| Official Name: | Cerknica |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Pushpin Map: | Slovenia |
| Pushpin Label Position: | top |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Slovenia |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Slovenia |
| Subdivision Type1: | Traditional region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Inner Carniola |
| Subdivision Type2: | Statistical region |
| Subdivision Name2: | Littoral–Inner Carniola |
| Subdivision Type3: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name3: | Cerknica |
| Area Total Km2: | 14.8 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 4018 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Ethnicities |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Religions |
| Coordinates: | 45.7964°N 14.3581°W |
| Elevation M: | 558.8 |
| Postal Code: | 1380 Cerknica |
| Registration Plate: | LJ |
| Blank Name: | Climate |
| Blank Info: | Cfb |
| Footnotes: | [1] |
Cerknica (in Slovenian pronounced as /ˈtseːɾknitsa/;, German: Zirknitz[2]) is a town in the Karst region of southwestern Slovenia, with a population of 4,018 (2016 census). It is the seat of the Municipality of Cerknica. It belongs to the traditional region of Inner Carniola.[3]
Cerknica was first attested in written sources as Circhinitz in 1040 (and as Czirknicz in 1145, Cyrknitz in 1261, and Cirnizza in 1581). The name is derived from *Cerkvnica, a univerbation of *Cerkvna (vas) 'church village'. A church was established very early in Cerknica, probably already in the 9th century. The original structure was burned down in an Ottoman attack in 1472.[4]
There are three churches in Cerknica. The parish church is dedicated to the Nativity of Mary.[5] It stands at the top of a hill in the center of Cerknica at the site of a former fortification against Ottoman raids. It is a late Gothic hall church, a triple-naved structure with lierne vaulting built between 1480 and 1520 at the site of an earlier church that was burned during an Ottoman attack in 1472. A Baroque chapel was added to the church in the 18th century and the church's furnishings date from the 19th century.[6]
The other two churches are chapels of ease dedicated to John the Baptist and Saint Roch.[5] Saint John the Baptist Church is a cemetery church south of the main settlement. A chapel was mentioned at the site in a visitation report of 1581; the church itself was built in 1642. It has a rectangular nave, a polygonal chancel walled on three sides, and a bell tower. The interior combines groin vaulting and barrel vaulting with spandrels.[7] Saint Roch's Church stands in the northern part of Cerknica. It was built between 1630 and 1644 at the site of a plague chapel dating to 1578. It has a rectangular nave, a polygonal chancel walled on three sides, and a bell tower. The altar painting of Saint Roch is a 1763 work by Anton Cebej.[8]
Notable people that were born or lived in Cerknica include:
Kispest, Hungary (2024)