Foiba

Foiba (plural: foibas or foibe) is a type of deep natural sinkhole common in the Kras (Carso) region, a karstic plateau region shared by Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. The term may also refer to a deep wide chasm of a river at the place where in goes under ground. [ [http://www.speleogenesis.info/glossary/glossary_by_letter.php?Authors=f Glossary of speleology: letter F] ]

The term was used in 1770s by Italian naturalist Alberto Fortis who wrote a number of books about karst of Dalmatia. [" [http://carsologica.zrc-sazu.si/downloads/301/shaw.pdf Alberto Fortis and the Istrian Karst, Croatia. in 1770 and 1771] ", "Acta Carsologica," 2001, 30/1]

The term is an Italian word derived from the Latin "fovea" (chasm). They are indeed chasms excavated by water erosion, have the shape of an inverted funnel, and can be up to 200 meters deep. Such formations number in the hundreds in Istria.

This name, especially in Italy, is commonly associated to mass killings (Foibe massacres) allegedly perpetrated by Yugoslav partisans during and shortly after World War II against Italians and other real or perceived enemies.

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