Hrpelje
# Hrpelje

Hrpelje (pronounced (listen), in older sources Herpelje; Italian: Erpelle) is a settlement in the Municipality of Hrpelje-Kozina in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is the administrative center of the municipality.

## Name

Hrpelje was attested in historical sources as Herpelie and Herpelye in 1763–1787. The name may be derived from the plural demonym *Vьrpeľane based on the common noun *vьrpa 'sinkhole', thus originally meaning 'people living near a sinkhole'. If so, the initial H- is prothetic.

## Church

The parish church in the settlement is dedicated to Saint Anthony the Hermit and belongs to the Koper Diocese.

