Geographical data

Koprivnica Križevci County is situated in northwest part of the Republic of Croatia. It is located in a group of Counties of Central Croatia, together with Zagreb County, Krapina Zagorje County, Varaždin County, Međimurje County, Bjelovar Bilogora County, Sisak Moslavina County and Karlovac County. From the northeast side it borders with the Republic of Hungary. Inside the Republic of Croatia Koprivnica Križevci County borders with the following counties: Međimurje County, Varaždin County, Zagreb County, Bjelovar Bilogora County and Virovitica Podravina County.

With the area of 1.748 km2 is the seventeenth county by size in Croatia, while by the number of 115.582 inhabitants is sixteenth by size.

According to natural-geographical regionalization of the Republic of Croatia Koprivnica Križevci County belongs to Panonia megaregion, and inside it basin of northwest Croatia.

The area of Koprivnica Križevci County is extremely diverse, and includes few whole areas which mutually distinguish not only by natural-geographical but as well by economic, demographic, traffic and other characteristics:

Northeast part of the County makes Drava river valley. At that part of the County, dominates agricultural activity with significant oil fields and natural gas. This part of the space is populated with slightly higher and concentrated settlements, which partially, due to good traffic connections with Koprivnica, adopt certain elements of urbanization. As central settlements of this area stand out in the first instance Koprivnica, traditional center created at the contact of plains and mountain part of the County, and smaller Đurđevac in east part of the ledge.

Mountain part of the County makes area of Kalnik hills and Bilogora, area of the hilly relief. Whole hills is separated with the valley of Koprivnica river in two parts. Bilogora part  (maximum height 307 m s.l.) situated on northwest part, while the other part makes the area of Kalnik hills, with the highest peak of Kalnik (642 m s.l.). In this area dominate small rural settlements (except town Križevci), with highly negative demographic characteristics.

Geographic-traffic position of the County mark two directions: secondary transverse and longitudinal traffic direction. Transverse direction enables connecting of the Republic of Croatia (especiallly the Adriatic) with centraleuropean and easteuropean countries, and at the same time connects Podravina basin with Zagreb. That transverse traffic direction crosses over low Lepavina previa and represents also natural-geographic favorable route which is not evaluated enough, and at the same time represents lowland communication between Drava and Sava valley. By secondary longitudinal direction which goes on Drava valley is connected central Croatia with east Croatia and westeuropean and centraleuropean countries with southeast Europe. Secondary longitudinal croatian traffic direction was one of the key traffic corridors in Homeland war.

Geotraffical position of the County needs to be the router of future spatial and economic development, beacuse it enables direct contact with neighboring centraleuropean countries. Geopolitical position and location of Koprivnica Križevci County will facilitate the integration in contemporary european economic, cultural and politic flows.