Holiday apartment in Chanava: Natura 2000 and cultural heritage

Chanava is characterised by the interplay of protected nature, rural tradition and historically shaped townscapes. The various facets of the village range from valuable habitats and religious architecture to places of remembrance and art in public spaces.

Nature and landscape

Chanava is located in the Cerová vrchovina and Rimavská kotlina Natura 2000 protected area. The area in which Chanava is situated provides suitable breeding and living habitats for the woodlark, the Eurasian scops owl and the European bee-eater. At the same time, the village lies in the southeast of the Rimavská Basin, on the floodplain and terrace of the Slaná River. Chanava has preserved its agricultural character. As a result, the protected area, the river landscape and the traditional character shaped by agriculture are clearly connected spatially.

Culture and remembrance

An important name in the history of the village is Mihály Tompa. The pastor and poet worked in Chanava from 1852 to 1868 and is buried next to the Calvinist church. Chanava also has a memorial room dedicated to Mihály Tompa. His grave and tombstone are registered as a national cultural monument under number 1050. The parsonage and the commemorative plaque dedicated to Mihály Tompa’s work are also registered as national cultural monuments under numbers 1049/1–2.

The Calvinist church of Chanava is a Neoclassical church built between 1823 and 1830. It has a Rieger organ dating from 1893, is in good condition and continues to serve its religious purpose. Thus, architectural, musical and biographical references meet in and beside the church building without being separated from one another.

Architectural heritage and rural tradition

The historical character of Chanava also includes the Neoclassical manor house of the Hanvay family. It comprises a stable, a chamber and a barn dating from the second half of the 19th century. In addition, traditional Gemer architecture of small noble families has been preserved in Chanava. These architectural forms stand alongside traces of the rural economy: viticulture was part of Chanava’s traditional rural economy, and the grapevine became a symbol of the municipality.

Works of art also take up this local context. Chanava has a park with plaster sculptures by Aladár Igo depicting traditional agricultural activities of the municipality. A metal sculpture by Oto László stands in the courtyard of the diaconia centre. Together with the preserved Gemer architecture, these places make different forms of expression of community life visible.

Connections

No railway line runs through the municipal area of Chanava; the nearest railway connection is in Lenartovce. In Číž, there is access to express trains on the Zvolen–Košice railway line. These two details place Chanava and its wider surroundings in the railway network without equating the local situation with a railway line of its own.

Other places

For further destination options, you can also visit the following pages: Nová Bašta, Dulovo, Cakov, Gemerské Dechtáre, Rimavské Brezovo, Chrámec, Vyšný Skálnik, Konrádovce.

For the higher-level travel overview: Rimavská Sobota District.