Savudrija () is a coastal settlement in northwestern

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

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 ...

. It has developed from a fishing village into a pleasant holiday centre. Savudrija is also the name of the surrounding area in the peninsula. The 19th century Savudrija Lighthouse is a distinctive local landmark; it is the oldest in Croatia, and the oldest operational light of the

Adriatic 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 ...

. The

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

is also the most northerly in Croatia. Three kinds of wind meet here, so the area is popular with

windsurfers Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gain ...

History

As evidenced by archaeological finds, the Savudrija area has been settled since the Neolithic period. The Roman port facilities still remain intact. In the vicinity of Savudrija are some notable Roman sites, in particular a Roman fort on the peninsula. The village was mentioned in written sources in the second part of the 12th century and was part of the

Piran Piran (; ) is a town in southwestern Slovenia on the Gulf of Piran on the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the three major towns of Slovenian Istria. A bilingual city, with population speaking both Slovene and Italian, Piran is known for its medieva ...

municipality from the 13th century, while today it is part of

Istria County Istria County (; ; , "Istrian Region") is the westernmost Counties of Croatia, county of Croatia which includes the majority of the Istrian peninsula. Administrative centers in the county are Pazin, Pula and Poreč. Istria County has the larg ...

in Croatia. On 18 February 1893, Savudrija became part of the Piran municipality. The territory remained part of the municipality of Piran until 1947, when the municipality of Savudrija was set up. In 1954, when the

Free Territory of Trieste The Free Territory of Trieste was an independent territory in Southern Europe between Italy and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, facing the north part of the Adriatic Sea, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 16, direct responsibility of ...

was dissolved and its southern part became officially part of

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

, Savudrija was joined to the

Socialist Republic of Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), commonly abbreviated as SR Croatia and referred to as simply Croatia, was a ...

in accordance with the decisions of

ZAVNOH The State Anti-Fascist Council for the National Liberation of Croatia (''Zemaljsko antifašističko vijeće narodnog oslobođenja Hrvatske''), commonly abbreviated ZAVNOH, was first convened on 13–14 June 1943 in Otočac and Plitvička Jezera ...

Demographics

According to the 2021 census, its population was 195. It was 253 in 2011. According to the last Austrian census in 1910, almost 79% of the population of the Savudrija territory was

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

-speaking, 14% were Slovene-speaking. During the period of Italian rule (1922–1945), the zone was almost completely Italianized. According to the first ethnic census in 1945, Savudrija had a Croatian majority, with 54%

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

, 30%

Italians Italians (, ) are a European peoples, European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common Italian culture, culture, History of Italy, history, Cultural heritage, ancestry and Italian language, language. ...

, and 14%

Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( ), are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, Slovenian culture, culture, and History of Slove ...

. Following the decisions of the Paris Peace Treaty (1947), many ethnic Italians opted to relocate to Italy. Today, Savudrija remains largely Croatian-speaking, but there is a small Italian minority, and most topographic signs are

bilingual Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. When the languages are just two, it is usually called bilingualism. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolin ...

References

External links

Homepage mit Fotos

Roman port of Savudrija/Salvore
{{Authority control Populated coastal places in Croatia Populated places in Istria County

History

Demographics

See also

References

Further reading

External links