Papuk is the largest

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually highe ...

in the

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baran ...

region in eastern

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

, near the city of Požega. It extends between Bilogora to the northwest, Krndija to the east, and Ravna gora and

Psunj Psunj is a mountain in the southwestern Slavonia region in eastern Croatia. It is the highest mountain of Slavonia, with the highest peak of Brezovo polje at 984 m.a.s.l. In the north it extends to Ravna gora and Papuk, while otherwise it is su ...

to the southwest. The highest peak is the eponymous peak at 953 m.a.A. The area of Papuk is designated a nature park (''park prirode''), a kind of protected area in Croatia. At the seventh European Geopark Network Open Conference, hosted by North West Highlands Geopark in September 2007, the

Papuk Geopark Papuk is the largest mountain in the Slavonia region in eastern Croatia, near the city of Požega. It extends between Bilogora to the northwest, Krndija to the east, and Ravna gora and Psunj to the southwest. The highest peak is the eponymous ...

became the first Croatian

Geopark A geopark is a protected area with internationally significant geology within which sustainable development is sought and which includes tourism, conservation, education and research concerning not just geology but other relevant sciences. In 2 ...

and 30th member of the European and

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Global Geoparks Network UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGp) are geoparks certified by the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council as meeting all the requirements for belonging to the Global Geoparks Network (GGN). The GGN is both a network of geoparks and the agency of the United Nati ...

. Geopark Papuk was awarded licence second time from UNESCO in 2011.

Name

There are several supposed etymologies of the name "Papuk", it's almost certainly not of Croatian origin. One is that it comes by assimilation from earlier "Bapuk", where "Ba" is the name of the Celtic tribe that inhabited the region, and "Puk" comes from the Indo-European root *peiH, meaning "big". However, from the historical sources, it's visible that Papuk was originally a hydronym. Based on that, it's been suggested that the name comes from the repetitive of the Indo-European root *bhogj (to flow), *bhebhogj, so that it means "that which flows and flows". However, there are several problems with that etymology. First, it's visible by hydronyms such as "Bosut" and "Bosna" that Indo-European *bh gave *b in the local language. Second, *bhebhogj would actually mean "flow and flow" and not "that which flows and flows", so the endings don't match. So, it's been suggested that the name is of Pre-Indo-European origin.

Papuk Geopark

The ''Papuk Geopark'' () is a

geopark A geopark is a protected area with internationally significant geology within which sustainable development is sought and which includes tourism, conservation, education and research concerning not just geology but other relevant sciences. In 2 ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

which is situated in two counties, Požega-Slavonia and Virovitica-Podravina, and includes upland forests of the Papuk and Krndija mountains, and edges of agricultural fields. The total area of the Geopark is . In September 2007, the Papuk Geopark became the first Croatian geopark (an area with an expressed geological heritage and a strategy for a sustainable economical development) and the 30th member of the

European Geoparks Network The European Geoparks Network (EGN) functions as the regional organization of the Global Geoparks Network (GGN) and the UNESCO International Geosciences and Geoparks Programme (UNESCO-IGGP). Its main objective is to ensure cooperation between geop ...

and a member of the

-assisted

. The Papuk mountains belong to the

highlands which are in Pannonia, a low-lying area of Slavonia. Even though, the Slavonia highlands are not higher than 1,000 meters, their presence is very noticeable in the landscape. This is because the surrounding alluvial fields are at around 100 m height above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

, while the hillsides are only 100 m above the fields. The highlands are mostly covered with

forests A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

, which differentiates them from the surrounding landscape. Within the Slavonia highlands, the Papuk Mountain stretches from west to east and is the most spacious and most interesting

. From the main mountain-ridge well intended are two spurs and a tract watered by a

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

in the direction north south. As a remarkable point, emphasis lies on peaks Točak (887 m), Papuk (953 m), Ivačka glava (913 m), Češljakovački vis (820 m), and Kapovac (792 m), which are spread out continuously, and act as a drainage divide between the numerous tributary streams flowing to the river Drava to the north, and the river

Sava The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. It flows through Slovenia, Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally t ...

to the south.

Ravna Gora

Ravna Gora is a

in the

region in eastern

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. It is located between

and Papuk, northeast of

Pakrac Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina. Name In Croatian the town is known a ...

and southeast of

Daruvar Daruvar ( cz, Daruvar, german: Daruwar, hu, Daruvár, sr, Дарувар, la, Aquae Balissae) is a spa town and municipality in Slavonia, northeastern Croatia with a population of 8,567. The area including the surrounding villages (Dar. Vino ...

. The highest peak is ''Čučevo'' at the altitude of .Hrvatski obiteljski leksikon - enciklopedija.lzmk.hr
Geomorfologija krša Papuka - kap krša u srcu Slavonije
It is bound from the north by the

Pakra Pakra is a river in western Slavonia and central Croatia, a left tributary of the Ilova. It is around long. Pakra rises in the south of Ravna Gora, north of the village of Bučje. It flows towards the west and passes through Pakrac, where a so ...

river, and from the east by river

Orljava Orljava is a river in Slavonia, eastern Croatia, a left tributary of Sava. It is long and its basin covers an area of . Orljava rises in the mountainous forested areas of Psunj, south of Bučje. It receives influx from smaller rivers that ri ...

. Geographers usually classify Ravna Gora as mountain ridge of the Papuk

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

. In its western part Papuk mountain range is about 20 km wide, formed by three parallel ridges: Lisina (''Crni vrh'' 863 m), Ljutoč (716 m) and Ravna Gora.

Name

Papuk Geopark

Ravna Gora

See also

References

External links