Srijemske Laze ( sr-Cyrl, Сремске Лазе) is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

Stari Jankovci Stari Jankovci ( sr-Cyrl, Стари Јанковци, ) is a village and a municipality in Vukovar-Syrmia County, Croatia The village is located to the northeast of the M104 railway route. The village is connected with the rest of the country ...

municipality of

Vukovar-Syrmia County Vukovar-Srijem County (), Vukovar-Sirmium County or Vukovar-Syrmia County, named after the eponymous town of Vukovar and the region of Syrmia, is the easternmost Croatian Counties of Croatia, county. It includes the eastern parts of the region of ...

in eastern

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 ...

. The village is physically connected with the village of

Slakovci Slakovci (, ) is a village in Stari Jankovci municipality of Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. It is connected by the D46 state road. The village is physically connected with the village of Srijemske Laze. The village is connected with ...

. According to 2011 census there is 566 residents in the village. The largest ethnic group in the village are

Serbs of Croatia The Serbs of Croatia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", Срби у Хрватској, Srbi u Hrvatskoj) or Croatian Serbs ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", Хрватски Срби, Hrvatski Srbi) constitute the largest national minority in C ...

. The village is connected with the rest of the country by the D46 state road connecting it with the town of

Vinkovci Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city settlement's population was 28,111 in the 2021 census, while the total population was 30,842, making it the largest town of the county. It is a local tr ...

and continuing into

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 ...

as the State Road 120 to the nearest town of

Šid Šid ( sr-cyr, Шид, ; ) is a town and municipality located in the Srem District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It has a population of 12,628, while the municipality has 27,894 inhabitants (2022 census). A border crossing betw ...

. Surrounding landscape of the village is marked by the

Pannonian Basin The Pannonian Basin, with the term Carpathian Basin being sometimes preferred in Hungarian literature, is a large sedimentary basin situated in southeastern Central Europe. After the Treaty of Trianon following World War I, the geomorpholog ...

plains and agricultural fields of

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

common sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pro ...

and

sugar beet A sugar beet is a plant whose root contains a high concentration of sucrose and that is grown commercially for sugar production. In plant breeding, it is known as the Altissima cultivar group of the common beet (''Beta vulgaris''). Together with ...

Name

The name of the village in Croatian or

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

is plural. In addition to its official form the name of the village of Srijemske Laze is also known as Sremske Laze in its Ekavian pronunciation of

Shtokavian Shtokavian or Štokavian (; sh-Latn, štokavski / sh-Cyrl, italics=no, штокавски, ) is the prestige supradialect of the pluricentric Serbo-Croatian language and the basis of its Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian and Montenegrin stand ...

dialect of the pluricentric

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian ( / ), also known as Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS), is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is a pluricentric language with four mutually i ...

. Historically, Ekavian pronunciation was common both among autochthonous Serb and Croat communities in

Podunavlje Podunavlje is the name of the Danube river basin parts located in Croatia (Slavonia, Syrmia, and Baranya) and Serbia (Vojvodina, Belgrade and Eastern Serbia). Podunavlje is located on the southern edge of Pannonian Basin. In its wider meaning, ...

while both new post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Serb and Croat settlers predominantly used Ijekavian pronunciation. This however changed in local context after the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

when Ekavian was associated with Serb and Ijekavian with Croat community with some exceptions. The word "Srijemske"/"Sremske" is a possessive adjective derived from the Serbo-Croatian word for the

Syrmia Syrmia (Ekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srem, Срем, separator=" / " or Ijekavian sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srijem, Сријем, label=none, separator=" / ") is a region of the southern Pannonian Plain, which lies between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is div ...

region itself, meaning that the literal translation of the settlement's name in English is Syrmia's Laze. The name of the

comes from the old Croatian word ''laz'', which means a part of the hillside that can be overcome on foot.

Geography

Southern edge of administrative area of village bordering

Bosut The Bosut ( sr-Cyrl, Босут) is a river in the Syrmia region of eastern Croatia and northwestern Serbia. It is a 186 km long, slow and meandering left tributary of the Sava river. The riverbed begins near the left embankment of the Sava ...

river. North of the river is oak forest and after forest there are large agricultural fields. Between village itself and the southern part of administrative area village lying

Zagreb–Belgrade railway The Zagreb–Belgrade railway () was the Yugoslav Railways′ long railway line connecting the cities of Zagreb and Belgrade in SR Croatia and SR Serbia, at the time of the SFR Yugoslavia. It was the route of the Orient Express service from ...

. Through the village passing D46 highway. At the eastern end, village is physically connected to the neighboring village Slakovci. The village is part of Pannonian sub-region of

. The area of village is completely flat, gently sloped from slightly higher north to lower south. Word ''Srijemske'' in village name comes from Eastern Herzegovinian,

Shtokavian dialect Shtokavian or Štokavian (; sh-Latn, štokavski / sh-Cyrl, italics=no, штокавски, ) is the prestige supradialect of the pluricentric Serbo-Croatian language and the basis of its Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian and Montenegrin stand ...

word for region of

History

Middle Ages

In the

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

modern village area were populated by Catholic population. Name of place that than existed was Laz. Origin of old village name comes from

Croat 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 ...

word ''laz'', which means the low gentle hill that man can easily exceed walking. Catholic village Laz which was just south of the present day village, was abandoned under the influence of

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in the 17th century.

Resettlement

After the liberation from the

following the 1699

Treaty of Karlowitz The Treaty of Karlowitz, concluding the Great Turkish War of 1683–1699, in which the Ottoman Empire was defeated by the Holy League at the Battle of Zenta, was signed in Karlowitz, in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg Monarchy (present-day ...

, the

Franciscans The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor being the largest conte ...

from Srijemski Laz took most of the population to

Vukovar Vukovar (; sr-Cyrl, Вуковар, , ) is a city in Croatia, in the eastern Regions of Croatia, regions of Syrmia and Slavonia. It contains Croatia's largest river port, located at the confluence of the Vuka (river), Vuka and the Danube. Vukova ...

where they built the Church of Saints Philip and James, while a smaller part of the population moved to Jankovci and Slakovci. Even today, descendants of natives from Laz with the surname Lazanin live in these villages. Between 1690s and 1720s the village was abandoned when it was resettled by

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

population. Since after the

village remained deserted and empty,

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

in early 18th century inhabited village with

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 ...

mostly from eastern

Bosnia 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 ...

(from

Bijeljina Bijeljina ( sr-cyrl, Бијељина) is a city and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the provincial center of Semberija, a geographic region in the country's northeast. As of 2013, it has a population of 107,715 ...

and

Zvornik Zvornik ( sr-cyrl, Зворник, ) is a city in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 2013, it had a population of 58,856 inhabitants. Zvornik is located on the Drina River, on the eastern slopes of Majevica mountain, at the altitude of ...

) and southwestern

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. In 1719 locals built a wooden church of All saint Arhistratiz's, which on 18 June 1752 was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

episkopos A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

Partenije. In that period under the parish belonged also Orthodox families from neighboring village Jankovci until in

new village New villages (; ), also known as Chinese new villages (, ), were Internment, internment camps created during the waning days of British Empire, British British Malaya, rule in Malaysia. They were originally created as part of the Briggs Plan, fi ...

wasn't built Orthodox church.

Administrative changes up the collapse of Austro-Hungary

In 1701 village administratively became part of

Military Frontier The Military Frontier (; sh-Cyrl-Latn, Војна крајина, Vojna krajina, sh-Cyrl-Latn, Војна граница, Vojna granica, label=none; ; ) was a borderland of the Habsburg monarchy and later the Austrian and Austro-Hungari ...

. In 1716 village become part of Vukovar Seigniory in

Kingdom of Slavonia The Kingdom of Slavonia (, , , , sr-Cyrl, Краљевина Славонија) was a kingdom of the Habsburg monarchy and the Austrian Empire that existed from 1699 to 1868. The kingdom included northern parts of present-day regions of Sla ...

. In 1745 during the final delimitation between Vukovar Seigniory and Military Frontier village again become part of Military Frontier. In 1848 and 1849 village was part of short-lived self-proclaimed Serbian autonomous region

Serbian Vojvodina The Serbian Vojvodina () was a short-lived self-proclaimed autonomous province within the Austrian Empire during the Revolutions of 1848, which existed until 1849 when it was transformed into the new (official) Austrian province named Voivodes ...

. Village stay part of Military Frontier until 1881 and unification of Croatian and

Slavonian Military Frontier The Slavonian Military Frontier ( or ; ; ; ) was a district of the Military Frontier, a territory in the Habsburg monarchy, first during the period of the Austrian Empire and then during the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. It was formed out of te ...

into

Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (; or ; ) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was created in 1868 by merging the kingdoms of Kingdom of Croatia (Habs ...

. When in 1873 Military Frontier was demilitarized village become part of Mirkovci municipality and then village name got geographical prefix ''Srijemske'' so that it can be distinguished from other four villages in

with that name.

Kingdom of Yugoslavia

At the end of 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 ...

Srijemske Laze become part of short-lived unrecognized

State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs The State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs ( / ; ) was a political entity that was constituted in October 1918, at the end of World War I, by Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (Prečani (Serbs), Prečani) residing in what were the southernmost parts of th ...

that joined the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

to form 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 ...

that will later change its name into Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In that period wider region was shortly part of

Drina Banovina The Drina Banovina or Drina Banate ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Drinska banovina, Дринска бановина) was a province ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1941. Its capital was Sarajevo and it included portions of present-da ...

with capital in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

, but than become part of

Sava Banovina The Sava Banovina or Sava Banate ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Savska Banovina, Савска бановина), was a province ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1939. It was named after the Sava River and consisted of much of the present- ...

that letter become part of autonomous

Banovina of Croatia The Banovina of Croatia or Banate of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=, Banovina Hrvatska, Бановина Хрватска) was an administrative subdivision ( banovina) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1939 and 1941. It was formed by a m ...

. Narrower region was part of the

Syrmia County Syrmia County (, , , ) was a historic administrative subdivision ('' županija'') of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia. Croatia-Slavonia was an autonomous kingdom within the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen ( Transleithania), the Hungarian par ...

till 1924 and then

Syrmia Oblast Syrmia Oblast ( or ; ) was one of the oblasts of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 1922 to 1929. Its administrative center was Vukovar. History The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed in 1918 and was initially d ...

World War II

During

village was part of

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

puppet A puppet is an object, often resembling a human, animal or Legendary creature, mythical figure, that is animated or manipulated by a person called a puppeteer. Puppetry is an ancient form of theatre which dates back to the 5th century BC in anci ...

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

and Vuka county within it. In 1941 in village lived about 900 inhabitants, out of which during the World War II 300 took part in

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

and 150 were killed. During the war village was permanent safe place for partisans that because of that call it ''Little Moscow''.Milutin Bekić, ''Održavanje, uređivanje i korištenje spomenika revolucije u nastavnoj praksi male područne škole''. U zborniku: skupina autora, ''Mala područna škola'', Školske novine i Zavod za prosvjetno-pedagošku službu SRH, Zagreb, 1981., str 45. – 48. At that time in village was created two days of remembrance and celebration of that period. These were ''Socialist Slava'' (22 August) and ''Day of the Dead'' (14 October). Socialist Slava was created in memory of year 1943, when about 120 people went to partisans, and Day of the Dead commemorate the 56 villagers killed on 14 October 1944 when

Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionar ...

launched a punitive expedition aimed at the destruction of partisan nests.

Era of socialist Yugoslavia

War in Croatia and peaceful reintegration

During the

war in Croatia The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

Srijemske Laze was within self-proclaimed Serb political entity

SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia The Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srpska autonomna oblast Istočna Slavonija, Baranja i Zapadni Srem, Српска аутономна област Источна Славонија, ...

. In the final stages of conflict United Nations Mission conducted peaceful reintegration of this region into Croatian jurisdiction. Population in Srijemske Laze decreased from 1991 till 2001 for 29.4%.

Demographics

The village is faced with the challenge of

population decline Population decline, also known as depopulation, is a reduction in a human population size. Throughout history, Earth's total world population, human population has estimates of historical world population, continued to grow but projections sugg ...

. The process was initiated by

industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...

and

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

already in the period of the existence of the

SFR 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 ...

and intensified by the post-

socioeconomic situation. Population decline further intensified in the aftermath of the

2013 enlargement of the European Union The most recent enlargement of the European Union saw Croatia become the European Union's 28th member state on 1 July 2013. The country applied for EU membership in 2003, and the Euro ...

with emigration to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Scandinavia Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...

and other parts of the EU.

Politics

In Srijemske Laze there are local committees of

Independent Democratic Serb Party The Independent Democratic Serb Party ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Самостална демократска српска странка, Samostalna demokratska srpska stranka, SDSS) is a social-democratic political party in Croatia representing the interes ...

and New Serbian Party.

Culture

Every year on the Orthodox

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...

(January 6), residents in the churchyard have a bonfire for "

Badnjak Badnjak may refer to: *Badnjak (Serbian), a Christmas tradition in Serbia *Badnjak (Croatian) Badnjak (), refers to a log brought into the house and placed on the fire on the evening of Christmas Eve, a central tradition in Croatian Christmas cel ...

", the Serbian word for Christmas Eve. In this occasion locals take oak trees from the area and make a ritual fire.

Education

Branch school of Elementary school Stari Jankovci is located in Srijemske Laze. Education at local school is carried out in

.Popis osnovnih i srednjih škola s nastavom na jeziku i pismu nacionalnih manjina po modelu A, školska godina 2011./2012., Ministarstvo znanosti obrazovanja i sporta

Gallery

Image:Srijemske laze.jpg Image:Srijemske Laze 1-Сријемске Лазе 1.JPG Image:Srijemske Laze 2-Сријемске Лазе 2.JPG Image:Српска православна црква у Сремским Лазама-Serbian Orthodox Church Srijemske Laze.jpg,

Church of the Nativity of the Virgin, Srijemske Laze Church of the Nativity of the Theotokos in Srijemske Laze is a Serbian Orthodox church in Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. Church is dedicated to Nativity of the Theotokos and was built in 1793. The building is listed in Register of Cult ...

Image:Sremske Laze Train Station (Srijemske Laze, Stari Jankovci, HR).jpg, Sremske Laze railway station

References

External links

Aerial view of the village on the Stari Jankovci Municipality You-Tube Page
{{Villages of Vukovar-Syrmia County Populated places in Vukovar-Srijem County Populated places in Syrmia Serb communities in Croatia