1.
Serbian language
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Serbian is the standardized variety of the Serbo-Croatian language mainly used by Serbs. It is the language of Serbia and one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition, it is a minority language in Montenegro, Croatia, Macedonia, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia. Standard Serbian is based on the most widespread dialect of Serbo-Croatian, Shtokavian, which is also the basis of Standard Croatian, Bosnian, the other dialect spoken by Serbs is Torlakian in southeastern Serbia, which is transitional to Macedonian and Bulgarian. Serbian is practically the only European standard language with complete synchronic digraphia, the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet was devised in 1814 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić, who created the alphabet on phonemic principles. The Latin alphabet was designed by Croatian linguist Ljudevit Gaj in 1830, Serbian is a standardized variety of Serbo-Croatian, a Slavic language, of the South Slavic subgroup. Other standardized forms of Serbo-Croatian are Bosnian, Croatian, and Montenegrin and it has lower intelligibility with the Eastern South Slavic languages Bulgarian and Macedonian, than with Slovene. The 2011 census show that 42. 88% still declare Serbian to be their native language, Standard Serbian language uses both Cyrillic and Latin script. Even in official government documents this constitutional requirement is rarely enforced, Serbian is a rare example of synchronic digraphia, a situation where all literate members of a society have two interchangeable writing systems available to them. Media and publishers typically select one alphabet or another, for example, the public broadcaster, Radio Television of Serbia, predominantly uses the Cyrillic script whereas the privately run broadcasters, like RTV Pink, predominantly use the Latin script. A survey from 2014 showed that 47% of the Serbian population favors the Latin alphabet whereas 36% favors the Cyrillic one and these are the tenses of the indicative mood. Apart from the mood, there is also the imperative mood. The conditional mood has two more tenses, the first conditional and the second conditional, Serbian has active and passive voice. As for the verb forms, Serbian has one infinitive. Most Serbian words are of native Slavic lexical stock, tracing back to the Proto-Slavic language, there are many loanwords from different languages, reflecting cultural interaction throughout history. Notable loanwords were borrowed from Greek, Latin, Italian, Turkish, Hungarian, Russian, Serbian literature emerged in the Middle Ages, and included such works as Miroslavljevo jevanđelje in 1192 and Dušanov zakonik in 1349. In the mid-15th century, Serbia was conquered by the Ottoman Empire, however, some of the greatest literary works in Serbian come from this time, in the form of oral literature, the most notable form being Serbian epic poetry. The epic poems were written down in the 19th century, and preserved in oral tradition up to the 1950s
2.
Novi Pazar
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Novi Pazar is a city located in the Raška District of western Serbia. As of the 2011 census, the area has 66,527 inhabitants. Novi Pazar is the center of the Bosniaks in Serbia. A multicultural area of Muslims and Orthodox Christians, many monuments of both religions, like the Altun-Alem Mosque and the Church of St. Apostles Peter and Paul, are found in the region. During the 14th century under the old Serbian fortress of Stari Ras, by the middle of the 15th century, in the time of the final Ottoman Empire conquest of Old Serbia, another market-place was developing some 11 km to the east. The older place became known as Staro Trgovište and the younger as Novo Trgovište, the latter developed into the modern city of Novi Pazar. The name of Novi Pazar was thus derived from the Serbian language placename Novo Trgovište, via the Turkish language Yeni Pazar and it is still known as Yeni Pazar in modern-day Turkey. Novi Pazar is located in the valleys of the Jošanica, Raška, Deževska and it lies at an elevation of 496m, in the southeast Sandžak region. The city is surrounded by the Golija and Rogozna mountains, the total area of the city administrative area is 742 km². It contains 100 settlements, mostly small and spread over hills, the largest village is Mur, with over 3000 residents. One of the oldest monuments of the area is the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul first built in the Roman era. The capital city of the Principality of Serbia, Ras, which was ruled by the Vlastimirović dynasty from 768 to 980, was near the city and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In the next centuries, the region of modern Novi Pazar served as the province of the Serbian realm. It was a division, usually under the direct rule of the monarch. It was the crownland, seat or appanage of various Serbian states throughout the Middle Ages, including the Serbian Kingdom, in 1427, the region and the remnant of Ras, as part of the Serbian Despotate, was ruled by Serbian despot Đurađ Branković. One of the markets was called despotov trg, in 1439, the region was captured by the Ottoman Empire, but was reconquered by the Serbian Despotate in 1444. In the summer of 1455, the Ottomans conquered the region again, Novi Pazar was formally founded as a city in its own right in 1461 by Ottoman general Isa-Beg Ishaković, the Bosnian governor of the district who also founded Sarajevo. It was the town of the Ras province until its disestablishment in 1463
3.
Serbia
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Serbia, officially the Republic of Serbia, is a sovereign state situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the central Balkans. Relative to its territory, it is a diverse country distinguished by a transitional character, situated along cultural, geographic, climatic. Serbia numbers around 7 million residents, and its capital, Belgrade, following the Slavic migrations to the Balkans from the 6th century onwards, Serbs established several states in the early Middle Ages. The Serbian Kingdom obtained recognition by Rome and the Byzantine Empire in 1217, in the early 19th century, the Serbian Revolution established the nation-state as the regions first constitutional monarchy, which subsequently expanded its territory. During the breakup of Yugoslavia, Serbia formed a union with Montenegro which dissolved peacefully in 2006, in 2008 the parliament of the province of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence, with mixed responses from the international community. Serbia is a member of organizations such as the UN, CoE, OSCE, PfP, BSEC. An EU membership candidate since 2012, Serbia has been negotiating its EU accession since January 2014, the country is acceding to the WTO and is a militarily neutral state. Serbia is an income economy with dominant service sector, followed by the industrial sector. The country ranks high on the Social Progress Index as well as the Global Peace Index, relatively high on the Human Development Index, located at the crossroads between Central and Southern Europe, Serbia is found in the Balkan peninsula and the Pannonian Plain. Serbia lies between latitudes 41° and 47° N, and longitudes 18° and 23° E. The country covers a total of 88,361 km2, which places it at 113th place in the world, with Kosovo excluded, the area is 77,474 km2. Its total border length amounts to 2,027 km, all of Kosovos border with Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro are under control of the Kosovo border police. The Pannonian Plain covers the third of the country while the easternmost tip of Serbia extends into the Wallachian Plain. The terrain of the part of the country, with the region of Šumadija at its heart. Mountains dominate the third of Serbia. Dinaric Alps stretch in the west and the southwest, following the flow of the rivers Drina, the Carpathian Mountains and Balkan Mountains stretch in a north–south direction in eastern Serbia. Ancient mountains in the southeast corner of the country belong to the Rilo-Rhodope Mountain system, elevation ranges from the Midžor peak of the Balkan Mountains at 2,169 metres to the lowest point of just 17 metres near the Danube river at Prahovo. The largest lake is Đerdap Lake and the longest river passing through Serbia is the Danube, the climate of Serbia is under the influences of the landmass of Eurasia and the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea
4.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
5.
World Heritage Site
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A World Heritage Site is a landmark which has been officially recognized by the United Nations, specifically by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Sites are selected on the basis of having cultural, historical, scientific or some form of significance. UNESCO regards these sites as being important to the interests of humanity. The programme catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common culture, under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund. The program was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the Worlds Cultural and Natural Heritage, since then,192 state parties have ratified the convention, making it one of the most adhered to international instruments. As of July 2016,1052 sites are listed,814 cultural,203 natural, in 1959, the governments of Egypt and Sudan requested UNESCO to assist their countries to protect and rescue the endangered monuments and sites. In 1960, the Director-General of UNESCO launched an appeal to the Member States for an International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia, the campaign, which ended in 1980, was considered a success. The project cost $80 million, about $40 million of which was collected from 50 countries, the projects success led to other safeguarding campaigns, saving Venice and its lagoon in Italy, the ruins of Mohenjo-daro in Pakistan, and the Borobodur Temple Compounds in Indonesia. UNESCO then initiated, with the International Council on Monuments and Sites, the United States initiated the idea of cultural conservation with nature conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature developed similar proposals in 1968, the Convention came into force on 17 December 1975. As of June 2016, it has been ratified by 192 states, including 188 UN member states plus the Cook Islands, the Holy See, Niue, a country must first list its significant cultural and natural sites, the result is called the Tentative List. A country may not nominate sites that have not been first included on the Tentative List, next, it can place sites selected from that list into a Nomination File. The Nomination File is evaluated by the International Council on Monuments and Sites and these bodies then make their recommendations to the World Heritage Committee. There are ten selection criteria – a site must meet at least one of them to be included on the list, up to 2004, there were six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage. In 2005, this was modified so there is now only one set of ten criteria. Nominated sites must be of outstanding value and meet at least one of the ten criteria. Thus, the Geneva Convention treaty promulgates, Article 53, PROTECTION OF CULTURAL OBJECTS AND OF PLACES OF WORSHIP. There are 1,052 World Heritage Sites located in 165 States Party, of these,814 are cultural,203 are natural and 35 are mixed properties
6.
Serbian Cyrillic alphabet
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The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet is an adaptation of the Cyrillic script for the Serbian language, developed in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two used to write standard modern Serbian, Bosnian and Montenegrin, the other being Latin. During the same period, Croatian linguists led by Ljudevit Gaj adapted the Latin alphabet, in use in western South Slavic areas, using the same principles. As a result of this joint effort, Cyrillic and Latin alphabets for Serbo-Croatian have a complete one-to-one congruence, with the Latin digraphs Lj, Nj, and Dž counting as single letters. Vuks Cyrillic alphabet was adopted in Serbia in 1868, and was in exclusive use in the country up to the inter-war period. Both alphabets were co-official in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and later in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, in Serbia, Cyrillic is seen as being more traditional, and has the official status. It is also a script in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro, along with Latin. The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet was used as a basis for the Macedonian alphabet with the work of Krste Misirkov, Cyrillic is in official use in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Serbian language in Croatia is officially recognized as a minority language, however, Cyrillic is an important symbol of Serbian identity. In Serbia, official documents are printed in Cyrillic only even though, according to a 2014 survey, Glagolitic appears to be older, predating the introduction of Christianity, only formalized by Cyril and expanded to cover non-Greek sounds. Cyrillic was created by the orders of Boris I of Bulgaria by Cyrils disciples, the earliest form of Cyrillic was the ustav, based on Greek uncial script, augmented by ligatures and letters from the Glagolitic alphabet for consonants not found in Greek. There was no distinction between capital and lowercase letters, the literary Slavic language was based on the Bulgarian dialect of Thessaloniki. Part of the Serbian literary heritage of the Middle Ages are works such as Vukan Gospels, St. Savas Nomocanon, Dušans Code, Munich Serbian Psalter, the first printed book in Serbian was the Cetinje Octoechos. Vuk Stefanović Karadžić fled Serbia during the Serbian Revolution in 1813, there he met Jernej Kopitar, a linguist with interest in slavistics. Kopitar and Sava Mrkalj helped Vuk to reform the Serbian language and he finalized the alphabet in 1818 with the Serbian Dictionary. Karadžić also translated the New Testament into Serbian, which was published in 1868 and he wrote several books, Mala prostonarodna slaveno-serbska pesnarica and Pismenica serbskoga jezika in 1814, and two more in 1815 and 1818, all with the alphabet still in progress. In his letters from 1815-1818 he used, Ю, я, Ы and Ѳ, in his 1815 song book he dropped the Ѣ. The alphabet was adopted in 1868, four years after his death
7.
Old Serbia
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Old Serbia is a term used for the territory which was the core of medieval Serbia. It included the regions of Raška, Kosovo and Metohija and the part of Macedonia. The Serb population of territory was referred to as Old–Serbians. Vuk Stefanović Karadžić referred to Old Serbia as a territory of the Serb people that was part of medieval Serbia prior to the Ottoman conquest. The term originated in Serbian common speech and was introduced by the refugees of the Great Serb Migrations who lived in territories of the Habsburg Monarchy. It re-emerged in the aspirations of liberating these areas during the time of the Serbian Revolution, in May 1877 a delegation of Serbs of Old Serbia presented their request to the government of Serbia to liberate and unite Old Serbia with the Principality of Serbia. They also informed representatives of the Great Powers and Emperor of Russia about their demands, in the same year the Committee for the Liberation of Old Serbia and Macedonia was founded. In the 1877 peace after the Serbo-Turkish War, the Serbs hoped to gain the Kosovo Vilayet, in 1913 the Sandžak, Kosovo and Metohija and Vardar Macedonia became part of the Kingdom of Serbia, and subsequently organized into the province of South Serbia. The Old Serbia bank opened in Skopje in 1923 to dominate and accelerate the economy of the region, in Serbian historiography, First Balkan War is also known as War for Liberation of Old Serbia. Stojanu Novakoviću u spomen, o osamdesetogodišnjici smrti, sebright, Georgina Mary, Irby, Adelina Paulina. Travels in the Slavonic Provinces of Turkey-in-Europe, stara Srbija i Maćedonija, sa gledišta geografskog, istorijskog i političkog. Етничка карта дела Старе Србије, Према путопису Милоша С, Стара Србија, прошлост, садашњост, народни живот и обичаји. Стара Србија и Македонија, фототипско издање, Народна и универзитетска библиотека Иво Андрић Приштина. Stara Srbija i Makedonija, oslobođenje i uređenje, putne beleške po staroj Srbiji, 1871-1898. Jovanović, J. Južna Srbija od kraja XVIII veka do oslobođenja, the work of Serbian diplomacy on the protection of Serbs in old Serbia in the last decade of the 19th century. Šešum, Uroš S. Србија и Стара Србија, Планови o политици Србије према Старој Србији и Македонији. Црквене прилике у Старој Србији од укидања Пећке патријаршије до Велике источне кризе, у, - Ниш, Филозофски факултет, Призренска богословија Св. Кирила и Методија, Центар за црквене студије,2013, 9-29, Извештај Василија Ђорђевића о догађајима у Старој Србији из јула1854
8.
Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Middle Ages
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The Kingdom of Bosnia was a medieval kingdom that evolved from the Banate of Bosnia. Bosnia enjoyed de facto independence in the 13th and 14th centuries despite being a part of the Hungarian Crown Lands and its difficult terrain and remoteness enabled the Bosnians to maneuver between their two powerful neighbors, Hungary and Serbia, usually managing to avoid subordination to either. Several capable rulers allowed Bosnia briefly to play the role of a power in the 14th century. After 1290, Bosnia enjoyed virtual independence from Hungary and gained significant territory in Dalmatia at Serbias expense, however, feudal fragmentation remained strong in Bosnia, and after his death the country lost its importance. The Ottoman Empire annexed portions of eastern Bosnia in the 1440s and 1450s, the Banate of Bosnia was a medieval state comprising at its peak most of what is today Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as parts of Dalmatia, Serbia and Montenegro. Although nominally in vassalage to the Kingdom of Hungary, Bosnia was a de facto independent state, the Banate of Bosnia existed until 1377, when it was elevated into a kingdom with the coronation of Tvrtko I. By the mid-14th century, Bosnia reached its peak under Ban Tvrtko I of the House of Kotromanić, by having done so, he became a ruler of the newly proclaimed Kingdom of Bosnia, a state that followed the Banate of Bosnia. At its peak the Kingdom became one of the most influential, throughout the Middle Ages, Herzegovina was made up of several smaller polities, Zahumlje, centered around the town of Blagaj, and Travunia, centered on the town of Trebinje. These statelets were in periods ruled by semi-independent princes, mostly under suzerainty of the Serbian medieval monarchy and their territories included modern Herzegovina and parts of Montenegro and southern Dalmatia. The name Herzegovina was adopted when Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, the Duke of St. Sava asserted its independence in 1435–48, the assembly of these noblemen was called stanak and was quite influential. Bosnia reached its peak under Ban Tvrtko I, a member of the Kotromanić dynasty, in 1372, Tvrtko formed an alliance with Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović, one of the regional lords in the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empire. The next year, Tvrtko and Lazar attacked the domain of Nikola Altomanović, after defeating Altomanović, they divided his lands, except for his littoral districts of Dračevica, Konavle, and Trebinje, which were seized by Đurađ I Balšić, the Lord of Zeta. Tvrtko received parts of Zahumlje, the reaches of the Drina and Lim rivers, as well as the districts of Onogošt. This acquisition included the important Serbian Orthodox monastery of Mileševa, in 1377, Tvrtko took the littoral districts from Balšić. That year, on 26 October, he was crowned King of Serbia, Bosnia, the Primorje, and this was made possible by the royal Nemanjić line having died out with Uroš in 1371. The crown was sent to him by Hungarian king Louis of Anjou, in contrast, some earlier historiographers, mostly represented by scholars from Serbia, consider that he was crowned in the Orthodox Monastery of Mileševa, by the Metropolitan of Mileševa. However, after the defeat of Nikola Altomanović, Prince Lazar had emerged as the most powerful lord on the territory of the former Serbian Empire and he wanted to reunite the Serbian state, and the Serbian Orthodox Church saw him as most fitted to succeed the Nemanjić dynasty. The Church, which was the strongest cohesive force among the Serbs at the time, by 1390, Tvrtko I expanded his realm to include a part of Croatia and Dalmatia, and expanded his title to King of Rascia, Bosnia, Dalmatia, Croatia and the Littoral
9.
Kosovo
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Kosovo is a disputed territory and partially recognised state in Southeastern Europe that declared independence from Serbia in February 2008 as the Republic of Kosovo. Kosovo is landlocked in the central Balkan Peninsula, with its strategic position in the Balkans, it serves as an important link in the connection between central and south Europe, the Adriatic Sea, and Black Sea. Its capital and largest city is Pristina, and other urban areas include Prizren, Pejë. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, the Republic of Macedonia to the southeast, Montenegro to the west, while Serbia recognises administration of the territory by Kosovos elected government, it still continues to claim it as its own Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. In antiquity, the Dardanian Kingdom, and later the Roman province of Dardania was located in the region, the area was inhabited by several ancient Illyrian tribes. In the Middle Ages, it was part of the Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian Empires, Kosovo was the core of the medieval Serbian state and it has been the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church from the 14th century when its status was upgraded into a patriarchate. After being part of the Ottoman Empire from the 15th to the early 20th century, the war ended with a military intervention of NATO, which forced the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to withdraw its troops from Kosovo, which became a UN protectorate under UNSCR1244. On 17 February 2008 Kosovos Parliament declared independence and it has since gained diplomatic recognition as a sovereign state by 111 UN member states, Taiwan, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, the Cook Islands and Niue. Serbia refuses to recognise Kosovo as a state, although with the Brussels Agreement of 2013 it has accepted the legitimacy of Kosovar institutions, the entire region is commonly referred to in English simply as Kosovo and in Albanian as Kosova or Kosovë. The name of the plain was applied to the Kosovo Province created in 1864, Albanians refer to Kosovo as Dardania, the name of a Roman province located in Central Balkans that was formed in 284 AD which covered the territory of modern Kosovo. The name is derived from the Albanian word dardha/dardā which means pear, the former Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova had been an enthusiastic backer of a Dardanian identity and the Kosovan flag and presidential seal refer to this national identity. However, the name Kosova remains more widely used among the Albanian population, the official conventional long name of the state is Republic of Kosovo, as defined by the Constitution of Kosovo, and is used to represent Kosovo internationally. This arrangement, which has dubbed the asterisk agreement, was agreed in an 11-point arrangement agreed on 24 February 2012. By the independence declaration in 2008, its long name became Republic of Kosovo. In prehistory, the succeeding Starčevo culture, Vinča culture, Bubanj-Hum culture, the area in and around Kosovo has been inhabited for nearly 10,000 years. During the Neolithic age, Kosovo lay within the area of the Vinča-Turdaş culture which is characterised by West Balkan black, bronze and Iron Age tombs have been found in Metohija. However, life during the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age is not confirmed yet, therefore, until arguments of Paleolithic and Mesolithic man are confirmed, Neolithic man, respectively the Neolithic sites are considered as the chronological beginning of population in Kosovo. From this period until today Kosovo has been inhabited, and traces of activities of societies from prehistoric, ancient, whereas, in some archaeological sites, multilayer settlements clearly reflect the continuity of life through centuries
10.
Metohija
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Metohija or Dukagjini ) is a large basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo. The region covers 35% of Kosovos total area, according to the 2011 census, the population of the region is 700,577. In Albanian the area is called Rrafshi i Dukagjinit and means the plateau of Dukagjin, the 1974 constitution dropped the term Metohija, and Kosovo became the official term for the province as a whole. The change was not accepted in Serbia, where the old name continued to be in use, Metohija is 23 km wide at its broadest point and about 60 km long, at an average altitude of 450 m above sea level. Its principal river is the White Drin, the geographic division between Metohija and eastern Kosovo causes differences between the two areas flora and fauna. Metohija has the characteristic influences of the Mediterranean, while eastern Kosovos ecology does not differ from Central Serbias, Metohija consists of fertile arable land with many small rivers which provide water for irrigation and, in combination with the Mediterranean climate, give excellent fields except for cereals. This area is known for its high-quality vineyards, fruit orchards. The geographical region of Metohija is further divided into four parts, Podgor, Prekoruplje, Reka, based on archaeology, the region of Kosovo and Metohija and the Morava Valley were interconnected in the Neolithic and Eneolithic. The Triballi of Morava entered Kosovo in two waves in the 8th and 7th centuries BC, then took part in the genesis of the Dardani, necropolises near Zhur suggest that the southwesternmost part of Metohija at the end of 6th century BC was subject to Illyrian influx. After the Roman conquests, the Metohija region was divided into Dardania, coinciding with the decline of the Roman Empire, many barbarian tribes passed through the Balkans, most of whom did not leave any lasting state. The Slavs, however, overwhelmed the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries, the Principality of Serbia included the city of Destinikon, which is mostly believed to have been in Metohija. The region was conquered by Bulgaria in the early 10th century, stefan Nemanja was recognized independent in 1190, most of Kosovo and Metohija were in Serbian hands. During the Fall of the Serbian Empire, the Branković family held most of the region of Metohija, Metohija was conquered by the Ottoman Empire and incorporated into the Vilayet of Kosovo after the fall of Serbia in 1459. The area was taken by the Kingdom of Montenegro in the 1912 First Balkan War except Prizren area, during the First World War, Montenegro was conquered by the Austro-Hungarian forces in 1915. The Central Powers were pushed out of Metohija by the Serbian Army in 1918, Montenegro subsequently joined the Kingdom of Serbia, which was followed by the formation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The Kingdom was reformed into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929, after Italys treaty with the Allies in 1943, the Germans took direct control over the region, supported by the local Albanian collaborationists. After numerous rebellions of Serb Chetniks and Yugoslav Partisans, Metohija was captured by Serb forces in 1944, in 1946, it became part of Serbias Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, within the transitional Democratic Federal Yugoslavia. On 17 February 2008, Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia, the country still considers Metohija part of its sovereign territory
11.
Western world
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The Western world or the West is a term usually referring to different nations, depending on the context, most often including at least part of Europe. There are many accepted definitions about what they all have in common, the Western world is also known as the Occident. The concept of the Western part of the earth has its roots in Greco-Roman civilization in Europe, before the Cold War era, the traditional Western viewpoint identified Western Civilization with the Western Christian countries and culture. Its political usage was changed by the antagonism during the Cold War in the mid-to-late 20th Century. The term originally had a literal geographic meaning, Western culture was influenced by many older great civilizations of the ancient Near East, such as Phoenicia, Minoan Crete, Sumer, Babylonia, and also Ancient Egypt. It originated in the Mediterranean basin and its vicinity, Greece, over time, their associated empires grew first to the east and west to include the rest of Mediterranean and Black Sea coastal areas, conquering and absorbing. Later, they expanded to the north of the Mediterranean Sea to include Western, Central, numerous times, this expansion was accompanied by Christian missionaries, who attempted to proselytize Christianity. There is debate among some as to whether Latin America is in a category of its own, specifically, Western culture may imply, a Biblical Christian cultural influence in spiritual thinking, customs and either ethic or moral traditions, around the Post-Classical Era and after. European cultural influences concerning artistic, musical, folkloric, ethic and oral traditions, the concept of Western culture is generally linked to the classical definition of the Western world. In this definition, Western culture is the set of literary, scientific, political, artistic, much of this set of traditions and knowledge is collected in the Western canon. The term has come to apply to countries whose history is marked by European immigration or settlement, such as the Americas, and Oceania. The geopolitical divisions in Europe that created a concept of East and West originated in the Roman Empire, Roman Catholic Western and Central Europe, as such, maintained a distinct identity particularly as it began to redevelop during the Renaissance. Even following the Protestant Reformation, Protestant Europe continued to see itself as more tied to Roman Catholic Europe than other parts of the civilized world. Use of the term West as a cultural and geopolitical term developed over the course of the Age of Exploration as Europe spread its culture to other parts of the world. Additionally, closer contacts between the West and Asia and other parts of the world in recent times have continued to cloud the use, herodotus considered the Persian Wars of the early 5th century BC a conflict of Europa versus Asia. The terms West and East were not used by any Greek author to describe that conflict, the Great Schism and the Fourth Crusade confirmed this deviation. The Renaissance in the West emerged partly from currents within the Roman Empire, Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a city-state founded on the Italian Peninsula about the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. In its 12-century existence, Roman civilization shifted from a monarchy, to a republic, nonetheless, despite its great legacy, a number of factors led to the eventual decline of the Roman Empire
12.
Byzantine Empire
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It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, several signal events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the period of transition during which the Roman Empires Greek East and Latin West divided. Constantine I reorganised the empire, made Constantinople the new capital, under Theodosius I, Christianity became the Empires official state religion and other religious practices were proscribed. Finally, under the reign of Heraclius, the Empires military, the borders of the Empire evolved significantly over its existence, as it went through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Maurice, the Empires eastern frontier was expanded, in a matter of years the Empire lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arabs. This battle opened the way for the Turks to settle in Anatolia, the Empire recovered again during the Komnenian restoration, such that by the 12th century Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city. Despite the eventual recovery of Constantinople in 1261, the Byzantine Empire remained only one of several small states in the area for the final two centuries of its existence. Its remaining territories were annexed by the Ottomans over the 15th century. The Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 finally ended the Byzantine Empire, the term comes from Byzantium, the name of the city of Constantinople before it became Constantines capital. This older name of the city would rarely be used from this point onward except in historical or poetic contexts. The publication in 1648 of the Byzantine du Louvre, and in 1680 of Du Canges Historia Byzantina further popularised the use of Byzantine among French authors, however, it was not until the mid-19th century that the term came into general use in the Western world. The Byzantine Empire was known to its inhabitants as the Roman Empire, the Empire of the Romans, Romania, the Roman Republic, Graikia, and also as Rhōmais. The inhabitants called themselves Romaioi and Graikoi, and even as late as the 19th century Greeks typically referred to modern Greek as Romaika and Graikika. The authority of the Byzantine emperor as the legitimate Roman emperor was challenged by the coronation of Charlemagne as Imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III in the year 800. No such distinction existed in the Islamic and Slavic worlds, where the Empire was more seen as the continuation of the Roman Empire. In the Islamic world, the Roman Empire was known primarily as Rûm, the Roman army succeeded in conquering many territories covering the entire Mediterranean region and coastal regions in southwestern Europe and north Africa. These territories were home to different cultural groups, both urban populations and rural populations. The West also suffered heavily from the instability of the 3rd century AD
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UNESCO
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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations based in Paris. It is the heir of the League of Nations International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation, UNESCO has 195 member states and nine associate members. Most of its offices are cluster offices covering three or more countries, national and regional offices also exist. UNESCO pursues its objectives through five major programs, education, natural sciences, social/human sciences, culture and it is also a member of the United Nations Development Group. UNESCO and its mandate for international cooperation can be traced back to a League of Nations resolution on 21 September 1921, on 18 December 1925, the International Bureau of Education began work as a non-governmental organization in the service of international educational development. However, the work of predecessor organizations was largely interrupted by the onset of World War II. On 30 October 1943, the necessity for an organization was expressed in the Moscow Declaration, agreed upon by China, the United Kingdom, the United States. This was followed by the Dumbarton Oaks Conference proposals of 9 October 1944, a prominent figure in the initiative for UNESCO was Rab Butler, the Minister of Education for the United Kingdom. At the ECO/CONF, the Constitution of UNESCO was introduced and signed by 37 countries, the Preparatory Commission operated between 16 November 1945, and 4 November 1946—the date when UNESCOs Constitution came into force with the deposit of the twentieth ratification by a member state. The first General Conference took place between 19 November to 10 December 1946, and elected Dr. Julian Huxley to Director-General and this change in governance distinguished UNESCO from its predecessor, the CICI, in how member states would work together in the organizations fields of competence. In 1956, the Republic of South Africa withdrew from UNESCO claiming that some of the organizations publications amounted to interference in the racial problems. South Africa rejoined the organization in 1994 under the leadership of Nelson Mandela, UNESCOs early work in the field of education included the pilot project on fundamental education in the Marbial Valley, Haiti, started in 1947. This project was followed by missions to other countries, including, for example. In 1948, UNESCO recommended that Member States should make free primary education compulsory, in 1990, the World Conference on Education for All, in Jomtien, Thailand, launched a global movement to provide basic education for all children, youths and adults. Ten years later, the 2000 World Education Forum held in Dakar, Senegal, UNESCOs early activities in culture included, for example, the Nubia Campaign, launched in 1960. The purpose of the campaign was to move the Great Temple of Abu Simbel to keep it from being swamped by the Nile after construction of the Aswan Dam, during the 20-year campaign,22 monuments and architectural complexes were relocated. This was the first and largest in a series of campaigns including Mohenjo-daro, Fes, Kathmandu, Borobudur, the organizations work on heritage led to the adoption, in 1972, of the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. The World Heritage Committee was established in 1976 and the first sites inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1978, since then important legal instruments on cultural heritage and diversity have been adopted by UNESCO member states in 2003 and 2005
14.
Studenica Monastery
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The Studenica Monastery is a 12th-century Serbian Orthodox monastery situated 39 kilometres southwest of Kraljevo and 40.9 kilometres east of Ivanjica, in central Serbia. It is one of the largest and richest Serb Orthodox monasteries, Stefan Nemanja, the founder of the medieval Serb state, founded the monastery in 1190. The monasterys fortified walls encompass two churches, the Church of the Virgin, and the Church of the King, both of which were using white marble. The monastery is best known for its collection of 13th- and 14th century Byzantine-style fresco paintings and it is the largest and richest of Serbias Orthodox monasteries. Its two principal monuments, the Church of the Virgin and the Church of the King, both built of marble, enshrine priceless collections of 13th- and 14th-century Byzantine painting. The monastery Studenica, dedicated to the Presentation of the Holy Virgin, is the mother-church of all Serbian temples and it was constructed over a quite long period of time. The first stage of works were completed by the spring of 1196, when he later left for Hilandar, his son and successor Stefan took over the care of Studenica. Nemanja died in Hilandar in 1199, Nemanjas third son Rastko, after reconciling with his brothers Stefan and Vukan, moved Nemanjas relics to Studenica. Under guardianship of Sava, Studenica became the political, cultural and spiritual center of ´medieval Serbia, Studenica enjoyed continual care by the members of the Nemanjić dynasty. King Radoslav added a splendid narthex to the church in 1235, King Milutin built a small but lovely church dedicated to saints Joachim and Anna. Since the fall of the last of the medieval Serbian states in 1459, the first of the significant restorations of the damage took place in 1569, when the frescoes in the Church of the Virgin were repainted. In the early 17th century, an earthquake and a fire befell the monastery, and historical documents, the Virgins Church is a domed single-nave basilica. At its eastern end there is an apse, while an extended narthex faces west, there are also vestibules on the north. In the 1230s, a large exonarthex was added, the facades were built with slabs of white marble, inside, the church is revetted with tuff blocks. Externally, the Church harmoniously reconciles two architectural styles, the Romanesque and the Byzantine, the blending of these two styles eventually produced a particular style of architecture known as the Raška School. Northwest of the Church of the Virgin there is the church of saints Joachim and Anna, the church was constructed in 1314, in the form of a compressed cross, with the exterior structure of an octagonal dome. It is built of stone and tuff, with plastered facades, the complex of the Studenica monastery includes the Church of St. Nicholas, a small single-nave church frescoed inside with works from the 12th or possibly early 13th centuries. Between the Church of St. Nicholas and the Kings Church are the foundations of the dedicated to St. John the Baptist
15.
Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Ras
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The Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, commonly known as Church of St. It is part of the Stari Ras complex, an UNESCO World Heritage Site and it is dedicated to Saint Peter and Paul. The exact date of founding is unknown, it is mentioned in the 9th century as the seat of the eparchy of Serbia, the findings are presently at the National Museum of Serbia, in Belgrade. Roman, Byzantine and medieval Slavic tombs surround the church, the present church has been built on several earlier churches of which remains have been well preserved. Archaeological findings point that the church has been several times in history, beginning in the 4th century. The architectural style resembles that of churches in Pomorje, Armenia, Georgia. The first Serbian bishopric was founded at the center at Ras. Ras itself originates from ancient Arsa, and it is mentioned as a Serbian town in Constantine VIIs De Administrando Imperio, the initial ecclessiastical affiliation is uncertain, it was subordinate to either Split or Durazzo, both then Byzantine. The church served as seat of the Serbian eparchy, as the plan is characteristic of first court chapels. Similarly, the Eparchy of Braničevo was founded in 878, Prince Petar, was entombed in the church. Christianity was spreading in his time, Prince Časlav may have added the frescoes, which are dated to the 10th century. Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes recognized the Ras region as being the focus of the Serbian lands, the Eparchy of Ras was organized into the newly established Archbishopric of Ohrid, amid the renewed annexation of the region, as part of a wider Byzantine-Slavic Orthodox area. In the chrysobulls of Emperor Basil II, dated 1020, the Eparchy of Ras is mentioned as serving the whole of Serbia, sometime before 1163, Stefan Nemanja, then only a Prince, was baptized in the church. Stefan Nemanja held the council that outlawed the Bogumils at the church, rastko left Serbia in 1192, for Mount Athos, where he took monastic vows and was given the name Sava. Stefan Nemanja abdicated in 1195, crowning Stefan Nemanjić at the Church of Peter, the father and son soon asked the Holy Community for the establishment of the Serbian religious base at the abandoned Hilandar, which they renovated, marking the beginning of cultural prospering. The ancient cell of Helandaris was donated by Emperor Alexios III Angelos to the Serbs as an eternal gift. and Stefan Nemanja establishes, Nemanja dies at Hilandar in 1199, while Sava continues his work in establishing the Serbian church. Henceforth, the Church of Peter ends its service as the seat of the Serbian church, in the same year he published the first constitution in Serbia – St. Savas Nomocanon. After the Nemanjić era, not much is mentioned about the church, the church frescoes date to the 10th, 12th and 13th centuries, while some frescoes were repainted in the mid-13th century
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Serbia in the Middle Ages
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Тhe medieval history of Serbia begins in the 6th century with the Slavic invasion of the Balkans, and lasts until the Ottoman occupation of 1540. Sclaveni raided and settled the western Balkans in the 6th and 7th century, through linguistical studies, it is concluded that the Early South Slavs were made up of a western and eastern branch, of parallel streams, roughly divided in the Timok–Osogovo–Šar line. The DAI drew information on the Serbs from, among others, the first capital was Ras, in Raška. The other Serb-inhabited lands that were mentioned included the countries of Paganija, Zahumlje and Travunija and these polities bordered Serbia to the north. The exact borders of the early Serbian state are unclear, the Serbian ruler was titled Prince of the Serbs. The DAI mentions that the Serbian throne is inherited by the son, i. e. the first-born, his descendants succeeded him, between 1043 and 1080, under Mihailo Vojislavljević, and his son, Constantine Bodin, Duklja saw its apogee. Mihailo was given the nominal title King of Slavs by the Pope after having left the Byzantine camp and supported a Slavic uprising in the Balkans, in which his son Bodin played a central part. Having incorporated the Serbian hinterland and installed vassal rulers there, this maritime principality emerged as the most powerful Serb polity, between 1113 and 1149 Duklja was the centre of Serbian–Byzantine conflict, with members of the Vojislavljević as protégés of either fighting each other for power. The Serbian Grand Principality, also known as Rascia, was founded in 1090, when Bodin had died, Rascia became the strongest entity, in which the Serbian realm would be seated, in hands of the Vukanović dynasty. Uroš I, the son of Vukan, ruled Serbia when the Byzantines invaded Duklja, and Rascia would be next in line, Uroš II initially fought the Byzantines, but after a defeat soon gives oaths of servitude to the Emperor. Desa, the brother of Uroš II and an initial Byzantine ally, turned to Hungarian support, but was deposed in 1163, Stefan Nemanja was succeeded by his middle son Stefan, while his first-born son Vukan was given the rule of the Zeta region. Stefan Nemanjas youngest son Rastko became a monk, turning all his efforts to spread religion among his people, since the Catholic Church already had ambitions to spread its influence to the Balkans as well, Stefan took advantage and obtained the royal crown from the Pope in 1217. In Byzantium, Sava managed to secure autocephaly for the Serbian Church, in the same year Sava issued the first constitution in Serbia, the Zakonopravilo. Thus the medieval Serbian state acquired both forms of independence, political and religious, the next generation of Serbian rulers, the sons of King Stefan, Stefan Radoslav, Stefan Vladislav and Stefan Uroš I, marked a period of stagnation of the state structure. All three kings were more or less dependent on some of the neighbouring states—Byzantium, Bulgaria or Hungary, the ties with the Hungarians played a decisive role in the fact that Uroš I was succeeded by his son Stefan Dragutin, whose wife was a Hungarian princess. Thus, some of these became part of the Serbian state for the first time. His new state was named Kingdom of Srem, in that time the name Srem was a designation for two territories, Upper Srem and Lower Srem. Kingdom of Srem under the rule of Stefan Dragutin was actually Lower Srem, after Dragutin died, the new ruler of the Kingdom of Srem became his son, king Vladislav II, who ruled this state until 1325
17.
Procopius
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Procopius of Caesarea was a prominent late antique scholar from Palaestina Prima. He is commonly held to be the last major historian of the ancient Western world, apart from his own writings, the main source for Procopius life is an entry in the Suda, a Byzantine encyclopaedia, written sometime after 975, which tells everything about his early life. He was a native of Caesarea in the Roman Province Palaestina Prima and he evidently knew Latin, as was natural for a man with legal training. In 527, the first year of Eastern Roman Emperor Justinians reign, he became the adsessor for Belisarius, Procopius was with Belisarius on the eastern front until the latter was defeated at the Battle of Callinicum in 531 and recalled to Constantinople. Procopius witnessed the Nika riots of January,532, which Belisarius, Procopius recorded a few of the extreme weather events of 535–536, although these were presented as a backdrop to Roman military activities, such as a mutiny, in and near Carthage. He rejoined Belisarius for his campaign against the Ostrogothic kingdom in Italy and experienced the Gothic siege of Rome that lasted a year and nine days and he witnessed Belisarius entry into the Gothic capital, Ravenna, in 540. Book Eight of the Wars of Justinian, and the Secret History, suggest that his relationship with Belisarius seems to have cooled thereafter. When Belisarius was sent back to Italy in 544 to cope with a renewal of the war with the Goths, now led by the able king Totila, Procopius appears to have no longer been on Belisarius staff. As magister militum, Belisarius was a vir illustris, and Procopius, as his adsessor, must and he thus belonged to the middle-ranking group of the ordo senatorius. However, the Suda, which is well informed in such matters. Should this information be correct, then Procopius had a seat in the senate of Constantinople and it is not known when Procopius himself died, and many historians date his death to 554, but in 562 there was an urban prefect of Constantinople who happened to be called Procopius. In that year, Belisarius was implicated in a conspiracy and was brought before this urban prefect, the writings of Procopius are the primary source of information for the rule of the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian. Procopius Wars of Justinian is clearly his most important work, although it is not as known as the Secret History. The first two deal with the conflict between the Romans and Sassanid Persia in Mesopotamia, Syria, Armenia, Lazica and Caucasian Iberia. They also cover the early career of the Roman general Belisarius, Procopius patron, the next two books, the Vandal War, cover Belisarius successful campaign against the Vandal kingdom in Roman Africa. The remaining books cover the Gothic War, the campaigns by Belisarius and others to recapture Italy and this includes accounts of the sieges of Naples and Rome. Later, Procopius added a book, which brings the history to 552/553. This eighth book covers both in Italy and on the Eastern frontier
18.
Dardania (Roman province)
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Dardania was a Roman province in the Central Balkans, initially an unofficial region in Moesia, then a province administratively part of the Diocese of Moesia. It was named after the ancient tribe of Dardani which inhabited the region prior to the Roman conquests in the 2nd and it is debated in scholarship whether the Dardani, after whom the region was named, were an Illyrian or Thracian people. It has been suggested that the region was populated by Thracians who then came into contact with Illyrians over a long time period. Celts were present in Dardania in 279 BC, in 179 BC, the Bastarnae conquered the Dardani, who later in 174 pushed them out, in a war which proved catastrophic, with a few years later, in 170 BC, the Macedonians defeating the Dardani. Macedonia and Illyria became Roman protectorates in 168 BC, the Scordisci, a tribe of Celtic origin, most likely subdued the Dardani in the mid-2nd century BC, after which there are for long no mention of the Dardani. In 97 BC the Dardani are mentioned again, defeated by the Macedonian Roman army, Dardanian slaves or freedmen at the time of the Roman conquest were clearly of Paleo-Balkan origin, according to their personal names, noted as being mostly of the Central-Dalmatian type. After the Roman conquest, the pre-Roman Dardania eventually was organized into the Moesia province, during the reign of Domitian, in 86, Moesia was subdivided into Upper and Lower Moesia. The old name of Dardania was used for a new part of Moesia Superior. Ptolemy calls Dardania a special district of Moesia Superior, the Diocese of Moesia was a diocese established by Emperor Diocletian. During his reign, the diocese included 11 provinces, one of which was Dardania, Dardania and Moesia Prima were established by dividing them from Moesia Superior, probably under Diocletian. During or likely after emperor Constantine I, Dacia Mediterranea was created out of parts of Dardania, little is known regarding Christianity in the Balkans in the three first centuries AD. Bishop Dacus of Macedonia, from Dardania, was present at the First Council of Nicaea, according to the Expositio totius mundi, Dardania supplied Macedonia with cheese and lard. The main centres of Roman Dardania were Scupi, Naissus and Ulpiana, at the time of Moesia Superior, the towns in Dardania included Scupi, Naissus, Ulpiana, Therranda, Vicianum, Vindenis and Velanis. The Romans occupied Naissos in the period of the Dardanian War, the city, because of its strategic position developed as an important garrison and market town of Moesia Superior. The Romans also founded a town named municipium Dardanicum. The area remained part of the Eastern Roman, Byzantine Empire, procopius used the old Roman provinces to describe the geography of the Balkans. According to Buildings of Justinian IV, there were 8 new and 61 restored fortifications in Dardania, Dardania was a region in which Justinians restoration process was predominant. In 518 an earthquake devastated Dardania, followed by famine that killed much of the population, slavs overwhelmed the Balkans in the 6th century
19.
Justinian I
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Justinian I, traditionally known as Justinian the Great and also Saint Justinian the Great in the Eastern Orthodox Church, was a Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the empires greatness, because of his restoration activities, Justinian has sometimes been called the last Roman in modern historiography. This ambition was expressed by the recovery of the territories of the defunct western Roman Empire. His general, Belisarius, swiftly conquered the Vandal kingdom in North Africa, the prefect Liberius reclaimed the south of the Iberian peninsula, establishing the province of Spania. These campaigns re-established Roman control over the western Mediterranean, increasing the Empires annual revenue by over a million solidi, during his reign Justinian also subdued the Tzani, a people on the east coast of the Black Sea that had never been under Roman rule before. A still more resonant aspect of his legacy was the rewriting of Roman law, the Corpus Juris Civilis. His reign also marked a blossoming of Byzantine culture, and his building program yielded such masterpieces as the church of Hagia Sophia, a devastating outbreak of bubonic plague in the early 540s marked the end of an age of splendour. Justinian was born in Tauresium around 482, a native speaker of Latin, he came from a peasant family believed to have been of Illyro-Roman or Thraco-Roman origins. The cognomen Iustinianus, which he later, is indicative of adoption by his uncle Justin. During his reign, he founded Justiniana Prima not far from his birthplace and his mother was Vigilantia, the sister of Justin. Justin, who was in the guard before he became emperor, adopted Justinian, brought him to Constantinople. As a result, Justinian was well educated in jurisprudence, theology, Justinian served for some time with the Excubitors but the details of his early career are unknown. Chronicler John Malalas, who lived during the reign of Justinian, tells of his appearance that he was short, fair skinned, curly haired, round faced, another contemporary chronicler, Procopius, compares Justinians appearance to that of tyrannical Emperor Domitian, although this is probably slander. When Emperor Anastasius died in 518, Justin was proclaimed the new emperor, during Justins reign, Justinian was the emperors close confidant. As Justin became senile near the end of his reign, Justinian became the de facto ruler, Justinian was appointed consul in 521 and later commander of the army of the east. Upon Justins death on 1 August 527, Justinian became the sole sovereign, as a ruler, Justinian showed great energy. He was known as the emperor who never sleeps on account of his work habits, nevertheless, he seems to have been amiable and easy to approach. Around 525, he married his mistress, Theodora, in Constantinople and she was by profession a courtesan and some twenty years his junior
20.
Slavs
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Slavs are the largest Indo-European ethno-linguistic group in Europe. They are native to Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeastern Europe, Northeastern Europe, North Asia, Slavs speak Slavic languages of the Balto-Slavic language group. From the early 6th century they spread to inhabit most of Central, states with Slavic languages comprise over 50% of the territory of Europe, therefore it is the largest ethno-linguistic group in Europe by land area. Present-day Slavic people are classified into West Slavs, East Slavs, there are an estimated 360 million Slavs worldwide. The Slavic autonym is reconstructed in Proto-Slavic as *Slověninъ, plural *Slověne, the oldest documents written in Old Church Slavonic and dating from the 9th century attest the autonym as Slověne. The word slovo and the related slava and slukh originate from the Proto-Indo-European root *ḱlew-, cognate with Ancient Greek κλῆς, whence comes the name Pericles, Latin clueo, some other theories have limited support. The English term slave eventually derives from the ethnonym Slav, Slavs were captured and enslaved by the Muslims of Spain during the ninth century AD. The Slavs under name of the Antes and the Sclaveni make their first appearance in Byzantine records in the early 6th century. Procopius wrote in 545 that the Sclaveni and the Antae actually had a name in the remote past. He described them as barbarians, who lived under democracy, and that believe in one god. They lived in scattered housing, and constantly changed settlement, regarding warfare, they were mainly foot soldiers with small shields and battleaxes, lightly clothed, some entering battle naked with only their genitals covered. And they live a life, giving no heed to bodily comforts. Jordanes described the Sclaveni having swamps and forests for their cities, another 6th-century source refers to them living among nearly impenetrable forests, rivers, lakes, and marshes. Menander Protector mentions a Daurentius that slew an Avar envoy of Khagan Bayan I. The Avars asked the Slavs to accept the suzerainty of the Avars, he declined and is reported as saying, Others do not conquer our land. The relationship between the Slavs and a called the Veneti east of the River Vistula in the Roman period is uncertain. The name may refer both to Balts and Slavs, perhaps some Slavs migrated with the movement of the Vandals to Iberia and north Africa. Around the 6th century, Slavs appeared on Byzantine borders in great numbers, the Byzantine records note that grass would not regrow in places where the Slavs had marched through, so great were their numbers
21.
Serbs
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The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group that formed in the Balkans. The majority of Serbs inhabit the state of Serbia, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina. They form significant minorities in Croatia, Macedonia and Slovenia, there is a large Serb diaspora in Western Europe, and outside Europe there are significant communities in North America and Australia. The Serbs share many traits with the rest of the peoples of Southeast Europe. They are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians by religion, the Serbian language is official in Serbia, co-official in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and is spoken by the majority in Montenegro. The modern identity of Serbs is rooted in Eastern Orthodoxy and traditions, in the 19th century, the Serbian national identity was manifested, with awareness of history and tradition, medieval heritage, cultural unity, despite living under different empires. When the Principality of Serbia gained independence from the Ottoman Empire, Orthodoxy became crucial in defining the national identity, instead of language which was shared by other South Slavs. The tradition of slava, the family saint feast day, is an important ethnic marker of Serb identity, the origin of the ethnonym is unclear. Serbia has among the tallest people in the world, after Montenegro and Netherlands, Slavs invaded and settled the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries. Up until the late 560s their activity was raiding, crossing from the Danube, the Danube and Sava frontier was overwhelmed by large-scale Slavic settlement in the late 6th and early 7th century. What is today central Serbia was an important geo-strategical province, through which the Via Militaris crossed and this area was frequently intruded by barbarians in the 5th and 6th centuries. The numerous Slavs mixed with and assimilated the descendants of the indigenous population, numerous small Serbian states were created, located in modern Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia. With the decline of the Serbian state of Duklja in the late 11th century, Raška separated from it, prince Stefan Nemanja conquered the neighbouring territories of Kosovo, Duklja and Zachlumia. The Nemanjić dynasty ruled over Serbia until the 14th century, over the next 140 years, Serbia expanded its borders. Its cultural model remained Byzantine, despite political ambitions directed against the empire, the medieval power and influence of Serbia culminated in the reign of Stefan Dušan, who ruled the state from 1331 until his death in 1355. Ruling as Emperor from 1346, his territory included Macedonia, northern Greece, Montenegro, when Dušan died, his son Stephen Uroš V became Emperor. With the death of two important Serb leaders in the battle, and with the death of Stephen Uroš that same year, hrebeljanović was subsequently accepted as the titular leader of the Serbs because he was married to a member of the Nemanjić dynasty. In 1389, the Serbs faced the Ottomans at the Battle of Kosovo on the plain of Kosovo Polje, both Lazar and Sultan Murad I were killed in the fighting
22.
First Bulgarian Empire
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The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state that existed in southeastern Europe between the 7th and 11th centuries AD. It was founded circa 681 when Bulgar tribes led by Asparukh moved to the north-eastern Balkans, there they secured Byzantine recognition of their right to settle south of the Danube by defeating – possibly with the help of local South Slavic tribes – the Byzantine army led by Constantine IV. At the height of its power, Bulgaria spread from the Danube Bend to the Black Sea, as the state solidified its position in the Balkans, it entered into a centuries-long interaction, sometimes friendly and sometimes hostile, with the Byzantine Empire. Bulgaria emerged as Byzantiums chief antagonist to its north, resulting in several wars, Byzantium had a strong cultural influence on Bulgaria, which also led to the eventual adoption of Christianity in 864. After the disintegration of the Avar Khaganate, the country expanded its territory northwest to the Pannonian Plain, later the Bulgarians confronted the advance of the Pechenegs and Cumans, and achieved a decisive victory over the Magyars, forcing them to establish themselves permanently in Pannonia. During the late 9th and early 10th centuries, Simeon I achieved a string of victories over the Byzantines, thereafter, he was recognized with the title of Emperor, and proceeded to expand the state to its greatest extent. After the annihilation of the Byzantine army in the battle of Anchialus in 917, the Byzantines, however, eventually recovered, and in 1014, under Basil II, inflicted a crushing defeat on the Bulgarians at the Battle of Kleidion. By 1018, the last Bulgarian strongholds had surrendered to the Byzantine Empire, and it was succeeded by the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1185. After the adoption of Christianity, Bulgaria became the center of Slavic Europe. Old Bulgarian became the lingua franca of much of Eastern Europe, in 927, the fully independent Bulgarian Patriarchate was officially recognized. The Bulgars and other tribes in the empire gradually adopted an essentially foreign Slavic language. Since the late 9th century, the names Bulgarians and Bulgarian gained prevalence and became permanent designations for the local population, the First Bulgarian Empire became known simply as Bulgaria since its recognition by the Byzantine Empire in 681. Some historians use the terms Danube Bulgaria, First Bulgarian State, during its early existence, the country was also called the Bulgar state or Bulgar qaghanate. Between 864 and 917/927, the country was known as the Principality of Bulgaria or Knyazhestvo Bulgaria, in English language sources, the country is often known as the Bulgarian Empire. The eastern Balkan Peninsula was originally inhabited by the Thracians who were a group of Proto-Indo-European tribes, the whole region as far north as the Danube River was gradually incorporated into the Roman Empire by the 1st century AD. The decline of the Roman Empire after the 3rd century AD, nonetheless, it never relinquished the claim to the whole region up to the Danube. A series of administrative, legislative, military and economic reforms somewhat improved the situation, the group of Slavs that came to be known as the South Slavs was divided into Antes and Sclaveni who spoke the same language. The Slavic incursions in the Balkans increased during the half of Justinian Is reign and while these were initially pillaging raids
23.
John I Tzimiskes
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John I Tzimiskes was the senior Byzantine Emperor from 11 December 969 to 10 January 976. An intuitive and successful general, he strengthened the Empire and expanded its borders during his short reign, John I Tzimiskes was born into the Kourkouas clan, a family of Armenian origin. Scholars have speculated that his nickname Tzimiskes was derived either from the Armenian Chmushkik, meaning red boot, or from an Armenian word for short stature. A more favorable explanation is offered by the medieval Armenian historian Matthew of Edessa, Khozan was located in the region of Paghnatun, in the Byzantine province of Fourth Armenia. Tzimiskes was born sometime in 925 to a member of the Kourkouas family. Both the Kourkouai and the Phokadai were distinguished Cappadocian families, several of their members had served as prominent army generals, most notably the great John Kourkouas, who conquered Melitene and much of Armenia. Contemporary sources describe Tzimiskes as a short but well-built man, with reddish blonde hair and beard. He seems to have joined the army at an early age, the latter is also considered his instructor in the art of war. Partly because of his connections and partly because of his personal abilities, Tzimiskes quickly rose through the ranks. He was given the political and military command of the theme of Armenia before he turned twenty-five years old and his marriage to Maria Skleraina, daughter of Pantherios Skleros and sister of Bardas Skleros, linked him to the influential family of the Skleroi. Little is known about her, she died before his rise to the throne, the contemporary historian Leo the Deacon remarks that she excelled in both beauty and wisdom. The Byzantine Empire was at war with its neighbors, the various autonomous and semi-autonomous emirates emerging from the break-up of the Abbasid Caliphate. The most prominent among them was the Hamdanid Emirate of Aleppo, Armenia served as the borderland between the two Empires, and Tzimiskes successfully defended his province. He and his troops joined the part of the army. Nikephoros justified his name with a series of victories, moving the borders further east with the capture of about 60 border cities including Aleppo, by 962 the Hamdanids had sued for peace with favorable terms for the Byzantines, securing the eastern border of the Empire for some years. Tzimiskes distinguished himself during the war both at the side of his uncle and at leading parts of the army to battle under his personal command and he was rather popular with his troops and gained a reputation for taking the initiative during battles, turning their course. On the death of Emperor Romanos II in 963, Tzimiskes urged his uncle to seize the throne, to solidify his position, Tzimiskes married Theodora, a daughter of Emperor Constantine VII. He proceeded to justify his usurpation by repelling the invaders of the Empire
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Catepanate of Ras
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The Catepanate of Ras Greek, κατεπανίκιον Σερβλίας) was a Byzantine province established between 971–976 in Serbia, during the rule of John Tzimiskes. The name of the Catepanate was derived from the name of the town of Ras in the Serbian region of or lat. The earliest possible date of its creation is 971, when victorious Byzantine armies conquered Bulgaria, one of the newly formed administrative units was the Catepanate of Ras. The Catepanate was established as a Byzantine stronghold in Serbian lands, the sole primary source for the organization of the Catepanate is seal of a strategos of Ras, dated to the time of emperor John reign. The seal belonged to protospatharios and katepano of Ras named John, who is the only known holder of the office of Catepan of Ras
25.
Archbishopric of Ohrid
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The Archbishopric of Ohrid was an autonomous Orthodox Church under the tutelage of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople between 1019 and 1767. It was established following the Byzantine conquest of the First Bulgarian Empire in 1018 by lowering the rank of the autocephalous Bulgarian Patriarchate due to its subjugation to Constantinople, in 972, Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimisces conquered and burned down Preslav, capturing the Bulgarian Tsar Boris II. The Patriarch Damyan managed to escape, initially to Sredets, thus, the next Patriarch German resided consecutively in Moglen, Voden and Prespa. Around 990, the last patriarch, Philip, moved to Ohrid, the Archbishopric of Ohrid was a Byzantine resurrection of the Archbishopric of Justiniana Prima. After 1018 it was the church of the Byzantine Slavs, Bulgarians, although the first appointed archbishop was a Bulgarian, his successors, as well as the whole higher clergy, were invariably Greeks, the most famous of them being Saint Theophylact of Bulgaria. The Archbishops were chosen from among the monks in Constantinople, adrian Komnenos, under his monastic name of John, was the cousin of Emperor John II Komnenos, and was the first Archbishop who held the title of Archbishop of Justniana Prima. The later archbishop John V Kamateros was a former imperial clerk, after 1204, the Empire of Nicaea claimed the Byzantine imperial heritage and provided the refuge of the Greek patriarchs of Constantinople in exile. In the newly founded Second Bulgarian Empire, a new Archbishopric was founded with its see in Tarnovo, Tsar Kaloyan did not succeed in putting the Ohrid Archbishopric under the jurisdiction of the Tarnovo Archbishopric. Nevertheless, he managed to expel Greek bishops and install Bulgarians instead, the next Bulgarian rulers were constantly trying to make the Ohrid Archbishopric inferior to the Tarnovo Archbishopric. The Latin conquests and the founding of independent Bulgarian and the Serbian states reduced the jurisdiction of the Ohrid Archbishopric immensely, the southward expansion of the Serbian state reached its apogee at the time of tsar Stefan Dushan. The year when Stephan Dushan occupied Ohrid was around 1334, under Serbian rule Archbishopric of Ohrid kept its autonomy. On April 16,1346 in Serbian capital city of Skopje a joined state, the assembly proclaimed the raising of the autocephalous Serbian Archbishopric to the rank of Patriarchate. The Archbishopric of Ohrid was not annexed to the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć and kept its autonomy, Archbishopric of Ohrid managed to survive the transition and was legalized by new Ottoman authorities. Not long after the fall of the Bulgarian Patriarchate in 1394, thus, in the beginning of the 15th century, the Archbishop of Ohrid, attached the dioceses of Sofia and Vidin to the Archbishopric. In 1408, Ohrid was under Turkish rule, still, the Turks did not reach after the Ohrid Archbishopric, mostly because of their tolerance for monotheistic religions and left the people to govern themselves regarding religion. During the 15th century, dioceses from the side of the Danube, from the Dukedoms of Wallachia and Moldova. Nevertheless, this did not last for more than a hundred years, towards the beginning of the 16th century, the Ohrid Archbishopric expanded its jurisdiction even over territories in Southern Italy, as well as in Dalmatia. The flock of this diocese was made of Greeks and Albanians, since then and until its abolishment in 1767, the Archbishopric neither lost nor gained a diocese under its jurisdiction
26.
Early Christianity
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Early Christianity is the period of Christianity preceding the First Council of Nicaea in 325. It is typically divided into the Apostolic Age and the Ante-Nicene Period, the early Gospel message was spread orally, probably in Aramaic, but almost immediately also in Greek. After the conversion of Paul the Apostle, he claimed the title of Apostle to the Gentiles, Pauls influence on Christian thinking is said to be more significant than that of any other New Testament author. As the New Testament canon developed, the Pauline epistles, the canonical gospels, Early Christians demonstrated a wide range of beliefs and practices, many of which were later denounced as heretical. The earliest followers of Jesus composed an apocalyptic, Second Temple Jewish sect, the first part of the period, during the lifetimes of the Twelve Apostles, is called the Apostolic Age. The relationship of Paul the Apostle and Judaism is still disputed although Pauls influence on Christian thinking is said to be more significant than any other New Testament author and they think the Christians the cause of every public disaster, of every affliction with which the people are visited. The first action taken against Christians by the order of an emperor occurred half a century earlier under Nero after the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD. During the Ante-Nicene Period following the Apostolic Age, a diversity of views emerged simultaneously with strong unifying characteristics lacking in the apostolic period. Part of the trend was an increasingly harsh anti-Judaism and rejection of Judaizers. Early Christianity gradually grew apart from Judaism during the first two centuries and established itself as a predominantly gentile religion in the Roman Empire. From the writings of early Christians, historians have tried to piece together an understanding of various early Christian practices including worship services, customs, Early Christian writers such as Justin Martyr described these practices. Early Christian beliefs regarding baptism probably predate the New Testament writings and it seems certain that numerous Jewish sects and certainly Jesuss disciples practised baptism, which became integral to nearly every manifestation of the religion of the Jews. John the Baptist had baptized many people, before took place in the name of Jesus Christ. Many of the interpretations that would later become Orthodox Christian beliefs concerning baptism can be traced to such as Paul. On the basis of this description, it was supposed by some modern theologians that the early Christians practised baptism by submersion and this interpretation is debated between those Christian denominations who advocate immersion baptism exclusively and those who practice baptism by affusion or aspersion as well as by immersion. Yet the Didache, one of the earliest Christian writings on liturgical practices, the Orthodox Church continues this practice, submerging the baptized and then pouring water on the head in that formula. Infant baptism was practised at least by the 3rd century. Others believe that infants were excluded from the baptism of households, citing verses of the Bible that describe the baptized households as believing, in the 2nd century, Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, may have referred to it
27.
Petar of Serbia
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Petar Gojniković or Peter of Serbia was Prince of the Serbs from 892 to 917. He ruled and expanded the First Serbian Principality, and won wars against other family members that sought the crown. He was the first Serbian monarch with a Christian name, Petar was the son of Gojnik, the youngest son of Vlastimir of the first Serbian dynasty. Petar was born between 870 and 874, as the son of the Prince Gojnik, the youngest son of founding father Vlastimir. His Byzantine Christian name, in relation to the generation of pagan names. At the time of his birth, Serbia was ruled as an Oligarchy of the three brothers Mutimir, Gojnik and Strojimir, although Mutimir, the oldest, had supreme rule. In the 880s, Mutimir seized the throne, exiling his brothers and Klonimir, Strojimirs son to the Bulgarian Khanate. This was most likely due to treachery, young Petar was kept at the Serbian court of Mutimir for political reasons, but he soon fled to Branimir of Croatia. Mutimir died in 890 or 891, leaving the throne to his oldest son, Pribislav only ruled for a year when Petar returned in 892, defeating him in battle and seizing the throne, Pribislav fled to Croatia with his brothers Bran and Stefan. Bran later returned and led a rebellion against Petar in 894. Bran was defeated, captured and blinded, in 896, Klonimir returned from Bulgaria, backed by Tsar Boris, and invaded Serbia, taking the important stronghold Dostinika. After several failures to capture the throne by other Vlastimirovićs, including the one backed by the Bulgarians and he was put under the protection of Simeon I, resulting in a twenty-year peace and Serbian-Bulgarian alliance. Christianity presumably was spreading in his time, also since Serbia bordered Bulgaria, Christian influences and this would increase in the twenty-year peace. According to De Administrando Imperio, Constantine VIIs own work, Petar ruled under the suzerainty of Leo VI, on May 11,912, Byzantine Emperor Leo VI the Wise dies, his brother Alexander III succeeds him. The unpopular, inexperienced, ill and possibly drunk Emperor Alexander ruled until his death on June 6,913 and this was ideal to Symeon, who had his troops waiting in Thrace, to attack Byzantium. In August 913, Symeon appeared at the walls of Constantinople, seeking no plundering, Symeon had, in contrast to Tsar Boris, been schooled in Constantinople and had the Byzantine ideology, and wanted to rule a joint Roman-Bulgarian Empire as Roman Emperor. Patriarch Nicholas Mystikos recognized Symeon as Emperor of Bulgaria, and married his daughter to Constantine VII. In February 914, Zoe Karbonopsina, the mother of Constantine, quickly ousted Nicholas as regent, zoes acts enraged Symeon, who went on to conquer Thrace
28.
Tourism in Serbia
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Tourism in Serbia is officially recognized as a primary area for economic and social growth. The tourism accounted for approximately 6% of GDP in 2015, Tourism in Serbia employs some 75,000 people, about 3% of the countrys workforce. In recent years Serbia recorded a significant increase in the number of foreign tourists, major tourist destinations include cities and ethno-villages, ski resorts, spas and health resorts, nature parks and reserves, archaeological sites, religious architecture and music festivals. The confluence of Sava and Danube is the site of Kalemegdan Park, River banks never sleep, on boat restaurants and cafes visitors can have a cup of coffee, eat a fish speciality, listen to music and have fun. Zemun is romantic and poetic with narrow cobblestoned streets, promenade by the Danube, barges-cafés, new epicenter of urban culture, entertainment and lifestyle is Savamala, with trendy restaurants, clubs, bars, galleries. Novi Sad The City of Novi Sad is located on the Danube and it boasts the 17th-century Petrovaradin Fortress, the appealing old city center, numerous museums, the Novi Sad Fair, and many festivals and events. The Petrovaradin Fortress, covering an area of 122ha, built in the 17th and 18th centuries, located within the fortress are the Museum of the City of Novi Sad, the Academy of the Arts, the Observatory as well as the City Archives. The EXIT Music Festival takes place here yearly, the architecture of the city represents a mixture of several different styles. The oldest house “At the White Lion” was built in long ago 1740, Fruška Gora with its national park of about 25. Niš The city of Niš, in the southeast of Serbia, is one of the oldest cities in Europe and has long been an important bridge between East and West, two millennia ago, it was used as a link between modern-day Belgrade and Istanbul. In a historical sense, it is most famous for being the birthplace of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great and it is a city with a chaotic history spanning several centuries – much of it dark, but undeniably historically significant. Nis is a city to learn about Serbia’s history, and is a good home base from which to see some of the country’s best ancient ruins. In the heart of the city is the Nis Fortress and this 18th century construction is situated along the shore of the Nišava River, atop the ruins of the ancient Roman military camp, Naissus. The fortress was built during Turkish rule as was regarded as one of the most beautiful buildings in the Balkans, the Nis Fortress was used as an armory, hammam, and prison. Much of the building is still standing. It is an attraction where people are welcome to stroll the paths. Inside there are restaurants, ice cream vendors, and stages where the programs of Nišville Jazz Festival are held each year in August. The bohemian quarter of Nis is Kazandžijsko sokatče, which means “Tinkers Alley” or “Coppersmith Alley, ” is situated in the old town, today it forms a pedestrian-friendly zone of restaurants and kafanas
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Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts
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The Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts is a national academy and the most prominent academic institution in Serbia, founded in 1841. The Serbian Royal Academy of Sciences was led by members, such as Jovan Cvijić, since the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts was founded by law of 1 November 1886, it has been the highest academic institution in Serbia. According to the Royal Academy Founding Act, King Milan was to appoint the first academic, the names of the first academics were announced by King Milan on 5 April 1887. At that time, there existed four sections in the academy, from 1909 till 1952 Serbian Academy of Science and Arts Building was located at 15 Brankova Street. Unfortunately, this building was demolished in 1963, after that the Academy was moved to 35 Knez Mihailova Street, in a magnificent building in the city centre, where it has remained up to now. In the following years SRA considered various ways of forming funds, affirmed architect of domestic architecture Кonstantin Jovanović was hired to make the design in 1900. At the same time, with the attempts to obtain the adequate design, dealing with the problem of permanent location, in 1908 SRA got to use the space in the building of Sima Igumanović endowment at 15 Brankova Street. After more than two decades of attempting to obtain its own building, the Presidency of SRA, by the end of 1910 decided to entrust the design to Dragutin Đorđević and Andra Stevanović. The cornerstone was laid on 27 March 1914, by the Crown Prince Аleksandar Karađorđević in the presence of the academics, the construction works were assigned to the Matija Blehs company, whereas the facade plastics and sculptural program were done by Jungmann and Sunko. However, the construction was interrupted by the beginning of the First World War, the object was finished in 1924, but due to high construction expenses, SRA failed to move into its new building, instead of that, the entire object was rented. Large sized building, which takes over the plot, was designed with the apartments and stores for rent. The architectural plastic in the shape of floral arabesques, garlands and Art Nouveau masks, one of those female sculptures is holding a torch in her hand, and the other one a pigeon. SRA was in the building in Brankova Street when the Second World War ended. The creation of the entrance from Knez Mihailova Street and designing of the access to the conference contributed to the realization of the representative space. According to the new concept, Samojlov designed the exterior in the academic style with purified geometrized decorative repertoire. At the same time, the Congress hall was adapted, gaining the gallery, the building was officially and solemnly opened on 24 February 1952, when the Academy finally and permanently moved in into the building. In 1967, Samojlov did the design for the adaptation of the gallery on the corner of Knez Mihailova, perfectly composed interior left room for additional improvement during the next couple of years, so that until today it has been enriched by our eminent artists. Taking into consideration the undeniable values and the importance, it was designated as a monument in 1992
30.
Google Books
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Books are provided either by publishers and authors, through the Google Books Partner Program, or by Googles library partners, through the Library Project. Additionally, Google has partnered with a number of publishers to digitize their archives. The Publisher Program was first known as Google Print when it was introduced at the Frankfurt Book Fair in October 2004, the Google Books Library Project, which scans works in the collections of library partners and adds them to the digital inventory, was announced in December 2004. But it has also criticized for potential copyright violations. As of October 2015, the number of scanned book titles was over 25 million, Google estimated in 2010 that there were about 130 million distinct titles in the world, and stated that it intended to scan all of them. Results from Google Books show up in both the universal Google Search as well as in the dedicated Google Books search website, if Google believes the book is still under copyright, a user sees snippets of text around the queried search terms. All instances of the terms in the book text appear with a yellow highlight. The four access levels used on Google Books are, Full view, Books in the domain are available for full view. In-print books acquired through the Partner Program are also available for full view if the publisher has given permission, usually, the publisher can set the percentage of the book available for preview. Users are restricted from copying, downloading or printing book previews, a watermark reading Copyrighted material appears at the bottom of pages. All books acquired through the Partner Program are available for preview and this could be because Google cannot identify the owner or the owner declined permission. If a search term appears many times in a book, Google displays no more than three snippets, thus preventing the user from viewing too much of the book. Also, Google does not display any snippets for certain reference books, such as dictionaries, Google maintains that no permission is required under copyright law to display the snippet view. No preview, Google also displays search results for books that have not been digitized, in effect, this is similar to an online library card catalog. Google also stated that it would not scan any in-copyright books between August and 1 November 2005, to provide the owners with the opportunity to decide which books to exclude from the Project. It can let Google scan the book under the Library Project and it can opt out of the Library Project, in which case Google will not scan the book. If the book has already been scanned, Google will reset its access level as No preview and this information is collated through automated methods, and sometimes data from third-party sources is used. This information provides an insight into the book, particularly useful when only a view is available
31.
International Standard Book Number
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The International Standard Book Number is a unique numeric commercial book identifier. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an e-book, a paperback and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, the method of assigning an ISBN is nation-based and varies from country to country, often depending on how large the publishing industry is within a country. The initial ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 based upon the 9-digit Standard Book Numbering created in 1966, the 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108. Occasionally, a book may appear without a printed ISBN if it is printed privately or the author does not follow the usual ISBN procedure, however, this can be rectified later. Another identifier, the International Standard Serial Number, identifies periodical publications such as magazines, the ISBN configuration of recognition was generated in 1967 in the United Kingdom by David Whitaker and in 1968 in the US by Emery Koltay. The 10-digit ISBN format was developed by the International Organization for Standardization and was published in 1970 as international standard ISO2108, the United Kingdom continued to use the 9-digit SBN code until 1974. The ISO on-line facility only refers back to 1978, an SBN may be converted to an ISBN by prefixing the digit 0. For example, the edition of Mr. J. G. Reeder Returns, published by Hodder in 1965, has SBN340013818 -340 indicating the publisher,01381 their serial number. This can be converted to ISBN 0-340-01381-8, the check digit does not need to be re-calculated, since 1 January 2007, ISBNs have contained 13 digits, a format that is compatible with Bookland European Article Number EAN-13s. An ISBN is assigned to each edition and variation of a book, for example, an ebook, a paperback, and a hardcover edition of the same book would each have a different ISBN. The ISBN is 13 digits long if assigned on or after 1 January 2007, a 13-digit ISBN can be separated into its parts, and when this is done it is customary to separate the parts with hyphens or spaces. Separating the parts of a 10-digit ISBN is also done with either hyphens or spaces, figuring out how to correctly separate a given ISBN number is complicated, because most of the parts do not use a fixed number of digits. ISBN issuance is country-specific, in that ISBNs are issued by the ISBN registration agency that is responsible for country or territory regardless of the publication language. Some ISBN registration agencies are based in national libraries or within ministries of culture, in other cases, the ISBN registration service is provided by organisations such as bibliographic data providers that are not government funded. In Canada, ISBNs are issued at no cost with the purpose of encouraging Canadian culture. In the United Kingdom, United States, and some countries, where the service is provided by non-government-funded organisations. Australia, ISBNs are issued by the library services agency Thorpe-Bowker
32.
Gamzigrad
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Gamzigrad is an archaeological site, spa resort and UNESCO World Heritage Site of Serbia, located south of the Danube river, near the city of Zaječar. It is the location of the ancient Roman complex of palaces and temples Felix Romuliana, the main area covers 10 acres. In the vicinity of Gamzigrad lie the ruins of a huge Roman complex called Felix Romuliana, early explorers believed the ancient ruins to have been a Roman military camp, because of their size and numerous towers. Systematic archaeological excavations conducted since 1953 revealed that the site was, in fact and it was conceived and built by one of the Tetrarchs, Emperor Galerius, the adopted son and son-in-law of the great Emperor Diocletian. Galerius started construction in 298 to mark the place of his birth, the name Felix Romuliana was given in memory of his mother Romula, who was also a priestess of a pagan cult. The complex of temples and palaces served three main purposes - a place of worship of his mother’s divine personality, a monument to his deeds as emperor, Romuliana survived until it was plundered by the Huns in the mid 5th century. Later the site became a settlement of farmers and craftsmen. The structures were first evaluated in 1835 by Baron von Herder, later the German mineralogist August Breithaupt also wrote an article about the constructions. “Gamzigrad is one of the most magnificent monuments of the past. ”. “one of the largest and best preserved monuments of Roman architecture in Europe” -F, kanitz The enthusiasm for Gamzigrad disappeared by the end of the 19th century. The real history of the complex was yet to be researched, the interest was revived in the 1950s during the period of Neo-romanticism of Serbian archaeology. Vekoslav Popovic, Director of the Town Museum of Zajecar initiated the archaeological research in 1953. The academic professor Dr. Dragoslav Srejovic was in charge of the research in 1970, the complex was demystified in 1984, when in the south-west an archivolt with the inscription of FELIX ROMULIANA was discovered. The construction started in 298 AD near the birthplace of Galerius, Galerius was of Thracian and Dacian stock, descendant of tribes ruling parts of the Balkans prior to the Roman conquest in the 1st century BC. Several valuable hoards of Roman gold coins have been unearthed at the site, pilasters of Emperors Diocletian, Maximian, Galerius, Licinius, Maximinus and Constantine are among spectacular finds. In the two mausolea on the Magura hill Romula and the founder Galerius were buried and deified, among the most important finds from the site are portraits of Roman emperors made from the Egyptian purple stone called porphyry and coins that help to accurately date the complex. Alongside the Latin inscriptions throughout the complex, several Greek inscriptions are found, the remains include a high podium, cross-shaped crypt, stairway and sacrificial altar. It was dedicated to goddess Libera The architrave, doorposts, podium and pillars were made of green sandstone, the palace consists of an octagonal premise, three peristiles and a smaller bathroom. The vestibulum is preserved with marble plate and pillars of green serpent brecha, the floor of the vestibulum is completely covered by a mosaic carpet with a labyrinth in its center and geometric motives
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Medieval Monuments in Kosovo
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The construction was founded by members of Nemanjić dynasty, the most important dynasty of Serbia in the Middle Ages. The sites are located in the territory of Kosovo. In 2004, UNESCO recognized the Dečani monastery for its universal value. Two years later, the site of patrimony was extended as a serial nomination, in 2006 the property was inscribed on the List of World Heritage in Danger due to difficulties in its management and conservation stemming from the regions political instability. There is a controversy over Kosovos bid to join the UNESCO. These monuments have come under attack, especially during the violence in 2004, during Kosovos UNMIK rule. In October 2015 Kosovo was recommended for membership by the UNESCO Executive Board, the bid for membership was voted at the UNESCO General Conference in November 2015. Tomislav Nikolić, President of Serbia, posted at his YouTube channel a video about the destruction of churches, isa Mustafa, Prime Minister of Kosovo stressed the positive campaign that Kosovo is leading for its UNESCO bid. He condemned the Serbian leadership for their string of attacks that have nothing to do with the truth. Mr. UNESCO has not accepted Kosovo as a member, the failed to gain a two-thirds majority at the organizations General Conference in Paris on November 9,2015. The church is subject to constant looting - even of its construction material, specifically valuable lead has repeatedly been stolen from the roof
Serbia
