Prvić (pronounced , or Parvić in the

Chakavian dialect Chakavian or Čakavian (, , , sh-Latn, čakavski proper name: or own name: ''čokovski, čakavski, čekavski'') is a South Slavic regiolect or language spoken primarily by Croats along the Adriatic coast, in the historical regions of Dalmat ...

; ''Pervicchio'' in

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

) is an uninhabited

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

in the

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n part of the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

, located in the

Kvarner Gulf The Kvarner Gulf (, or , la, Sinus Flanaticus or ), sometimes also Kvarner Bay, is a bay in the northern Adriatic Sea, located between the Istrian peninsula and the northern Croatian Littoral mainland. The bay is a part of Croatia's internal wat ...

. It is the largest of the so-called Senj Islands, a group of small islands and islets located off the coast of the mainland city of

Senj Senj (; it, Segna, la, Senia, Hungarian language, Hungarian and german: Zengg) is a town on the upper Adriatic coast in Croatia, in the foothills of the Mala Kapela and Velebit mountains. The symbol of the town is the Nehaj Fortress ( hr, Tvr ...

, lying between the larger islands of

Krk Krk (; it, Veglia; ruo, Krk; dlm, label= Vegliot Dalmatian, Vikla; la, Curicta; grc-gre, Κύρικον, Kyrikon) is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of Primorje-Gorski Kota ...

and

Rab Rab �âːb( dlm, Arba, la, Arba, it, Arbe, german: Arbey) is an island in the northern Dalmatia region in Croatia, located just off the northern Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea. The island is long, has an area of and 9,328 inhabitants (2 ...

. Other significant islands in the Senj group are

Sveti Grgur Sveti Grgur (, it, San Gregorio; lit. ''Saint Gregory'') is an uninhabited island in Croatia, on the Adriatic Sea between Rab and Krk. The island was the site of a women's prison in SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, co ...

and Goli Otok, along with a number of islets and rocks, which are all uninhabited. Prvić has an area is , which makes it the largest uninhabited Croatian island and 30th largest overall.

Geography

Prvić is located southeast of Krk, separated from it by an 800 m wide Senj Passage (''Senjska vrata'') and it is geomorphologically considered part of the same

landform A landform is a natural or anthropogenic land feature on the solid surface of the Earth or other planetary body. Landforms together make up a given terrain, and their arrangement in the landscape is known as topography. Landforms include hills, ...

as the Obzova hill, Krk's highest peak (578 meters above sea level), which forms the southwestern part of the Baška cove with the coastal town of Baška. Prvić's southernmost cape Šilo is away from the mainland

as the crow flies __NOTOC__ The expression ''as the crow flies'' is an idiom for the most direct path between two points, rather similar to "in a beeline". This meaning is attested from the early 19th century, and appeared in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel '' Oliv ...

and it is the point closest to mainland. Harbours nearest to Prvić are Sveti Juraj, a hamlet near Senj at the foot of the

Velebit Velebit (; it, Alpi Bebie) is the largest, though not the highest, mountain range in Croatia. The range forms a part of the Dinaric Alps and is located along the Adriatic coast, separating it from Lika in the interior. Velebit begins in the nor ...

, and Baška on the island of Krk. The island itself is shaped like a steep cliff stretching northwest-southeast and is long. Its westernmost point is called Debeli Art and its northernmost point is cape Brezonjin, where the automatic Stražica Lighthouse is located. Three km () southwest of Prvić is the island of

(or ''Saint Gregory'', also known as ''Šagargur'', its name in the Chakavian dialect), separated from Prvić by the ''Grgurov kanal'' (Eng: Gregory's Channel). In addition, three kilometres to the south of Prvić's southernmost point, cape Šilo, is Goli otok (lit. ''Barren Island''). Like Prvić, both ''Sveti Grgur'' and ''Goli otok'' are today uninhabited. Prvić's highest peak is Šipovac (357 meters above sea level). Although most of the island is inaccessible as its coastal areas are made up of steep barren cliffs 250–300 m high, the western slope where the lighthouse is located has several

gullies A gully is a landform created by running water, mass movement, or commonly a combination of both eroding sharply into soil or other relatively erodible material, typically on a hillside or in river floodplains or terraces. Gullies resemble lar ...

through which the island's plateau can be reached. The western side also has several coves which are suitable for swimmers, and near the beach called Njivice on the southwestern part of the island the remains of a medieval settlement owned by the

House of Frankopan The House of Frankopan ( hr, Frankopani, Frankapani, it, Frangipani, hu, Frangepán, la, Frangepanus, Francopanus), was a Croatian noble family, whose members were among the great landowner magnates and high officers of the Kingdom of Croati ...

were found. The sea around the island is on average 70–90 meters deep, with the deepest point being at cape Šilo, where a depth of 107 meters has been recorded.

Climate and natural history

The island is also notable for the bora wind (locally known as ''bura'') which blows in gusts on average 203 days per year, and even reaches force of 11-12 on the

Beaufort scale The Beaufort scale is an empirical measure that relates wind speed to observed conditions at sea or on land. Its full name is the Beaufort wind force scale. History The scale was devised in 1805 by the Irish hydrographer Francis Beaufort ...

(indicating a violent storm or hurricane-force winds) 73 days per year, according to weather records which used to be kept by the lighthouse crew. Because of this, Prvić is considered the windiest Croatian island. Although the island is uninhabited, it is frequently used by shepherds for pasture and by local

beekeeper A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees. Beekeepers are also called honey farmers, apiarists, or less commonly, apiculturists (both from the Latin '' apis'', bee; cf. apiary). The term beekeeper refers to a person who keeps honey bees i ...

s who keep apiaries on the island. Prvić and parts of the nearby island of Krk are areas with the highest concentration of

Common sage ''Salvia officinalis'', the common sage or just sage, is a perennial, evergreen subshrub, with woody stems, grayish leaves, and blue to purplish flowers. It is a member of the mint family Lamiaceae and native to the Mediterranean region, thoug ...

(''kadulja'') shrubs in the entire Croatian Adriatic, and honey produced by bees feeding on the plant's nectar is prized for its quality.

Griffon vulture The Eurasian griffon vulture (''Gyps fulvus'') is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. It may also be known as the Griffon vulture, though it may be used for the genus as a whole. It is not to be confused with Rü ...

s, a protected bird species, are known to breed at Prvić, and their colony on the island is second in size only to their main breeding ground on the island of

Cres Cres (; dlm, Crepsa, vec, Cherso, it, Cherso, la, Crepsa, Greek language, Greek: Χέρσος, ''Chersos'') is an Adriatic island in Croatia. It is one of the northern islands in the Kvarner Gulf and can be reached via ferry from Rijeka, ...

, to the south of Prvić. The island marks the northern boundary of their coastal habitat. In addition, there are 17 species of

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

plants which grow on the island. Because of this the island of Prvić is legally protected as a botanical and bird reserve.

References

External links

Article about Stražica lighthouse
originally published in '' Novi list''
Stražica lighthouse
at Plovput.hr
Stamp depicting the Stražica lighthouse
issued by the

Croatian Post Croatian may refer to: *Croatia *Croatian language *Croatian people *Croatians (demonym) See also * * * Croatan (disambiguation) * Croatia (disambiguation) * Croatoan (disambiguation) * Hrvatski (disambiguation) * Hrvatsko (disambiguation) * Se ...

in September 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Prvic (Krk) Krk Islands of Croatia Islands of the Adriatic Sea Uninhabited islands of Croatia Landforms of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County