Gradnulica (Serbian Cyrillic: Граднулица) was a former village near
Veliki Bečkerek
Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia ...
(Zrenjanin) until the 18th century. Today, it is one of the biggest city quarters of
Zrenjanin
Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous pro ...
,
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 ...
.
History
Gradnulica was formed in Medieval period on the banks of the
Begej
The Bega or Begej ( ro, Bega; sr, / ; german: Bega; hu, Béga, formerly ''Kistemes''), is a 244 km (152 mile) long river in Romania (169 km; 105 mi.) and Serbia (75 km; 47 mi.). It rises in the Poiana Ruscă Mountai ...
river. Most of the population was Serbian. There is a story about monastery which was on the spot of today's ''Vavedenska'' Orthodox church.
Name of the monastery was ''Drenovac'' (Serbian Cyrillic: Дреновац) and it was surrounded by a deep forest. One of the most famous monks was
Rafailo of Banat (''Рафаило Банатски'' or ''Rafailo Banatski''), a missionary from
Chilandar
The Hilandar Monastery ( sr-cyr, Манастир Хиландар, Manastir Hilandar, , el, Μονή Χιλανδαρίου) is one of the twenty Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Mount Athos in Greece and the only Serbian monastery there. It wa ...
monastery, in
Holy Mountain. His grave is in the chapel nearby Orthodox church, and it is a place of pilgrimage for many Orthodox believers. This place, where is ''Vavedenska'' church, was and still is a historical center of Gradnulica.
Name
There are many theories about the name. Historians believe that a word ''Gradnulica'' comes from two words; first is ''gradna'' from ''gradina'' which means "cliff" and second word is ''ulica'' which is Serbian word for "street". That implicates that ''Gradnulica'' could mean ''street on the cliff'' because Gradnulica used to be on peninsula, surrounded by the
Begej
The Bega or Begej ( ro, Bega; sr, / ; german: Bega; hu, Béga, formerly ''Kistemes''), is a 244 km (152 mile) long river in Romania (169 km; 105 mi.) and Serbia (75 km; 47 mi.). It rises in the Poiana Ruscă Mountai ...
river, until the beginning of the 18th century. Also, today's main street of Gradnulica, ''Cara Dušana'' or Цара Душана (
Tsar Dušan
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...
street) is located at the highest point of Gradnulica, in the middle of the former peninsula.
Churches
There are two churches in Gradnulica:
*''Vavedenska church'' or ''Hram vavedenja Presvete Bogorodice'' (Church of the Virgin Entrance to the Temple), Orthodox church, built in 1777.
*''Slovak evangelic church'', Protestant church, built in 1837.
Both churches are located in ''Cara Dušana street''.
See also
*
Zrenjanin
Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous pro ...
References
Zrenjanin
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