Pavlini is a hamlet on the northern, Slovenian, side of the river Kolpa, south- east of the hamlet of Balkovci on the main road from Vinica to Preloka. This hamlet is part of the administrative region (gemeinde) of Balkovci, which included the hamlets of Balkovci, Pavlini, Dejani, Valeti, Vidine, Fariči and Novoseli.
Pavlini falls within the region of Slovenia known as Bela krajina (White Carniola in English, Weisskrain in German), thus named to distinguish it from the remainder of the historical Austrian Duchy of Carniola (Herzogthum Krain) to the north. Prior to inclusion into the duchy, this area was under the control of the Kingdom of Croatia, which had already been absorbed into the Kingdom of Hungary. Counts from Carinthia and Carniola to the north, setting their sights southward to the sparsely populated primeval forests of Bela krajina, conducted successful military campaigns in the 12th century. There is evidence, based on church records and Urbariae older than 1800, that this hamlet was considered part of Zilje, and thereafter part of Balkovci.
The map of the Francisian Cadastre of 1823 shows the original (and only) household in Pavlini in yellow, with the delink household in red just to the west. Both households were known as Pavlinski.
Continue on to explore the history of the People of Pavlini.