Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship

Infobox Settlement
name = Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship
native_name=Województwo świętokrzyskie
settlement_type=

---

image_shield = Wojewodztwo swietokrzyskie herb.svg

---

map_caption = Location within Poland

---

map_caption1 = Division into counties
subdivision_type=Country
subdivision_name=POL
seat_type=Capital
seat = Kielce
parts_type = Counties
parts=1 city, 13 land counties *
p1=Kielce|p2=Busko County|p3=Jędrzejów County|p4=Kazimierza County|p5=Kielce County|p6=Końskie County|p7=Opatów County|p8=Ostrowiec County|p9=Pińczów County|p10=Sandomierz County|p11=Skarżysko County|p12=Starachowice County|p13=Staszów County|p14=Włoszczowa County
coor_type=Kielce|latd=50|latm=53|latNS=N|longd=20|longm=37|longEW=E
area_total_km2 = 11672
total_type=Total
population_total = 1281796
population_as_of = 2006
population_density_km2 = auto
population_urban= 581322
population_blank1_title=Rural
population_blank1= 700474
blank_name=Car plates
blank_info=T
website=http://www.kielce.uw.gov.pl/
footnotes = * further divided into 102 gminas

Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship ( _pl. województwo świętokrzyskie IPA-pl| [|w|o|j|e|'|w|u|c|t|f|o|-|ś|f|j|e|nIPA-pl|t|o|'|k|sz|y|s|k|j|e| or simply "Świętokrzyskie") is one of the 16 voivodeships (provinces) into which Poland is presently divided. It is situated in south-central Poland, in the historical province of Lesser Poland, and takes its name from the Świętokrzyskie (Holy Cross) mountain range. Its capital and largest city is Kielce.

It is bounded by six other voivodeships: Masovian to the north, Lublin to the east, Subcarpathian to the south-east, Lesser Poland to the south, Silesian to the south-west, and Łódź to the north-west.

The province was created on January 1, 1999, out of the former Kielce Voivodeship and western part of Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship, pursuant to the 1998 Local Government Reorganization Act. It covers an area of convert|11672|km2|sqmi|0, making it the second smallest of the voivodeships (after Opole). As at 2006, the total population of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship is 1,281,796.

Cities and towns

The voivodeship contains 31 cities and towns. These are listed below in descending order of population (according to official figures for 2006 [http://www.stat.gov.pl/gus/45_655_PLK_HTML.htm] ):1. Kielce (207,718)
2. Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski (73,937)
3. Starachowice (53,092)
4. Skarżysko-Kamienna (49,131)
5. Sandomierz (25,088)
6. Końskie (20,667)
7. Busko-Zdrój (17,297)
8. Jędrzejów (16,577)
9. Staszów (15,499)
10. Pińczów (11,886)
11. Włoszczowa (10,782)
12. Suchedniów (8,911)
13. Połaniec (8,316)
14. Opatów (6,846)
15. Sędziszów (6,813)
16. Stąporków (5,986)
17. Kazimierza Wielka (5,730)
18. Ożarów (4,816)
19. Chęciny (4,252)
20. Chmielnik (4,005)
21. Małogoszcz (3,943)
22. Ćmielów (3,172)
23. Kunów (3,127)
24. Daleszyce (2,800)
25. Wąchock (2,760)
26. Koprzywnica (2,531)
27. Bodzentyn (2,241)
28. Osiek (1,955)
29. Zawichost (1,853)
30. Skalbmierz (1,323)
31. Działoszyce (1,068)

Administrative division

Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship is divided into 14 counties (powiats): 1 city county and 13 land counties. These are further divided into 102 gminas.

The counties are listed in the following table (ordering within categories is by decreasing population).

Protected areas

Protected areas in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship include one National Park and nine Landscape Parks. These are listed below.
*Świętokrzyski National Park
*Chęciny-Kielce Landscape Park
*Cisów-Orłowiny Landscape Park
*Jeleniowska Landscape Park
*Kozubów Landscape Park
*Nida Landscape Park
*Przedbórz Landscape Park (partly in Łódź Voivodeship)
*Sieradowice Landscape Park
*Suchedniów-Oblęgorek Landscape Park
*Szaniec Landscape Park

Most popular surnames in the region

# Nowak: 5,538
# Wieczorek: 2,654
# Mazur: 2,512

ee also

*Second Polish Republic’s Kielce Voivodeship (1919-1939)

External links

* [http://www.sejmik.kielce.pl/wojew.htm Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship official website]
* [http://www.kielce.uw.gov.pl/ Świętokrzyski Urząd Wojewódzki] Official website