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Otočac (pronounced[ɔtɔ̌tʃats]) is a town in Croatia, former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see. It lies in the northwestern part of Lika region, in the Gacka river valley. The population of the administrative area of the Town of Otočac was 9,778 in 2011, with 4,240 in Otočac itself, the majority of whom were Croats (91%).
Name
The town is known as Otocsán in Hungarian, Ottocio in Italian,[3] and Ottocium in Latin.[4] In historical sources, the name has been rendered as Ottochaz (German and English), Ottocaz (Italian and German), and Ottotschaz, Ottotschan, & Ottocsaz (German).
History
Otočac was named after the early Croatian parish. The text of the famous Baška Tablet (around 1100) says that the church of St. Nicholas in Otočac was part of the order community with the Church of St. Lucy, Jurandvor on the island of Krk. From 1300 on, it belonged to the estate of the Frankopan family. Sigismund Frankopan (1461–1535) founded a diocese there (see below). The settlement with a defence tower, at a bend in the river Gacka, was protected by a towered fort. After the fort's demolition in 1829, only parts remained preserved. To provide a safer defence, a Renaissance-era fortress ("Fortica") was built in 1619, with a triangular layout of cylindrical towers.[5]
During the World War II Genocide of Serbs by the Ustaše, Otočac was the site of the slaughter of some 331 Serbs in late April 1941. The victims were forced to dig their own graves before being hacked to death with axes. Among the victims was the local Orthodox priest and his son. The former was made to recite prayers for the dying as his son was killed. The priest was then tortured, his hair and beard was pulled out, eyes gouged out before he was skinned alive.[7]
During the Croatian War of Independence the city was occupied by Serbian forces, but was later liberated by the Croats. It was later defended by the boškarini of the 154th Brigade HV, which in the following years visited the city. An armistice agreement was signed in January 1992, but the surroundings of Otočac were finally liberated only in 1995.[8][9][10]
In the 2011 census, the Town of Otočac had a total of 9,778 inhabitants. By ethnicity, 91.18% were Croats and 7.25% were Serbs. Croats in the vicinity of Otočac form two groups, those who speak Chakavian dialect and Bunjevci, who speak Shtokavian dialect with an Ikavian accent. Serbs form a majority in the villages of Gorići and Staro Selo. The settlement of Otočac itself had population of 4,240.
Before the Croatian War of Independence, the 1991 census lists the greater municipality of Otočac as having 24,992 inhabitants, with 16,355 Croats (65.44%) and 7,781 Serbs (31.13%).
Directly elected minority councils and representatives are tasked with consulting tasks for the local or regional authorities in which they are advocating for minority rights and interests, integration into public life and participation in the management of local affairs.[13] At the 2023 Croatian national minorities councils and representatives electionsSerbs of Croatia fulfilled legal requirements to elect 15 members minority council of the Town of Otočac with only 13 members being elected in the end.[14]
^Bihać i biháćka krajina, str. 146, Radoslav Lopasić, Matica hrvatska, 1890.
^Monumenta spectantia historiam slavorum meridionalium, Volume 42-43, page XXXV, Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Academia Scientiarum et Artium Slavorum Meridionalium, 1917.