Country Kosovo Elevation 461 m (1,512 ft) Postal code 38227 Area 123 km² | District District of Mitrovica Time zone CET (UTC+1) Area code(s) +381 28 Population 7,341 (2014) | |
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Weather 21°C, Wind SE at 16 km/h, 18% Humidity University Univerzitet u Prištini Faculty of Arts | ||
Zvečan (Serbian: Звечан; Albanian: Zveçan) is a town and municipality in the Mitrovica district of Kosovo. It is a part of North Kosovo, a region with an ethnic Serb majority that functions largely autonomously from the remainder of the ethnic-Albanian-majority Republic of Kosovo. The municipality covers an area of 104 km2 (40 sq mi), and consists of 35 villages. As of 2014, the municipality has a population of approximately 7,341.
Contents
Map of Zve%C3%A7an
History
The town of Zvečan is located near Mitrovica. It was mentioned for the first time in connection with the border clashes between the Serbs and Byzantines between 1091 and 1094. There is also an inscription that Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja, after the victory over the Byzantines in 1170, ordered that a prayer for the successful outcome of the battle be held in the church of St. George at Zvečan.
In the 13th and 14th centuries Zvečan was one of the royal residences of the Serbian court. Queen Theodora died there in December 1322, and nine years later her husband, Stefan Uroš III was imprisoned and strangled there. First the Musić, then the Vojinović noble family, held the fortified city and region during the Serbian Empire of Uroš V (r. 1355–1371). As imperial power collapsed Zvečan was in a disputed zone being held by Miloš Pović in 1370 but claimed by Nikola Altomanović.
In 1389, after the Battle of Kosovo, it was integrated into the Ottoman Empire and later became part of the Sanjak of Novi Pazar. From 1878 to 1908 it, along with the rest of the Sanjak, was administered by the Austro-Hungarian Empire as a result of the Congress of Berlin. But in 1908 it was returned to Turkey.
On the highest spot, i.e., the Upper Town, there are remains of the church of St. George, cistern and the main octagonal tower. The ramparts of this part of the fort are reinforced by massive towers. The main entrance to the town was on the western side.
Economy
The largest employer in Zvečan is the lead and zinc melting factory “Trepča”. Its large smokestack is with 306 metres the tallest structure in Kosovo. Due to the serious environmental pollution from the factory, however, UN and KFOR shut it down and the only ongoing operation is alloy production for batteries and battery recycling. Once employing up to 4,000, the very low operations of “Trepča” has had a devastating effect on the local economy. Today, in the municipality only about 500 people are working at 60 small private companies and 150 shops.
Culture and education
The Faculty of Arts, part of the University of Pristina at Mitrovica, is situated at Zvečan.
Zvečan has hosted annually two international music festivals: The North City Jazz & Blues Festival, and international rock festival Overdrive, as well as international art colony Sokolica and children song festival Cvrkuti sa Ibra (Chirrups from the Ibar River).
The Zvečan Fortress and Sokolica Мonastery, both from the Middle Ages, have been located in the Zvečan area.
Demographics
In November 2005, it was estimated that the municipality was 95% Serb, with only 4 Albanian families in the area. According to 2006 estimates, the municipality of Zvečan had a population of 16,600 people. As of 2008, the municipality has a population of approximately 17,000 inhabitants, of which ca. 16,050 (ca. 94%) are Serbs. Some 350 Albanians are concentrated in the villages of Boljetin, Lipa and Žaža, with 80 Kosovo Albanian families having returned to the municipality since 2000. A small number of other minorities also reside in the municipality. About 4,000 Kosovo Serbs are located in the municipality as Internally displaced persons (IDPs) as well as 250 refugees from Croatia.