The Moravian-Silesian Region (Moravskoslezský kraj) is a higher self-governing territorial unit in the north-east of the Czech Republic. Its regional capital is Ostrava, home to 283,200 people, roughly a quarter of the region's population.[1] According to the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), the region had 1,176,380 inhabitants on 31 December 2025.[7]*
Location and neighbours
To the north and east the region borders the Polish Silesian and Opole voivodeships, to the south-east the Slovak Žilina Region. Among Czech regions it borders the Olomouc Region and, briefly in the south, the Zlín Region.[1] Four euroregions operate in the region: Beskydy, Praděd, Silesia and Těšín Silesia.[1]
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Nature
The west of the region is occupied by the Hrubý Jeseník with Praděd (1,491 m), the highest mountain of the region and of all Moravia. It is followed by the Nízký Jeseník and the Oder Hills.[1] The centre of the region is formed by the densely populated Opava Lowland, the Ostrava Basin and the Moravian Gate. In the south-east rise the Moravian-Silesian Beskids with Lysá hora (1,323 m) and, on the border with Poland, the Silesian Beskids.[1]
Most of the territory drains into the Baltic Sea. The main river is the Oder, which receives the Opava and the Ostravice in Ostrava; north of Bohumín it is joined by the Olza, which forms the border with Poland. The lowest point of the region (195 m) is at the confluence of the Oder and the Olza.[1] The protected landscape areas are Beskydy, Jeseníky and Poodří.[1] Drinking water comes mainly from the Šance, Morávka and Kružberk reservoirs.[1]
Area, population and divisions
With an area of 5,431 km² (6.9% of Czechia) the region is the sixth largest.[1] It consists of the districts of Bruntál, Frýdek-Místek, Karviná, Nový Jičín, Opava and Ostrava-City. The region has 22 administrative districts of municipalities with extended powers and 300 municipalities, 42 of them towns.[1] Its population density of 218 inhabitants per km² is above the Czech average (138). About 58% of the inhabitants live in towns with more than 20,000 people; besides Ostrava the largest towns are Havířov, Opava, Frýdek-Místek and Karviná.[1] Since 1993 the region has been losing population not only through natural decrease but also through migration.[1] A Polish minority lives in the Těšín area.[1]
Creation and name
The region was created on 1 January 2000 under Constitutional Act No. 347/1997 Coll. as the Ostrava Region (Ostravský kraj), a name derived from the seat of the regional authority.[2] Following Constitutional Act No. 176/2001 Coll. it was renamed the Moravian-Silesian Region. In the CZ-NUTS classification the new name applied from 10 July 2001, when the Ostravsko area was also renamed Moravskoslezsko.[3] The first regional assembly was elected on 12 November 2000. In 2005, at the request of the municipalities, three municipalities with about 4,300 inhabitants moved to the Olomouc Region.[2] At the inaugural session on 21 October 2024 Josef Bělica (ANO) was re-elected governor (hejtman), with no opposing candidate.[4]
Economy and transport
A large part of the region was already one of the main industrial areas in the time of Austria-Hungary. Its core is the Ostrava-Karviná basin, where all of Czechia's hard coal is mined and where iron and steel production is concentrated.[1] According to the labour force survey, 30% of the 548,000 employed people worked in industry.[1] The D1 motorway and railway line No. 270 from Prague to Bohumín link the region with Prague. According to ČSÚ, the international airport at Mošnov is the second largest in Czechia.[1] Universities in the region include the VŠB (Technical University of Ostrava), the University of Ostrava and the Silesian University in Opava.[1]
Health care, media and culture
According to its own data, the largest health care facility in northern Moravia is the University Hospital Ostrava (FNO), which has 1,233 beds.[5] The regional station Czech Radio Ostrava has broadcast regularly since 1 July 1929.[6] Ostrava is home to the Janáček Philharmonic.[1] The historic centres of Příbor, Nový Jičín and Štramberk are urban heritage reserves. Industrial monuments include the Lower Vítkovice complex, the Michal Mine and the Mining Museum in Ostrava-Petřkovice.[1]