Darkov

 Darkov  (Polish: Darków , German: Darkau) is a village in Karviná District, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic, now administratively a part of the city of Karviná. Till 1948 it was a separate municipality. It lies on the Olza River, in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia. Darkov has a population of 406 (2001).

The name is possessive in origin derived from personal name Darek.

History

Some sources state that the village was first mentioned in a Latin document of Diocese of Wrocław called Liber fundationis episcopatus Vratislaviensis from around 1305 as item in Bertholdi villa debent esse XLV mansi, however it is unlikely and disputed. Surely it was later mentioned in a written document in 1447 as Darkow. Politically it belonged initially to the Duchy of Teschen, a fee of the Kingdom of Bohemia, which after 1526 became part of the Habsburg Monarchy. In 1573 it was sold as one of a dozen villages and the town of Freistadt and formed a state country split from the Duchy of Teschen.