Soča/Isonzo
The Soča at Bovec
Origin	Julian Alps, west of Triglav
Mouth	Adriatic Sea, near Monfalcone
Basin countries	Slovenia, Italy
Length	138 kilometres (86 mi)
Source elevation	876 metres (2,874 ft)
Avg. discharge	172 m³/s[1]
Basin area	3,400 km²[1]

The Soča (in Slovene) or Isonzo (in Italian) (other names Friulian: Lusinç, archaic German: Sontig, Latin: Aesontius or Sontius) is a 138 kilometres (86 mi) long river that flows through western Slovenia (96 kilometres or 60 miles) and northeastern Italy (43 kilometres or 27 miles).^[2] An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia, at an elevation of 876 metres (2,874 ft).^[2] The river runs past the towns of Bovec, Kobarid, Tolmin, Kanal ob Soči, Nova Gorica (where it is crossed by the Solkan Bridge) and Gorizia, entering the Adriatic Sea close to the Italian town of Monfalcone.

Major changes in the watershed[link]

Course of the Soča/Isonzo

The present course of the river is the result of several dramatic changes that occurred during the past 2,000 years. According to the Roman historian Strabo, the river named Aesontius which in Roman times flowed past Aquileia to the Adriatic Sea was essentially the Natisone and Torre river system.^[3] In 585, a landslide cut off the upper part of the Natisone riverbed, causing its avulsion and subsequent stream capture by the Bontius river. The original subterrenean discharge of the Bontius into the Timavo became obstructed, and another avulsion returned the new watercourse into the bed of the lower Natisone. During the next centuries the estuary of this new river — the Soča — moved eastward until it captured the short coastal river Sdobba, through which the Soča now discharges into the Adriatic Sea. The former estuary (of the Aesontius, and the early Soča/Isonzo) in the newly formed lagoon of Grado became an independent coastal rivulet.^[4]

Attractions[link]

Due to its emerald green water, the river is marketed as "The Emerald Beauty". It is said to be one of the rare rivers in the world that retain such a colour throughout their length.^[5] Giuseppe Ungaretti, one of the greatest Italian poets, describes the Isonzo in the poem "The Rivers".

The Soča inspired the poet Simon Gregorčič to write his best-known poem Soči (To the Soča), one of the masterpieces of Slovene poetry. This region served as a location for the 2008 Disney film Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.^[6]

The Isonzo/Soča is also well known for its unique trout species Salmo marmoratus (known as the marble trout), which lives in the upper course of the crystal-clear river. This species is endangered due to the introduction of other non-indigenous trout species sometime between World War I and World War II.^[7]

Significance in World War I[link]

The Soča River in Italian region.

The Soča River

The Soča valley was the stage of major military operations including the twelve battles of the Isonzo on the Italian front in World War I between May 1915 and November 1917, in which over 600,000 Austro-Hungarian and Italian soldiers lost their lives.^[8]

See also[link]

• Karst topography
• Battles of the Isonzo
• Gorizia
• Goriška

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Soča

• The Walks of Peace in the Soča Region Foundation. The Foundation preserves, restores and presents the historical and cultural heritage of the First World War in the area of the Isonzo Front for the study, tourist and educational purposes. (Slovene) (English) (Italian) (German)
• Galleries of Soca river in kayak
• Awarded "EDEN - European Destinations of Excellence" non traditional tourist destination 2008

Coordinates: 45°59′40″N 13°38′29″E / 45.99444°N 13.64139°E / 45.99444; 13.64139

v t e Hydrography of Slovenia Rivers Bača Big Krka Bolska Čabranka Dragonja Drava Dravinja Dreta Fram Creek Gradaščica Hudinja Idrijca Iška Ledava Ložnica Kamnik Bistrica Kokra Krka Kolpa Lahinja Ljubljanica Meža Mirna Mislinja Mura Nadiža Nevljica Oplotniščica Paka Pesnica Pivka Polskava Pšata Radulja Reka Rinža Sava Sava Dolinka Savinja Ščavnica Soča Sora Sotla Temenica Tržič Bistrica Vipava Voglajna Streams Big Božna Davščica Glinščica Kobilje Creek Rak Lakes Lake Bled Lake Bohinj Lake Cerknica Lake Gradišče Lake Kreda Lake Palčje Lake Ptuj Lake Žovnek Wild Lake Valleys Logar Valley Radovna Valley Rakov Škocjan Trenta Valley Triglav Lakes Valley Tuhinj Valley Upper Sava Valley Vipava Valley Canyons and Gorges Pekel Gorge Vintgar Waterfalls Rinka

Iztok Mlakar
Iztok Mlakar in 2012
Background information
Birth name	Iztok Mlakar
Born	(1961-06-21) June 21, 1961 (age 51) Postojna, SR Slovenia, Yugoslavia (Now Slovenia)
Origin	Nova Gorica, Slovenia
Occupations	Theatre actor, Singer-songwriter

Iztok Mlakar (born 21 June 1961) is a Slovenian singer-songwriter and theatre actor. Known as the "bard of the Slovenian Littoral,"^[1] he is most famous for his ironic chansons in the local dialect. Together with Adi Smolar, Mlakar is among the best-known singer-songwriters in Slovenia after 1990.

He was born in Postojna in western Slovenia (then part of the former Yugoslavia), but spent his youth in the town of Nova Gorica on the border with Italy. His parents were from Cerkno, and Mlakar composed several songs in the distinctive dialect of his parents' native region.

Career[link]

After graduating from the Nova Gorica Grammar School, Mlakar studied acting at the Academy for Theatre, Radio, Film and Television in Ljubljana, graduating from the drama program in 1986. He pursued a career as an actor in the Slovenian National Theatre of Nova Gorica, where he is currently working.^[2][3] He has written many songs for plays, but he is best known as the composer and singer of his own chanson-style songs. In 1993 he received the Ježek Award.

Chansons[link]

Iztok Mlakar is best known to Slovenian public as a singer of songs composed in his local Slovene dialect. His songs are frequently witty and unusual reflections on eternal subjects such as love, passing, and death, and also about the joys of life (particularly wine and good food). Always written from the perspective of the little man, they are often bitter comments on the struggle of daily life and the injustice of social and political settings.

His early songs contain many commentaries on daily life under Communism in the former Yugoslavia, presented in an ironic way. Mlakar mostly sings about unusual personal stories, which highlight the absurdities and anxieties of the lives of the common people.

Language of the songs[link]

Mlakar does not use standard Slovene in his songs, except in few cases, when he wants to mark the differences in the social status of the characters of his stories. The majority of his songs are sung in the Karst dialect, which is the most distinctive and widely spoken Slovene dialect in the Slovenian Littoral. It's also spoken in the suburban areas around the town Nova Gorica (especially Solkan and Šempeter pri Gorici). The language of most Mlakar's songs are based on the distinctive suburban speeches of these areas, which have been strongly influenced by Italian and Friulian, especially in the vocabulary and syntax.

Fewer of his songs are sung in the Inner Carniolan dialect, as it is spoken in the upper Vipava Valley (Bose noge), while others (such as Pubi, usidma se, Var se, čeča, and Očenaš) are sung in the Cerkno dialect of Cerkno, which differs considerably from the dialect employed in his other songs, as it belongs to different dialect group.

The vocabulary of most of Mlakar's songs is frequently difficult to understand for speakers from other Slovenian regions. The use of dialect and juicy expressions conveys a sense of familiarity to his songs.

Lyrics[link]

Survival tactics, idiosyncrasies and anxieties of simple people some of the constant themes of Mlakar's songs, as are their joy for life and seek of pleasure. The characters of Mlakar's songs present a typical Slovene character. He sings about the simple Slovene man and woman of the 20th and 21st century, who are frequently oppressed by big historical events such as the world wars, expansionistic policies of large nations, changing political regimes, unstable economic situations, and shifts in moral and social customs. The characters of Mlakar's songs cope with these circumstances in different ways: they either stubbornly defy them (Karlo Špacapan), frequently becoming silly and pathetic in the process (Pepi Žbaradorija), accept them with a sense of poetic fatalism (Bertolin in Štefana), or opportunistically try to accommodate to them (Politik Gvido). Many of his songs narrate about outbursts of anger directed against authority: some of them result in a temporary victory (Ivo Balila), some end in compromise (Pubi usidma se), while others remain a dream of a distant future egalitarian retaliation (Puntarska, Politik Gvido).

Many lyrics are an intelligent ironic comment on acute problems of contemporary Slovenian society, such as alcoholism (Beštija), drug abuse (Marjo Špinel), and suicide (Briškula). Some lyrics ridicule the provincial customs of an enriched post-Communist society (Fool cool, Truckin' rap, Bogatašev song). Many of them convey an unusual life philosophy or acquired wisdom (Credo, Počasno življenje, Pismo). Most of them, however, are about love, sex, and the often difficult relations between men and women. These include stories of love and passion bridging ethnic and social divides (Furlanka, Valentin, Var se čeča); many are ironic songs about romantic deception (Brika, Valentinčič Rudi in Pepa Žgabucin) and stories of unfulfilled romantic promises (Dešpet, Vandima). Only a few are classical ballads of failed love (En glaž vina mi dej).

Public performances[link]

Mlakar is known for avoiding the lights of publicity. He has never performed in a big concert or public event, preferring small and selected audiences. His public performances are rare, and usually there is a very high interest in them, making it hard to get tickets. Such a style of performance usually goes well with topics of his songs. With good food and wine, the audience gets in a good mood and participates in singing his songs.

Discography[link]

• Štorije in baldorije (1992)
  • 1. Pepi Žbaradorija
  • 2. Republika Palma de Cocco
  • 3. Puntarska
  • 4. Vandima
  • 5. Pubi, usidma se
  • 6. Karlo Špacapan
  • 7. Beštija
  • 8. Štefana in Bertolin
  • 9. En glaž vina mi dej

• Balade in štroncade (1994)
  • 1. Od Franca Frančeškina god
  • 2. Soča
  • 3. Full cool
  • 4. Božična
  • 5. Politik Gvido
  • 6. Valentin
  • 7. Počasno življenje
  • 8. Brika (ki b' rad)
  • 9. Betula

• Rimarije iz oštarije (2001)
  • 1. Blues
  • 2. Rudi Valentinčič in Pepa Žgabucin
  • 3. Credo
  • 4. Dešpet
  • 5. Čikorija in kafe
  • 6. Marjo Špinel
  • 7. Ivo Balila
  • 8. Var'se, čeča
  • 9. Briškula

• Romance brez krjance (2008)
  • 1. Oda
  • 2. Bose noge
  • 3. Pismo
  • 4. Furlanka
  • 5. Žena al flaša
  • 6. Pokora
  • 7. Truckin' rap (Recitativ za bariton, kamion in basso continuo)
  • 8. Bogatašev song
  • 9. Očenaš

External links[link]

• Texts and tabs of Iztok Mlakar.
• Biography and lyrics

References[link]