Slovakia has an enormous reservoir of folk music. The people of Slovakia tend to designate themselves as the "singing nation". Many musicological studies evidence that Slovak folk music is indigenous and has ancient origins, even in respect to neighbouring ethnic groups. Scientific designations defining Slovak folk music came from the late 19th century onward and set the foundations for Slovakia's modern history of musicological research. Slovakia's musicological research has its roots in Slovakia's national Renaissance from the 19th century, when many leading Slovakian personalities were beginning to devote themselves to studying folk traditions. These personalities are referred to in Slovakia's mode