Buková (Plzeň-South District)

Buková
Main street
Buková
Location in the Czech Republic
Coordinates: 49°32′15″N 13°9′32″E / 49.53750°N 13.15889°E / 49.53750; 13.15889
Country Czech Republic
RegionPlzeň
DistrictPlzeň-South
First mentioned1115
Area
 • Total
6.16 km2 (2.38 sq mi)
Elevation
443 m (1,453 ft)
Population
 (2025-01-01)[1]
 • Total
248
 • Density40.3/km2 (104/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
334 52
Websitewww.obec-bukova.cz

Buková is a municipality and village in Plzeň-South District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 200 inhabitants.

Etymology

The Czech word buková (from buk, i.e. 'beech') is an adjective that originally designated the place (slope, hill, etc.) near which the village was founded.[2]

Geography

Buková is located about 27 kilometres (17 mi) southwest of Plzeň. It lies mostly in the Švihov Highlands, only the southern part of the municipal territory lies in the Plasy Uplands. The highest point is the hill Srnčí vrch at 535 m (1,755 ft) above sea level. The Merklínka Stream flows through the municipality. The fishpond Kačerna is built here on the stream.

History

The first written mention of Buková is from 1115, when Duke Vladislaus I donated the village to the monastery in Kladruby. Until the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), Buková was a prospering village with fishponds, a mill and a brewery. After the war, only twelve homesteads remained in the village. Until 1674, Buková was the centre of a separate estate, owned by various lesser nobles. In 1674, Jakub Filip Berchtold purchased it and annexed it to his Merklín estate.[3]

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, Buková's population grew thanks to coal mining in the nearby forests.[3]

Demographics

Transport

There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality.

Sights

The main landmark of Buková is the Church of Saint George. It was built in the Gothic style in the middle of the 14th century, but it was rebuilt in the Renaissance style in the second half of the 16th century and further modified in the following centuries in the Baroque and Neoclassical styles.[6]

References

  1. ^ "Population of Municipalities – 1 January 2025". Czech Statistical Office. 2025-05-16.
  2. ^ Profous, Antonín (1947). Místní jména v Čechách I: A–H (in Czech). pp. 234–235.
  3. ^ a b "Historie" (in Czech). Obec Buková. Retrieved 2026-02-26.
  4. ^ "Historický lexikon obcí České republiky 1869–2011" (in Czech). Czech Statistical Office. 2015-12-21.
  5. ^ "Population Census 2021: Population by sex". Public Database. Czech Statistical Office. 2021-03-27.
  6. ^ "Kostel sv. Jiří" (in Czech). National Heritage Institute. Retrieved 2026-02-26.