Slovenia is a young country by global standards, having been independent since 1991. The ancestors of the Slovenes were Slavs who migrated from the Carpathians to the present-day territory in the 6th century, before a hundred years later founding the oldest known Slavic state, Carantania, although this did not last long.
Until the 20th century Slovenia was under foreign rule, mostly by the Habsburg monarchy of Austro-Hungary. During this time the Slovenes emerged as a nation and forged their own identity, despite oppression and sustained pressure to assimilate. Slovenia became part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia after the First World War, then part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia after the Second World War. After more than 70 years of living in Yugoslavia, the Slovenes built a consensus to strike out an independent path, almost 90% of the population voting for independence in the 1990 referendum. Slovenia joined the EU in 2004, and also became a member of Nato.
The area that is present-day Slovenia had a rich and varied history even before being settled by Slavs. Here are the major historical developments, from prehistory to the present.