Zagreb Croatia

Description: Zagreb is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slovenia at an elevation of approximately 158 m (518 ft) above sea level. At the 2021 census, the city itself had a population of 767,131, while the population of Zagreb urban agglomeration is slightly above one million people.

Population: 767,131

Demographics: The majority of its citizens are Croats making up 93.53% of the city’s population. 49,605 residents belong to ethnic minorities: 12,035 Serbs (1.57%), 6,566 Bosniaks (0.86%), 3,475 Albanians (0.45%), 2,167 Romani (0.28%), 1,312 Slovenes (0.17%), 1,036 Macedonians (0.15%), 865 Montenegrins (0.11%), and a number of other smaller communities.

History: The oldest known settlement located near present-day Zagreb, the Roman town of Andautonia, now Ščitarjevo, existed between the 1st and the 5th centuries AD. The first recorded appearance of the name “Zagreb” dates from 1094, at which time the city existed as two different city centers: the smaller, eastern Kaptol, inhabited mainly by clergy and housing Zagreb Cathedral, and the larger, western Gradec, inhabited mainly by craftsmen and merchants. In 1851 the Ban of Croatia, Josip Jelačić, united Gradec and Kaptol; the name of the main city square, Ban Jelačić Square honors him. While Croatia formed part of Yugoslavia (1918 to 1991), Zagreb remained an important economic centre of that country, and was the second largest city. After Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, the Parliament of the Republic of Croatia (Sabor Republike Hrvatske) proclaimed Zagreb as the capital of the Republic of Croatia. During the 1991–1995 Croatian War of Independence, the city saw some sporadic fighting around its JNA army barracks, but escaped major damage. In May 1995, it was targeted by Serb rocket artillery in two rocket attacks which killed seven civilians and wounded many. An urbanized area connects Zagreb with the surrounding towns of Zaprešić, Samobor, Dugo Selo, and Velika Gorica. Sesvete was the first and the closest area to become a part of the agglomeration and is already included in the City of Zagreb for administrative purposes and now forms the easternmost city district. In 2020 the city experienced a 5.5 magnitude earthquake, which damaged various buildings in the historic downtown area. The city’s iconic cathedral lost the cross off of one of its towers. This earthquake was the strongest one to affect the city since the destructive 1880 Zagreb earthquake.

Elevation: 158 m

Climate: Oceanic climate. Average annual temperature in Zagreb is 11 C (52 F), the average for July is 22 C (70 F), the average for January is 1 C (32 F).

Attractions: Upper Town, Museum Of Broken Relationships, Maksimir Park, Cathedral Of Zagreb, Lower Town, Museum Of Hangovers, Croatian National Theatre