Hydrology studies water on and below the Earth’s surface, its phenomena, circulation, and distribution in nature, its properties, and its impact on the environment and society. It determines the availability of water resources and indicates how much water is available in rivers, lakes, and groundwater. This article presents the development of hydrology from the earliest civilizations to modern methods of monitoring and foreca-sting hydrological conditions. In Slovenia, hydrology began to develop systematically in the nineteenth cen-tury, when the first water gauging stations were established and a hydrological service was organized. Although Slovenia is a water-rich country with a dense river network and many high-volume karst springs, water quantities are decreasing due to climate change, and extreme events such as floods and droughts are becoming more frequent.
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