Bunjevci
Encyclopedia
Bunjevci are a South Slavic community and ethnic group living mostly in the Bačka
region of Serbia
(province of Vojvodina
) and southern Hungary
(Bács-Kiskun
county, particularly in the Baja region). They presumably originate from western Herzegovina
region, from where they migrated into the Dalmatia
, and from there to Lika
and Bačka in 16th and 17th century. Bunjevci who remained in the original areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as those in modern Croatia
, today maintain the designation chiefly as an ethno-regional identity, and declare themselves as Croats
. Bunjevci in Serbia declare themselves either as Bunjevci, Croats, or Yugoslav
.
Bunjevci are Roman Catholic, and speak an Ikavian dialect (Bunjevci dialect) with certain archaic characteristics. During the 18th and 19th century, they formed a sizable part of population of northern Bačka, but many of them were gradually assimilated into Hungarians, while some other adopted Croat or Serb identity.
in central Herzegovina
, their supposed ancestral homeland before their migrations. This etymology was first proposed by Fr. Marijan Lanosović and supported by Vuk Karadžić, Rudolf Horvat, Ivan Ivanić
, Ivan Antonović, István Iványi, and Mijo Mandić. Another theory is that the name comes from the term Bunja, a traditional stone house
from Dalmatia.
and its surroundings in 1526. According to another theory, they migrated to Bačka from Dalmatia
(Zadar hinterland, Ravni Kotari
, Cetinska krajina), Lika
, Podgorje
(littoral Bunjevci: Senj, Jablanac
, Krivi Put
, Krasno
...) and western Herzegovina
(area around river Buna
, Čitluk
, Međugorje) in several groups led by Franciscan
monk
s, to serve as mercenaries against Ottoman army in 1682, 1686, and 1687. Historic documents refer to Bunjevci with various names.
In 1788 the first Austrian population census was conducted – it called Bunjevci Illyrians and their language the Illyrian language. It listed 17,043 Illyrians in Subotica. In 1850 the Austrian census listed them under Dalmatians and counted 13,894 Dalmatians in the city. Despite this, they traditionally called themselves Bunjevci. The Austro-Hungarian censuses from 1869 onward to 1910 numbered the Bunjevci distinctly. They were referred to as "bunyevácok" or "dalmátok" (in the 1890 census). In 1880 the Austro-Hungarian authorities listed in Subotica a total of 26,637 Bunjevci and 31,824 in 1892.
In 1910, 35.29% of population of the Subotica city (or 33,390 people) were registered as "others"; these people were mainly Bunjevci. In 1921 Bunjevci were registered by the Royal Yugoslav authorities as speakers of Serbian or Croatian language – Subotica city had 60,699 speakers of Serbian or Croatian or 66.73% of the total city population. Allegedly, 44,999 or 49.47% were Bunjevci. In the 1931 population census of the Royal Yugoslav authorities, 43,832 or 44.29% of the total Subotica population were Bunjevci.
It is estimated that a few tens of thousands of Bunjevci were Magyarized
in the 19th and early 20th century. Croat
national identity was adopted by some Bunjevci in the late 19th and early 20th century, especially by the majority of the Bunjevac clergy, notably the bishop of Subotica
Ivan Antunović
(1815–1888) supported the notion of calling Bunjevci and Šokci with the name Croats.
1880 saw the founding of the Bunjevačka stranka ("the Bunjevac party"), an indigenous political party. During this time, opinions varied on whether the Bunjevci should try to assert themselves as Croats or as an independent ethnic group.
from the Kingdom of Hungary and to join Kingdom of Serbia
. This was confirmed at the Great National Assembly of Serbs, Bunjevci and other Slavs in Novi Sad
, which proclaimed unification with the Kingdom of Serbia
in November 1918. The subsequent creation of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (renamed Yugoslavia in 1929) brought most of the Bačka Bunjevci in the same country with the Croats
(with some remaining in Hungary).
During the late World War II, Partisan General Božidar Maslarić spoke on the national councils in Sombor and Subotica on 6 November 1944 and General Ivan Rukavina
on Christmas in Tavankut in the name of the Communist Party about the Croatdom of the Bunjevci. After 1945, in SFR Yugoslavia
the census
of 1948 did not officially recognize the Bunjevci (nor Šokci), and instead merged their data with the Croats, even if a person would self-declare as a Bunjevac or Šokac.
The Yugoslav communist government counted Bunjevci (and Šokci) as part of Croatian national corpus.
Proponents of a distinct Bunjevac ethnicity regard this time as another dark period of encroachment on their identity, and feel that this assimilation did not help in the preservation of their language. The censuses of 1953 and 1961 also listed all declared Bunjevci as Croats. The 1971 population census listed the Bunjevci separately under the municipal census in Subotica upon the personal request of the organization of Bunjevci in Subotica. It listed 14,892 Bunjevci or 10.15% of the population of Subotica. Despite this, the Province and Federal authorities listed the Bunjevci as Croats, together with the Šokci and considered them that way officially at all occasions. In 1981 the Bunjevci made a similar request – it showed 8,895 Bunjevci, or 5.7% of the total population of Subotica.
Following the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s, Bunjevac nationality was officially recognized as a minority group in Serbia in 1990. They were granted the status of autochthonous people in 1996.
The community, however, has been divided around the issue of the name: in the 1991 census
, in terms of ethnicity, around 21,434 inhabitants of Vojvodina declared themselves Bunjevci (17,527 in Subotica alone – or 11.7%) whereas some 74,808 declared themselves Croats; in 2002, there were 19,766 Bunjevci (16,254 in Subotica – or 10.95%) and around 56,546 Croats in Vojvodina
.
Note that not all of the Croats in Vojvodina have Bunjevac roots; the other big group are Šokci, and also, many Croats are descendants of Croat colonists, settled in 1945–1948 (29,111 post-WWII colonists in Vojvodina, out of 356,000, were ethnic Croats).
In the Subotica region, there were 17,439 Bunjevci and 16,369 Croats in 1991. The historically Bunjevac village of Donji Tavankut
had 989 Bunjevci, 877 Croats, and 600 declared as Yugoslavs. A 1996 survey by the local government in Subotica found that in the community, there are many people who declare as Croats and consider themselves Bunjevci, but also some people who declare as Bunjevci but consider themselves part of the wider Croatian nation. The same survey found that the delineation between the pro-Croat and pro-Bunjevac positions correlated with the delineation between the people who were more supportive towards the then ruling regime in Serbia that did not favor special rights for national minorities, and conversely those who were against the then government and more interested in minority rights and connections with what they saw as their second homeland.
Today, both major parts of the community (the pro-independent Bunjevac one and the pro-Croatian one) continue to consider themselves ethnologically
as Bunjevci, although each subscribing to its interpretation of the term.
In early 2005, the Bunjevac issue was again popularized when the Vojvodina government decided to allow the official use of "bunjevački language with elements of national culture" in schools in the following school year the štokavian-ikavian dialect. This was protested by the Croatian Bunjevac community as an attempt of the government to widen the rift between the two Bunjevac communities. They favour integration, regardless of whether some people declared themselves distinct, because minority
rights (such as the right to use a minority language
) are applied based on the number of members of the minority. As opposed to this, supporters of pro-Bunjevci option are accusing Croats for attempts to assimilate Bunjevci. In 2011, Bunjevac politician Blaško Gabrić and Bunjevac National Council asked Serbian authorities to start juristic criminal responsibility procedure against those Croats who denying the existence of Bunjevci ethnicity, which is, according to them, violation of laws and constitution of the Republic of Serbia.
In Hungary, Bunjevci are not officially recognized as a minority; the government simply consider them Croats. In April 2006 a Bunjevci group began collecting subscriptions to register Bunjevci as a distinct minority group. In Hungary, 1,000 valid subscriptions are needed to register an ethnic minority with historical presence. By the end of the given 60 days period the initiative gained over 2,000 subscriptions of which cca. 1,700 were declared valid by national vote office and Budapest parliament gained a deadline of January 9, 2007 to solve the situation by approving or refusing the proposal. No other such initiative has reached that level ever since minority bill passed in 1992. On 18 December the National Assembly of Hungary
refused to accept the initiative (with 334 No and 18 Yes votes). The decision was based on the study of the Hungarian Academy of Science that denied the existence of an independent Bunjevac minority (they stated that Bunjevci are a Croatian subgroup). The opposition of Croatian minority leaders also played part in the outcome of the vote, and the opinion of Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
The Bunjevac National Council has given mandate to Mirko Bajić, the President of the People's Democratic Party of Vojvodina, to represent the persons declared solely as Bunjevac on the Democratic Party
list for the 21st January 2007 parliamentary republican election
in Serbia.
In Serbia
, Bunjevci live in the northern Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, mostly in the Bačka
region. They are a constituent population according to the Province's Statute, mentioning them as one of the ethnic groups settling the Autonomous Province. Villages in Serbia with Bunjevac majorities are:
All these villages are located in the Subotica
municipality. According to the 2002 census, the Bunjevac population was divided about their ethnic self-identification - part of the Bunjevac population self-identified as Bunjevci, others as Croats and some as Yugoslavs
. However, only in the village of Ljutovo, the number of people who self-identified as Bunjevci outnumbered those who defined themselves as Croats. The opposite is true for the city of Subotica, where Bunjevci outnumbered self-identified Croats.
Bunjevci also live in other settlements in northern and western Bačka
region, where they do not form the majority of population. These settlements are mostly concentrated in the municipalities of Subotica and Sombor
. The largest concentration of Bunjevci in Serbia (10,870) is in the ethnically mixed city of Subotica, which is their cultural and political centre. Other settlements with significant numbers of Bunjevac people include Sombor (2,222) and Bajmok
(1,266).
Villages which were partially populated by significant populations of Bunjevci in the past, but today have less than 70 Bunjevci villagers each:
Cultural centre of Bunjevci from Bačka is the city of Subotica. Cultural centre of littoral Bunjevci is the city of Senj
. Today, there's a Bunjevci Museum, football squad Bunjevac and Bunjevačka ulica (Bunjevac street) in Senj.
Traditionally, Bunjevci of Bačka are associated with land and farming. Large, usually isolated farms in Northern Bačka called salaš
i are a significant part of their identity. Most of their customs celebrate the land, harvest, horse-breeding, and their most important feasts (other than Christmas and weddings) are:
Bunjevačke novine
(Bunjevac newspaper) are the main newspaper in Bunjevac language/dialect, published in Subotica
.
(a singer) is the best known Bunjevac, and his songs (composed or traditional) have popularized Bunjevac culture and tradition across Serbia and the rest of former Yugoslavia.
Blaško Rajić
was a Bunjevac patriot from the late 19th century and first half of 20th century, who participated in the Paris peace conference
after WWI.
Other notable Bunjevci include:
Backa
Bačka is a geographical area within the Pannonian plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east of which confluence is located near Titel...
region of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
(province of Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
) and southern Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
(Bács-Kiskun
Bács-Kiskun
Bács-Kiskun is a county located in southern Hungary. It was created as a result of World War II, merging the pre war Bács-Bodrog and the southern parts of Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun counties. With an area of 8,445 km2, Bács-Kiskun is the largest county in the country. The terrain is mostly flat...
county, particularly in the Baja region). They presumably originate from western Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
region, from where they migrated into the Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
, and from there to Lika
Lika
Lika is a mountainous region in central Croatia, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by the Malovan pass...
and Bačka in 16th and 17th century. Bunjevci who remained in the original areas in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as those in modern Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, today maintain the designation chiefly as an ethno-regional identity, and declare themselves as Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
. Bunjevci in Serbia declare themselves either as Bunjevci, Croats, or Yugoslav
Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
.
Bunjevci are Roman Catholic, and speak an Ikavian dialect (Bunjevci dialect) with certain archaic characteristics. During the 18th and 19th century, they formed a sizable part of population of northern Bačka, but many of them were gradually assimilated into Hungarians, while some other adopted Croat or Serb identity.
Etymology
There are several theories about origin of their name. The most common is that the name derives from the river BunaBuna River (Neretva)
The Buna is a short river in Bosnia and Herzegovina; it is a left bank tributary of the Neretva. Its source , a strong karstic spring, is near the village Blagaj, southeast of Mostar. Actually, it is best known by famous Buna Spring , one of the strongest spring in Europe and extremely cold water...
in central Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
, their supposed ancestral homeland before their migrations. This etymology was first proposed by Fr. Marijan Lanosović and supported by Vuk Karadžić, Rudolf Horvat, Ivan Ivanić
Ivan Ivanić
Ivan Ivanić was a diplomat of the Kingdom of Serbia and author of numerous works about ethnic groups in Serbia and the Balkans...
, Ivan Antonović, István Iványi, and Mijo Mandić. Another theory is that the name comes from the term Bunja, a traditional stone house
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
from Dalmatia.
Early period
According to one theory, Bunjevci settled in the city of SuboticaSubotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
and its surroundings in 1526. According to another theory, they migrated to Bačka from Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
(Zadar hinterland, Ravni Kotari
Ravni Kotari
Ravni Kotari is a geographical region in Croatia. It is situated in northern Dalmatia, around Zadar. It is bordered by Bukovica to the northwest, lower Krka on the southeast and the Adriatic Sea. The biggest settlement of the region is the town of Benkovac...
, Cetinska krajina), Lika
Lika
Lika is a mountainous region in central Croatia, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by the Malovan pass...
, Podgorje
Podgorje
Podgorje is a village in the municipality of Banovići, Bosnia and Herzegovina....
(littoral Bunjevci: Senj, Jablanac
Jablanac
Jablanac is a village in Croatia, located on the Adriatic Sea underneath the Velebit mountain, overlooking the island of Rab. The village has a ferry port that connects it to Rab...
, Krivi Put
Krivi Put
Krivi Put is a village located in a forested area near Senj, in Lika-Senj County, Croatia. The name of the settlement means "wriggly way".Krivi Put is one of the most famous resorts in the Bunjevci-populated areas: its earliest settlers founded the village in 1605, favouring it as good grazing land...
, Krasno
Krasno
Krasno may refer to:* Krasno, Croatia* Krasno, Russia, a village in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Russia* Krasno, Slovenia...
...) and western Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
(area around river Buna
Buna River
Buna River may refer to:* Buna River in Bosnia and Herzegovina, left tributary of the Neretva* Bojana River in Albania and Montenegro, Buna in Albanian, which flows from Lake Shkodra into the Adriatic....
, Čitluk
Citluk
Čitluk is a town and municipality located in Herzegovina, in southern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is a municipality of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina....
, Međugorje) in several groups led by Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s, to serve as mercenaries against Ottoman army in 1682, 1686, and 1687. Historic documents refer to Bunjevci with various names.
In 1788 the first Austrian population census was conducted – it called Bunjevci Illyrians and their language the Illyrian language. It listed 17,043 Illyrians in Subotica. In 1850 the Austrian census listed them under Dalmatians and counted 13,894 Dalmatians in the city. Despite this, they traditionally called themselves Bunjevci. The Austro-Hungarian censuses from 1869 onward to 1910 numbered the Bunjevci distinctly. They were referred to as "bunyevácok" or "dalmátok" (in the 1890 census). In 1880 the Austro-Hungarian authorities listed in Subotica a total of 26,637 Bunjevci and 31,824 in 1892.
In 1910, 35.29% of population of the Subotica city (or 33,390 people) were registered as "others"; these people were mainly Bunjevci. In 1921 Bunjevci were registered by the Royal Yugoslav authorities as speakers of Serbian or Croatian language – Subotica city had 60,699 speakers of Serbian or Croatian or 66.73% of the total city population. Allegedly, 44,999 or 49.47% were Bunjevci. In the 1931 population census of the Royal Yugoslav authorities, 43,832 or 44.29% of the total Subotica population were Bunjevci.
It is estimated that a few tens of thousands of Bunjevci were Magyarized
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
in the 19th and early 20th century. Croat
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
national identity was adopted by some Bunjevci in the late 19th and early 20th century, especially by the majority of the Bunjevac clergy, notably the bishop of Subotica
Subotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
Ivan Antunović
Ivan Antunovic
Ivan Antunović was the bishop of Kalocsa, Hungary, Croatian writer and one of the most prominent people among the Bunjevci and Šokci of his time...
(1815–1888) supported the notion of calling Bunjevci and Šokci with the name Croats.
1880 saw the founding of the Bunjevačka stranka ("the Bunjevac party"), an indigenous political party. During this time, opinions varied on whether the Bunjevci should try to assert themselves as Croats or as an independent ethnic group.
Yugoslavia
In October 1918, Bunjevci held a national convention in Subotica and decided to secede Banat, Bačka and BaranjaBanat, Backa and Baranja
Banat, Bačka and Baranja was a de facto province of the Kingdom of Serbia and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes between October 1918 and March 1919...
from the Kingdom of Hungary and to join Kingdom of Serbia
Kingdom of Serbia
The Kingdom of Serbia was created when Prince Milan Obrenović, ruler of the Principality of Serbia, was crowned King in 1882. The Principality of Serbia was ruled by the Karađorđevic dynasty from 1817 onwards . The Principality, suzerain to the Porte, had expelled all Ottoman troops by 1867, de...
. This was confirmed at the Great National Assembly of Serbs, Bunjevci and other Slavs in Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
, which proclaimed unification with the Kingdom of Serbia
Kingdom of Serbia
The Kingdom of Serbia was created when Prince Milan Obrenović, ruler of the Principality of Serbia, was crowned King in 1882. The Principality of Serbia was ruled by the Karađorđevic dynasty from 1817 onwards . The Principality, suzerain to the Porte, had expelled all Ottoman troops by 1867, de...
in November 1918. The subsequent creation of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (renamed Yugoslavia in 1929) brought most of the Bačka Bunjevci in the same country with the Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
(with some remaining in Hungary).
During the late World War II, Partisan General Božidar Maslarić spoke on the national councils in Sombor and Subotica on 6 November 1944 and General Ivan Rukavina
Ivan Rukavina
Ivan Rukavina was army general of the Yugoslav People's Army, People's Hero of Yugoslavia and Croatian politician....
on Christmas in Tavankut in the name of the Communist Party about the Croatdom of the Bunjevci. After 1945, in SFR Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 1948 did not officially recognize the Bunjevci (nor Šokci), and instead merged their data with the Croats, even if a person would self-declare as a Bunjevac or Šokac.
The Yugoslav communist government counted Bunjevci (and Šokci) as part of Croatian national corpus.
Proponents of a distinct Bunjevac ethnicity regard this time as another dark period of encroachment on their identity, and feel that this assimilation did not help in the preservation of their language. The censuses of 1953 and 1961 also listed all declared Bunjevci as Croats. The 1971 population census listed the Bunjevci separately under the municipal census in Subotica upon the personal request of the organization of Bunjevci in Subotica. It listed 14,892 Bunjevci or 10.15% of the population of Subotica. Despite this, the Province and Federal authorities listed the Bunjevci as Croats, together with the Šokci and considered them that way officially at all occasions. In 1981 the Bunjevci made a similar request – it showed 8,895 Bunjevci, or 5.7% of the total population of Subotica.
After Yugoslav breakup
The community, however, has been divided around the issue of the name: in the 1991 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, in terms of ethnicity, around 21,434 inhabitants of Vojvodina declared themselves Bunjevci (17,527 in Subotica alone – or 11.7%) whereas some 74,808 declared themselves Croats; in 2002, there were 19,766 Bunjevci (16,254 in Subotica – or 10.95%) and around 56,546 Croats in Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
.
Note that not all of the Croats in Vojvodina have Bunjevac roots; the other big group are Šokci, and also, many Croats are descendants of Croat colonists, settled in 1945–1948 (29,111 post-WWII colonists in Vojvodina, out of 356,000, were ethnic Croats).
In the Subotica region, there were 17,439 Bunjevci and 16,369 Croats in 1991. The historically Bunjevac village of Donji Tavankut
Donji Tavankut
Donji Tavankut is a village located some 16 km west of Subotica, Serbia. It is located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina.-1991:...
had 989 Bunjevci, 877 Croats, and 600 declared as Yugoslavs. A 1996 survey by the local government in Subotica found that in the community, there are many people who declare as Croats and consider themselves Bunjevci, but also some people who declare as Bunjevci but consider themselves part of the wider Croatian nation. The same survey found that the delineation between the pro-Croat and pro-Bunjevac positions correlated with the delineation between the people who were more supportive towards the then ruling regime in Serbia that did not favor special rights for national minorities, and conversely those who were against the then government and more interested in minority rights and connections with what they saw as their second homeland.
Today, both major parts of the community (the pro-independent Bunjevac one and the pro-Croatian one) continue to consider themselves ethnologically
Ethnology
Ethnology is the branch of anthropology that compares and analyzes the origins, distribution, technology, religion, language, and social structure of the ethnic, racial, and/or national divisions of humanity.-Scientific discipline:Compared to ethnography, the study of single groups through direct...
as Bunjevci, although each subscribing to its interpretation of the term.
In early 2005, the Bunjevac issue was again popularized when the Vojvodina government decided to allow the official use of "bunjevački language with elements of national culture" in schools in the following school year the štokavian-ikavian dialect. This was protested by the Croatian Bunjevac community as an attempt of the government to widen the rift between the two Bunjevac communities. They favour integration, regardless of whether some people declared themselves distinct, because minority
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
rights (such as the right to use a minority language
Minority language
A minority language is a language spoken by a minority of the population of a territory. Such people are termed linguistic minorities or language minorities.-International politics:...
) are applied based on the number of members of the minority. As opposed to this, supporters of pro-Bunjevci option are accusing Croats for attempts to assimilate Bunjevci. In 2011, Bunjevac politician Blaško Gabrić and Bunjevac National Council asked Serbian authorities to start juristic criminal responsibility procedure against those Croats who denying the existence of Bunjevci ethnicity, which is, according to them, violation of laws and constitution of the Republic of Serbia.
In Hungary, Bunjevci are not officially recognized as a minority; the government simply consider them Croats. In April 2006 a Bunjevci group began collecting subscriptions to register Bunjevci as a distinct minority group. In Hungary, 1,000 valid subscriptions are needed to register an ethnic minority with historical presence. By the end of the given 60 days period the initiative gained over 2,000 subscriptions of which cca. 1,700 were declared valid by national vote office and Budapest parliament gained a deadline of January 9, 2007 to solve the situation by approving or refusing the proposal. No other such initiative has reached that level ever since minority bill passed in 1992. On 18 December the National Assembly of Hungary
National Assembly of Hungary
The National Assembly or Diet is the parliament of Hungary. The unicameral body consists of 386 members elected to 4-year terms. Election of members is based on a complex system involving both area and list election; parties must win at least 5% of the popular vote in order to enter list members...
refused to accept the initiative (with 334 No and 18 Yes votes). The decision was based on the study of the Hungarian Academy of Science that denied the existence of an independent Bunjevac minority (they stated that Bunjevci are a Croatian subgroup). The opposition of Croatian minority leaders also played part in the outcome of the vote, and the opinion of Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
The Bunjevac National Council has given mandate to Mirko Bajić, the President of the People's Democratic Party of Vojvodina, to represent the persons declared solely as Bunjevac on the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (Serbia)
The Democratic Party is a political party in Serbia. It is described as a social liberal or social democratic party.-Pre-war history:The Democratic Party was established on 16 February 1919 from unification of Sarajevo parties independent radicals, progressives, liberals and the Serbian part of...
list for the 21st January 2007 parliamentary republican election
Serbian parliamentary election, 2007
Parliamentary elections took place in Serbia on 21 January 2007. The first session of the new National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia was held on 14 February 2007....
in Serbia.
Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Bunjevci live in the northern Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, mostly in the Bačka
Backa
Bačka is a geographical area within the Pannonian plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east of which confluence is located near Titel...
region. They are a constituent population according to the Province's Statute, mentioning them as one of the ethnic groups settling the Autonomous Province. Villages in Serbia with Bunjevac majorities are:
- LjutovoLjutovoLjutovo is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
- BikovoBikovoBikovo is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
- Gornji TavankutGornji TavankutGornji Tavankut is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
- Donji TavankutDonji TavankutDonji Tavankut is a village located some 16 km west of Subotica, Serbia. It is located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina.-1991:...
- Đurđin
- Mala BosnaMala BosnaMala Bosna is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina. The village is ethnically mixed and its population numbering 1,245 people...
- Stari ŽednikStari ŽednikStari Žednik , also known as Žednik , is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
All these villages are located in the Subotica
Subotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
municipality. According to the 2002 census, the Bunjevac population was divided about their ethnic self-identification - part of the Bunjevac population self-identified as Bunjevci, others as Croats and some as Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs
Yugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
. However, only in the village of Ljutovo, the number of people who self-identified as Bunjevci outnumbered those who defined themselves as Croats. The opposite is true for the city of Subotica, where Bunjevci outnumbered self-identified Croats.
Bunjevci also live in other settlements in northern and western Bačka
Backa
Bačka is a geographical area within the Pannonian plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east of which confluence is located near Titel...
region, where they do not form the majority of population. These settlements are mostly concentrated in the municipalities of Subotica and Sombor
Sombor
Sombor is a city and municipality located in northwest part of Serbian autonomous province of Vojvodina. The city has a total population of 48,749 , while the Sombor municipality has 87,815 inhabitants...
. The largest concentration of Bunjevci in Serbia (10,870) is in the ethnically mixed city of Subotica, which is their cultural and political centre. Other settlements with significant numbers of Bunjevac people include Sombor (2,222) and Bajmok
Bajmok
Bajmok is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
(1,266).
Hungary
Towns and villages in Hungary with a significant population of Bunjevci (names of settlements in the Bunjevac dialect listed in brackets):- BajaBaja, HungaryBaja is a city in , southern Hungary. It is the second largest city in the county, after the county seat at Kecskemét, and is home to around 37,000 people....
(263 of 37,916) - GaraGara, Hungary-History:The village is first mentioned in a 1290 document. The name is derived from the Garai family name. The most commonly accepted theory claims that the word Gara originates from a Slavic word meaning hill. According to Turkish tax listings, the village had 25 houses...
(201 of 2,683) - KatymárKatymárKatymár is a village in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary.-Geography:It covers an area of and has a population of 2401 people .-Notable persons:Notable persons born in Katymár:...
(Kaćmar) (136 of 2,359)
Villages which were partially populated by significant populations of Bunjevci in the past, but today have less than 70 Bunjevci villagers each:
- CsávolyCsávolyCsávoly is a village in Bács-Kiskun county, Hungary. It is about far away from Baja.-History:Csávoly's history can be traced back to 1198. The village - under the name of Chayol-Thayal - had many proprietors since 1374. According to Turkish tax listings, Csávoly had 22 houses in 1580...
(Čavolj) - FelsőszentivánFelsoszentivánFelsőszentiván is a village and municipality in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary.-Geography:...
(Gornji Sveti Ivan, Gornji Sentivan) - BácsalmásBácsalmásBácsalmás is a small town in southern Hungary in the region of Bácska close to the border with the Vojvodina region of Serbia, with a population of 7,694 people.- History :In the Middle Ages, the region came under the control of the Magyars who absorbed the Slavic and the...
(Aljmaš) - CsikériaCsikériaCsikéria is a village in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of Hungary.-Geography:It covers an area of and has a population of 942 people .- External links :...
(Čikerija) - BácsbokodBácsbokodBácsbokod is a large village and municipality in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary...
(Bikić) - MátételkeMátételkeMátételke is a village in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary. It is part of Bácsalmási kistérség.-Geography:It covers an area of and has a population of 617 people .- External links :...
(Matević) - VaskútVaskútVaskút is a large village in Bács-Kiskun county, in the Southern Great Plain region of southern Hungary.-Geography:It covers an area of 71.49 km²...
(Baškut, Vaškut)
Culture
Senj
Senj , German Zengg, Hungarian Zeng and Italian Segna) is the oldest town on the upper Adriatic, and it was founded in the time before the Romans some 3000 years ago on the hill Kuk. It was the center of the Illyrian tribe Iapydes. The current settlement is situated at the foot of the slopes Mala...
. Today, there's a Bunjevci Museum, football squad Bunjevac and Bunjevačka ulica (Bunjevac street) in Senj.
Traditionally, Bunjevci of Bačka are associated with land and farming. Large, usually isolated farms in Northern Bačka called salaš
Salaš
Salaš is a village in the municipality of Zaječar, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 962 people....
i are a significant part of their identity. Most of their customs celebrate the land, harvest, horse-breeding, and their most important feasts (other than Christmas and weddings) are:
- Dužijanca celebration of harvest end, and the most famous festival as well as a tourist attraction. It consists of several events held in Bunjevci-populated places (BajmokBajmokBajmok is a village located in the Subotica municipality, in the North Bačka District of Serbia. It is situated in the autonomous province of Vojvodina...
, TavankutTavankutTavankut may mean:* Donji Tavankut, a village near Subotica, Serbia.* Gornji Tavankut, a village near Subotica, Serbia....
), with the central celebration held in Subotica. Dužijanca includes religious celebrations devoted to harvest, street processionProcessionA procession is an organized body of people advancing in a formal or ceremonial manner.-Procession elements:...
and performing of Bunjevci folklore and music. - Krsno imeSlavaThe Slava , also called Krsna Slava and Krsno ime , is the Serbian Orthodox tradition of the ritual celebration and veneration of a family's own patron saint. The family celebrates the Slava annually on the patron saint's feast day...
a celebration of a patron saintPatron saintA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of the family. - Kraljice ceremonial processions held on PentecostPentecostPentecost is a prominent feast in the calendar of Ancient Israel celebrating the giving of the Law on Sinai, and also later in the Christian liturgical year commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Christ after the Resurrection of Jesus...
. - Divan a meeting of young boys and girls for singing and dancing in a place afar from their parents. The custom has been forbidden by church authorities already in mid-19th century.
Bunjevačke novine
Bunjevacke novine
Bunjevačke novine is a Bunjevac dialect monthly newspaper published in Subotica, Serbia.-External links:* – official website with all issues since 2005. available...
(Bunjevac newspaper) are the main newspaper in Bunjevac language/dialect, published in Subotica
Subotica
Subotica is a city and municipality in northern Serbia, in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina...
.
Notable Bunjevci
Musician Zvonko BogdanZvonko Bogdan
Zvonko Bogdan is an eminent performer of traditional folk songs of Serbia, Croatia, Hungary and Romania. Apart from being famous as a singer, he is also a composer, painter and harness racer...
(a singer) is the best known Bunjevac, and his songs (composed or traditional) have popularized Bunjevac culture and tradition across Serbia and the rest of former Yugoslavia.
Blaško Rajić
Blaško Rajic
Blaško Stipan Rajić was a Bačka Croat Catholic priest, writer and politician. He wrote poetry and prose works....
was a Bunjevac patriot from the late 19th century and first half of 20th century, who participated in the Paris peace conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
after WWI.
Other notable Bunjevci include:
- Gaja AlagaGaja AlagaGaja Alaga was a Croatian theoretical physicist who specialised in nuclear physics.He was born in noble family of Bunjevac Croats in the village of Lemeš in northwestern Bačka in Kingdom of SHS .He was an academician of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts since 1968...
(1924–1988), theoretical physicist - Ivan AntunovićIvan AntunovicIvan Antunović was the bishop of Kalocsa, Hungary, Croatian writer and one of the most prominent people among the Bunjevci and Šokci of his time...
(1815–1888), writer and bishop - Oliver DulićOliver DulicOliver Dulić is a Serbian politician, long-time member of Democratic Party, and former President of the National Assembly of Serbia between 2007 and 2008...
(b. 1975), Serbian politician, speaker of parliament 2007–2008 - Antun Gustav MatošAntun Gustav MatošAntun Gustav Matoš was a Croatian poet, short story writer, journalist, essayist and travelogue writer. He is considered the champion of Croatian modernist literature, opening Croatia to the currents of European modernism, and one of the greatest Croatian literary figures of all time.-Life:Matoš...
(1873–1914), Croatian writer - Josif PančićJosif PancicJosif Pančić OSS was a Serbian botanist. He was a famous lecturer at the Great School in Belgrade and the first president of the Serbian Royal Academy. Pančić is credited for discovering the new species of coniferthe Serbian Spruce.-Biography:...
(1814–1888), botanist and first president of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and ArtsSerbian Academy of Sciences and ArtsThe Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts is the most prominent academic institution in Serbia today... - Blaško RajićBlaško RajicBlaško Stipan Rajić was a Bačka Croat Catholic priest, writer and politician. He wrote poetry and prose works....
(1878–1951), priest and writer - Ivan SarićIvan ŠaricIvan Šarić was a Roman Catholic priest who became the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vrhbosna in 1922...
(1876–1966), aviation pioneer and athlete - Mirko VidakovićMirko VidakovicMirko pl. Vidaković was Croatian botanist and dendrologist and the expert for the genetics of the forest trees.-Biography:Vidaković was born in Lemeš, Bačka, to a family of Bunjevci Croats...
(1924–2002), botanist and member of the Croatian Academy of Sciences and ArtsCroatian Academy of Sciences and ArtsThe Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts is the national academy of Croatia. It was founded in 1866 as the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts , and was known by that name for most of its existence.- History :...
External links
- Bunjevci.com
- Bunjevci HKPD Matija Gubec Tavankut Hrvatska revija br. 3/2005. Proslava 250. obljetnice doseljavanja veće skupine Bunjevaca (1686.-1936.) – Bunjevci u jugoslavenskoj državi HIC Međunarodni znanstveni skup "Jugoistočna Europa 1918.-1995."
- The Croatian Bunjevci Bunjevci in Senj (Croatia)
- Ivan Ivanić: O Bunjevcima (Subotica, 1894) www.bunjevac.com – Bunjevac Dubravko Kopilović – Vinkovci – Hrvatska – Croatia (Vinkovci, 2008)