Azanja (
Serbian Cyrillic
The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...
: Азања) is a village in
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, in the
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Smederevska Palanka
Smederevska Palanka ( sr-cyr, Смедеревска Паланка, ) is a town and municipality located in the Podunavlje District and the geographical region of Šumadija. According to the 2011 census, the town has 23,601, while the municipality ...
. It lies in the region of
Great Morava
The Great Morava ( sr, Велика Морава, Velika Morava, ) is the final section of the Morava ( sr-Cyrl, Морава), a major river system in Serbia.
Etymology
According to Predrag Komatina from the Institute for Byzantine Studies ...
valley, on rivers of
Jezava
The Jezava ( sr-Cyrl, Језава) is a river in central Serbia. Formerly a distributary of the Great Morava that flowed into the Danube in Smederevo at the Smederevo Fortress, its upper course was separated from the Great Morava by a dam after ...
and
Jasenica. Azanja is 160 meters above mean sea level. With 4,014 residents, it is one of largest villages in Central Serbia.
History
The name Azanja origin from the Thracian (Thraco-Cimmerian and Phrygian) name "Azan". Azan first time appears in the Greek myth of Arcas and Ereto, as the name for one of their sons. The Turkish city of Çavdarhisar in ancient Phrygia, through history, had the almost identical name - "Aizanoi". From 1850 to 1950 it was known as the biggest village in Serbia and later as the biggest village of ex Yugoslavia. In 1950, when Azanja reached population of 12,500 it was split into three parts,
Vlaški Do,
Grčac and Azanja. Because of the large population, in 1922 it received the status of a town (''varošica'').
Culture and education
Its culture happenings are mostly during the religious holidays. Village fair on Trnova Petka (8 August) has been held every year since the construction of the church in 1885. Since 1997, an ethno-culture manifestation "The days of Azanja bakings" is held during the fair, in 2006 the night of poetry and picture exhibitions. were added to the fair. There was also a "Gipsy's night" in Azanja in 2007.
There is one elementary school in Azanja, called "Radomir Lazić", Amateur Theatre Azanja and KUD Azanja (KUD - culture and arts society). At the end of 2005, a library was opened. Azanja has one football team, ''Šumadija''.
Serbian Orthodox Church of
Saints Cosmas and Damian
Cosmas and Damian ( ar, قُزما ودميان, translit=Qozma wa Demyaan; grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός, translit=Kosmás kai Damianós; la, Cosmas et Damianus; AD) were two Arab physicians in the town Cyrrhus, and were r ...
is located in the centre of the village.
Demography
According to the data from 2011, Azanja had a population of 4014 people. There are 3,370 adults (18+), and the average age in Azanja is 45.0 years (43.1 years for men and 46.9 of woman lifetime).
[ In 1784, according to Ottoman records, Azanja had 14 Christian households, in 1942 there were 1,308 households and in 2002 there was 1,408. One family averages 3.35 persons (2002).
]
References
{{Podunavlje District
Populated places in Podunavlje District