 | |
  Iž | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Adriatic Sea |
| Coordinates | 44°02′01″N15°07′11″E / 44.0336°N 15.1196°E /44.0336; 15.1196 |
| Area | 17.59 km2 (6.79 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 168 m (551 ft) |
| Highest point | Korinjak |
| Administration | |
| County | Zadar |
| City | Zadar |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 615 (2011)[1] |
| Pop. density | 34.96/km2 (90.55/sq mi) |
| Additional information | |
| Postal code | 23284 |
Iž (pronounced[îːʒ]) is anisland in theZadar Archipelago within theCroatian reaches of theAdriatic Sea. Its settlements are located exclusively on island's eastern part, facing Ugljan. The main settlement, Veli Iž, is situated in the bay on the north-eastern shore, while Mali Iž is situated on the south-eastern shore and consists of three hamlets — Muće, Makovac and Porovac — located on three hills, below which are two bays — the bay ofKnež below Porovac and the bay ofKomoševa below Makovac.
The island is situated betweenUgljan on the north-east andDugi Otok on the south-west. Of all the islands of the Zadar Archipelago, the closest one to Iž is the island ofRava, situated between Iž and Dugi Otok. Iž and Rava are separated by the channelIški kanal (average width about 2.5 km; 1.5 miles). Iž has a length of 12.2 km (7.5 miles) and average width of 2.5 km (1.5 miles). It has an area of 17.59 square kilometers (6.8 square miles) and a population of 615 (according to 2011 census), so it is one of the smallest islands in Zadar's group of islands. The length of the coast is 35.1 km (21.8 miles). Iž, like the other islands of Zadar Archipelago, lies in the direction Northwest–Southeast (NW-SE) meaning it is parallel with the mainland. Its mineralogy is composed mainly oflimestone anddolomite. The highest peak of the island isKorinjak (height: 168 m; 551 ft). Iž is surrounded by more than 10 very small, uninhabited islands, largest of which isKnežak.[2]
The mainsoil types areterra rossa (Croatian:crvenica; crljenica) associated with limestone (cultivated and rich of hummus in the gardens of settlements) and sandy soils on the dolomites.[3]
Thevegetation of the island isMediterranean, as on other islands of Zadar, which means that the forests are composed ofconiferous trees. Due to the relatively high temperatures, Mediterranean plants areevergreen. The exploitation of forests created amacchia that is richer in flora in the south-western part of the island (on limestone) than in the north-eastern part (on the dolomites). About 60% of the island is covered withpine forest; the first afforestation of the island with aleppo pine begins in the 20th century, more precisely in 1931. The island's oldest and most important cultivated plants areolives,vines andfigs.[4]
Iž belongs to the area which has a borderlinehumid subtropical andMediterranean climate. Summers are dry, warm or hot and winters are mild and rainy. Average annual air temperature on the island is 15 degrees Celsius (59 degrees Fahrenheit).[5]
The island is relatively low and spatially small so that significant day and nightwinds can form there. It is relatively far from the mainland, surrounded on all sides by the sea and protected by neighboring higher islands. The most common winds arebora (Croatian:bura) during winter,sirocco (Croatian:jugo) during spring, autumn and winter andmaestral - a constant humid breeze of moderate intensity - during summer. The strength of bora usually decreases from the mainland towards the open sea; Iž is in the „Srednji kanal“ channel especially protected by Ugljan andPašman.
The average annualhumidity on Iž is about 70% and the annual rainfall is about 880 mm (1989 data).
The island of Iž has been inhabited sinceprehistoric times; there are traces of anIllyrian hillfort and aRoman settlement.Constantine VII calls it „Ez“ in 10th century. In that time it was under the rule of the Zadar commune, which, as a feud, gave it to the femaleBenedictinemonastery of St. Mary, and later leased to the Zadararistocracy. Above the bay ofKomoševa, at the top of the village of Mali Iž, there is an oldromanesquechurch of St. Mary from the 11th century, circular-shaped with a semicircular apse. It is located right next to the new parish church from the beginning of the 20th century and represents the oldest cultural monument on the island. There are also records of the firstCroatian settlers that date from the year 1266.
Since 1409, Iž has been part of theVenetian Republic. In the time ofVenetian-Turkish wars during the 15th and 16th centuries, many refugees from the mainland moved to the island, especially fromRavni Kotari.
Both the parishes of Veli and Mali Iž have a thousand-year Glagolitic history, meaning that from their beginning the Roman Rite in the church was celebrated in the Old Church Slavonic language, not in Latin, from liturgical books written in the old CroatianGlagolitic script. History records more than 200 glagolitic priests on the island and many documents in the Glagolitic alphabet from the 15th to 19th century are still preserved, including manuscripts, printed liturgical books and stone epigraphs. In 2019, a Glagolitic inscription in stone from 1685 was discovered in the family house Švorinić, being among the most recently reveled Glagolitic stone inscriptions in the world.
In the 18th and 19th century, Iž became one of the leading maritime and trade centers in the Zadar archipelago.
Thecastle of the Zadar family Canagietti has been preserved; the castle of the Fanfogna family, originally built in the romanesque style but later rebuilt, was converted into a school in the 19th century.
List of administrators of Veli Iž parish:[6]
The small population of the island is mainly engaged intoolive cultivation,fishing,viticulture andtourism.
The island also is known for itspottery tradition that has survived to this day: the ethnographic collection of Veli Iž preserves numerous examples of island's authenticceramics and tools of traditional pottery.
HotelKorinjak, located in Veli Iž, is the only hotel on the island, also representing the only vegetarian hotel in Croatia. The hotel offers meditation and relaxation therapies for mind and body energy, fromyoga to pyramide meditation and orgon or ozon therapies. The hotel also offers boat trips andexcursions to island Iž hidden bays or small unsettled nearby islets, where visitors can enjoy untouched nature and beaches.
Veli Iž also has amarina that can accommodate up to two hundred boats and the church of Saint Peter and Paul from the 14th century, with elements of romanesque although it is not preserved in its original form.[8]
A traditional festival,Iška fešta (lit. "The Fest of Iž"), is held in Veli Iž every year on 29 July. The locals then dress in traditional costumes, perform old island dances and songs and prepare local dishes. The highlight of the ceremony is the election of the "King of Iž" (Croatian:Iški kralj) with a term of one year.[9]
The revitalisation of the island was stimulated by the construction of the main road connecting Mali Iž and Veli Iž. Construction of theroad started in 1980s by theYugoslav People's Army. It was fully completed and paved in 1996, stretching in direction north-west–south-east, between Veli Iž and the ferry port in Mali Iž, also connecting Mali Iž hamlets Porovac, Muće and Makovac, together with the baysKnež andKomoševa, by the local roads.
Iž is connected toZadar andRava bypassenger ship,high-speed craft andcar ferry public lines. The two passenger-only lines start at Zadar ferry port in the town center, continue to Mali Iž (docking at the bay of Komoševa[10]) and Veli Iž, from there they run to the two settlements on Rava: Mala Rava and Rava. After reaching Rava, they sail back in reverse.[11][12] The car ferry starts at thePort of Gaženica, runs to Bršanj (located on the south-east of Iž) and, on certains days of the week, to Rava and Mala Rava.[13] There is a bus line which connects Veli Iž and Mali Iž to Bršanj when the ferry arrives.[14] On school days, there is an additional high-speed craft connection Zadar – Bršanj – Zadar, docking in the same place on Iž as the car ferry.[15] All lines reach Iž from Zadar (and vice versa) within an hour and a half.
The shortest connection of island Iž with Zadar is through the strait ofMali Ždrelac, nowadays used by all public shipping services which operate to the island.[16]
BeforeWorld War II, all maritime connections between Zadar and Iž were via the island of Ugljan. Since 1892, Iž has a regularsteamship connection with Zadar through the strait of Veli Ždrelac between the islands of Ugljan andRivanj (north-west from Zadar) and from 1980s that connection started to operate through the strait of Mali Ždrelac.[17] Until 2012, only smaller ferries which connected Iž and Zadar (as well as ships and catamarans) could sail through Mali Ždrelac, while the rest of the ferries were sailing through Veli Ždrelac strait. In 2012, the strait was deepened which resulted in allowing all ships that sail to the island to pass through. Since 2014, ferries connecting Iž and Zadar (as well as other ferries which connect Zadar with the islands of its archipelago) have been using the port ofGaženica south of Zadar instead of original ferry port that was located in Zadar's town center.
The island's ferry terminal opened in the late 1980s. Hosting only a ticket office, it is located in the bay ofBršanj in Mali Iž. It is about 1 km from the center of Mali Iž where all the facilities are. Passenger ships and catamarans, however, useports of Mali Iž (located in the bay and small settlementKomoševa) and Veli Iž (located in the bay near the promenade by the sea, in the town center).[18]
Krsto Novaselić, the father ofNirvana bassistKrist Novoselic, lived in Veli Iž before immigrating to theUnited States.[19]
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Media related toIž at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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| National | |
