Split-Dalmatia County ( hr, Splitsko-dalmatinska

županija ''Županija'' (singular; plural ''županije'') or ''Župnija'' (singular; plural ''župnije'') is a South Slavic administrative subdivision. For the etymology, see Župa. The term Županija is used in: * Croatia: counties of Croatia * Cantons o ...

) is a central-southern

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 ...

n county in

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 ...

. The administrative center is

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enterta ...

. The population of the county is 455,242 (2011). The land area is 14.106,40 km². Split-Dalmatia County is Croatia's most rapidly urbanising and developing region, as economic opportunities and living standards are among the highest alongside capital

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

and

Istria County Istria County (; hr, Istarska županija; it, Regione istriana, "Istrian Region") is the westernmost county of Croatia which includes the biggest part of the Istrian peninsula ( out of , or 89%). Administrative centers in the county are Pazi ...

. Physically, the county is divided into three main parts: an elevated hinterland (''

Dalmatinska zagora The Dalmatian Hinterland ( hr, Dalmatinska zagora; it, La Morlacca or ) is the southern inland hinterland in the historical Croatian region of Dalmatia. The name ''zagora'' means "beyond (the) hills", which is a reference to the fact that it is t ...

'') with numerous

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

fields; a narrow coastal strip with high population density; and the islands. Parts of the

Dinaric Alps The Dinaric Alps (), also Dinarides, are a mountain range in Southern and Southcentral Europe, separating the continental Balkan Peninsula from the Adriatic Sea. They stretch from Italy in the northwest through Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herz ...

, including

Dinara Dinara is a long mountain range in the Dinaric Alps, located on the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. It has four major mountains or peaks, from north-west to south-east: * Ilica or Ujilica (1654 m) * Sinjal or Dinara (1831 m), ...

itself, form the border with

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

while the Kozjak, Mosor and

Biokovo Biokovo () is the second-highest mountain range in Croatia, located along the Dalmatian coast of the Adriatic Sea, between the rivers of Cetina and Neretva. It is sometimes referred to as Bijakovo, especially among inhabitants of the easte ...

mountains separate the coastal strip from the hinterland. Important economic activities include agriculture, manufacturing and fishing, though the most important one is tourism. Split-Dalmatia County is Croatia's biggest county by area. The county is linked to the rest of Croatia by the newly built four-lane

Zadar Zadar ( , ; historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian: ); see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar serv ...

Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. According to the 2011 census, its population was 55,705. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located on the Zagreb- Rijeka highway and railway line, south-west of Zagre ...

highway and the Lika railway.

Split Airport Split Airport ( hr, Zračna luka Split; ), also known as Resnik Airport ( hr, Zračna luka Resnik), is the international airport serving the city of Split, Croatia. It is located from Split, on the west side of Kaštela Bay, in the town of Ka� ...

is the busiest airport in the region. In the hinterland, the larger towns are

Sinj Sinj (; it, Signo; german: Zein) is a town in the continental part of Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia. The town itself has a population of 11,478 and the population of the administrative municipality, which includes surrounding villages, is 24 ...

(pop. 11,500 town, 25,373 with villages), Imotski (4,350) and

Vrgorac Vrgorac (, it, Vergoraz) is a town in Croatia in the Split-Dalmatia County. Demographics The total population of Vrgorac is 6,572 (census 2011), in the following settlements: * Banja, Split-Dalmatia County, Banja, population 202 * Dragljane, ...

(2,200). Besides the largest city,

(189,000 city proper, 250,000 including

Kaštela Kaštela (;) is a town in Split-Dalmatia County. The town is an agglomeration of seven individual settlements which are administered as a single municipality with populations individually ranging from 3,000 to 7,000 residents. The town is loc ...

and

Solin Solin (Latin and it, Salona; grc, Σαλώνα ) is a town in Dalmatia, Croatia. It is situated right northeast of Split, on the Adriatic Sea and the river Jadro. Solin developed on the location of ancient city of ''Salona'', which was the ...

), the towns on the coast are

Trogir Trogir (; historically known as Traù (from Dalmatian language, Dalmatian, Venetian language, Venetian and Italian language, Italian: ); la, Tragurium; Greek language, Ancient Greek: Τραγύριον, ''Tragyrion'' or Τραγούριον, '' ...

(11,000), Omiš (6,500) and

Makarska Makarska (; it, Macarsca, ; german: Macharscha) is a town on the Adriatic coastline of Croatia, about southeast of Split (city), Split and northwest of Dubrovnik, in the Split-Dalmatia County. Makarska is a prominent regional tourist center, ...

(13,400). On the islands, the populations are smaller due to high levels of emigration, but are still mostly urban in character. The main townships are: Supetar (3,300) on the island of

Brač Brač is an island in the Adriatic Sea within Croatia, with an area of , making it the largest island in Dalmatia, and the third largest in the Adriatic. It is separated from the mainland by the Brač Channel, which is wide. The island's talle ...

;

Hvar Hvar (; Chakavian: ''Hvor'' or ''For'', el, Φάρος, Pharos, la, Pharia, it, Lesina) is a Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea, located off the Dalmatian coast, lying between the islands of Brač, Vis and Korčula. Approximately long, wi ...

town (3,700) and Stari Grad (1,900) on

; and Vis town (1,800) and

Komiža Komiža (; it, Comisa) is a Croatian coastal town lying on the western coast of the island of Vis in the central part of the Adriatic Sea. As of 2011 Komiža proper has a population of 1,397 while the entire municipality has 1,526 residents. K ...

(1,500) on Vis.

History

The name ''Dalmatia'' comes from an

Illyrian tribe This is a list of ancient tribes in the ancient territory of Illyria ( grc-gre, Ἰλλυρία; la, Illyria). The name ''Illyrians'' seems to be the name of a single Illyrian tribe that was the first to come into contact with the ancient Greeks ...

called the

Dalmatae The Delmatae, alternatively Dalmatæ, during the Roman period, were a group of Illyrian tribes in Dalmatia, contemporary southern Croatia and western Bosnia and Herzegovina. The region of Dalmatia takes its name from the tribe. The Delmatae ap ...

who inhabited the area of the eastern

Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, 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) ...

coast in the 1st millennium BC. It was part of the

Illyria In classical antiquity, Illyria (; grc, Ἰλλυρία, ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; la, Illyria, ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyr ...

n kingdom from the 4th century BC until the

Illyrian Wars The Illyro-Roman Wars were a series of wars fought between the Roman Republic and the Ardiaei kingdom. In the ''First Illyrian War'', which lasted from 229 BC to 228 BC, Rome's concern was that the trade across the Adriatic Sea increased after the ...

in the 220s BC and 168 BC when the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kin ...

established its protectorate south of the river Neretva. Dalmatia as a geographical name was in use probably from the second half of the 2nd century BC for the area spanning the eastern Adriatic coast between the Krka and Neretva rivers. It was slowly incorporated into Roman possessions until the province of Illyricum was formally established c. 32–27 BC. Dalmatia became part of the Roman province of Illyricum. In 9 AD, the Dalmatians raised the final of a series of revolts together with the

Pannonian Pannonia may refer to: In geography: * Basin of Pannonia, a geomorphological region (plain) in Central Europe * Sea of Pannonia, an ancient (former) sea in Central Europe * Steppe of Pannonia, a grassland ecosystem in the Pannonian Plain In h ...

s, but it was finally crushed, and in 10 AD, Illyricum was split into two provinces,

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...

and

which spread into larger area inland to cover all of the

and most of the eastern Adriatic coast. Dalmatia was the birthplace of the Roman Emperor

Diocletian Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...

, who constructed

Diocletian's Palace Diocletian's Palace ( hr, Dioklecijanova palača, ) is an ancient palace built for the Roman emperor Diocletian at the turn of the fourth century AD, which today forms about half the old town of Split, Croatia. While it is referred to as a "palac ...

in the core of what is now Split.

Administrative division

Split-Dalmatia County is divided into 16 cities and 39 municipalities. Note that both cities and municipalities are administrative divisions immediately under the county, on the same level.

County government

Current Župan (prefect): Blaženko Boban (

HDZ The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Cro ...

) The county assembly is composed of 51 representatives, organized as follows: * HDZ-HSS 22 ** Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) **

Croatian Peasant Party The Croatian Peasant Party ( hr, Hrvatska seljačka stranka, HSS) is an agrarian political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The Brothers Radić believed that t ...

(HSS) * Most 10 ** The Bridge (Most) * SDP-HNS 8 **

Social Democratic Party of Croatia The Social Democratic Party of Croatia ( hr, Socijaldemokratska partija Hrvatske, SDP) is a social-democratic political party in Croatia. The SDP is anti-fascist, progressive, and strongly pro-European. The SDP was formed in 1990 as the succe ...

(SDP) **

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

(HNS) * HGS 7 **

Croatian Civic Party Croatian Civic Party ( hr, Hrvatska građanska stranka or HGS) is a right-wing political party in Croatia. It was established in September 2009 by Željko Kerum, an entrepreneur and mayor of Split after he won the mayoral elections as an independ ...

(HGS)

Demographics

Split-Dalmatia County Population Pyramid Census 2011 ENG

According to the 2011 census, Split-Dalmatia County has population of 454,798.

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...

make up an absolute majority with 97.08% of the population.

Economy

Split-Dalmatia County has the 5th highest Human Development Index of any county in Croatia. Before privatisation and accession to European Union, beside tourism the most notable branch was

Shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

. County now relies on tourism as main source of income.

Footnotes

External links

County web site

Dalmatia
iNFO - Dalmatia travel portal
Split Dalmatia
County tourist guide in English {{Authority control Counties of Croatia