{{short description|First-level administrative division in various countries}} {{Distinguish|Krai}} {{For2|the radio station in Johannesburg, California|KRAJ (FM)|other uses|KRAJ (disambiguation){{!}}KRAJ}} {{Redirect|Kraje|the region in Montenegro|Skadarska Krajina{{!}}Krajë}}
{{more citations needed|date=September 2025}} A ''Kraj'' ({{small|plural:}} ''kraje'') is the highest-level administrative unit in the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.<ref>{{Cite web |title=CoR - Czechia intro |url=https://portal.cor.europa.eu/divisionpowers/Pages/Czechia-intro.aspx |access-date=2025-09-20 |website=portal.cor.europa.eu}}</ref> For lack of other English expressions, the Slavic term is often translated as "province", "region", or "territory", although it approximately means "(part of) country", or "(part of) countryside". A ''kraj'' is subdivided into ''okresy'' ("districts").
The first ''kraje'' were created in the Kingdom of Bohemia during the reign of Charles IV in the 14th century and they lasted till 1862/68. ''Kraje'' were reintroduced in 1949 in Czechoslovakia and still exist today (except for the early 1990s) in its successor states despite many rearrangements.
In Russia nine of the 85 federal subjects are called krais ({{langx|ru|края}}, ''kraya''), coequal to oblasts. The toponym Krajina refers to several historical regions in Slavic countries.
==Kraje in the Czech Republic== {{Main|Regions of the Czech Republic}}
==Kraje in Slovakia== {{Main|Regions of Slovakia}}
==Toponymy==
Kraj is also found as a toponym outside of Czech- and Slovak-speaking areas.
* Almaški Kraj, a part of Novi Sad, Serbia * Gerovski Kraj, a village near Čabar, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia * Jovanovski Kraj, a former name of Rotkvarija/Žitni Trg, a part of Novi Sad, Serbia * Končarev Kraj, a village near Plitvička Jezera, Lika-Senj County, Croatia * Kraj, Pašman, a village in Zadar County, Croatia * Kraj, Split-Dalmatia County, a village in Dicmo, Croatia * Kraj, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, a village near Mošćenička Draga, Croatia * Kraj Donji, a village near Marija Gorica, Croatia * Kraj Drage, a village near Sveta Nedelja, Istria County, Croatia * Kraj Gornji, a village near Marija Gorica, Croatia * Rašića Kraj, a hamlet near Vranići, Serbia * Srednji Kraj, a village near Barajevo, Serbia
==Anthroponymy==
Kraj is also found as a surname. Notable people with the name include:
* Rudolf Kraj (born 1977), a Czech boxer
==Other uses==
* Kraj (song), 2009 single by the Macedonian singer Karolina Gočeva
==See also== *{{section link|Bohemia|Historical administrative divisions}} *Federal subjects of Russia *Krajina *Semasiological map for *krajь
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == * {{in lang|ru}} [http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/response.cgi?root=%2Fusr%2Flocal%2Fshare%2Fstarling%2Fmorpho&morpho=1&basename=%5Cusr%5Clocal%5Cshare%5Cstarling%5Cmorpho%5Cvasmer%5Cvasmer&first=1&text_word=%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B9&method_word=substring&text_general=&method_general=substring&text_origin=&method_origin=substring&text_trubachev=&method_trubachev=substring&text_editorial=&method_editorial=substring&text_pages=&method_pages=substring&text_any=&method_any=substring&sort=word etymology of the word]
{{Slavic terms for country subdivisions}}
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Category:Regions of the Czech Republic Category:Regions of Slovakia Category:Types of administrative division Category:Slovak words and phrases