Zvornik: Difference between revisions

Browse history interactively ← Previous edit Next edit →Content deleted Content addedVisual WikitextInline

Revision as of 13:31, 15 April 2007 editМетодије (talk \| contribs)1,322 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit		Revision as of 10:32, 26 April 2007 edit undoEarthelemental99 (talk \| contribs)623 editsmNo edit summaryNext edit →
Line 22:		Line 22:

	]		]
	]		]-] war]]
	'''Zvornik''' (]: Зворник) is a city on the ] river in northeastern ], ], located south of ]. The town ] ("little Zvornik") lies directly across the river in ], and not far north is ].		'''Zvornik''' (]: Зворник) is a city on the ] river in northeastern ], ], located south of ]. The town ] ("little Zvornik") lies directly across the river in ], and not far north is ].

Line 77:		Line 77:

	==Education==		==Education==
	It is presumed that the Orthodox primary school was established in Zvornik before the 18th century. In 1880, this school was transferred to a new building (present-day’s printing – house). The school was built by the Serbs for education of their children. The state primary school became operational in 1866/67. In 1920, a Secondary School for construction with commercial department was built. It was the only secondary school until the Second World War.		It is presumed that the Orthodox primary school was established in Zvornik before the 18th century. In ], this school was transferred to a new building (present-day’s printing – house). The school was built by the Serbs for education of their children. The state primary school became operational in ]/]. In ], a Secondary School for construction with commercial department was built. It was the only secondary school until the Second World War.

	There are five elementary schools on the territory of the Municipality Zvornik: “Sveti Sava” in Zvornik, which was one of the biggest schools by number of pupils in the former SFRJ, “Petar Kočić” in Kozluk, “Vuk Karadžić” in Roćević, “Desanka Maksimović” in Čelopek and “Nikola Tesla” in Pilica.		There are five elementary schools on the territory of the Municipality Zvornik: “Sveti Sava” in Zvornik, which was one of the biggest schools by number of pupils in the former SFRJ, “Petar Kočić” in Kozluk, “Vuk Karadžić” in Roćević, “Desanka Maksimović” in Čelopek and “Nikola Tesla” in Pilica.

Revision as of 10:32, 26 April 2007

Template:Infobox RS

File:2127162-Zvornik-Zvornik.jpg

Zvornik

File:Zvornik 001.JPG

Monument in Zvornik dedicated to the Serbian soldiers and civilians of the 1992-1995 war

Zvornik (Cyrillic: Зворник) is a city on the Drina river in northeastern Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, located south of Bijeljina. The town Mali Zvornik ("little Zvornik") lies directly across the river in Serbia, and not far north is Loznica.

Zvornik Today

The Municipality of Zvornik is one of the 9 most developed municipalities in the Republika Srpska. Zvornik has a square named after King Petar I of Serbia. A town in the Republika Srpska is also named after him, using his nom de guerre - Mrkonjić Grad.

Saint’s Day

Zvornik Municipality has its Saint – St. Petka Trnova whose day is celebrated on August 8th. Saint martyr Paraskeva lived in 2nd century AD.

Originally, she had Roman roots coming from a Christian family. After her parents had died, she gave away all her property to the poor and became a nun.

Due to her preaching of Christian religion and many miracles that she had done, she was imprisoned, tortured, and in the end killed with the sward, as ordered by prince Tarasije.

Population

Before the war in Bosnia, the Zvornik municipality was one of the largest in the country with a population of 81,111. The city of Zvornik itself had 14,852 inhabitants.

The city's demographic situation has changed drastically in the last 15 years. Up until 1992, the municipality had a population of 81,111 residents with a Muslim by nationality majority and a large Serb minority.

Ethnic groups included:

48,205 Muslims by nationality (59.43%)
30,838 Serbs (38.02%)
1,224 Yugoslavs (1.51%)
122 Croats (0.15%)
722 others (0.89%) (See: Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina)

History

Early history

Zvornik is one of the oldest cities in Bosnia, being first mentioned in the year 1410, although it was known as Zvonik ("bell tower") at that time. The town's geographic location has made it an important trade link between Bosnia and the east. For instance, the main road connecting Sarajevo and Belgrade runs through the city. Zvornik has also the distinction of being the only city in Bosnia that directly lies on the border to Serbia.

During the Ottoman occupation, Zvornik was the capital of the Zvornik sanjak (an administrative region). This was primarily the case because of the city's crucial role in the economy and the strategic importance of the city's location.

Bosnian War

During the Bosnian War, most of Zvornik's Bosniak population was expelled, and there was a massive intake of Serb refugees from Muslim and Croat controlled areas. At the beginning of the war, there were some instances of mass killings in Zvornik and the surrounding villages. It is known that the suburbs of Karakaj and Celopek were places of concentration camps where hundreds of Bosniaks were killed. Recently, mass graves of victims killed in the massacre of Srebrenica were found in the village of Liplje, south of Zvornik.

After the war, the town's population consisted of only Serbs. With the help of the international community, there has been an effort to return refugees back to the municipality, but the process has been slow and will take many years to complete.

At the same time almost none of the Serbian refugees that settled in Zvornik during the Bosnian war and right after did not go back to their pre-war location. It is also worth mentioning that Zvornik's population nearly doubled in the post war years because of a huge influx of Serbian refugees from Tuzla and the Sarajevo region.

Climate

File:Zvornikcrkva.jpg

Serbian Orthodox Church in Zvornik

Just like most of Bosnia, Zvornik has very hot summers and cold winters. Except for the area near the river Drina, the city is surrounded by mountains with preserved forests, which creates a beautiful scenery with the town's location at the bottom of a valley.

Education

It is presumed that the Orthodox primary school was established in Zvornik before the 18th century. In 1880, this school was transferred to a new building (present-day’s printing – house). The school was built by the Serbs for education of their children. The state primary school became operational in 1866/1867. In 1920, a Secondary School for construction with commercial department was built. It was the only secondary school until the Second World War.

There are five elementary schools on the territory of the Municipality Zvornik: “Sveti Sava” in Zvornik, which was one of the biggest schools by number of pupils in the former SFRJ, “Petar Kočić” in Kozluk, “Vuk Karadžić” in Roćević, “Desanka Maksimović” in Čelopek and “Nikola Tesla” in Pilica.