Jelena Đurović (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Јелена Ђуровић; born 13 July 1973) is a Montenegrin journalist, writer, and political activist. She is best known for her work in journalism, literature, and activism within the

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

community in

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

and

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

. Đurović is a founder and former Vice President of the Jewish Community of Montenegro. Đurović is the Chairwoman of the Organization for Jewish Cooperation in

Southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe is a geographical sub-region of Europe, consisting primarily of the region of the Balkans, as well as adjacent regions and Archipelago, archipelagos. There are overlapping and conflicting definitions of t ...

, which promotes collaboration among Jewish communities in the region. She also serves on the Board of the Montenegrin National Council in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

Early life

Đurović was born on July 13, 1973, in

SR Serbia The Socialist Republic of Serbia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", Социјалистичка Република Србија, Socijalistička Republika Srbija), previously known as the People's Republic of Serbia ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / " ...

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

, to a Montenegrin father and Jewish mother, Svetlana Davidovac.

Literary work

Đurović graduated from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade, Department of Theater and Radio Production. Her bachelor thesis, "Theatre in the shadow of the gallows" ("Pozornica u senci vešala") explored the programming policies of Belgrade theaters during

Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...

's leadership of Serbia Đurović's first novel, ''Kingdom'', was published in 2003, with excerpts in ''Voices from the Faultline, A Balkan Anthology''. The novel was considered for selection for the

NIN Award The ''NIN'' Award (, Нинова награда), officially the Award for Best Novel of the Year, is a prestigious Serbian (and previously Yugoslavian) literary award established in 1954 by the NIN (magazine), ''NIN'' weekly and is given annua ...

for Best Novel of the Year, however Đurović refused to be included in the selection. Her second novel, ''30. Februar'', was published in 2011.

Journalism

In 1994 and 1995, Đurović worked at Studio B, a Belgrade radio station, as author and editor of the weekly radio show ''Time In'', sponsored by the

Soros Fund Soros Fund Management is a privately held American investment management firm. It is currently structured as a family office, but formerly was a hedge fund. The firm was founded in 1970 by George Soros and, in 2010, was reported to be one of the ...

. In 2005, Đurović launched the ''AgitPop'' blog, an early Serbian platform combining pop culture and political commentary. Concurrently, Đurović wrote for several Serbian newspapers and magazines, and joined the editorial team of ''Novi Radio Beograd'', the first internet radio station in Serbia. From March 2012, her radio show ''Agitpop'' was broadcast on the Serbian national radio station B92, until the station became Play Radio. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Đurović and

Rabbi A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...

Uri Ayalon from

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

collaborated on a

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

about Jewish topics, ''A Rabbi and a Film Critic Walk into a Bar''.. The show was first broadcast on Radio Melitz.https://melitz.org/melitz-radio-in-the-making/

Personal life

Đurović was born in

, to a Montenegrin father and Jewish mother, Svetlana Davidovac. In January 2009, Đurović married Tomica Orešković.

Selected publications

*''30. Februar'' (2011) *''Kingdom'' (2003)

References

External links

Interview with Jelena Đurović (in Serbian) related to her latest novel "February 30th"

Interview with Jelena Đurović (in Serbian) for Belgrade daily newspaper Glas

"Kraljevstvo" on WorldCat.orgSlavic and Eastern European Collections at UC Berkeley, New Acquisitions from and about Eastern Europe (except Poland), page 53
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durovic, Jelena Montenegrin Jews 1973 births Living people Writers from Belgrade Montenegrin people of Jewish descent University of Arts in Belgrade alumni 21st-century women writers Serbian women writers 21st-century Serbian Jews Jewish bloggers Serbian people of Montenegrin descent Serbian bloggers Serbian women bloggers