. Coincidentally, a Czech dark artist is believed to be at fault for plague of red, boil covered rats that transmitted magical diseases across the country and Slovakia. These incidents occurred in 1680 and 1711.
- Sasha Snow and Marcus Annwyl discuss Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis in Flourish & Blotts. Kafka was Austria-Czech born in Prague, although his family spoke German.[1]
- Nicola Randall is sent to Prague via an illegal portkey made by Cináed Tawse, who was avoiding recognition around Britain.[2]
Characters Born in the Czech Republic
- Ruzena Hughes (veela), mother of Audrey Hughes, Flynn Hughes, Elysia Hughes
- Ivanka Chvátal (veela), born in Ostrava
