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Vinkovci
City
Grad Vinkovci City of Vinkovci
From the top, left to right: Stadion HNK Cibalia, Vinkovci railway station, landmark historical building on the promenade with Vinkovačke jeseni banners, Church of Saints Eusebius and Polion, Bosut river, Church of Pentecost, east side of the promenade, east side of the promenade, Slavonija hotel, Orion cycle astral calendar motives.
FlagCoat of arms
VinkovciLocation of Vinkovci in CroatiaShow map of Vukovar-Syrmia CountyVinkovciVinkovci (Croatia)Show map of CroatiaVinkovciVinkovci (Europe)Show map of Europe
Coordinates: 45°17′28″N 018°48′04″E / 45.29111°N 18.80111°E / 45.29111; 18.80111
Country	Croatia
Region	Slavonia
County	Vukovar-Syrmia
Government
• Type	City
• Mayor	Ivan Bosančić (HDZ)
Area
• City	94.2 km (36.4 sq mi)
• Urban	68.2 km (26.3 sq mi)
Elevation	90 m (300 ft)
Population
• City	30,842
• Density	330/km (850/sq mi)
• Urban	28,111
• Urban density	410/km (1,100/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Vinkovčanin (♂) Vinkovčanka (♀) (per grammatical gender)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	32100
Area code	32
Vehicle registration	VK
Website	grad-vinkovci.hr

Vinkovci (pronounced [ʋîːŋkoːʋtsi]) is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city settlement's population was 28,111 in the 2021 census, while the total population was 30,842, making it the largest town of the county. It is a local transport hub, particularly because of its railways.

Name

The name Vinkovci comes from the Croatian given name Vinko, cognate to the name Vincent. It has been in use following a dedication of the oldest town church of Saint Elijah (Sveti Ilija) to Saint Vincent the Deacon (Sveti Vinko) in the Middle Ages. The name of the city in Croatian is plural.

It was called Cibalae in antiquity. There is no known Latin or Greek etymology for Cibalae, so it is assumed to be inherited from an earlier time. Cibale is a toponym derived from geomorphology, from Indo-European *keball- meaning "ascension" or "head". It is assumed that the root is in Proto-Indo-European *ghebhel (head), in the sense of a hill, meaning a place that was protected from the flooding of Bosut.

In other historically and demographically relevant languages the name of the city is German: Winkowitz, Hungarian: Vinkovce, Serbian Cyrillic: Винковци, Rusyn: Винковцѣ, Latin: Colonia Aurelia Cibalae and Ancient Greek: Κιβέλαι Kibelae.

History

The area around Vinkovci has been continually inhabited since the Neolithic period.

The Sopot culture eponym site is Sopot, an archeological site near Vinkovci, which was dated to 5480–3790 BC.

Vučedol culture finds in Vinkovci, generally dated to 3000–2500 BC, include a piece of ceramics dated to 2600 BC with an astral calendar, the first one found in Europe that shows the year starting at the dusk of the first day of spring.

It was made a municipium (the Roman name for town or city) under Hadrian and gained the status of Colonia Aurelia Cibalae during the reign of emperor Caracalla. It was the birthplace of Roman emperors Valentinian I and Valens. The Roman thermal bath is still preserved underground, along with several other Roman buildings located near the center of today's Vinkovci. The 4th century Battle of Cibalae, between the armies of Constantine the Great and Licinius, was fought nearby. In 2012, the 4th-century Vinkovci Treasure was discovered.

In the Middle Ages, Vinkovci was one of the sites of the Bijelo Brdo culture. The City museum of Vinkovci maintains a survey of thirteen medieval archeological finds in Vinkovci and its surroundings, as of 2010.

From 1526 to 1687 it was part of the Ottoman Empire, administratively located in Sirem sanjak (whose seat was in Dimitrofça) within the Budin Eyalet. It was captured by the Habsburg Empire in 1687, which was later confirmed by the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699. Until 1918, Vinkovci (named Winkowcze before 1850) was part of the Austrian monarchy (Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia after the compromise of 1867), in the Slavonian Military Frontier, under the administration of the Brooder Grenz-Infanterie-Regiment Nr. VII until 1881.

In the late 19th and early 20th century, Vinkovci was a district capital in the Syrmia County of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia. Zion, the first Zionist organisation in the area of modern-day Croatia was established in Vinkovci. Following the German-Soviet invasion of Poland, which started World War II in 1939, one the main escape routes of Poles from occupied Poland led through Vinkovci towards Trieste and then further to Polish-allied France, where the Polish Army was reconstituted to continue the fight against Germany. From 1941 to 1945, Vinkovci was part of the Independent State of Croatia, whose authorities destroyed the Vinkovci Synagogue in 1941–42, which was among the largest and the most prestigious synagogues in Croatia. From 17 April 1944 the city was heavily bombed by the Allies due to its important position in transportation. On April 13, 1945, as a part of Syrmian Front offensive, Yugoslav Partisans launched an offensive to liberate Vinkovci with Partisan units entering the city by 6 p.m. of the same day.

The city and its surroundings were gravely impacted by the 1991–95 Croatian War of Independence. The city was close to the front lines between the forces of Croatia and the rebel Serbs of SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia, but it managed to avoid the fate of nearby Vukovar, which was besieged in the infamous Battle of Vukovar. The eastern sections of the town were substantially damaged by shelling, and the nearby village of Cerić was almost completely destroyed. The most significant destruction in the town center were the town library, which burned down to the ground, the town court, the Catholic and Orthodox churches (the Church of Saints Eusebius and Polion and the Church of Pentecost, respectively), both of its hospitals, the town theatre, two cinemas, and a host of businesses and factories. The Church of Pentecost was dynamited by local Croatian forces as retaliation after rebel Serbs forces severely damaged the local Catholic rectory. In December 1995–96, the Vinkovci rail station served as a rail offloading base for the United States Army's 1st Armored Division en route to Županja to cross the Sava River into Bosnia during Operation Joint Endeavor.

The Croatian Army has stationed the headquarters of its Armored-Mechanized Guard Brigade at Vinkovci barracks. The current brigade was formed in 2007 and it incorporated two former guards brigades (3rd and 5th) as well as several other units formed in the 1990s during the war of independence.

Geography

Vinkovci is located in the eastern part of the Slavonia region, 19 km (12 mi) southwest of Vukovar, 24 km (15 mi) north of Županja and 43 km (27 mi) south of Osijek. The city lies in a flatland on the Bosut river, at an elevation of approx. 90 metres (300 ft), and has a mild continental climate. Vinkovci is also on the northwestern edge of the smaller subregion of Syrmia.

Nearby villages and adjacent municipalities include Ivankovo, Jarmina, Markušica, Nuštar, Privlaka and Stari Jankovci.

Economy and transportation

Its economy is primarily based on trade, transport and food and metal processing. Industries include foodstuff, building material, wood and timber, metal-processing, leather and textile. Due to the surrounding farmland, also notable are farming and livestock breeding, and the town hosts a Crop Improvement Centre.

Vinkovci is also the intersection of the main roads D55 (Županja–Vinkovci–Vukovar), D46 (Đakovo–Vinkovci–Serbian border), D518 (Osijek–Vinkovci) and several regional roads, thereby providing an eastern connection between Podravina and Posavina roads, including motorways (A3 and A5).

Vinkovci railway station is the main railway junction of eastern Croatia, of railroads leading from Bosnia and Herzegovina toward Hungary and from the capital Zagreb toward Belgrade. The large railway junction, after Zagreb the second largest in Croatia, underlies the importance of transit in Vinkovci.

The river Bosut is not a waterway.

Demographics

The city administrative area includes the following settlements:

• Mirkovci, population 2,810
• Vinkovci, population 28,247

• v

The local administration consists of the following local boards (mjesni odbor):

1. Lenije
2. Stjepan Radić
3. Centar
4. Kolodvor
5. Dvanaest redarstvenika
6. Vinkovačko Novo Selo
7. Lapovci
8. Ban Jelačić
9. Zagrebački blok
10. Slavija
11. Mala Bosna
12. Mirkovci

In 2011, it was the 17th largest city in Croatia.

By ethnic group, as of census 2011, the population of Vinkovci is:

• Croats, 92.35%
• Serbs, 4.87%
• Hungarians, 0.46%
• Others, 2.32%

Politics

Minority councils and representatives

Directly elected minority councils and representatives are tasked with consulting tasks for the local or regional authorities in which they are advocating for minority rights and interests, integration into public life and participation in the management of local affairs. At the 2023 Croatian national minorities councils and representatives elections Serbs of Croatia fulfilled legal requirements to elect 15 members minority councils of the City of Vinkovci while Hungarians of Croatia elected their individual representative with Roma representative remaining unelected due to lack of candidates.

Culture

The town features extremely rich cultural and historical heritage, the most interesting attraction being the pre-Romanesque church on Meraja from 1100, with the coats of arms of the kings Koloman and Ladislas, as one of the most important medieval cultural monuments in Croatia. The building was recently renovated, the old wooden beams were removed and a new, modern, upper part and roof made of bricks were added, and in the space thus created, the Art Photography Gallery was opened on July 13, 2014, which has so far managed to realize a very rich program of exhibitions, but maintaining their high standards.

The most famous annual event, one of the biggest in Slavonia, is the traditional folk music festival "Vinkovci Autumns" or Vinkovačke jeseni, which includes the folklore show and the presentation of folk customs of Slavonia. It is characterized by a number of original folk music performances, beautiful traditional costumes, a beauty contest, competitions of the manufacturers of kulen (smoked paprika-flavoured sausage), plum brandy and other traditional foodstuffs, and especially by the magnificent closing parade.

Vinkovci's music school Josip Runjanin is named after the composer of the Croatian national anthem Lijepa naša domovino. The Vinkovci gymnasium is named after Matija Antun Reljković, a Slavonian writer who lived in the city in the 18th century.

Vinkovci, though it is spelled Vincovci in the book, and its railway station are featured in Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express as the place near which the Orient Express runs into a snowdrift.

Notable natives and residents

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• Goran Bare, rock singer (Majke, Hali Gali Halid)
• Vanja Drach, actor
• Mirko Filipović, Kickboxer and Mixed Martial-Arts fighter
• Satan Panonski, Yugoslav and Croatian musician and freak performer
• Marko Divković, footballer
• Mavro Frankfurter, last Vinkovci Rabbi
• Carl Heitzmann, pathologist and dermatologist
• Lavoslav Kadelburg, lawyer, judge, polyglot and activist
• Branko Karačić, footballer/manager
• Mario Kasun, basketballer
• Josip Kozarac, writer
• Ivan Kozarac, writer
• Dubravko Mataković, cartoonist
• Dina Merhav, Israeli sculptor
• Eugen Miskolczy, physician
• Otto Miskolczy, entrepreneur and World War II partisan
• Josip Runjanin, composer of Croatian anthem
• Stjepan Šejić, comic-book author
• Rade Šerbedžija, actor
• Erich Šlomović, art collector
• Josip Šokčević, Croatian viceroy
• Valens, Roman Emperor
• Valentinian, Roman Emperor
• Ivan Bošnjak, footballer
• Sava Šumanović, Serbian painter
• Vanja Radauš, Croatian sculptor, painter and writer

International relations

Twin towns — sister cities

Vinkovci is twinned with:

Sport

A local football club still carries the Latin name for Vinkovci, Cibalia.

References

Bibliography

• Cresswell, Peterjon; Atkins, Ismay; Dunn, Lily (10 July 2006). Time Out Croatia (First ed.). London, Berkeley & Toronto: Time Out Group Ltd & Ebury Publishing, Random House Ltd. 20 Vauxhall Bridge Road, London SV1V 2SA. ISBN 978-1-904978-70-1. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
• Šimunović, Petar (2013). "Pre-Roman placenames in present-day (and historical) Croatia". Folia onomastica Croatica (in Croatian) (22). Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts. ISSN 1848-7858. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
• Bušić, Krešimir (2002). "Prilog poznavanju povijesnog razvoja kršćanstva na vinkovačkom prostoru: kontinuitet društvenoga i urbanoga života oko gotičke crkve sv. Ilije (Meraja) u Vinkovcima". Croatica Christiana Periodica (in Croatian). 26 (50). Catholic Faculty of Theology, University of Zagreb: 21. ISSN 0350-7823. Retrieved 28 December 2021.

Notes

1. Register of spatial units of the State Geodetic Administration of the Republic of Croatia. Wikidata Q119585703.
2. ^ "Population by Age and Sex, by Settlements" (xlsx). Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in 2021. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. 2022.
3. Bušić 2002, p. 21.
4. Šimunović 2013, p. 148.
5. Šimunović 2013, p. 153.
6. Šimunović 2013, p. 185.
7. Obelić, Bogomil; Krznarić Škrivanko, Marija; Marijan, Boško; Krajcar Bronić, Ines (2004). "Radiocarbon Dating of Sopot Culture Sites (Late Neolithic) in Eastern Croatia". Radiocarbon. 46 (1). Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona: 245. Bibcode:2004Radcb..46..245O. doi:10.1017/S0033822200039564. ISSN 0033-8222. S2CID 55066031.
8. "Vučedolska kultura" [Vučedol culture]. 2009 Izložba Slavonija, Baranja, Srijem (in Croatian). Ministry of Culture (Croatia). Retrieved 23 November 2021.
9. Report on the Situation of Urban Archaeology in Europe. Council of Europe. 1999. p. 54. ISBN 978-9287136718. Retrieved 2 November 2017.
10. "Povijest grada" (in Croatian). City of Vinkovci. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
11. Ivana Iskra Janošić (2001). Urbanization of Cibalae and development of centers for pottery production. Zagreb-Vinkovci. pp. 31–33, 147–150.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
12. "Bjelobrdska kultura" [Bijelo Brdo culture]. 2009 Izložba Slavonija, Baranja, Srijem (in Croatian). Ministry of Culture (Croatia). Retrieved 23 November 2021.
13. Rapan Papeša, Anita (2010). "Pregled novorekognosciranih i reambuliranih srednjovjekovnih lokaliteta na području bivše općine Vinkovci" [Survey of the recently inspected mediaeval sites in the territory of the former community of Vinkovci]. Journal of the Archaeological Museum in Zagreb (in Croatian). 43 (1). Archaeological Museum in Zagreb: 325–351. ISSN 1849-1561.
14. Edwin Mueller (1961). Handbook of Austria and Lombardy-Venetia Cancellations on the Postage Stamp Issues 1850–1864.
15. Barišić Bogišić, Lidija (2022). O neslavenskom stanovništvu na vukovarskom području. Hrvatska sveučilišna naklada. p. 170. ISBN 978-953-169-497-1.
16. Wróbel, Janusz (2020). "Odbudowa Armii Polskiej u boku sojuszników (1939–1940)". Biuletyn IPN (in Polish). No. 1–2 (170–171). IPN. p. 104. ISSN 1641-9561.
17. Marica Karakaš. "Saveznička bombardiranja Srijema u Drugome svjetskom ratu" (PDF) (in Croatian, English, and German). Zagreb, Croatia: Political Science Research Centre. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-05-22. Retrieved 2010-08-12.
18. Veljko Maksić; Nebojša Vidović (2022). Сведоци времена: историјски преглед развоја села Остеова [Witnesees of Time: Historical Review of the Development of the Ostrovo Village]. Vukovar: Joint Council of Municipalities. p. 57-62. ISBN 978-953-8489-02-0.
19. "Zlo u ratu, dobrota u miru". Novosti (in Serbian). No. 585. 2012-03-05. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
20. "Grad Vinkovci - Mjesna samouprava". City of Vinkovci. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
21. "Population by Ethnicity, by Towns/Municipalities, 2011 Census: County of Vukovar-Sirmium". Census of Population, Households and Dwellings 2011. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. December 2012.
22. "Manjinski izbori prve nedjelje u svibnju, kreću i edukacije". T-portal. 13 March 2023. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
23. "Informacija o konačnim rezultatima izbora članova vijeća i izbora predstavnika nacionalnih manjina 2023. XVI. VUKOVARSKO-SRIJEMSKA ŽUPANIJA" (PDF) (in Croatian). Državno izborno povjerenstvo Republike Hrvatske. 2023. p. 8. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
24. "The City • Natural and geographic features • Turistička zajednica grada Vinkovaca".

External links

• Official website (in Croatian)

v t e Vinkovci
Settlements	Vinkovci Mirkovci
History	Treasure Battle of Cibalae
Buildings and landmarks	Bosut Gymnasium Technical College
Places of worship	Catholic Church Church of Sts. Eusebius and Polion Church of St. Elijah Church of St. Nicholas Church of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church of St. Vincent Pallotti Church of Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church of The Sacred Heart of Jesus Serbian Orthodox Church of Pentecost Church of St. Nicholas Church of St. Panteleimon Other Synagogue
Transport	Novska–Tovarnik railway (Vinkovci railway station * Mirkovci railway station) D46 road D55 road
Culture	Vinkovačke jeseni
Sports	HNK Cibalia Stadion HNK Cibalia NK Dilj
Neighboring municipalities	Jarmina Markušica Nuštar Stari Jankovci Privlaka Andrijaševci Ivankovo

v t e Cities and towns of Croatia by population
100,000+	Rijeka Split Zagreb
50,000+	Osijek Pula Slavonski Brod Velika Gorica Zadar
30,000+	Bjelovar Dubrovnik Karlovac Kaštela Samobor Šibenik Sisak Varaždin Vinkovci
15,000+	Čakovec Đakovo Dugo Selo Koprivnica Križevci Kutina Metković Petrinja Poreč Požega Sinj Solin Sveta Nedelja Virovitica Vukovar Zaprešić
10,000+	Crikvenica Daruvar Duga Resa Gospić Ivanec Ivanić-Grad Jastrebarsko Kastav Knin Krapina Labin Makarska Našice Nova Gradiška Novi Marof Novska Ogulin Omiš Opatija Popovača Rovinj Slatina Sveti Ivan Zelina Trogir Umag Vrbovec

v t e Subdivisions of Vukovar-Syrmia County
Towns	Ilok Otok Vinkovci Vukovar (seat) Županja
Municipalities	Andrijaševci Babina Greda Bogdanovci Borovo Bošnjaci Cerna Drenovci Gradište Gunja Ivankovo Jarmina Lovas Markušica Negoslavci Nijemci Nuštar Privlaka Stari Jankovci Stari Mikanovci Štitar Tompojevci Tordinci Tovarnik Trpinja Vođinci Vrbanja

• Vinkovci
• Cities and towns in Croatia
• Slavonia
• Populated places in Syrmia
• Populated places in Vukovar-Srijem County
• Syrmia County