Croatie centrale

Croatia proper (Hrvatska) is one of the four historical regions of the Republic of Croatia, together with Dalmatia, Istria, and Slavonia. It is located between Slavonia in the east, the Adriatic Sea in the west, and Dalmatia to the south. The region is not officially defined, and its borders and extent are described differently by various sources. In contemporary geography, the terms Central Croatia (Središnja Hrvatska) and Mountainous Croatia (Gorska Hrvatska) are used to describe most of this area, the former referring to the northeastern part and the latter to the southwestern part; the far western part is known as the Croatian Littoral; likewise the terms 'Zagreb macroregion' and 'Rijeka macroregion' can be used instead. Croatia proper is the most significant economic area of the country, contributing well over 50% of Croatia's gross domestic product. The capital of the Republic of Croatia, Zagreb, is the largest city and most important economic centre in Croatia proper. Croatia proper comprises several smaller regions of its own: Lika, Gorski Kotar, Zagorje, Međimurje, the Croatian Littoral, Podravina, Posavina, Kordun, Banovina, Prigorje, Turopolje, Moslavina, and Žumberak. The region covers of land and has a population of 2,418,214. Croatia proper straddles the boundary between the Dinaric Alps and the Pannonian Basin. The boundary of these two geomorphological units runs from Žumberak to Banovina, along the Sava River. The Dinaric Alps area is typified by karst topography, while the Pannonian Basin exhibits plains, especially in the river valleys—along the Sava, Drava, and Kupa—interspersed with hills and mountains developed as horst and graben structures. Lika and Gorski Kotar are part of the Dinaric Alps, and contain five out of eight mountains in Croatia higher than . Karst topography predominates in that area, resulting in specific landforms and hydrology because of the interaction of the karst and the region's watercourses—this is exemplified by the Plitvice Lakes.