| Jagodina Јагодина |
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| — City — | |||
| Panoramic view on Jagodina | |||
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| Location of the municipality of Jagodina within Serbia | |||
| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Serbia | ||
| District | Pomoravlje | ||
| Settlements | 53 | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | Dragan Marković (US) | ||
| Area[1] | |||
| • Municipality | 470 km2 (181.5 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2011 census)[2] | |||
| • Town | 36,092 | ||
| • Municipality | 71,195 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Postal code | 35000 | ||
| Area code | +381 35 | ||
| Car plates | JA | ||
| Website | www.jagodina.org.rs | ||
Jagodina (Serbian Cyrillic: Јагодина [jâgɔdina] ( listen)) is a city and municipality located in central Serbia, 136 km south of Belgrade, on the banks of Belica River. Its name stems from the word for strawberry in Serbian. It is the administrative centre of the Pomoravlje District of Serbia. The town has a population of 36,092 inhabitants, while the municipality has 71,195.
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"Juhor-type" gold bracelets dating from the Middle Bronze Age have been found in Trcevac. Coins of Emperor Phokas and Constantine IV from 643/4 and fibulae have been found in the region, as well as Early Slavic pottery dating to the 6th century.[3]
The town was first mentioned in 1399 as "Jagodna", derived from the word for 'strawberry' - Jagoda. From 1946 to 1992 the town was renamed Svetozarevo (Светозарево, [svetɔ̝zǎːrev̞ɔ̝]) after the 19th-century Serbian socialist Svetozar Marković. During the Serbian Revolution (1804–1817), when Serbs began their uprising against the centuries-long Ottoman rule, Jagodina was a scene of numerous battles, given the town's strategic importance within Serbia proper. Following the Ottoman defeat and re-establishment of the Kingdom of Serbia, Jagodina experienced a period of relative industrial and civic development. Following World War II, Jagodina was heavily industrialized and underwent a period of planned expansion and growth within communist Yugoslavia.
Municipality of Jagodina include following settlements:
According to the 2002 census, ethnic groups in the municipality of Jagodina include 69,081 Serbs, 521 Roma, 230 Romanians, 120 Yugoslavs, and others.
In the aftermath of the Serbian independence regained from the Turks in the early 19th century, Turkish families moved out of Jagodina. The last Turkish family left Jagodina in 1832, and the town has been ethnically homogenous (Serbian) ever since. By 1837 Jagodina had 5,220 inhabitants, while Serbia proper had a population of 41,374. In the 1866 census, there were 4,429 citizens. In 1876 Jagodina was still an agricultural town with 91.88% of the population being in some way associated with agriculture.
By the 1930s Jagodina had 6,950 citizens, and by the 1960s the town had 19,769 inhabitants. By 1971 the number grew to 27,500. In the previous census held in 1991 the Jagodina municipality had 77,000 citizens while the town itself had 36,000. In the last census from 2002, the Jagodina municipality had 70,894 residents and Jagodina town 35,589. It was given the status of a city in 2008. It is evaluated that the city of Jagodina itself has between 55000 and 60000 inhabitants now whereas it exceptionally enhanced the quality of living during the last several years. The next census will be held after 2010.
Dragan Marković Palma is the current mayor of Jagodina, re-elected in May 2008. Dragan Marković is the leader of the United Serbia party.
Jagodina has one smaller movie theatres, that doubling as a theatre with some 400 seats.
Jagodina opened its zoo on July 10, 2006, at a cost of 30 million Serbian dinars. The municipality invested 40% and donors provided 60% of the costs while the biggest donor was the Belgrade Zoo. The zoo is located in the complex of the city park "Đurđevo brdo", a designated nature park, with an area of 20,074 square meters. It has pedestrian zones for children, the old and disabled persons, and generally a high-quality infrastructure.
The Jagodina Zoo is the third largest in Serbia, next to Belgrade and Palić. It currently houses some 100 different species of animals.
Jagodina recently opened an Aqua Park on July 24, 2007. Its opening attracted many people from Belgrade and other larger cities. Musical performers attend the opening.
The first and only primary school in Jagodina was opened in 1806.
Jagodina was heavily industrialized following World War II. The biggest factory in Jagodina is the cable factory. The Cable Factory Jagodina (FKS) was founded in 1947 and regular production started in 1955. In addition to cables, FKS produces connectors and similar cable products. FKS employes about 8,000 workers, and it is the biggest Serbian cable factory. 50% of the total Serbian production of the cable industry is produced in Jagodina. FKS is one of the biggest Serbian exporters of cable products. About 2/3 of its production is placed on the foreign market, representing more than 60% of the total exports of the Serbian cable industry.
Other factories include:
Jagodina is twinned with: