[11] The city's history has been influenced by people of many nations and religions, including Austrians, Bulgarians, Croats, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Jews and Slovaks.

[12] It was the coronation site and legislative center and capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1536 to 1783;[13] eleven Hungarian kings and eight queens were crowned in St Martin's Cathedral.

The linguist Ján Stanislav believed the city's Hungarian name, Pozsony, to be attributed to the surname Božan, likely a prince who owned the castle before 950.

Although the Latin name was also based on the same surname, according to research by the lexicologist Milan Majtán, the Hungarian version is not found in any official records from the time in which the theorised prince would have lived.

[34] Scholars have debated the identification as fortresses of the two castles built in Great Moravia, based on linguistic arguments and because of the absence of convincing archaeological evidence.

[40] In 1052, German Emperor Henry III undertook a fifth campaign against the Kingdom of Hungary, and besieged Pressburg without success, as the Hungarians sank his supply ships on the Danube river.

This strategic position destined the city to be the site of frequent attacks and battles, but also brought it economic development and high political status.

[43] Owing to Ottoman advances into Hungarian territory, the city was designated the new capital of Hungary in 1536, after becoming part of the Habsburg monarchy and marking the beginning of a new era.

[50][51] The city started to lose its importance under the reign of Maria Theresa's son Joseph II,[47] especially after the crown jewels were taken to Vienna in 1783 in an attempt to strengthen the relations between Austria and Hungary.

The first post war census in 1919 declared the city's ethnic composition at 36% German, 33% Slovak and 29% Hungarian but this may have reflected changing self-identification, rather than an exchange of peoples.

"[67] The Allies of World War I drew a provisional demarcation line, this was revealed to the Hungarian government on December 23, in the document known as the Vix Note.

[70] At the beginning of August 1919, Czechoslovakia got permission to correct the borders for the strategic reasons, mainly to secure the port and to prevent a potential attack of the Hungarian Army on the town.

On the night of 14 August 1919 barefoot Czechoslovak soldiers silently climbed to the Hungarian side of the Starý most (Old Bridge), captured the guards and annexed Petržalka (currently part of Bratislava's 5th district) without a fight.

[citation needed] Bratislava was declared the capital of the first independent Slovak Republic on March 14, 1939, but the new state quickly fell under Nazi influence.

In 1941–1942 and 1944–1945, the new Slovak government cooperated in deporting most of Bratislava's approximately 15,000 Jews;[76] they were transported to concentration camps, where most were killed or died before the end of the war in the Holocaust.

[93] The cityscape of Bratislava is characterized by medieval towers and grandiose 20th-century buildings, but it underwent profound changes in a construction boom at the start of the 21st century.

A curiosity is the underground (formerly ground-level) restored portion of the Jewish cemetery where 19th-century Rabbi Moses Sofer is buried, located at the base of the castle hill near the entrance to a tram tunnel.

At the beginning of the 21st century, a construction boom has spawned new public structures,[108] such as the Most Apollo and a new building of the Slovak National Theatre,[109] as well as private real-estate development.

The castle hill site has been inhabited since the transitional period between the Stone and Bronze ages[111] and has been the acropolis of a Celtic town, part of the Roman limes Romanus, a huge Slavic fortified settlement, and a political, military and religious centre for Great Moravia.

Many global companies, including IBM, Dell, Lenovo, AT&T, SAP, Amazon, Johnson Controls, Swiss Re and Accenture, have built outsourcing and service centres here.

[155] Reasons for the influx of multi-national corporations include proximity to Western Europe, skilled labour force and the high density of universities and research facilities.

[108] Areas attracting developers include the Danube riverfront, where two major projects are already finished: River Park in the Old Town, and Eurovea near the Apollo Bridge.

[158][159] Other locations under development include the areas around the main railway and bus stations, the former industrial zone near the Old Town and in the boroughs of Petržalka, Nové Mesto and Ružinov.

Owing to its historical multi-cultural character, local culture is influenced by various ethnic and religious groups, including Germans, Slovaks, Hungarians, and Jews.

Notable TV stations based in the city include Slovak Television and Radio (Slovenská televízia a rozhlas), Markíza, JOJ and TA3.

National newspapers based in Bratislava include SME, Pravda, Nový čas, Hospodárske noviny and the English-language The Slovak Spectator.

Traveling with a single ticket is possible throughout the system network, both in Bratislava and to the nearby villages and cities, including three other districts of Senec, Malacky, and Pezinok.

As a rail hub, the city has direct connections to Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, Croatia, Slovenia and the rest of Slovakia.

A new bus station attached to a shopping mall, administration centre, and Bratislava's tallest skyscraper, Nivy Tower, was opened on the 30th of September 2021.

The motorway system provides direct access to Brno in the Czech Republic, Vienna in Austria, Budapest in Hungary, Trnava, and other points in Slovakia.