Međa (; ) is a village located in the

Žitište Žitište ( sr-Cyrl, Житиште, ; ; ) is a town and municipality located in the Central Banat District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2022 census, the town itself has a population of 2,550, while Žitište municipali ...

municipality, in the

Central Banat District The Central Banat District (, ) is one of Administrative districts of Serbia, administrative districts of Serbia. It lies in the geographical region of Banat. According to the 2022 census, the Central Banat District has a population of 157,711 ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

. It is situated in the Autonomous Province of

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...

. The village has a Serb ethnic majority (88.65%) and its population numbering 1,155 people (2002 census).

Name

In Serbian, the village is known as ''Međa'' (Међа), in German as ''Pardan'', in Hungarian as ''Párdány'', and in Romanian as ''Meda''. Its former names used in Serbian were ''Pardanj'' (Пардањ) and ''Ninčićevo'' (Нинчићево) after Momčilo Ninčić. Former Serb Pardanj was known as ''Srpski Pardanj'' (Српски Пардањ) in Serbian, ''Serbische Pardan'' in German, and ''Szerb-Párdány'' in Hungarian. Former Slovak Pardanj was known as ''Totovski Pardanj'' (Тотовски Пардањ) in Serbian, ''Slowakisch Pardan'' in German, and ''Tót-Párdány'' in Hungarian. It was later also known as German Pardanj (Serbian: ''Nemački Pardanj'' or Немачки Пардањ, German: ''Deutsch Pardan'', Hungarian: ''Német-Párdány'') and Hungarian Pardanj (Serbian: ''Mađarski Pardanj'' or Мађарски Пардањ, German: ''Ungarisch Pardan'', Hungarian: ''Magyar-Párdány'').

History

It was first mentioned in historical literature 1247 AD. During Ottoman rule (in 1660/66), Pardanj was inhabited by

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

, and in 1753 was also recorded as Serb-inhabited settlement. At first, there were two villages with name Pardanj: Serb Pardanj and Slovak Pardanj. Former Slovak inhabitants either moved out of the village or became magyarized or Germanized. In the middle of the 18th century,

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

and

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

settled here as well, mostly in Slovak Pardanj, which later became known as German Pardanj and Hungarian Pardanj. Two villages (former Serb Pardanj and former Slovak/German/Hungarian Pardanj) united into single village in 1907. According to 1910 census there were 3,213 inhabitants in the settlements, who spoke following languages: German - 1,874, Serbian - 1,052, Hungarian - 243. After the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

in 1919 assigned Pardanj to

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It was under Romanian administration until 1924, when it was assigned to the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

. In this time, its name was changed to ''Ninčićevo''. Near the end of the Second World War (1944) the German population was forced into Tito's concentration camps where many perished. The village and colonists from

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 ...

settled here instead of them. New inhabitants named the village ''Međa'' ("border" in English) because of the proximity of the state border. Formerly, Međa was a seat of the municipality, but later was included into new municipality with seat in

Ethnic groups (2002 census)

= 1,024 (88.66%) *

= 43 (3.72%) * Romani = 25 (2.17%) *others.

Historical population

*1961: 2,367 *1971: 2,047 *1981: 1,636 *1991: 1,403 *2002: 1,155

Trivia

Local people of Međa plan to build a monument dedicated to Johnny Weissmuller, who was born in 1904 in Međa according to some sources. However, where the actor was actually born is disputed because other sources claim that his birthplace was Szabadfalu (Freidorf), present-day part of

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

Notable citizens

* The politician

Vuk Drašković Vuk Drašković ( sr-cyrl, Вук Драшковић, ; born 29 November 1946) is a Serbian writer and politician. He is the co-founder and former leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, serving as president from 1990 to 2024. He also served as th ...

was born in Međa. * Count János Buttler de Párdány, Hungarian aristocrat. Kálmán Mikszáth's novel ''A Strange Marriage'' is based on his life story. * Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an Austro-Hungarian-born American swimmer and actor. The ship's roster from his family's arrival at Ellis Island lists his birthplace as Párdány (now Međa), village on territory of today's Serbia, although he was born in Freidorf,

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

, stated also in the baptismal records of Saint Rochus Church in Freidorf. He won fifty-two US National Championships and set sixty-seven world records. After his swimming career, he became the sixth actor to portray Tarzan in films, a role he played in twelve motion pictures.

References

*Slobodan Ćurčić, Broj stanovnika Vojvodine, Novi Sad, 1996.

Gallery

File:Međa, Catholic Church.jpg, The Saint John Nepomuk Catholic Church. {{DEFAULTSORT:Meda (Zitiste) Populated places in Serbian Banat