The House of Cerva or Crijević , ( la, Cervinus, also spelt ''Cereva'', ''Cerieva'', ''Creve'', ''Crieva'', ''Crevice'') was a

Ragusan Ragusan may refer to: * citizen of the Republic of Ragusa hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world" , population_estimate ...

noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteris ...

from Ragusa (modern Dubrovnik), which held noble titles in the

Republic of Ragusa hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world" , population_estimate = 90 000 in the XVI Century , currency = ...

, and in the

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

and Austro-Hungarian empires. Descendants of the family live in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

History

The family is traditionally considered to be one of the founders of Ragusa (Dubrovnik), arriving as refugees from

Epidaurum Epidaurus ( el, Ἐπίδαυρος, la, Epidaurum) or Epidauros was an ancient Greek colony founded sometime in the 6th century BC, renamed to Epidaurum during Roman rule in 228 BC, when it was part of the province of Illyricum, later Dalmatia.W ...

(modern

Cavtat Cavtat (, it, Ragusa Vecchia, lit=Old Ragusa) is a village in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia. It is on the Adriatic Sea coast south of Dubrovnik and is the centre of the Konavle municipality. History Antiquity The original city was ...

) after its destruction by the Slavs and Avars in the 7th century. The ''

Almanach de Gotha The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First publish ...

'' enumerates the Cerva among eleven older "native" families of Patrician status. It was first mentioned in 1234. During the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

they used to be considered heirs of the ancient Roman family ''Cervia'' (or ''Cervius''). In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Cerva gave the Republic of Ragusa 419 senior civil officials, representing 4.75% of the total. Similarly, between 1440 and 1640 they counted 109 members of the Great Council (4.95%), 209 senators (6.40%), 121 members of the Minor Council (5.59%), 56 Guardians of Justice (6.82%) and 132 times one of them became a ''Rector Respublicae'' (Chancellor of the Republic) (5.54%). After the fall of the Republic of Ragusa in 1808, the nobility status of the Cerva was recognized by the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...

in 1817 and was ratified with the title of

counts Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

. The main branch in Dubrovnik became extinct in the 19th century, but descendants of the family branches live in

and

Branches

The Cerva were throughout their history an influential and wealthy family in Ragusa, divided into various branches and combined with other noble families of the town by a series of weddings, which in turn gave rise to additional branches of the house.

Sorgo-Cerva

A branch of the Cerva family married into the Sorgo family, creating a new branch known as the Sorgo-Cerva ( hr, Sorkočević-Crijević).Konstantin Jireček, ''L’eredità di Roma nelle città della Dalmazia durante il medioevo'', III, AMSD XI, Rome 1986, p. 118

Notable people

* Ludovicus Tubero (1455–1527),

Latinist Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

. Between 1490 and 1522 he wrote his most famous work, the ''Commentaria de temporibus suis'', for which he was called ''Sallustio Raguseo'' ('Ragusan

Sallust Gaius Sallustius Crispus, usually anglicised as Sallust (; 86 – ), was a Roman historian and politician from an Italian plebeian family. Probably born at Amiternum in the country of the Sabines, Sallust became during the 50s BC a partisan ...

'). *

Elio Lampridio Cerva Elio Lampridio Cervino or Cerva (, sh, Ilija Crijević; 1463–1520) was a Ragusan poet who wrote in Latin. Life Cerva was born in 1463, belonging to one of the most important noble families of Ragusa, the House of Cerva. He spent several ye ...

(1463–1520),

Humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

and lexicographer. Arrived in Rome when he was just a child he grew up at the court of Pope Sixtus IV studying Roman Academy of

Pomponio Leto Julius Pomponius Laetus (1428 – 9 June 1498), also known as Giulio Pomponio Leto, was an Italian humanist. Background Laetus was born at Teggiano, near Salerno, the illegitimate scion of the princely house of Sanseverino, the German historian ...

. Here he became one of the greatest

Latin language Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of t ...

poets of those years. * Tommaso Cerva or Toma Crijević (16th century), Dominican, lawyer, bishop of

Trebinje Trebinje ( sr-Cyrl, Требиње, ) is a city and municipality located in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the southernmost city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is situated on the banks of Trebišnjica river in the r ...

and Mercana, director of the church of

Ston Ston () is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula. History Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ant ...

between 1541 and 1559 and general vicar of the archbishop of

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 ...

, Giovanni Angelo

Medici The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Mu ...

, who became Pope Pius IV in 1559. *

Serafino Cerva Serafino Cerva ( hr, Serafin Crijević; 1696–1759), also known as Saro, was the author of ''Ragusan Library'', the first encyclopedia in the Dalmatian language, which comprised 435 biographies of ancient men and of the "Athens of the Adriatic" ( ...

or Serafin Crijević (1696–1759), historian, translator of several works from Italian to Latin. He also wrote in Latin ''"Monumenta Congregationis di Sancti Dominici Ragusanae", "The sacred city of Dubrovnik" and ''"Bibliotheca Ragusina, in qua Ragusi scriptores, eorum gesta et scripta recensetur"'' later known under the title ''"Vite de uomini illustri Ragusei"''. His works have remained unpublished and are held in the Convent of St. Dominic in Dubrovnik. He died in 1759.

References

Sources

Francesco Maria Appendini Francesco Maria Appendini (November 4, 1768 – 1837) was an Italian Latin and Italian scholar who studied Slavic languages in the Republic of Ragusa. The French invasion prevented him from returning to Italy, and he adopted Republic of Ragusa as hi ...

, ''Notizie istorico-critiche sulle antichità storia e letteratura de' Ragusei'', (''Dalle stampe di Antonio Martecchini''), Ragusa 1803 *

Renzo de' Vidovich Renzo de' Vidovich (born 27 February 1934) is an Italian politician,de' Vidovich held the following offices during his political life: * Member of the thirteenth Commission (Labour and Social Security) * Component of the Special Committee for th ...

, ''Albo d'Oro delle famiglie nobili patrizie e illustri nel Regno di Dalmazia'', Fondazione Scientifico Culturale Rustia Traine, Trieste 2004 * Simeon Gliubich, ''Biographical dictionary of illustrious Dalmatian men'', Vienna-Zadar 1836 * Giorgio Gozzi, ''the free and sovereign Republic of Ragusa 634-1814'', Volpe Editore, Rome 1981 * Robin Harris, ''Storia e vita di Ragusa - Dubrovnik, la piccola Repubblica adriatica'', Santi Quaranta, Treviso 2008 * Konstantin Jireček, ''L’eredità di Roma nelle città della Dalmazia durante il medioevo'', 3 voll., AMSD, Rome 1984-1986 {{Republic of Ragusa Ragusan noble families

History

Branches

Sorgo-Cerva

Notable people

See also

References

Sources