Tivat (, ) is a coastal town in southwest

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...

, located in the

Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...

. , its population was 9,367. Tivat is the centre of

Tivat Municipality Tivat Municipality ( Montenegrin and Serbian: Opština Tivat / Општина Тиват) is the smallest municipality in Montenegro by area, situated in the Bay of Kotor. The center of the municipality is the eponymous town, Tivat. Besides the t ...

, which is the smallest municipality by area in Montenegro.

Name

In Serbian and Montenegrin language the town is known as ''Tivat'' (Тиват); in Italian and

Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetian and the like may also refer to: * Venetian language, a Romance language s ...

as ''Teodo''; the name of the city is derived either from the name of Illyrian Queen

Teuta Teuta ( Illyrian: *''Teutana'', 'mistress of the people, queen'; grc, Τεύτα; lat, Teuta) was the queen regent of the Ardiaei tribe in Illyria, who reigned approximately from 231 BC to 228/227 BC. Following the death of her spouse Agr ...

who ruled the region in 3rd Century BC, or from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

word "Θείοδος" (''Theiodos'' meaning "way of God").

History

According to legend, ''Tivat'' is derived from Illyrian queen

. Teuta had a residence in Rhizon and a summer residence between the church of St. Rocco in

Donja Lastva Donja Lastva ( Montenegrin and Serbian: Donja Lastva) is a coastal settlement in the municipality of Tivat, Montenegro. It is also located north of Tivat in the Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known a ...

and Seljanovo. The name could also come from the names of old Christian saints: Saint Theodulus, Theodocius or Theodotus. Besides the popular name Theudo, a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

expression Latus Tiuveti comes from the 16th century. Finally, the name could originate from

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foo ...

word "touto", town. Archaeological sites attest that the area was inhabited in antiquity, with Greek and Roman settlements. Tombs and tombstones from the Roman period were discovered in Lastva and Opatovo. Tivat, the youngest town in the Boka area was established on the plateau at the bottom of Vrmac. According to the archives of

Kotor Kotor ( Montenegrin Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian: ), is a coastal town in Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has a population of 13,510 and is the administrative ...

(''Cattaro''), Teude, Theode, and Theudo was used for the settlement in the 14th century. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

the fertile lands of the area belonged mostly to the aristocrats of Cattaro, Prčanj and Dobrota. Estates, castles and chalets were there as well as the collective church of St Anton dating from 1373. Part of this inheritance, which was the property of the wealthy Buća family, is a historic chalet which today houses Tivat's museums and galleries. The residence of the metropolitan of the bishopric of Zeta was built from the 13th to the 15th century on the

Prevlaka Island The Island of Flowers ( Montenegrin: Ostrvo cvijeća/Острво цвијећа), also known as Miholjska Prevlaka ( cnr, Михољска превлака, Miholjska prevlaka), or Island of St. Archangel Michael ( cnr, Острво Свети М ...

. Tivat, known as ''Teodo'' in

, was under the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...

as a part of

Albania Veneta Venetian Albania ( vec, Albania vèneta, it, Albania Veneta, Serbian and Montenegrin: Млетачка Албанија / ''Mletačka Albanija'', ) was the official term for several possessions of the Republic of Venice in the southeastern Adri ...

from 1420 to 1797. In those centuries Teodo enjoyed economic development that attracted many

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

refugees from Ottoman-held areas. Some Venetian-style buildings are still standing today. Rapid development of Tivat started in the second half of 19th century when the Austrian empire built a maritime arsenal for its fleet. Still the town shaped itself by developing small industry. In the beginning of 1918, in the Tivat Bay sailors revolted against the mighty Austrian empire. With great approval and support, people from this area followed their revolutionary actions. The period between two world wars was marked with syndicate activity in Račica, Krtoli and Arsenal. Between 1941 and 1943 the town was part of the Italian

Governatorate of Dalmatia The Governorate of Dalmatia ( it, Governatorato di Dalmazia) was a territory divided into three provinces of Italy during the Italian Kingdom and Italian Empire epoch. It was created later as an entity in April 1941 at the start of World War II ...

. In 1889 the Naval arsenal was built by

Austrians , pop = 8–8.5 million , regions = 7,427,759 , region1 = , pop1 = 684,184 , ref1 = , region2 = , pop2 = 345,620 , ref2 = , region3 = , pop3 = 197,990 , ref3 ...

, and was later used as a naval

military base A military base is a facility directly owned and operated by or for the military or one of its branches that shelters military equipment and personnel, and facilitates training and operations. A military base always provides accommodations for ...

of the Italian Navy, the Yugoslav People's Army and the

Army of Montenegro Montenegrin Ground Army ( cnr, Kopnena vojska Crne Gore) is the ground force of the Armed Forces of Montenegro The Armed Forces of Montenegro ( cnr, Војска Црне Горе, Vojska Crne Gore) are the military forces of Montenegro. The Ar ...

. The JNA enjoyed an international reputation as a powerful, well-equipped, and well-trained force. The base was also used by Russia and Libya as the technical base for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of their ships and submarines.

Porto Montenegro

The former naval base is now " Porto Montenegro", a superyacht

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or ...

developed by Hungarian-Canadian billionaire

Peter Munk Peter Munk (November 8, 1927 – March 28, 2018) was a Hungarian-Canadian businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder and chief executive officer of a number of high-profile business ventures, including the hi-fi electronics co ...

, then sold in 2016 to the

Investment Corporation of Dubai Investment Corporation of Dubai is a sovereign wealth fund of the Government of Dubai established in 2006, with a mandate to invest funds on behalf of the Government of Dubai, and manage their portfolio of investment companies. At 2022, ICD rep ...

Geography

Tivat is located in the central part of the Bay of Kotor (''Boka Kotorska'', or simply "Boka"), south of mount Vrmac. The municipality lies mostly south of the town, and has an exit to open sea at the tourist location Pržno inlet near Radovići village to the south. Its central part, where

Tivat Airport Tivat Airport ( cnr, Аеродром Тиват, Aerodrom Tivat) is an international airport serving the Montenegrin coastal town of Tivat and the surrounding region. The airport is situated south of the centre of Tivat, with the runway align ...

is located, lies in fertile Grbalj valley. The airport is located near the

isthmus An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across an expanse of water by which they are otherwise separated. A tombolo is an isthmus that consists of a spit or bar, and a strait is the sea counterpart of an isthmus ...

Luštica Luštica ( Montenegrin: Луштица, ) is a peninsula on the south Adriatic Sea, located at the entrance of the Bay of Kotor ( sh, Boka kotorska or ''Boka'') in southwestern Montenegro. It effectively separates Tivat Bay from the Adriatic. The ...

peninsula, which belongs to the municipality of

Herceg Novi Herceg Novi ( cyrl, Херцег Нови, ) is a coastal town in Montenegro located at the Western entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of the Herceg Novi Municipality with around 33,000 ...

for the most part. Tivat has about 14,000 inhabitants. It is away from

, away from Kotor, away from Budva, from Dubrovnik and from Podgorica. Geomorphologically, Tivat is composed of three areas. The first is the hills and peaks of Vrmac, Velji Vrh () and Popova glava (). Water activity formed capes Seljanovo, Pakovo and Račica. The second area is Tivat field, flattened by water activity. The third area is Krtoli with islands – Island of Flowers, St. Marko, and Lady of Mercy which is bordered by Novski bay on the north-west and Grbalj area on the south-east.

Population

Tivat is the administrative centre of Tivat municipality, which has a population of 14,031 (2011). In 1981 the municipality had a population of 9,315: * 2,876

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic ...

* 2,831

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordi ...

* 2,384

Yugoslavs Yugoslavs or Yugoslavians ( Bosnian and Croatian: ''Jugoslaveni'', Serbian and Macedonian ''Jugosloveni''/Југословени; sl, Jugoslovani) is an identity that was originally designed to refer to a united South Slavic people. It has b ...

* 850

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of ...

* 129

Albanians The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Ser ...

* 155 others In 1991 the municipality had a population of 11,404: * 3,809

(''33.4%'') * 2,663

(''23.35%'') * 2,346

(''20.57%'') * 1,724

(''15.11%'') * 219 ethnic Muslims (''1.92%'') * 485 others (''4.27%'') In 2011 the municipality had a population of 14,031: *4,666

(''33.25%'') *4,435

(''31.61%'') *2,304

(''16.42%'') *2,626 others/undeclared (''18,71%'')

Languages

* 5,493

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also * * * Old Serbian (disambiguation ...

(38.93%) * 4,319 Montenegrin (30.61%) * 1,167 Croatian (8.27%) * 3,132 rest and undeclared (22.19%)

Sports

The local football team is

FK Arsenal Tivat FK Arsenal is a Montenegrin professional football club based in the coastal town of Tivat, founded in 1914. Currently, the club is competing in the Montenegrin First League. History Period 1914-1940 Founded in 1914, Arsenal is the second oldest ...

, who have spent several seasons in the country's second tier. They share their

Stadion u Parku Stadion u Parku is a football stadium in Tivat. It is currently used mostly for football and rugby matches and is the home ground of FK Arsenal and RFC Arsenal. The stadium holds 2,000 people. History and location The stadium is located in T ...

with rugby team RFC Arsenal Tivat. The town's basketball team is KK Teodo Tivat.

Tourism

Already a popular tourist resort, Tivat is set to become a nautical tourism centre for the southern

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...

. The inlets near Prevlaka, as well as the localities of Župa and Kalimanj, provide great conditions for the construction of

s and yachting clubs. Canadian businessman

bought a naval

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance ...

in Tivat, intending to transform it into a luxury vacation resort and a marina for

luxury yacht A superyacht or megayacht is a large and luxurious pleasure vessel. There are no official or agreed upon definitions for such yachts, but these terms are regularly used to describe professionally crewed motor or sailing yachts, ranging from t ...

s called Porto Montenegro. In 1971

acquired a modern runway and is now a significant airport for foreign air traffic. It served 1,367,282 passengers in 2019. Although it is the youngest town in the Boka region, Tivat has a number of tourist sites. Renaissance Summer House Buca in the centre of city, Ostrvo Cvijeća (Flowers’ Island) with sacred monuments, Gornja Lastva, the old nucleus at an altitude of , the magnificent sandy beach at Plavi Horizonti and the Sveti Marko Island with ex-

Club Med Club Med SAS, commonly known as Club Med and previously known as Club Méditerranée SA, is a French travel and tourism operator headquartered in Paris, specializing in all-inclusive holidays. Founded in 1950, the company has been primarily o ...

cottages are the most visited. In the city itself there is the natural port Kalimanj. There is also a choice of cultural events, such as "Bocce Olympiad" and "Summer Fest". Tivat boasts a botanic garden planted with gifts from Bokan sailors who brought back a wide variety of exotic tree species and ornamental plants from their voyages.

Transport

Tivat is connected with the rest of Montenegro by the

Adriatic Highway The Adriatic Highway ( hr, Jadranska magistrala) is a road that stretches along the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea and is part of the European route E65. The road passes through Croatia, with smaller stretches through Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

, a two-laned road that runs down the length of Montenegrin coast. Travelling inland is possible by leaving the Adriatic Highway at

Budva Budva ( cnr, Будва, or ) is a Montenegrin town on the Adriatic Sea. It has 19,218 inhabitants, and it is the centre of Budva Municipality. The coastal area around Budva, called the Budva riviera, is the center of Montenegrin tourism, kno ...

Sutomore Sutomore ( cnr, Сутоморе, ) is a small coastal town in Bar Municipality, Montenegro. A 2011 census put the population at 2,004. History Sutomore was called ''Spizza'' in Venetian, when it was under the Republic of Venice from 1420 to 1 ...

(through the Sozina tunnel). A ferry operates on the ''Kamenari - Lepetane'' line across the ''Verige strait'', eliminating the need to go all the way around Boka Kotorska bay in order to reach the Herceg Novi riviera. It is speculated that a future Verige bridge will be constructed across the bay.

is away. This is the biggest airport in Montenegro, although Podgorica airport is more modern. There are regular flights to

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...

throughout the year, and dozens of charter planes land daily at Tivat Airport during the summer season.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Tivat is twinned with: * Aleksin, Russia * Jiading, China * Karpoš, North Macedonia *

Konjic Konjic ( sr-Cyrl, Коњиц) is a city and municipality located in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in northern Herzegovina, around southwest of Saraje ...

, Bosnia and Herzegovina * Mola di Bari, Italy *

Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the P ...

, Serbia * Piran, Slovenia * San Giacomo degli Schiavoni, Italy * Sremski Karlovci, Serbia *

Trogir Trogir (; historically known as Traù (from Dalmatian language, Dalmatian, Venetian language, Venetian and Italian language, Italian: ); la, Tragurium; Greek language, Ancient Greek: Τραγύριον, ''Tragyrion'' or Τραγούριον, '' ...

, Croatia * Ub, Serbia

Gallery

File:Tivat_from_sea_1.jpg, Tivat and mount Vrmac File:Tivat, Montenegro - panoramio (26).jpg, View of Town by the sea File:MiholjskaPrevlaka.jpg, Miholjska Prevlaka File:Tivat.jpg,

References

Bibliography

* Calabrese M., ''Mola di Bari: colori suoni memorie di Puglia'', Laterza, Bari, 1987.

External links

360 PANOTOUR TIVATVisit-Montenegro.comPhoto-Montenegro.com Tivat Travel Guide Tourist Organization of Tivat
- slideshow by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' {{Tivat Municipality Populated places in Tivat Municipality Tivat Municipality Coastal towns in Montenegro Mediterranean port cities and towns in Montenegro Populated places in Bay of Kotor