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Gračanica ( sr-cyr, Грачаница) or Graçanicë ( sq-definite, Graçanica), is a town and municipality located in Pristina District in
Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
. As of 2024, the town has a population of 18,486 inhabitants. It is centered around the
Gračanica Monastery Gračanica () may refer to: Places Bosnia and Herzegovina * Gračanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a town and municipality in Tuzla * Gračanica (Bugojno), a village in Central Bosnia * Gračanica, Gacko, a village in Republika Srpska * Gračanica, ...
, ten kilometers east of
Pristina Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district. In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...
. The 1999
Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...
and its aftermath transformed Gračanica from a sleepy village into an administrative center serving the needs of the 75,000
Kosovo Serbs Kosovo Serbs form the largest ethnic minority group in Kosovo (5–6%). The precise number of Kosovo Serbs is difficult to determine as they have boycotted national censuses. However, it is estimated that there are about 95,000 of them, nearly ...
living south of the Ibar River. After the 2013 Brussels Agreement, the municipality was expected to become part of a proposed
Community of Serb Municipalities The Community of Serb Municipalities (, ZSO; , AKS) is a planned inter-municipal association of Serbs in Kosovo, ethnic Serb majority Municipalities of Kosovo, municipalities in Kosovo. The proposal for the association came as a result of the 20 ...
, however the agreement was never implemented as it was deemed unconstitutional. The town is also known for being the location of
Gračanica Monastery Gračanica () may refer to: Places Bosnia and Herzegovina * Gračanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a town and municipality in Tuzla * Gračanica (Bugojno), a village in Central Bosnia * Gračanica, Gacko, a village in Republika Srpska * Gračanica, ...
, one of the richest Serbian medieval monuments from the 14th century.


History

Pope Benedict IX mentioned the village as ''Grazaniza'' in a letter from 1303. It was mentioned in King
Stefan Milutin Stefan Uroš II Milutin ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош II Милутин, Stefan Uroš II Milutin; 1253 – 29 October 1321), known as Saint King, was the King of Serbia between 1282–1321, a member of the Nemanjić dynasty. He was one ...
's founding charter of the
Gračanica Monastery Gračanica () may refer to: Places Bosnia and Herzegovina * Gračanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a town and municipality in Tuzla * Gračanica (Bugojno), a village in Central Bosnia * Gračanica, Gacko, a village in Republika Srpska * Gračanica, ...
(1321). The name is derived from Slavic ''Gradac'', a toponym of fortified cities In the 15th century the settlement was a notable commercial centre. Until the 17th century it had a notable Ragusan community. It seems that the settlement was abandoned in 1689 during the Austrian penetration into Kosovo in the
Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...
. In 1901, it had 60 houses, all Serb, with 400 inhabitants.


2000–present

On 6 June 2000, a grenade was thrown at a crowd of ethnic Serbs waiting for a bus in the town square, injuring three people, which was followed by some civil unrest. On 15 March 2004 a Serb teenager was killed in a drive-by shooting in the village of Čaglavica (partly in Gračanica). This event led to the 2004 unrest in Kosovo. In the aftermath of the unrest, another Serb teenager Dimitrije Popović was killed in a drive-by shooting by Albanians on June 5, 2004.


Archaeology

A votive altar was found in Gračanica. Dedicated to the well-being of two unnamed emperors, it was erected by priests of Jupiter Dolichenus, possibly between 208 and 211 AD.


Politics

The first municipal elections were held on 15 November 2009.Nova Srpska Politička Misao
Грачаница: Срби да бојкотују изборе које организују косовске институције
, 29 October 2009
The government of Serbia asked Serbs not to participate in the elections which it does not recognize, but many of them did. Serb Bojan Stojanović was elected Mayor. B92
Gračanica: Protest zbog izbora
27 November 2009
The town of Gračanica is also temporary seat of the administration of Serbia-claimed Municipality of Pristina. The Serbia-sponsored local elections were held on 11 May 2008. Those elections were boycotted by ethnic Albanians who consider Kosovo independent from Serbia, so only ethnic Serbs participated.


Settlements

Aside from the town of Gračanica, the municipality has the following villages: * Badoci * Batusha * Čaglavica (part) * Dobratin * Gushterica e Epërme * Gushterica e Ulët * Llapllasella * Lepinë * Livagja * Preoc * Skullan * Sushicë * Suhodoll * Radeva * Ugljare


Demographics

The municipality of Gračanica has 18,486 inhabitants according to the 2024 census. In 2011, the town had 11,931, of which the majority were
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 ...
, also true for the municipality as a whole; by 2024, however, Serbs and Albanians made up roughly equal parts of the population.


Ethnic groups

The ethnic composition of the municipality of Gračanica:


Religions

The religious composition of the municipality of Gračanica:


Geography and infrastructure

The settlement is situated in the spacious valley of the Gračanka river, by the river, on the exit of the gorge between the hill of Veletina (874m) and sloping hill of Glasnovik on the south, and hill of Steževac (794m) on the northeast.


Infrastructure

Gračanica has been a Serb enclave since the end of the 1999
Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...
, and is the largest Serbian enclave in central Kosovo. It runs along the
Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...
-Pristina road, and unites several neighboring Serbian villages. The enclave, which contains rich farmland and is strategically located in the center of Kosovo, on major roads and near Pristina, has been seen as a potential threat by some Albanian nationalists, who view it as "a den of Serbian intrigue". Gračanica has an elementary school, several small stores, an open-air market and a police station. The health care center is located in the central part of the town, next to the UNMIK headquarters. An elementary school was reconstructed after the 1999 war.


See also

*
Municipalities of Kosovo A municipality (; ) is the basic administrative division in Kosovo and constitutes the only level of power in local governance. There are 38 municipalities in Kosovo; 27 of which have an Kosovo Albanians, Albanian ethnic majority, 10 Kosovo Serbs, ...
* Cities and towns in Kosovo *
Community of Serb Municipalities The Community of Serb Municipalities (, ZSO; , AKS) is a planned inter-municipal association of Serbs in Kosovo, ethnic Serb majority Municipalities of Kosovo, municipalities in Kosovo. The proposal for the association came as a result of the 20 ...


References


Sources

* * *


External links

*
Municipality of Gračanica
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gracanica, Kosovo Serbian enclaves in Kosovo Municipalities of Kosovo Medieval Serbian sites in Kosovo Populated places in Pristina District