Regions of the Czech Republic

Administrative divisions of the Czech Republic

This article is about current administrative division of the Czech Republic. For the traditional historical division of the country, see Czech lands.

Regions of the Czech Republic

* Also known as:
* Kraje České republiky (Czech)

Category| Unitary state
Location| Czech Republic
Number| 13 regions + Prague
Populations| 293,195 (Karlovy Vary Region) – 1,466,215 (Central Bohemian Region)
Areas| 3,163 km2 (1,221 sq mi) (Liberec Region) – 10,929 km2 (4,220 sq mi) (Central Bohemian Region)
Government|

* Region government, national government

Subdivisions|

* District

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Regions of the Czech Republic (Czech: kraje [ˈkrajɛ]; singular kraj [kraj] ⓘ) are higher-level territorial self-governing units of the Czech Republic.

## History

[edit]

Historical lands and current administrative regions

See also: Administrative divisions of Czechoslovakia

The first regions (kraje) were created in the Kingdom of Bohemia in the 14th century. At the beginning of the 15th century, Bohemia was already divided into 12 regions, but their borders were not fixed due to the frequent changes in the borders of the estates. During the reign of George of Poděbrady (1458–1471), Bohemia was divided into 14 regions, which remained so until 1714, when their number was reduced to 12 again. From 1751 to 1850, after the four largest regions were divided, the kingdom consisted of 16 regions. Between 1850 and 1862, there were several reforms and the number of regions fluctuated between 7 and 13. Due to the parallel establishment of political districts in 1848, however, their importance declined. In 1862, the regions were abolished, although the regional authorities had some powers until 1868.[1]

Moravia was divided into four regions in 1529. In 1569–1735, their number was five, then the number increased to six. After the introduction of the political districts in 1850, Moravia consisted of two regions. In 1855–1860, there were six regions, but in 1860 they were abolished.[1]

Czech Silesia was not divided into regions until 1783, when it was divided into two regions. From 1850, Czech Silesia formed one region.[1]

From the 1860s to 1948, the Czech lands were divided into counties and districts. Regions were reintroduced in 1949 in Czechoslovakia. From 1949 to 1960, the Czech part of Czechoslovakia was divided into the Capital City of Prague and 13 regions.[2] In 1960–1999, the Czech part of Czechoslovakia was divided into the Capital City of Prague and following 7 regions:[3]

* Central Bohemian Region (Středočeský kraj) with the capital in Prague
* South Bohemian Region (Jihočeský kraj) with the capital in České Budějovice
* West Bohemian Region (Západočeský kraj) with the capital in Plzeň
* North Bohemian Region (Severočeský kraj) with the capital in Ústí nad Labem
* East Bohemian Region (Východočeský kraj) with the capital in Hradec Králové
* South Moravian Region (Jihomoravský kraj) with the capital in Brno
* North Moravian Region (Severomoravský kraj) with the capital in Ostrava

According to the Act no. 129/2000 Coll. ("Law on Regions"), which implements Chapter VII of the Czech Constitution, the Czech Republic is divided into thirteen regions and one capital city with regional status as of 1 January 2000.[4] The capital city of Prague, which has simultaneously the status of a region and a municipality, is treated by Act no. 131/2000 Coll. ("Law on Capital City of Prague").[5]

## Competences

[edit]

Rights and obligations of the regions include:[4]

* Establishment of secondary schools;
* Responsibility for hospitals and social facilities;
* Construction and repair of second and third class roads;
* Organization of integrated transport systems;
* Ordering of public intermunicipal transport;
* Protection of the nature;
* Cooperation in the distribution of EU funds within the NUTS-2 regions;
* Tasks within the integrated rescue system;
* Right to propose laws to the Chamber of Deputies and submit complaints to the Constitutional Court.

## Government

[edit]

Every region is governed by a regional council, headed by a governor (hejtman). Elections to regional councils take place every four years. The number of council members varies according to the population in the region and consists of 45 (population under 600,000), 55 (population 600,000–900,000) or 65 people (population over 900,000).[4]

## List of regions

[edit]

Licence
plate | Region  | Capital  | Population
(2025)[6] | Area
(km2)  | Pop. density
(per km2)  | GDP
(million CZK, 2022)[7] | GDP per
capita (2022)[8]

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

A  |  Prague | 1,397,880 | 496 | 2,818 | 1,926,323 | 1,453,579
S  |  Central Bohemian | Prague[a] | 1,466,215  | 10,929  | 134  | 775,682  | 557,641
C  |  South Bohemian | České Budějovice | 653,227  | 10,058  | 65  | 309,007  | 480,506
P  |  Plzeň | Plzeň | 614,640  | 7,649  | 80  | 326,669  | 553,512
K  |  Karlovy Vary | Karlovy Vary | 293,195  | 3,310  | 89  | 111,015  | 377,886
U  |  Ústí nad Labem | Ústí nad Labem | 808,356  | 5,339  | 151  | 360,731  | 440,737
L  |  Liberec | Liberec | 449,494  | 3,163  | 142  | 202,639  | 457,749
H  |  Hradec Králové | Hradec Králové | 555,923  | 4,759  | 117  | 299,250  | 543,106
E  |  Pardubice | Pardubice | 530,469  | 4,519  | 117  | 268,290  | 513,222
J  |  Vysočina | Jihlava | 517,647  | 6,796  | 76  | 241,562  | 474,282
B  |  South Moravian | Brno | 1,229,343  | 7,188  | 171  | 745,193  | 624,757
M  |  Olomouc | Olomouc | 631,500  | 5,272  | 120  | 317,890  | 503,709
Z  |  Zlín | Zlín | 578,998  | 3,963  | 146  | 304,826  | 524,888
T  |  Moravian-Silesian | Ostrava | 1,182,613  | 5,427  | 218  | 597,665  | 499,813
CZ  |  Czech Republic | Prague | 10,909,500 | 78,871 | 138 | 6,786,742 | 634,993

## Coats of arms

[edit]

* Central Bohemian Region

* South Bohemian Region

* Plzeň Region

* Karlovy Vary Region

* Ústí nad Labem Region

* Liberec Region

* Hradec Králové Region

* Pardubice Region

* Vysočina Region

* South Moravian Region

* Olomouc Region

* Zlín Region

* Moravian-Silesian Region

## See also

[edit]

* List of Czech regions by Human Development Index
* ISO 3166-2:CZ
* Královec Region

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Administrative buildings only. Prague is not considered a part of the region.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "100 let proměn hranic našich regionů (Leták ke konferenci a vernisáži výstavy map)" (in Czech). Ministry of the Interior of the Czech Republic. 2018. pp. 17–18.
2. ^ "Historie krajského zřízení sahá hluboko do minulosti" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
3. ^ "Zákon č. 36/1960 Sb. o územním členění státu". zakonyprolidi.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 19 April 2024.
4. ^ a b c "Zákon č. 129/2000 Sb. o krajích (krajské zřízení)". zakonyprolidi.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 19 April 2024.
5. ^ "Zákon č. 131/2000 Sb. o hlavním městě Praze". zakonyprolidi.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 19 April 2024.
6. ^ "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2025". Czech Statistical Office. 16 May 2025.
7. ^ "Gross Domestic Product: Current prices (CZK mil.)". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
8. ^ "Gross Domestic Product: Per capita (CZK)". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. Retrieved 19 April 2024.

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Regions of the Czech Republic

* Central Bohemian
* Hradec Králové
* Karlovy Vary
* Liberec
* Moravian-Silesian
* Olomouc
* Pardubice
* Plzeň
* Prague
* South Bohemian
* South Moravian
* Ústí nad Labem
* Vysočina
* Zlín

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* 2 Considered European for cultural, political and historical reasons but is geographically in Western Asia.

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