Kakanj ( sr-cyrl, Какањ) is a town and municipality located in Zenica-Doboj Canton of the

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Serbo-Croatian: ''Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine'' / ''Федерација Босне и Херцеговине'') is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities composing Bo ...

, an entity of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. It is the Europe's oldest continuously inhabitted settlement. As of 2013, the town has a population of 11,796 inhabitants, with 38,937 inhabitants in the municipality. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, north of Visoko and southeast of

Zenica Zenica ( ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna (river), Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. The ...

. It was built along the slopes of wide hills on either side of the Zgošća river.

History

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

artifacts have been found in Obre, a nearby village. Thus, whole culture that covered central Bosnian river basins was named Kakanj culture. It is the Europe's oldest continuously inhabited settlement, carbon dated to 6795 BC.Vander Linden, M., Pandžić, I., Orton, D. (2022
New radiocarbon dates for the Neolithic period in Bosnia & Herzegovina
Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Godišnjak Centra za balkanološka Ispitivanja (43) 7–34 (pdf) Settlements in the region are very ancient and contain historical landmarks of the early Bosnian state. Kraljeva Sutjeska, a

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery, is of particular historical note. Near the monastery is Bobovac, scene of the last stand of Bosnian Queen Katarina Kosača and medieval residence of Bosnian kings. In Kraljeva Sutjeska is one of the oldest

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s in Bosnia, built by order of Sultan Mehmed II the Victorious during his expedition to Bosnia and conquest of Bobovac. The Kakanj area enjoyed a renaissance during the rule of the

Kotromanić dynasty The House of Kotromanić ( sr-cyrl, Котроманић, Kotromanići / Котроманићи) was a late medieval Bosnian noble and later royal dynasty. Rising to power in the middle of the 13th century as bans of Bosnia, with control ove ...

. One of the most beautiful

tomb A tomb ( ''tumbos'') or sepulchre () is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called '' immurement'', alth ...

s ever found in Bosnia, with a carving of a hunting

cavalier The term ''Cavalier'' () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of Charles I of England and his son Charles II of England, Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum (England), Int ...

, was found in Kakanj; it is currently displayed in the botanic garden of The State Museum in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

. Kakanj was mentioned in 1468 as a settlement with 90 houses. Coal mine Kakanj was founded in 1900 under Austro-Hungarian rule around a developing

coal mine Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

, which began production in 1902. In the next hundred years, Kakanj developed organically without any

urban planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...

, initially around the coal mine, and later along the banks of the Zgošća and Bosna rivers.

Bosnian War (1992–95)

The situation in Kakanj at the beginning of the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...

was rather quiet, confronted with the frontlines in the area of Zavidovići. The town was in the middle of the Bosnian government-controlled territory, along the communication path with

. Most of the Serb minority soon left the town, while

Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

refugees from Serb-controlled towns arrived. Between March and June 1994, Croats and Bosniaks signed the Washington Agreement, forming the Federation of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation in Kakanj improved, but refugees did not came back. Health and sanitation conditions were poor; a

hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver parenchyma, liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), Anorexia (symptom), poor appetite ...

epidemic was recorded in 1994. Food Security was under control, thanks to humanitarian aid, even though the overall prices remained prohibitive and most of the families survived with company-organized distribution and kitchen gardens. Almost all productive activities were stopped.

Post-war

On 29 September 1999, the High Representative ( OHR) Wolfgang Petrisch removed from office the mayor of Kakanj, Kemal Brodilija, for obstructing the implementation of the Dayton Agreements and pursuing an extra-legal agenda. Kakanj

Settlements

The municipality consists of following settlements: Alagići • Bastašići • Bašići • Bičer • Bijele Vode • Bijelo Polje • Bilješevo • Bistrik-Crkvenjak • Bištrani • Bjelavići • Bosna • Brežani • Brnj • Brnjic • Bukovlje • Crnač • Čatići • Danci • Desetnik •

Doboj Doboj ( sr-Cyrl, Добој, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Bosna (river), Bosna river, in the northern region of Republika Srpska. As of 2013, it has a population of 71,441 inhabita ...

• Donja Papratnica • Donji Banjevac • Donji Kakanj • Donji Lučani • Dračići • Drijen • Dubovo Brdo • Dumanac • Gora • Gornja Papratnica • Gornji Banjevac • Gornji Lučani • Govedovići • Gradac • Groce • Halinovići • Haljinići • Hausovići • Hodžići • Hrasno • Hrastovac • Ivnica • Javor • Jehovina • Jerevice • Jezero • Kakanj • Karaula • Karaulsko Polje • Klanac • Kondžilo • Koprivnica • Kraljevska Sutjeska • Krševac • Kučići • Kujavče • Lipnica • Lučići • Lukovo Brdo • Marijina Voda • Miljačići • Mioči • Modrinje • Mramor • Nažbilj • Obre • Papratno • Pavlovići • Pedići • Podbjelavići • Podborje • Poljani • Poljice •

Pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

• Popržena Gora • Ratanj • Ribnica • Ričica • Rojin Potok • Saranovići • Sebinje • Semetiš • Seoce • Slagoščići • Slapnica • Slivanj • Slivnice • Sopotnica • Starposle • Subotinje • Termoelektrana • Teševo • Tičići • Tršće • Turalići • Turbići • Varalići • Veliki Trnovci • Viduša • Vrtlište • Vukanovići • Zagrađe • Zgošća • Zlokuće • Željeznička Stanica Kakanj • Živalji.

Demographics

In the census of 1991, the town of Kakanj itself had 12,008 inhabitants.

Ethnic structure by settlements, 1991 census

Absolute ethnic majority: Relative ethnic majority:

Sport

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club FK Rudar Kakanj *

Volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

club OK Kakanj *

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

club KK Kakanj

Notable people

Aida Redžepagić
photographer * Amar Jašarspahić, Bosnian singer * Amel Tuka, middle-distance runner and World Championships silver medalist * Denial Ahmetović, singer * Kornelija Kvesić, basketball player * Dženan Čišija, Swedish politician * Mladen Bartulović, footballer * Sasa Palamarevic, water polo player

References

External links

kakanj.com.ba
{{Authority control Populated places in Kakanj