Kula ( sr-Cyrl, Кула, , ) is a town and municipality located in the

West Bačka District The West Bačka District (, ) is one of administrative districts of Serbia. It lies in the geographical region of Bačka. According to the 2022 census, West Bačka District has a population of 154,491 inhabitants. The administrative seat of the ...

of the autonomous province of

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...

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 ...

. The town has a population of 14,873, while the municipality has a population of 35,592.

Name

In Serbian, the town is known as ''Kula'' (Кула); in Rusyn as Кула, in Hungarian as ''Kúla'', in Croatian as ''Kula'', in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

as ''Kula'' or ''Wolfsburg'', and in Turkish as ''Kula''. The name ''Kule'' means "tower" in Turkish and Serbian. In the 16th-17th century, a tower with Ottoman military garrison existed at this location, hence the name of the town. However it cannot be said for sure whether

Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks () were a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the e ...

or local

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 ...

gave this name to the town.

History

In the middle of the 18th century, during Ottoman administration, two settlements with this name were mentioned - ''Gornja Kula'' and ''Donja Kula''. These settlements were part of the Ottoman Sanjak of Segedin and were populated by ethnic

. From the end of the 17th century, the region was under administration of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

and two settlements were mentioned as ''Mala Kula'' and ''Velika Kula'' and were unpopulated. In 1714, there was a record about a single settlement named Kula that had 14 houses. In 1733, the population of the settlement numbered 251 houses and its inhabitants were

. Hungarians started to settle there in 1740 and Germans in 1780 to 1785. Until the middle of the 19th century, the settlement was part of the Batsch-Bodrog County within the Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary. In 1848-1849 it was part of the autonomous

Serbian Vojvodina The Serbian Vojvodina () was a short-lived self-proclaimed autonomous province within the Austrian Empire during the Revolutions of 1848, which existed until 1849 when it was transformed into the new (official) Austrian province named Voivodes ...

and from 1849 to 1860, it was part of the

Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar The Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar, or Voivodeship of Serbia and Temes Banat (, , , ), was a crownland of the Austrian Empire that existed between 1849 and 1861, centered in Temeschwar. It was created by reorganization of admini ...

, a separate Habsburg crownland. After the abolishment of the voivodeship in 1860, the settlement was again included into Batsch-Bodrog County. In the second half of the 19th century, some

Rusyns Rusyns, also known as Carpatho-Rusyns, Carpatho-Russians, Ruthenians, or Rusnaks, are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group from the Carpathian Rus', Eastern Carpathians in Central Europe. They speak Rusyn language, Rusyn, an East Slavic lan ...

were settled here as well. After 1867, colonization of

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

was intensified, and until the beginning of the 20th century they replaced

as largest ethnic group in Kula. According to the 1910 census, the population of Kula was ethnically mixed: from the total population of 9,119 there was 3,679 speakers of Hungarian, 2,510 speakers of Serbian, 2,425 speakers of

, and 456 speakers of Rusyn. After 1918, the settlement was part of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

(later renamed to

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

). In 1918–1919, it was part of the

Banat, Bačka and Baranja Banat, Bačka and Baranya ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Banat, Bačka i Baranja, Банат, Бачка и Барања) was a province of the Kingdom of Serbia and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes between November 1918 and 1922. It ...

region, and also (from 1918 to 1922) part of the

Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...

County. From 1922 to 1929, it was part of the

Bačka Bačka ( sr-Cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska (), is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungary. ...

Oblast, and from 1929 to 1941 part of the Danube Banovina. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, From 1941 to 1944, Kula was under

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

occupation and was attached to the Horthy's

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. In 1944, the

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

and

Yugoslav partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

expelled Axis troops from the region and Kula was included into

autonomous province of Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to ...

within new

socialist Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

. Since 1945, Vojvodina is part of the People's Republic of Serbia within Yugoslavia. According to 1953 census,

were the largest ethnic group in the town, while subsequent censuses recorded

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

ethnic plurality. The

community left Kula at the end of

, while a sizable number of Serb

Montenegrins Montenegrins (, or ) are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common ancestry, culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Montenegrins are mostly Orthodox Christians; however, the population also includes ...

from

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 ...

settled there instead of Germans. After the breakup of

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 ...

(1991–1992) and

Serbia and Montenegro The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

(2006), the town became part of an independent

Republic of 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 ...

. Today the Serbs are the largest ethnic group in the town.

Inhabited places

The Kula municipality includes the towns of Kula and Crvenka, and also the following villages: * Kruščić * Lipar * Nova Crvenka * Ruski Krstur *

Sivac Sivac () is a village located in the municipality of Kula, Serbia, Kula, Serbia. The village has a Serb ethnic majority with a sizable Montenegrins of Serbia, Montenegrin minority, with its population numbering 6,950 inhabitants (as of 2022 censu ...

Demographics

According to the 2022 census results, the municipality of Kula has 35,592 inhabitants.

Ethnic groups in the Kula municipality

The ethnic composition of the municipality:

Settlements by ethnic majority

Settlements with a Serb ethnic majority are: Lipar, Nova Crvenka, Sivac, and Crvenka. The settlement with a Rusyn ethnic majority is Ruski Krstur. Ethnically mixed settlements are: Kula (with a relative Serb majority) and Kruščić (with a relative Montenegrin majority).

Ethnic groups in the Kula town

The town of Kula has a total of 14,873 inhabitants, including: *

(63.29%) *

(9.98%) *

(9.51%) *

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

(3.99%) *

(2.64%) *

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

(1.39%) *Others and undeclared (9.20%)

Languages in the Kula municipality

77% of the inhabitants of the Kula municipality declared Serbian as their mother language in a 2002 census.

Economy

Kula is a home to prominent Serbian confectionary products manufacturer Jaffa Crvenka. The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):

Politics

There is an initiative among the inhabitants of Crvenka and Ruski Krstur that these two settlements become their own municipalities, completely separate from Kula.

Sports

There is a football club named Hajduk Kula in the town.

Notable people

Isidor Bajic Isidore ( ; also spelled Isador, Isadore and Isidor) is a masculine given name. The name is derived from the Greek name ''Isídōros'' (Ἰσίδωρος, latinized ''Isidorus'') and can literally be translated to 'gift of Isis'. The name has survi ...

, composer, pedagogue and publisher * Duško Grujić, footballer * Dragan Škrbić, handball player *

Goran Gogić Goran Gogić (; 24 April 1986 – 3 July 2015) was a Serbian professional footballer. Career Born in Vrbas, Serbia, Yugoslavia, he played with FK Jedinstvo Ub, FK Čukarički, FK Napredak Kruševac, FK Javor Ivanjica and FK Jagodina before jo ...

, footballer

Twin towns – sister cities

Kula is twinned with: * Bar, Montenegro * Kalocsa, Hungary

Gallery

Kula3.jpg, The Orthodox church. Kula1.jpg, Saint George the Martyr Catholic Church. Crkva-kula1.png, Seventh-day Adventist Church. View of Canal in Kula.jpg, View of Canal in Kula

References

External links

* {{Authority control Places in Bačka Populated places in West Bačka District Municipalities and cities of Vojvodina Towns in Serbia