Albanian tribe The Albanian tribes ( sq, fiset shqiptare) form a historical mode of social organization (''farefisní'') in Albania and the southwestern Balkans characterized by a common culture, often common patrilineal kinship ties tracing back to one progeni ...

Tara river The Tara ( sr-cyrl, Тара) is a river in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It emerges from the confluence of the Opasnica and Veruša rivers in the Komovi Mountains, part of the Dinaric Alps of Montenegro. The total length is 146 ...

Mojkovac Mojkovac (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Мојковац, ) is a town in northern Montenegro. It has a population of 3,590 (2011 census). Mojkovac is the centre of Mojkovac Municipality, which has a population of 8,622.Serb ethnos. Some toponyms in

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

and surnames are derived from the name of this tribe.

Etymology

Vladimir Ćorović Vladimir Ćorović ( sr-cyrl, Владимир Ћоровић; 27 October 1885 – 12 April 1941) was a Serbian historian, university professor, author, and academic. His bibliography consists of more than 1000 works. Several of his books on the ...

(1885–1941) and

Tatomir Vukanović Tatomir P. Vukanović (1907–1997) was a Serbian ethnologist of the Balkans region of south-eastern Europe. Born in Vranje, Southern Serbia, he concentrated on the history, folklore and culture of the Serb and Roma (Gypsy) inhabitants of Yugoslav ...

(1907–1997) argued that the name derived from

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied t ...

''krisio'', or Illyrian ''krüsi'', which would according to the

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

term ''kryeziu'' mean "dark, dark-haired or swarthy people" ..Professor Momčilo Poleksić from

Pljevlja Pljevlja ( srp, Пљевља, ) is a town and the center of Pljevlja Municipality located in the northern part of Montenegro. The town lies at an altitude of . In the Middle Ages, Pljevlja had been a crossroad of the important commercial roads and ...

, hailing from Drobnjak, notes in an oral statement the name may have been a transformation from ''grčki'' ("Greek") to ''krički''. In Serbo-Croatian, ''kričiti'' and ''kriknuti'' means "shouting"; ''kričak'' means a "person who shouts".

History

They are considered to have been recent immigrants of

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

origin, with authors like Hrabak and Imami viewing them as having been part of the Albanian pastoral migrant groups, which included communities like the

Mataruge The Mataruge (alternatively, Mataruga or Motoruga) were a medieval Albanian tribe which originally lived in Old Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia. Their name is attested in historical record for the first time in 1222 in the Pelješac peninsula o ...

, Žurovići and Burmazi, that in the 12th and 13th centuries immigrated across the

Zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; grc, ζῆτα, el, ζήτα, label= Demotic Greek, classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived f ...

all the way to the

Neretva The Neretva ( sr-cyrl, Неретва, ), also known as Narenta, is one of the largest rivers of the eastern part of the Adriatic basin. Four HE power-plants with large dams (higher than 150,5 metres) provide flood protection, power and water s ...

. It is established that there were "Arbanassi (Albanian) groups" in the Tara region in 1278. During the 14th centuries, the Albanian ''katun'' (a medieval self-governing community) had been largely assimilated by numerous Vlach communities, who were themselves in a process of Slavcization. The name ''Kričan'' is mentioned as a region in the 1260 charter of

Stefan Uroš I Stefan Uroš I ( sr-cyr, Стефан Урош I; 1223 – May 1, 1277), known as Uroš the Great (Урош Велики) was the King of Serbia from 1243 to 1276, succeeding his brother Stefan Vladislav. He was one of the most important rulers ...

regarding the borders of the village of Prošćenje (near

Mojkovac Mojkovac (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Мојковац, ) is a town in northern Montenegro. It has a population of 3,590 (2011 census). Mojkovac is the centre of Mojkovac Municipality, which has a population of 8,622.Drobnjaci Drobnjaci (, ) are historical tribe and region, Drobnjak, in Old Herzegovina in Montenegro (municipalities from Nikšić to Šavnik, Žabljak and Pljevlja). Its unofficial centre is in Šavnik. The Serb Orthodox families have St. George (''Đu ...

tribe (including Kriči ''voivode'' Kalok) and were moved over Tara river. Then inhabited lands from Sutjeska to

Kolašin Kolašin (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Колашин, ) is a town in northern Montenegro. It has a population of 2,989 (2003 census). Kolašin is the centre of Kolašin Municipality (population 9,949) and an unofficial centre of Morača region, named af ...

. Their center was in

Pljevlja Pljevlja ( srp, Пљевља, ) is a town and the center of Pljevlja Municipality located in the northern part of Montenegro. The town lies at an altitude of . In the Middle Ages, Pljevlja had been a crossroad of the important commercial roads and ...

(with local toponym ''Kričak'' between it and

Bijelo Polje Bijelo Polje ( cnr, Бијело Поље, ) is a town in northeastern Montenegro on the Lim (river), Lim River. It has an urban population of 15,400 (2011 census). It is the administrative, economic, cultural and educational centre of northern M ...

). S. Tomić in his anthropological work ''Drobnjak'' (1902), mentioned the

Španje The Španji or Shpani () were a medieval Albanian clan or ''fis''. They inhabited the region of Nikšić and the valley of the river Zeta in modern-day Montenegro, while also being widespread around Shkodër and Pult. According to folk legends, th ...

and ''Kričove'' as the old population of

Drobnjak Drobnjak may refer to: * Drobnjak, Montenegro, a region in Montenegro and tribe or: * Anto Drobnjak, Montenegrin football player * Branislav Drobnjak, Montenegrin football player * Dragiša Drobnjak, Slovenian basketball player * Predrag Drobn ...

.

Kotor Kotor (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian: ), is a coastal town in Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has a population of 13,510 and is the administrative c ...

documents mention Lore Kričko (''Lore de Criçco'') in 1326, and Kriče Vitomirov (''Crice Vitomiri'') in 1327.

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik (), historically known as Ragusa (; see notes on naming), is a city on the Adriatic Sea in the region of Dalmatia, in the southeastern semi-exclave of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterran ...

archive mention Dobrija and Đurađ Nenadić from Krički (de Crizche) in 1453. In Ottoman

defter A ''defter'' (plural: ''defterler'') was a type of tax register and land cadastre in the Ottoman Empire. Description The information collected could vary, but ''tahrir defterleri'' typically included details of villages, dwellings, household ...

from 1477 was recorded ''

nahija A nāḥiyah ( ar, , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level division w ...

'' Kričak, with 5 '' džemat'' (''katuns''), one by ''knez'' Jarosav, another on name Nikola son of Kričko, as well ''nahija''

Mataruge The Mataruge (alternatively, Mataruga or Motoruga) were a medieval Albanian tribe which originally lived in Old Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia. Their name is attested in historical record for the first time in 1222 in the Pelješac peninsula o ...

with 3 ''katuns''. In 1492, in Poljica in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

was recorded David Kričković. In 1528, Nikola Grubanović Kričak from village Kruševica transcribed a Church book. In the memorial of

Hilandar 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 ...

from 16h or 17th century is mentioned Filip Kričak and several his Kričak relatives. In 1694 in Drniš is mentioned priest Radojica Kričak, while 1762 priest Maksim Kričković. Their tribal name remained in the anthroponomy (surname Kričković), and toponymy of lands where lived; Kričak and Kričačko polje in Sinjajevina, Kričina near Bribir, village Kričke near

Drniš Drniš is a town in Croatia, located in inland Dalmatia, about halfway between Šibenik and Knin. History The name Drniš was mentioned for the first time in a contract dated March 8, 1494. However, there are traces of older Middle Ages' fortr ...

, another two homonymous villages near

Pakrac Pakrac is a town in western Slavonia, Croatia, population 4,842, total municipality population 8,460 (census 2011). Pakrac is located on the road and railroad connecting the regions of Posavina and Podravina. Name In Croatian the town is known a ...

, and Kričići near

Jajce Jajce (Јајце) is a town and municipality located in the Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the 2013 census, the town has a population of 7,172 inhabitants, with ...

.

Legacy

Various folk traditions have been preserved and recorded on the Kriči and their history. As concluded in , folk tradition on the Kriči is very different, although it is clear by tradition and literature that the tribe lived as an independent unit, and once in time included a relatively large area. According to oral tradition, Kriči inhabited Jezera and Šaranci, and good part of

Sinjajevina Sinjajevina ( cnr, Сињајевина, ), also known as Sinjavina () is a mountain in northern Montenegro. The highest point of Sinjajevina is ''Jablanov vrh'', which is high. Features Sinjajevina Mountain stretches from SE to NW, between t ...

. According to Mula Joksimović of Bijelo Polje, as recorded by Petar Rudić, a folk tradition transmitted in the Joksimović brotherhood held that the Kriči descended from the Illyrians, "but today there are no more of their direct descendants". Another belief recorded by P. Rudić, likely influenced by literature, was that the Kriči may have been descendants of Saxons (''Sasi'') that worked in the mines of

Brskovo Brskovo ( cnr, Брсково) is a village in northern Montenegro, within the Municipality of Mojkovac which used to have silver mines and a mint. Brskovo encompasses the whole complex of smaller localities, today overgrown with dense wood and we ...

and around

Pljevlja Pljevlja ( srp, Пљевља, ) is a town and the center of Pljevlja Municipality located in the northern part of Montenegro. The town lies at an altitude of . In the Middle Ages, Pljevlja had been a crossroad of the important commercial roads and ...

. A. Luburić (1891–1944), describes a folk tradition of the Drobnjaci, in which they are recounted as being part of the

Mataruge The Mataruge (alternatively, Mataruga or Motoruga) were a medieval Albanian tribe which originally lived in Old Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia. Their name is attested in historical record for the first time in 1222 in the Pelješac peninsula o ...

tribe, who after the first onrush of Slavs in

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...

, and death of Mataruge king Sumor in the end of the 7th or beginning of the 8th century, retreated to the areas around the Tara. Here, the Serbs gave the tribe the name ''Kriči'', because their speech sounded like "shouting" (''kričanje''). The tribe accepted the name, and it spread in the middle Potarje. According to M. Peruničić and P. Čabarkapa (born ca. 1880) and confirmed by a similar tradition by B. Ćorović (born ca. 1894) and younger S. Bojović of Pljevlja, the Kriči were once a numerous tribe, living in the region of ''Kričak'' (southeast of

Kosanica The Kosanica () is a river in southern Serbia. It is a southern, right tributary of the Toplica near Kuršumlija Kuršumlija ( sr-Cyrl, Куршумлија, ) is a town and municipality located in the Toplica District of the Southern Serbia ...

, while the Mataruge had only comprised one of its many brotherhood This tradition is "supported" by the fact that the region of Mataruge is smaller and taken as a peripheral part of the larger, in widest sense, Kričak region. Conversely, folk tradition in Polimlje and Potarje hold the Mataruge as unrelated to the Kriči. The locals of the Kričak region call the village of Kričak, ''Krčak'', because it allegedly was the place of a "Greek warrior settlement".

Annotations

{{Cnote2, a, Sometimes referred to as Kričkovi,{{sfn, Vlahović, 1970, p=93 Kričovi,{{sfn, Vlahović, 1970, p=93 Kričkovići or Kričani. {{Cnote2 End

References

{{Reflist

Sources

{{refbegin * {{cite book , last=Kovijanić , first=Risto , title=Crnogorska plemena u kotorskim spomenicima (XIV–XVI vijek) , trans-title=Montenegrin tribes in Bay of Kotor records (XIV–XVI century) , year=1974 , publisher=Istorijski institut SR Crne Gore , location=Titograd * {{cite book, author=Etnološko društvo Jugoslavije, title=Revue d'etnologie, volume=14, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1bkWAQAAMAAJ, year=1977, publisher=Etnološko društvo Jugoslavije *{{cite book, last=Skok, first=Petar, title=Etimologijski rječnik hrvatskoga ili srpskoga jezika: K-poni, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VRALAQAAMAAJ, year=1972, publisher=Jugoslavenska akademija znanosti i umjetnosti, page=188, quote= {{refend

Etymology

History

Legacy

Annotations

See also

References

Sources

Further reading