PREOV

Hungarian Eperjes, town, Vchodn Slovensko kraj (region), Slovakia, on the Torysa River. First mentioned in documents in 1247, it became a royal free town in 1374. Preov is now a state historic town; its medieval oval marketplace, Renaissance burgher houses, and three churches representing Gothic, 16th-century Baroque, and 17th-century Rococo styles survived a great fire in 1887. The ruined ari, a medieval Slovak castle, is 3 miles (5 km) northwest. The town is a cultural centre with theatres, a museum, and a teachers' college. It is an important rail and road junction and has grown rapidly since World War II, with the development of electrical-engineering, textile, and food-processing industries. Pop. (1993 est.) 90,069.