Sjenica, Zlatibor District, Šumadija and Western Serbia Region, Serbia

🇷🇸 Sjenica is a small town and municipality located in the south-western part of Serbia, on the vast Sjenica-Pešter plateau and geographically located in the central part of Sandžak.

In terms of area (1,059 km²), Sjenica is 11th largest municipality in Serbia. A multi-ethnic environment where Bosniaks, Serbs, Albanians, Montenegrins, Turks, Romani and others live in it.

According to the level of development of local self-government units for the year 2014, the municipality of Sjenica belongs to the fourth group consisting of 44 extremely underdeveloped local self-government units whose level of development is below 60% of the national average.

History The Sjenica area was inhabited since prehistoric times. The remains of a prehistoric fortification were found on the edge of the Sjenica field, on the Zarudina hill, near Sjenica, and in several locations near Sjenica, necropolises were discovered and objects from the prehistoric period were found. In this, as well as in a wider area, lived the Dardanians, who were later driven to the south by the Illyrian tribe, Autariat.

Sjenica was first mentioned in 1253 as a place on the road to Dubrovnik, where merchants from Dubrovnik stopped and paid customs.

History: 15th century In the first decades under the Ottomans (15th century), Sjenica was a vilayet and nahija of the same name as part of the Sandžak Bosna, that is, one of the hass of the Skopje-Bosnian sandžak-bey and Krajišnik Isa-bey Ishaković, son of Ishak Bey. Ottoman defteri (census books) from that period (from 1455) say that part of the Sjenica area was part of the then Branković District.

During the reign of the Ottoman Empire, Sjenica was used as a fortified site. On a nearby hill the Ottomans built a fortress, which was later demolished. Next to the fortress was a merchants' quarter and few wooden residential homes.

18th, 19th and 20th centuries From 1790 to 1817, Sjenica was one of the 5 districts of the newly formed Novopazarski Sandžak: Novi Pazar, Stari Vlah (Nova Varoš), Sjenica, Mitrovica and Trgovište. In 1835, Sjenica was mentioned as the centre of the Novopazarski Sandžak.

Due to its strategic, military and political importance, during the 19th century Sjenica was considered an important destination, so military and other operations were directed towards it, in which a large number of the local population died on several occasions.

After the First Balkan War, the Sjenica region became part of the Kingdom of Serbia. Sjenica became the centre of the county of the same name, which had 26,381 inhabitants and included 12 municipalities, 80 villages, 44 hamlets and one borough (Sjenica). In 1917 when the area was under Austrian control a conference was held, in which the representatives drafted and signed a resolution for the union of the area with Bosnia or the establishment of an autonomous region.

From 1929 to 1941, Sjenica was part of the Zeta Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. During World War II the SS Polizei-Selbstschutz-Regiment Sandschak under Karl von Krempler was stationed here consisted of local Muslim population, during a period when many Serbs lost their lives. In 1943 Sjenica was the battleground of intense fighting between Partisans and the German army.

Geography Sjenica is located at an altitude of 1,026 meters above sea level, making it one of the highest towns in Serbia and the Balkans. Temperatures fall below freezing on average 134 days per year, with the first freeze in late September and the last in early May.

According to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification, it has a humid continental climate (Dfb) with freezing and not so humid winters, and with warm and humid summers, but with cold nights. The town itself extends on the right side of the Uvac river and is located along the Grabovica river, in the spacious Sjenica basin, at an altitude of 1,000-1,030 m above sea level.

In terms of area (1,059 km²), Sjenica is one of the largest municipalities in Serbia. The Sjenički region is located in the mountainous surroundings of Golija (1,833 m), Jadovnik (1,733 m), Ozren (1,693 m), Zlatar (1,625 m), Giljeva (1,617 m), Žilindar (1,616 m), Javor (1,519 m), Ninaja (1,362 m), Jaruta (1,428 m) and other mountain ranges, on the one hand, and the spacious valleys of Sjenica, Pešter (Ugljan), Koštan and other fields.

It borders the municipalities of Bijelo Polje (Montenegro), Prijepolje, Tutin, Novi Pazar, Ivanjica and Nova Varoš. The area of the Sjenica-Pešter Plateau abounds in extremely large natural potentials, suitable especially for the development of agriculture and animal husbandry, as well as significant mineral wealth (large deposits of brown - lignite coal).

Exceptional natural amenities and a developed tradition of winter sports make the area of the municipality of Sjenica one of the greatest potentials for the development of winter sports, as well as summer recreational and excursion tourism, in the territory of the Republic of Serbia and beyond. In this sense, Sjenica has a large number of ski slopes, as well as the National Biathlon Center Žari.

Of the other potentials, the Uvac, Gutavica and Paljevine nature reserves, Sjenica lake, the large Peštersko polje, the Uša cave system, Tubića cave, Baždarska cave, meanders of the Vapa river, as well as numerous archaeological sites and localities stand out.

Settlements Aside from the town of Sjenica, the municipality includes the following settlements: • Aliveroviće • Bagačiće • Bare • Bačija • Bioc • Blato • Boguti • Božov Potok • Boljare • Borišiće • Boroviće • Breza • Brnjica • Buđevo • Vapa • Veskoviće • Visočka • Višnjeva • Višnjice • Vrapci • Vrbnica • Vrsjenice • Goluban • Gornje Lopiže • Goševo • Grabovica • Gradac • Grgaje • Doliće • Donje Goračiće • Donje Lopiže • Dragojloviće • Draževiće • Družiniće • Dubnica • Duga Poljana • Dujke • Dunišiće • Žabren • Žitniće • Zabrđe • Zaječiće • Zahumsko • Jevik • Jezero • Kalipolje • Kamešnica • Kanjevina • Karajukića Bunari • Kijevci • Kladnica • Kneževac • Koznik • Kokošiće • Krajinoviće • Krivaja • Krnja Jela • Krstac • Krće • Lijeva Reka • Ljutaje • Mašoviće • Medare • Međugor • Milići • Papiće • Petrovo Polje • Plana • Poda • Ponorac • Pralja • Raždaginja • Rasno • Raspoganče • Rastenoviće • Raškoviće • Skradnik • Strajiniće • Stup • Sugubine • Sušica • Trešnjevica • Trijebine • Tuzinje • Tutiće • Uvac • Ugao • Ursule • Ušak • Fijulj • Caričina • Cetanoviće • Crvsko • Crčevo • Čedovo • Čipalje • Čitluk • Šare • Štavalj • Šušure.