slavonia.travel | Slavonia.Travel

Meet Slavonia!

The space of Slavonia encompasses a large number of sites of international and national importance. A particularly large concentration of such sites belongs to the biggest Slavonian city, Osijek, with its famous Tvrđa (fortress) housing the Museum of Slavonia but also the centre of the city with a cathedral and numerous secession buildings. However, hiding in Slavonia are also smaller towns inviting to be discovered. Get to know also the intangible heritage of this region – dance the šokačko kolo (Šokci dance) and sing a bećarac.

CITY BREAK

Slavonian towns are not comprised only of monuments and museums but also of an urban scene made of a kaleidoscope of events and spaces in which people work, relax and have fun. Start discovering the history and present by visiting Osijek, the biggest Slavonian city. Continue your journey in Vukovar and Vinkovci, visit the Đakovo Cathedral and the Brodska Tvrđa (Brod Fortress) and try horseback riding on the Lipizzan Stud Farm in Lipik.

These seemingly small towns give every visitor a wealth of experiences. Each of the Slavonian pearls will tell you their stories full of historic and cultural events and, in order to discover the secrets, you can always turn to the warm Slavonians.

BEĆARAC

Bećarac was put onto the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011. It is a cheerful folk tune, very often quite loose, primarily sung at weddings but also at any other joyous or even less joyous occasions. The topics of bećarac depend on the moment, place, audience, but also the singers who, in order to be acknowledged, must learn the traditional repertoire but also be ready to include something that is originally theirs, usually something humorous on a current topic from everyday life.

It may sound simple but the basic form of bećarac is a couplet composed of two decasyllables to be invented on the spot and sung with the same melody of twenty-four measures, repeatedly.

LIPIZZANS

The Lipizzan is one of the most famous horse varieties in the world, known for its noble and firm body structure, resilience, humbleness in accommodation and feeding, excellent learning ability and will to work as well as readiness to complete even the most difficult of tasks. The Slavonians have accepted the Lipizzan variety very soon not only for its already mentioned qualities that met the needs of the peasant farms but also for its spiritual satisfaction.

Lipizzans were a reflection of prestige and a mirror of the estate on which they were bread. The Lipizzan has become a part of the Slavonian tradition, which is witnessed by today’s folk festivals, horse competitions and other events at which the Lipizzan horses indispensably appear. In Slavonia, you can visit state stud farms in Lipik and in Đakovo and learn more about these noble animals.

ŠOKAC DANCE (ŠOKAČKO KOLO)

Šokačko kolo is a recognisable symbol of Slavonia, Baranja and Srijem. It is danced on stages at folk festivals and every festivity in Slavonia ends with a dance (kolo). It is a protected intangible cultural heritage of the Republic of Croatia. It used to be danced along with tambura or bagpipes (gajde), while today it is danced along with the tamburica bands.

As a social event, until mid-20^th century the Šokac Dance (šokačko kolo) used to be important for the life of the community, which gathered during the village festivities and at carnivals. With regard to the connectedness of this dance with the Croatian Šokci who live both in Croatia and outside of it, the most appropriate name is precisely ‘šokačko kolo’ as it refers to the entire region in which the Croatian Šokci have lived. Within the borders of the Republic of Croatia, this is the area of Slavonia, Baranja and Srijem.