Bačka Topola

Bačka Topola Бачка Топола Topolya
—  Municipality and Town  —
The Catholic church and main street in Bačka Topola
Coat of arms
Location of the municipality of Bačka Topola within Serbia
Coordinates: 45°49′N 19°38′E
Country	Serbia
District	North Bačka
Settlements	23
Government
• Mayor	Attila Bábi
Area
• Municipality	596 km2 (230 sq mi)
Population (2011 census)
• Town	14,596
• Municipality	33,268
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	24300
Area code	+381 24
Car plates	SU
Website	www.btopola.org.rs

Map of Bačka Topola municipality

Bačka Topola (Serbian Cyrillic: Бачка Топола, pronounced [bâːtʃkaː tɔpɔ̌la]; Hungarian: Topolya) is a town and municipality in the North Bačka District of Vojvodina, Serbia. The municipality is composed of 23 local communities and has a population of 33,268, while the town of Bačka Topola has 14,596 inhabitants.

Name

The name of the town derived from the Serbian word topola (топола) ("poplar" in English). The first part of the name of the town was given to designate its location in the region of Bačka in the contrast to places with similar names, like Topola in Šumadija or Banatska Topola in Banat.

History

The town was mentioned first in 1462 under name Fibaych. This settlement was destroyed in the 16th century and new smaller settlement was later built at its location. Name Topola was first recorded in 1543, while according to the Ottoman defters from 1580, 1582, and 1590, it was mentioned as a village, whose population numbered between 21 and 23 houses. In this time, the inhabitants of the settlement were Serbs. In 1704, Topola was destroyed by kuruc rebels.

In 1731, Topola was mentioned as an uninhabited heath. In 1750, the new settlement was founded at this location and 200 Hungarian and Slovak families arrived here from Upper Hungary.

Inhabited places

Bačka Topola municipality includes the town of Bačka Topola and the following villages:

• Bagremovo (Hungarian: Brazília or Bárdossyfalva)
• Bajša (Hungarian: Bajsa)
• Bački Sokolac (Hungarian: Cserepes or Bácsandrásszállás)
• Bogaraš (Hungarian: Bodaras or Félváros)
• Gornja Rogatica (Hungarian: Angyalbandi)
• Gunaroš (Hungarian: Gunaras)
• Zobnatica (Hungarian: Andrásnépe)
• Kavilo (Hungarian: Rákócitelep or Kavilló)
• Karađorđevo (Hungarian: Andrásfalva)
• Krivaja (Hungarian: Bácsér or Kanyarodó)
• Mali Beograd (Hungarian: Kisbelgrád)
• Mićunovo (Hungarian: Karkatúr)
• Novo Orahovo (Hungarian: Zentagunaras)
• Njegoševo (Hungarian: Istenáldás)
• Obornjača (Hungarian: Nagyvölgy)
• Tomislavci (old name Orešković, Hungarian: Andrásmező)
• Panonija (Hungarian: Pannónia)
• Pačir (Hungarian: Pacsér)
• Pobeda (Hungarian: Győztes)
• Svetićevo (Hungarian: Buránysor)
• Srednji Salaš (Hungarian: Szurkos or Középszállás)
• Stara Moravica (Hungarian: Bácskossuthfalva)

Historical population of the town

• 1961: 15,079
• 1971: 15,989
• 1981: 17,027
• 1991: 16,704

Demographics (2002 census)

Ethnic map of the Bačka Topola municipality

Ethnic groups in the municipality

The population of the Bačka Topola municipality is composed of:

• Hungarians = 22,454 (58.94%)
• Serbs = 11,543 (29.94%)
• Yugoslavs = 831 (2.17%)
• Montenegrins = 547 (1.43%)
• Croats = 454 (1.18%)
• Others.

Settlements by ethnic majority

Local communities with a Hungarian majority are: Bačka Topola (Hungarian: Topolya), Bajša (Hungarian: Bajsa), Pačir (Hungarian: Pacsér), Stara Moravica (Hungarian: Bácskossuthfalva), Zobnatica (Hungarian: Andrásnépe), Bogaraš (Hungarian: Bogaras-Felváros), Obornjača (Hungarian: Nagyvölgy), Bagremovo (Hungarian: Brazília), Gunaroš (Hungarian: Gunaras), Novo Orahovo (Hungarian: Zentagunaras), and Kavilo (Hungarian: Rákóczifalu or Kavilló).

Local communities with a Serb majority are: Gornja Rogatica, Srednji Salaš, Panonija, Orešković, Bački Sokolac, Karađorđevo, Mićunovo, Njegoševo, Krivaja, Svetićevo, and Mali Beograd.

Pobeda (Hungarian: Győztes or Pobedabirtok) is an ethnically-mixed local community with a Hungarian relative majority. Krivaja, Mali Beograd, and Svetićevo have over 20% Hungarians, as well as other minorities, while Bačka Topola, Pačir, Zobnatica, and Pobeda have over 20% Serbs.

Ethnic groups in the town

The population of the Bačka Topola town is composed of:

• Hungarians = 9,582 (59.25%)
• Serbs = 4,699 (29.06%)
• Montenegrins = 426 (2.63%)
• Yugoslavs = 376 (2.33%)
• Croats = 170 (1.05%)
• Others.

Politics

Results of 2008 local elections in Bačka Topola municipality: [1]

• Hungarian Coalition (46.25%)
• For a European municipality Bačka Topola (20.25%)
• Serbian Radical Party (15.62%)
• "List for Serbia" (8.33%)

Famous people

• Andrija Kaluđerović football player
• Félix Lajkó violinist, zither player, composer, movie actor
• Nikola Žigić football player
• Branko Bošković football player
• Dušan Tadić football player

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Serbia

Twin towns — Sister cities

Bačka Topola is twinned with:

• Belváros-Lipótváros, Hungary
• Kiskunmajsa, Hungary
• Szentes, Hungary
• Rožňava, Slovakia
• Gheorgheni, Romania

See also

• List of places in Serbia
• List of cities, towns and villages in Vojvodina

References

• Slobodan Ćurčić, Broj stanovnika Vojvodine, Novi Sad, 1996.

External links

• Demokratska stranka, opštinski odbor Bačka Topola
• Official site
• History of Bačka Topola (Hungarian)
• Crveni krst Bačka Topola