Carinthian Slovenes
Carinthian Slovenes have lived in this territory since the 6th century, when the Slavic tribes settled in the region and established their duchy of Caranthania. Since the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Carinthian Slovenes have been separated from the central Slovene territory by the state border.
A drastic decline in the number of ethnic
Slovenes in Carinthia stemmed from a systematic assimilation policy.
Carinthian Slovenes made a decisive contribution to the adoption of the Austrian State Treaty in 1955, resulting in the restoration of Austria’s sovereignty, as the Carinthian Slovene partisans were the sole form of armed resistance against the Hitler’s regime in the territory of
Austria.
The legal protection of the Slovene ethnic minority is ensured by Article 7 of the Austrian State Treaty which, as a lex specialis, provides absolute protection for ethnic minorities. To date, full compliance with the provisions of Article 7 of the Austrian State Treaty has not yet been entirely achieved.
The most outstanding issues refer to bilingual place-name signs, recognition of the Slovene language as the official language and discrimination in the promotion of the Slovene culture.