Novigrad (; ) is a town in

Istria County Istria County (; ; , "Istrian Region") is the westernmost Counties of Croatia, county of Croatia which includes the majority of the Istrian peninsula. Administrative centers in the county are Pazin, Pula and Poreč. Istria County has the larg ...

in western

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

. It is also sometimes referred to as Novigrad Istarski (; ) to distinguish it from three other Croatian towns of the same name. Novigrad is set on a small peninsula on the western coast of

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

, north of the mouth of the river

Mirna Micro ribonucleic acid (microRNA, miRNA, μRNA) are small, single-stranded, non-coding RNA molecules containing 21–23 nucleotides. Found in plants, animals, and even some viruses, miRNAs are involved in RNA silencing and post-transcri ...

and some south of the border with

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

History

There was an ancient city in the broad area of what is now Novigrad, which was called Aemona. In the 5th and 6th centuries, Novigrad was called ''Neapolis'' (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

Νεάπολις). From the early

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

and right up until 1828 it was the seat of the Diocese of Novigrad, which has been identified with the Ancient see of Aemona and nominally restored as Latin Catholic

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

under both names. From 1270 it was under the rule of the

Venetian Republic The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

, which gave it the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

name of ''Cittanova'', until Venice

fell A fell (from Old Norse ''fell'', ''fjall'', "mountain"Falk and Torp (2006:161).) is a high and barren landscape feature, such as a mountain or Moorland, moor-covered hill. The term is most often employed in Fennoscandia, Iceland, the Isle of M ...

in the late 18th century. According to the 1921 census, there were no

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

in Novigrad.

Novigrad today

Situated on a peninsula, Novigrad has retained its medieval structure and layout, with narrow, winding streets and small shops. The fortifications belong to the medieval era: the town wall still stands with its battlements and two round towers. There are examples of secular architecture from the time of the Venetian empire, such as the town loggia and several houses built in Venetian Gothic style. The present church was built in the 15th and 16th centuries on the foundations of the 8th-century

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

of Saint Pelagius that had a nave and two aisles. Under the present presbytery is a pre-romanesque crypt. In the sacristy are 15th-century antiphonaries with beautiful simple initials. Novigrad was the host of the 2016 nine-pin bowling Single's World Championships.

Demographics

According to the 2021 census, its population was 3,889, with 2,292 living in the village proper. At the 2011 census the town proper had a population of 2,622, while the administrative area – which also includes four nearby villages – had 4,345 inhabitants. 66% of population were ethnic

while the biggest minority group were Istrian Italians (10%). According to the 2011 census, Novigrad had 2,622 residents, with a total municipal population of 4,345. Ethnic Croats comprised 66.42% of the total population, followed by

Italians Italians (, ) are a European peoples, European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common Italian culture, culture, History of Italy, history, Cultural heritage, ancestry and Italian language, language. ...

(10.20%),

Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...

(3.36%),

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

(2.83%) and

Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( ), are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, Slovenian culture, culture, and History of Slove ...

(2.09%), while 10.66% of the population was regionally affiliated. Italians in Novigrad are organised in an association with the objective of preserving and promoting the specificity of the Italian community. The Town of Novigrad consists of following settlements: * Antenal, population 152 * Bužinija (''Businia''), population 936 * Dajla (''Daila''), population 396 * Mareda, population 239 *Novigrad (''Cittanova''), population 2,662

Languages

Although though the

Government of the Republic of Croatia The Government of Croatia (), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia (), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government (), is the main executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the Prime Minister of Croatia, president o ...

does not guarantee official Croatian-Italian bilinguialism, the statute of Novigrad itself guarantees it. Preserving traditional Italian place names and assigning street names to Italian historical figures is legally mandated and carried out.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Cities and towns in Croatia Populated coastal places in Croatia Populated places in Istria County Populated places in Croatia where Italian is an official language