Tuzi ( cnr, Tuzi/Тузи, ; sq, Tuz or ''Tuzi'') is a small town in

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

and the seat of

Tuzi Municipality Tuzi Municipality ( Montenegrin: Opština Tuzi / Општина Тузи; Albanian: Komuna e Tuzit) is one of the 24 Municipalities of Montenegro. The municipal seat is the town of Tuzi. The municipality is located about 10 km south of the cap ...

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

. It is located along a main road between the city of

Podgorica Podgorica (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; Literal translation, lit. 'under the hill') is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd ...

and the

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

n border crossing, just a few kilometers north of Lake Skadar. The Church of St. Anthony and Qazimbeg's Mosque are located in the centre of the town. Tuzi is the newest municipality in Montenegro, having been an independent municipality since 1 September 2018.

Geography

Tuzi is situated to the northwest of Lake Shkodra, 10 km from Podgorica, 150 km from Dubrovnik (Croatia) and 130 km to Tirana (Albania). It is surrounded by forests and mountains that are further connected with the Accursed Mountains.

History

The town of Tuzi is situated in Southeastern Montenegro, between

and the Skadar lake. The Albanian community of Tuzi descend from the surrounding tribes of Hoti, Gruda,

Trieshi Trieshi is a historical Tribes of Albania, Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region (in Montenegrin known as ''Zatrijebač'') in Montenegro above the right bank of the Cem (river), Cem river near the Albanian border in Tuzi Municipality. It is part ...

and Koja, which are part of the Malësor tribes. Tuzi was mentioned in 1330 in the

Dečani chrysobulls The Dečani chrysobulls ( sr, Дечанске хрисовуље/Dečanske hrisovulje) alternatively known as the Dečani charters (Дечанске повеље/Dečanske povelje) are chrysobulls dating to 1321-1331 which contains a detailed lis ...

as part of the Albanian (''arbanas'') ''katun'' (semi-nomadic pastoral community) of Llesh Tuzi (''Ljesa Tuzi'' in the original), in an area stretching southwards from modern

along the Lake Skadar to a village near modern

Koplik Koplik (also known as Koplik i Poshtëm) is a town and former municipality in the northwestern tip of Albania. At the 2015 local government reform, it became a subdivision, and the seat of the municipality Malësi e Madhe. It was the seat of the ...

. This katund included many communities that later formed their own separate communities:

Reç Reç (also known as Reç i Poshtëm) is a settlement in the former Shkrel municipality, Shkodër County, northern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became part of the municipality Malësi e Madhe. Notable people *Bekim Balaj, foot ...

i and his sons, Matagushi,

Bushati The Bushati family ( sq, Bushatllinjtë) was a prominent Ottoman Albanian family that ruled the Pashalik of Scutari from 1757 to 1831. Origins They are descendants of the medieval Bushati tribe, a pastoralist tribe (''fis'') in northern Albani ...

and his sons, Pjetër Suma and Pjetër Kuçi, first known ancestor of Kuči. Llesh Tuzi is the first named progenitor of the Tuzi tribe (''fis''), which gave its name to the settlement of Tuzi. The Suma and Tuzi ''fis'' formed the vast majority of the later Gruda community. Tuzi was documented in the 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 ...

of 1485 as part of the Timar of Hasan Arnauti, with 24 houses and 6 bachelors.

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 ...

anthroponomy dominated amongst the inhabitants of Tuzi, with names such as ''Leka'', ''Ulku'', ''Deda'', ''Nika'', ''Pali'' etc. Following the Great Schism of 1054, the tribes of Tuzi embraced

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

over Eastern Orthodoxy. Following the expansion of Ottoman rule in the Balkans in the 14th century, many gradually converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

. Some of them adopted new surnames common among Ottoman Muslims while others kept their original surnames. Albanian surnames present among Muslim and Christian families alike include Gjokaj, Nikaj, Dreshaj, etc. The Albanian flag was raised for the first time in possibly over 400 years in the Battle of Deçiq (6 April 1911) in the Albanian revolt of 1911 in the Deçiq mountain near Tuzi. It was raised by Ded Gjo Luli on the peak of Bratila after victory was secured. The phrase "Tash o vllazën do t’ju takojë të shihni atë që për 450 vjet se ka pa kush" (Now brothers you have earned the right to see that which has been unseen for 450 years) has been attributed to Ded Gjo Luli by later memoirs of those who were present when he raised the flag. It was one of three banners brought to

Malësia Malësia e Madhe ("Great Highlands"), known simply as Malësia ( sq, Malësia, cnr, / ), is a historical and ethnographic region in northern Albania and eastern central Montenegro corresponding to the highlands of the geographical subdivision ...

by Palokë Traboini, student in Austria. The other two banners were used by Ujka of Gruda and Prelë Luca of Triepshi. During the Islamization of the region, the area had a mixed Slavic-Albanian amount of names. For example, Mahmut and Husein were sons of Abdulah, Osman which was the son of Živo, then Ibrahim and then Gojaš. In Gruda, Hizar was the son of Vučin which was the son of Mezid which's father was Gjergj. Similar patterns continue like this with Gjon and Stojan.

21st century

From 24 March 2020 until further notice, the entirety of Tuzi Municipality has been put into a complete lockdown in response to the sudden increase of cases of the COVID-19 pandemic in Montenegro, with only essential services being allowed to operate. Tuzi is the first municipality in Montenegro that was put in a complete lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sports

Tuzi's local football club is Dečić, who play in the Montenegrin First League. Their home venue is the

Stadion Tuško Polje Stadium Tuško Polje is a football stadium in Tuzi, Podgorica, Montenegro. It is used for football matches and is the home ground of FK Dečić. History During the decades, at location Tuško Polje existed football pitch which didn't meet criter ...

and their reserve team plays in the Montenegrin Third League.

Demographics

According to 2011 census, the town of Tuzi has a population of 4,748, while

has 11,422 residents.

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Tuzi is twinned with: * Rochester Hills, United States

References

Books

{{Tuzi Municipality Populated places in Tuzi Municipality Albanian communities in Montenegro