CARIN'THIA (Ger. Karnthen), a crown-land of the Austrian empire, forming part of the old kingdom of Illyria, with an area of 3,958 sq.m., and a pop. in 1869, of 337,694, which is rather less than what it was in 1854. The principal river is the Drave, which passes through the country from w. to e., in a course of almost 150 miles. The general aspect of the country is mohntainous, with long deep valleys, that of the Drave widening at Villach and Klagenfurt into a great plain. The valley of the Drave divides the Noric from the Corinthian Alp. Agriculture is carried on to a limited extent, owing to the mountainous character of the country, great part of which is occupied in pasture, or covered with brushwood. Many horses and cattle are reared and exported. The principal products are mineral. One of the principal branches of industry is the manu facture of hardware; the other manufactures include woolens, silk stuffs, and cottons.
The capital is Klagenfurt.—The ancient inhabitants were the Garai, who derived their name from the Celtic word.earn or corn, Lat. mrau, Eng. horn—an allusion to the craggy, horn-like pinnacles of their hills. Before the time of Augustus, it belonged to Noricum, afterwards to the Roman empire. By and by the Carni were swept away in the deluge of immigration from the c., and Slaves settled in the country. After some time the Slaves themselves were so heavily oppressed by the Avari, that they called to their assistance a Frank, named Santo, who founded the kingdom of Carantania, which included much more than the present C., but fell to pieces after his death. Finally, it came into the possession of Austria (q.v.). Only about two sevenths of the present population is Slavic (Slovenians), the remainder being Germans.