The European Capital of Culture is a title that the EU bestows upon one or more cities for a particular year, following a special procedure. Cities that receive this prestigious title play host to a wide range of important culture events during the year of their tenure and are highly visible within European and global cultural circles.

As the 2012 European Capital of Culture, Maribor is joined by its partner towns of Murska Sobota, Novo Mesto, Ptuj, Slovenj Gradec, and Velenje. With its European scope and regional connections, this is above all a large Slovenian project—the largest cultural project in the history of Slovenia. More