Murter () is an island in the

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

n part of the

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

Population

The main settlements on the island are

Murter Murter () is an island in the Croatian part of the Adriatic Sea. Population The main settlements on the island are Murter, located on the north-western part of the island, and the southern part of Tisno. Other settlements on the island include ...

, located on the north-western part of the island, and the southern part of Tisno. Other settlements on the island include the villages of Betina on the northwestern side and Jezera on the southeastern coast. In the 2011 census, the total island population is about 3,608 inhabitants.

Geography

The island is in the northwest part of the

Šibenik Šibenik (), historically known as Sebenico (), is a historic town in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka (Croatia), Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is one of the oldest Croatia, Croatian self-governing cities ...

archipelago, separated from the mainland by a wide sea canal at Tisno which is spanned by a short draw-bridge. The island covers an area of about , and the highest point is the peak of Raduč at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

. There are old military tunnels dug deep inside the hill. The southwestern coastline is predominantly steep slopes divided by many sandy

cove A cove is a small bay or coastal inlet. They usually have narrow, restricted entrances, are often circular or oval, and are often situated within a larger bay. Small, narrow, sheltered bays, inlets, creek (tidal), creeks, or recesses in a coast ...

s. The island has many rocky beaches, as well as several sandy ones.

History

The island has been populated for nearly two millennia. An Illyric-

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

settlement known as Colentum has been found near Betina. In 1293, documents show that Murter was called "Villa Magna' meaning big village. During the 13th century there were two documented settlements on the island: Jezera and Veliko Selo. Srimač (now Murter) and the island itself were mentioned in the year 1318 as Insula Mortari. Betina and Tisno were most likely built around the beginning of the 15th century, during the time of Ottoman attacks in the area. The population of the island increased as refugees fled from the Turks. In a naval battle in June 1944, the

Yugoslav torpedo boat T7 ''T7'' was a sea-going torpedo boat operated by the Royal Yugoslav Navy between 1921 and 1941. Originally ''96 F'', a 250t-class torpedo boat of the Austro-Hungarian Navy built in 1915–1916, she was armed with two guns and four torpedo tu ...

- then part of the pro-Nazi

Navy of the Independent State of Croatia The Navy of the Independent State of Croatia (, RMNDH), was the navy of the Independent State of Croatia (, NDH), an Axis puppet state controlled by the fascist ''Ustaše'' party. The NDH was created from parts of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia on 10 ...

- was driven aground on Murter and destroyed by

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

Fairmile D motor torpedo boat The Fairmile D motor torpedo boat was a type of United Kingdom, British motor torpedo boat (MTB) and motor gunboat (MGB), conceived by entrepreneur Noel Macklin of Fairmile Marine and designed by naval architect Bill Holt for the Royal Navy. Ni ...

Heritage

*Many

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

texts written in

Glagolitic The Glagolitic script ( , , ''glagolitsa'') is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. It is generally agreed that it was created in the 9th century for the purpose of translating liturgical texts into Old Church Slavonic by Saints Cyril and Methodi ...

/ Slavonic instead of the traditional

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

style have been found and are preserved here and in the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

. *St. Michael's church, St. Rock's chapel, and the church of Our Lady of Gradina are the oldest churches on the island. *The population of Murter traditionally are engaged in agriculture and fishing and are well-known for these skills, as well as being producers of excellent olive oil. There is a short film documentary about the touristic season; off the island, the title of the film is
Post Mortem
. *Beaches, quality accommodation, and various services make Murter an ideal tourist destination; it has been one of the most visited destinations in this region for years. * A little-known fact is that the island had a military base built in World War Two on top of the hill, with

tunnels A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two portals common at each end, though there may be access and ve ...

bored deep inside it. Some locals believe the place is haunted.

References

{{Authority control Islands of Croatia Islands of the Adriatic Sea Landforms of Šibenik-Knin County