ZLIN

formerly (194890) Gottwaldov, city, Jihomoravsk kraj (region), Czech Republic, on the Drevnice River, near its confluence with the Morava River. Gottwaldov was created in 1948 through a merger of several communities surrounding Zln, a 14th-century village that had grown rapidly after World War I. The consolidated town was named for Klement Gottwald, the first communist president of Czechoslovakia. In 1990 Gottwaldov as a whole was renamed Zln. Zln is a cultural centre, with a resident orchestra and several film studios. The planning and design of its new sections are, in part, the work of Le Corbusier, the Swiss-French architect. Known internationally as the home of the Bt'a shoemaking enterprise, Zln also produces knitting machines, leather and rubber goods, and animated films. It is organized as an almost self-sufficient factory community, with workers' educational facilities. At nearby Otrokovice are large tanneries. Pop. (1991 prelim.) 84,634.