Ostrava-Jih (literally 'Ostrava-South') is a city district of Ostrava, a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic, located in the south-central part of the city. It comprises the municipal parts and cadastral areas of Dubina, Hrabà ¯vka, Zábà Âeh, VÃ½à ¡kovice and BÃÂlský Les. With a population of 96,871 as of 2021, it is the most populous city district of Ostrava.
The borough is home to a forest park BÃÂlský les, the largest forest park in Ostrava and one of the largest in Central Europe, covering an area of 1.6 km<sup>2</sup> (0.618 sq mi). It also includes Avion Shopping Park Ostrava, one of the largest shopping centers in the Czech Republic, and Ostravar Aréna, which hosted the IIHF World Championship in 2004, 2015 and 2024.
The name of the borough is derived from its geographical location, as jih means south in Czech.
The name originates from the Czech word dub, meaning oak. The area was originally covered by an oak forest.
The name is derived from the Czech word habr, meaning hornbeam. In the local dialect, it was pronounced hrab.
The name is a combination of words za, meaning behind, and bà Âeh, meaning bank, as the area is situated behind the bank of the Oder River.
The name comes from the given name VÃ½à ¡ek (most likely a diminutive of an Old Czech name), who was presumably a lokator. By adding the possessive suffix -ovice, the name became VÃ½à ¡kovice, meaning VÃ½à ¡ek's settlement.
The name refers to forest park of the same name located in the area. It was named after the creek BÃÂlá, which flows through the area. The noun bÃÂlá comes from the Czech adjective bÃÂlý, meaning white â hence, the name refers to a 'white creek'. BÃÂlský is an adjective form of bÃÂlá.
The neighboring boroughs Stará BÃÂlá and Nová BÃÂlá share the same etymology, as they are also named after the BÃÂlá creek. A part of the forest park BÃÂlský les is situated in Stará BÃÂlá.
Hrabà ¯vka and Zábà Âeh were originally separate municipalities and both were incorporated into Ostrava in 1924. On 21 March 1936, an airport was established in Hrabà ¯vka. In 1946, the airport operated flights to Prague, ZlÃÂn, Olomouc, Brno and Pieà ¡à ¥any, with Koà ¡ice added in 1951. In 1957, a Soviet delegation led by Nikita Khrushchev landed on the airport. After the opening of a new airport in Moà ¡nov in 1959, the Hrabà ¯vka airport was closed. The area of the airport was later built up with residential buildings, and the airport hangar is nowadays used as a commercial property.
VÃ½à ¡kovice was originally an agricultural village located outside the borders of Ostrava, and in 1941, they merged with Ostrava. In 1954, it regained its independency, but rejoined Ostrava in 1966, when a housing estate development began in that area in the 1960s. The new estate was built during the 1970s and 1980s.
Dubina was developed as a housing estate during the 1980s and 1990s, along with BÃÂlský Les. In both parts, the residential buildings consist primarily of panel apartment blocks. On 22 February 1988, the two city parts were connected to the city tram network.
In 1986, a new indoor arena was opened in Ostrava-Jih, serving as the home venue for the ice hockey club HC VÃÂtkovice Ridera. In 2016, the arena was renamed to Ostravar Aréna.
On 24 November 1990, the city parts were merged into a single administrative unit, forming the Ostrava-Jih borough, which became one of the 23 self-governing boroughs of Ostrava.
In 2001, a shopping center Avion Shopping Park Ostrava was opened in Zábà Âeh. In 2008, it was the largest shopping center in the Moravian-Silesian Region and the second largest in the Czech Republic.
Since 2002, the borough has organized an annual summer festival Slavnosti Jihu, featuring artists like Anna K, No Name, Michal David and Xindl X.
As of the 2021 census, the population of Ostrava-Jih is 96,871, of whom 48.4% are male and 51.6% are female, compared to the nationwide average of 49.3% and 50.7% respectively. People under 15 years old make up 14.1% of the population, and people over 65 years old make up 20.2%, compared to the nationwide average of 16.1% and 20.4% respectively.