Spišský Hrušov



Spišský Hrušov (Szepeskörtvélyes) is a village and municipality in the Spišská Nová Ves District in the Košice Region of central-eastern Slovakia. In 2011 had 1,266 inhabitants

History


The village was founded before the 12th century in the former Hungarian Szepes County (Szepes is Hungarian for beautiful). The first historical records of its existence are from 1253. The village name is derived from the Slovak word for pear (hruška) and its former Hungarian names incorporated the equivalent Hungarian word for pear of "körte". Local folklore refers to a large pear tree located on a nearby hill that was supposed to have had mysterious powers. The tree is now gone but the story lives on. The coat of arms of the village is a tree on a hill with four pears on its branches.

Below is a chronology of the former Hungarian, German, and Slovak names of present day Spišský Hrušov:

1253 - Kurtues, Kurtueles

1255 - Kurtuelus

1294 - Horusk, Hurusk

1360-1364 - Hruschfálva, Hruskfálva, Hruskafálva

1368 - Grussov

1386 - Graucza

1495 - Grawss

1500 - Hrussow

1773 - Körtvélyes, Körtvélesz, Bierndorff, Grossow

1786 - Körtwélyesch, Birndorf, Hrussow

1808 - Körtvélyes, Birndorf, Grausch, Hrussow

1863-1902 - Körtvélyes

1907-1918 - Szepeskörtvélyes

1920 - Hrušov

1927 - Spišský Hrušov

Next to the town hall is the Gothic style Roman Catholic church of St. Catherine of Alexandria (Kostol svätá Kataríny Alexandrijskej). It was built in the late 13th century, rebuilt in the 17th and 18th centuries, renovated in 1900 and again in 1951. The Chapel of St. Sofia (Kaplnka svätá Žofie) adjoins the northeast side of the church.

The only industry in Spišský Hrušov is BIO-plus, s.r.o, a company that manufactures motor fuel from organic plant material. It is located at the northeast end of a road that follows a tributary of the Lodina River that runs through the village.

Geography
The village lies at an altitude of 424 m and covers an area of 13.07 km2. It has a population of about 1,200 people. Spišský Hrušov is 12 km east of Spišská Nová Ves on highway 536. The surrounding land is gently rolling fields. A tributary of the Lodina River runs through the village. The Lodina River joins the Hornád River at the village of Vítkovce about 2 km southeast of Spišský Hrušov.