Facts about Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital of Croatia. It is also the largest Croatian city. Zagreb is the cultural, scientific, economic and governmental center of the Republic of Croatia in the prigorje region. As of 2006, the city's population was 784,900 (approx. 1.1 million in the metropolitan area). It is situated between the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain and both northern and southern bank of the Sava river. Zagreb is at an elevation of approximately 122 m above sea level. Its favorable geographic position in the southwestern part of the Pannonian Basin, which extends to the Alpine, Dinaric, Adriatic and Pannonic regions, provides an excellent connection for traffic between Central Europe and the Adriatic Sea. Zagreb is the only Croatian city whose metropolitan population exceeds one million people.[2008] Most people live in the city proper. There are 1,088,841 people in the Zagreb metropolitan area, which includes the smaller cities of Samobor, Velika Gorica and Zaprešic. While the official 2001 census states that the population of Zagreb itself is 779,145, the official estimation for 2006 is 784,900. According to 2001 census, the majority of its citizens are Croats making up 91.94% of the city's population. 2001 census records show that 40,066 residents of Zagreb belong to ethnic minorities. As of 2001, there are 18,811 Serbs in Zagreb which make 2.41% of the city's total population. 2001 census show that there are 6,204 Bosniaks in Zagreb which make 0.80% of the city's total population. According to the census of 2001, there are 4,030 Muslims in Zagreb which make 0.52% of the city's total population. As of 2001, there are 3,389 Albanians in Zagreb which make 0.43% of the city's total population. The census of 2001 show that there are 3,225 Slovenians in Zagreb which make 0.41% of the city's total population. As of 2001, there are 1,946 Roma in Zagreb which make 0.25% of the city's total population. According to 2001, there are 1,131 Montenegrins in Zagreb which make 0.17% of the city's total population. As of 2001, there are 1,315 Macedonians in Zagreb which make 0.17% of the city's total population. The climate of Zagreb is continental, with four separate seasons. Summers are hot and dry, and winters are cold. The average temperature in winter is 1°C (34°F) and the average temperature in summer is 20°C (68°F). The modern name Zagreb likely comes from the Croatian word "zagrabiti", which cannot exactly be translated into English directly; its meaning could best be expressed by saying, "to scoop up" or "scoop out". There are several legends about the origins of the name of Zagreb. According to one legend, a lady was thirsty and she took water from a lake (now the fountain) Manduševac in Zagreb. While she was taking the water, other people shouted, "Zagrebi Mando, zagrebi!" which means, "Scoope it, Manda, scoope it! (water)". Another legend says that a Croatian ban (viceroy) was moving with his army through a deserted region and the soldiers were struck by thirst. In his anger, the ban thrust his sabre into the ground, at which point water began to pour out, and he ordered the soldiers to scrape the soil, or zagreb in Croatian, in order to get to the water. The verb zagreb in the sense of digging is also believed to have something to do with the name of the city as the city lay behind a water-filled hole (graba). This theory is supported by some scientists. There is also an interesting theory that Zagreb may mean a place behind a hill ("za breg"), i.e. behind the Sava river's bank, and then the name just changed into Zagreb. This theory is supported by the fact that Sava had once flowed nearer to the centre of the city. At today's Ban Jelacic square in the very centre of Zagreb, pieces of what was once a wooden boat have been unearthed. The history of Zagreb dates as far back as 1094 when the Hungarian King Ladislaus founded a diocese. Alongside the bishop's see the canonical settlement Kaptol developed north of the Cathedral, as did the fortified settlement Gradec on the neighbouring hill. Today the latter is Zagreb's Upper Town (Gornji Grad) and is one of the best preserved urban nuclei in Croatia. Both settlements came under Tatar attack in 1242. As a sign of gratitude for offering him a safe haven from the Tatar the Croatian and Hungarian King Bela IV bestowed Gradec with a Golden Bull, which offered its citizens exemption from county rule and autonomy, as well as its own judicial system. According to legend, Bela left Gradec a cannon, under the condition that it be fired every day so that it did not rust. Since 1 January 1877 the cannon is fired from the Lotršcak Tower on Gric to mark midday. In 1987 Zagreb hosted the Universiade. In 1991, it became the capital of the country following secession from Second Yugoslavia. During the 1991-1995 Croatian War of Independence, it was a scene of some sporadic fighting surrounding its JNA army barracks, but escaped major damage. In May 1995, it was targeted by Serb rocket artillery in the Zagreb rocket attack that killed seven civilians. The city of Zagreb has the highest nominal GDP per capita in Croatia ($ 14,480, compared to the 2004 Croatian average of $ 8,024) According to IMF, the EU average GDP per capita was 29,476 USD in 2004. As of October 2007, the average monthly net salary in Zagreb was 5,828 kuna, about $1,136 in 2008 (Croatian average is 4,871 kuna, about $949 in 2007) . In 2006 the average unemployment rate in Zagreb was around 8.6%. 34% of companies in Croatia have headquarters in Zagreb. 38.4% of Croatian workforce works in Zagreb. Companies in Zagreb create 52% of total turnover and 60% of total profit of Croatia in 2006 as well as 37% of Croatian export. According to the Constitution, the city of Zagreb, as the capital of Croatia, has special status. As such, Zagreb performs self-governing public affairs of both city and county. Zagreb is the home of the oldest secondary school in Croatia and the southeastern part of Europe - the Zagreb Classical Gymnasium (Klasicna gimnazija). It was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1607 and has operated continuously ever since. Zagreb Classical Gymnasium was bombed on May 2, 1995 during the bombing of Zagreb in the Croatian war of independence. The University of Zagreb (1669) is the oldest and one of the largest universities in South-Eastern Europe. Ever since its foundation, the University has been continually growing. |
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