Sombor (Serbian Cyrillic:Сомбор,pronounced[sɔ̂mbɔr];Hungarian:Zombor;Rusyn:Зомбор,romanized: Zombor) is acity and the administrative center of theWest Bačka District in the autonomous province ofVojvodina,Serbia. The city has a total population of 41,814 (as of 2022[update]), while its administrative area (including neighboring villages) has 70,818 inhabitants.
InSerbian, the city is known asSombor (Сомбор), inHungarian asZombor, inRusyn asZombor (Зомбор).
The older Hungarian name for the city wasCzoborszentmihály. The name originates from the Czobor family, who were the owners of this area in the 14th century. (The family name came from the Slavic nameCibor.) TheSerbian name for the city(Sombor) also came from the family name Czobor, and was first recorded in 1543, although the city was mentioned in historical documents under several more names, such asSamobor, Sambor, Sambir, Sonbor, Sanbur, Zibor, andZombar.
An unofficial name for the city isRavangrad (Раванград), which literally means "flat town" in Serbian.
The first historical record relating to the city is from 1340. The city was administered by theKingdom of Hungary until the 16th century, when it became part of theOttoman Empire. During the establishment of Ottoman authority, the local Hungarian population left the region. As a result, the city became populated mostly by ethnicSerbs.[4] It was called "Sonbor" during Ottoman administration and was a kaza centre in theSanjak of Segedin at first inBudin Province until 1596, and then inEğri Province between 1596 and 1687.
In 1665, a well-known traveller,Evliya Çelebi, visited Sombor and wrote: "All the folk (in the city) are not Hungarian, but Wallachian-Christian (Serb).[4] These places are something special; they do not belong to Hungary, but are a part ofBačka and Wallachia. Most of the inhabitants are traders, and all of them wear frontiersmen clothes; they are very polite and brave people." According to Celebi, the city had 200 shops, 14 mosques and about 2,000 houses.
Since 12 September 1687, the city was underHabsburg administration, and was included into the HabsburgMilitary Frontier. Ottomans attempted to recapture it during theBattle of Zenta on 11 September 1697. However their attack was repulsed. In 1717, the first Orthodox elementary school was opened. Five years later a Roman Catholic elementary school was opened as well. In 1745, Sombor was excluded from the Military Frontier and was included intoBacsensis County. In 1749, Sombor gainedroyal free city status. In 1786, the city became the seat ofBacsensis-Bodrogiensis County. According to 1786 data, the population of the city numbered 11,420 people, mostly Serbs.
According to the 1843 data, Sombor had 21,086 inhabitants, of whom 11,897 were Orthodox Christians, 9,082 Roman Catholics, 56 Jewish, and 51 Protestants. The main language spoken in the city at that time was Serbian, and the second-largest language was German. In 1848/1849, Sombor was part of theSerbian Vojvodina, a Serb autonomous region withinAustrian Empire, while between 1849 and 1860, it was part of theVoivodeship of Serbia and Temes Banat, a separate Austrian crown land. Sombor was a seat of the district within voivodship. After the abolishment of this crown land, Sombor again became the seat of theBacsensis-Bodrogiensis (Bács-Bodrog, Bačka-Bodrog) County.
Holy Trinity Square in 1941
According to the 1910 census, the population of Sombor was 30,593 people, of whom 11,881 spokeSerbian, 10,078 spokeHungarian, 6,289 spokeBunjevac, and 2,181 spoke German.
In 1941, the city was occupied by theAxis powers and annexed by Hungary. Many prominent citizens from the Serb community were interned and later executed. In 1944, the Yugoslav Partisans and Soviet Red Army expelled the Axis forces from the city. Since 1944, Sombor was part of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina of the newSocialist Yugoslavia and (since 1945)socialist Serbia. Today, Sombor is the seat of theWest Bačka District in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina in the Republic of Serbia.
In recent times, Sombor became known all around the world becauseNBA champion andFinals MVPNikola Jokić was born here in 1995.
Building of former Sombor Norma where first civil school with Serbian as the language of instruction was established.Carmelite monastery and church in the centre of the town.
Sombor is the hometown of 3xNBA MVP, NBA Champion and Finals MVPNikola Jokić. The local basketball club where he began his playing career renamed itselfKK Joker in 2017 after his English-language nickname, and was promoted to the top-levelBasketball League of Serbia at the end of the 2022–23 season.
Buses offer direct connections to major Serbian cities includingBelgrade,Novi Sad andSubotica, as well as many regional towns. Among the companies operating in the area isSevertrans.
_201.jpg)
_119.jpg)
_-_main_street.jpg)
![The old town hall of Sombor and the Holy Trinity Square[11]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aSombor-Stara-Gradska-Kuca-20160404.jpg)
.jpg)
