Administrative divisions of medieval Serbia refer to regional

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

s of

Medieval Serbia Serbia in the Middle Ages refers to the medieval period in the history of Serbia. The period begins in the 6th century with the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe, and lasts until the Ottoman conquest of Serbian lands in the second half ...

, from the 7th to the 15 the century.

Serbian Principality and
Principality of Duklja Duklja ( sh-Cyrl, Дукља; el, Διόκλεια, Diokleia; la, Dioclea) was a medieval South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana Riv ...

The

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

called the lands of the South Slavs "''

Sclaviniae The ' (in Latin) or ' (various forms in Greek, see below) were early Slavic tribes that raided, invaded and settled the Balkans in the Early Middle Ages and eventually became the progenitors of modern South Slavs. They were mentioned by early By ...

s''" (from the

Sclaveni The ' (in Latin) or ' (various forms in Greek, see below) were early Slavic tribes that raided, invaded and settled the Balkans in the Early Middle Ages and eventually became the progenitors of modern South Slavs. They were mentioned by early Byz ...

, the Southwestern branch), and they were initially outside Imperial control. By the second half of the 7th century, most of the Slavs in proximity to Byzantium had recognized the Emperor's supreme rule. The prince (''archon'') that led the

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

to the Balkans and received the protection of Heraclius (r. 610–641), known conventionally as the ''

Unknown Archont The term Unnamed Prince of Serbia ( sr, неименовани српски архонт / ''neimenovani srpski arhont''), or the Unknown Prince ( sr, непознати кнез / ''nepoznati knez''), refers to the Serbian prince from the first ha ...

'', was an ancestor of the

Vlastimirović dynasty The Vlastimirović ( sr-Cyrl, Властимировић, Vlastimirovići / Властимировићи) was the first Serbian royal dynasty, named after Prince Vlastimir (ruled c. 831–851), who was recognized by the Byzantine Empire. The ...

. The Serbs at that time were organized into '' župe'', a confederation of village communities (roughly the equivalent of a county), headed by a local ''župan'' (a magistrate or governor). According to Fine, the governorship was hereditary, and the ''župan'' reported to the Serbian prince, whom they were obliged to aid in war. Emperor Constantine VII ''Porphyrogenitus'' (r. 913–959) mentions that the Serbian throne is inherited by ''the son'', i.e. the first-born, though in one occasion there is a

triumvirate A triumvirate ( la, triumvirātus) or a triarchy is a political institution ruled or dominated by three individuals, known as triumvirs ( la, triumviri). The arrangement can be formal or informal. Though the three leaders in a triumvirate are ...

in his enumeration of monarchs.

Višeslav Višeslav ( sr-Cyrl, Вишеслав) is a Serbo-Croatian masculine given name, a Slavic dithematic name (of two lexemes), derived from the Slavic words ''više'' ("higher") and ''-slav'' ("glory, fame"), roughly meaning "higher glory". It may re ...

, the first Serbian monarch known by name, was a contemporary with

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...

(fl. 768–814). He directly held the hereditary lands of Neretva, Tara,

Piva Piva may refer to: * Piva (river), a river in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina * Piva, Montenegro, a region in Montenegro and tribe * Piva River, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea * Piva Trail, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea ** Battle for Piv ...

and Lim.

Radoslav Radoslav () is a common Slavic masculine given name, derived from ''rad-'' ("happy, eager, to care") and ''slava'' ("glory, fame"), both very common in Slavic dithematic names. It roughly means "eager glory". It is known since the Middle Ages. Th ...

, then Prosigoj, succeeded Višeslav, and they ruled during the revolt of

Ljudevit Posavski Ljudevit () or Liudewit ( la, Liudewitus), often also , was the Duke of the Slavs in Lower Pannonia from 810 to 823. The capital of his realm was in Sisak (today in Croatia). As the ruler of the Pannonian Slavs, he led a resistance to Frankish do ...

against the Franks (819–822). According to the

Royal Frankish Annals The ''Royal Frankish Annals'' (Latin: ''Annales regni Francorum''), also called the ''Annales Laurissenses maiores'' ('Greater Lorsch Annals'), are a series of annals composed in Latin in the Carolingian Francia, recording year-by-year the state ...

, written in 822, Ljudevit went from his seat at Sisak to the Serbs somewhere in western Balkans, "who are said to hold a great/large part of Dalmatia" (''ad Sorabos, quae natio magnam Dalmatiae partem obtinere dicitur''). The Serbs established several future principalities by the 10th century: ''Serbia'' (roughly the later province of '' Rascia'', including Bosnia; part of ''Zagorje'' - "hinterlands"); and

Pagania The Narentines were a South Slavic tribe that occupied an area of southern Dalmatia centered at the river Neretva (), active in the 9th and 10th centuries, noted as pirates on the Adriatic. Named ''Narentani'' in Venetian sources, Greek source ...

Zachlumia Zachlumia or Zachumlia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Zahumlje, Захумље, ), also Hum, was a medieval principality located in the modern-day regions of Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia (today parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia ...

Travunia Travunia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Travunija, Травунија; el, Τερβουνία, Tervounía; grc, Τερβουνία, Terbounía; la, Tribunia) was a South Slavic medieval principality that was part of Medieval Serbia (850–1 ...

(including Kanalitai) and Dioclea (part of ''

Pomorje Pomorje ( sr-Cyrl, Поморје), also known (in plural) as the Lands of Pomorje ( sr, / ), is a medieval term, used to designate several maritime regions of Upper Dalmatia and its hinterland, that at the end of the 12th century, during the r ...

'' - "maritime").

Serbian Grand Principality Grand Principality of Serbia ( sr, Великожупанска Србија, Velikožupanska Srbija), or Rascia ( sr, Рашка, Raška), was a medieval Serbian state that existed from the second half of the 11th century up until 1217, when it ...

*Luška *Budva *Onogošt *Oblik *Ribnica *Ston * Popovo *Dubrava *

Luka Luka may refer to: People * Luka (given name), a South Slavic masculine given name cognate of Luke, and a Japanese given name * Luka (singer), stage name of Brazilian singer and songwriter Luciana Karina Santos de Lima (born 1979) * Luka Keʻelik ...

Dabar The word ''dabar'' ( he, דָּבָר) means "word", "talk" or "thing" in Hebrew. ''Dabar'' occurs in various contexts in the Hebrew Bible. The Septuagint, the oldest translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, uses the terms ''rhema'' and ''l ...

*Žapska *Gorička *Večenik *Trebinje *Urmo *Konavlje *Risan *Rudina *

Ras Ras or RAS may refer to: Arts and media * RAS Records Real Authentic Sound, a reggae record label * Rundfunk Anstalt Südtirol, a south Tyrolese public broadcasting service * Rás 1, an Icelandic radio station * Rás 2, an Icelandic radio stati ...

*Drina *Patkovo *

Hvosno Hvosno ( sr-Cyrl, Хвосно, "thick wood") was a medieval Serbian county ( sr, / ) located in the northern part of the Metohija region, in what is today Kosovo. It roughly encompassed the areas of the modern Istog and Peja municipalities. ...

*Podrimlje *Toplica *Ibar *Rasina *West Morava *Dubočica *Kostrc *Draškovina *Sitnica *Lab *Lipljan *Glbočica *Reke *Uska *Pomoravlje *Zagrlata *Levče *Belica *Lim *Kujavča *Zatrnava *Raban *Pilot

Serbian Empire The Serbian Empire ( sr, / , ) was a medieval Serbian state that emerged from the Kingdom of Serbia. It was established in 1346 by Dušan the Mighty, who significantly expanded the state. Under Dušan's rule, Serbia was the major power in the ...

Fall of the Serbian Empire

References

Sources

;Primary sources * * * * * * ;Secondary sources * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

* {{cite web, last=Janković, first=Đorđe, title=Serbian Maritime from 7th to 10th Century: Summary of the Monograph, year=2007, url=http://www.rastko.rs/arheologija/djankovic/djankovic-pomorje-info_en.html