Velika Hoča

St. Jovan Monastery, overview of the church.

Velika Hoča (Serbian Cyrillic: Велика Хоча, Albanian: Hoçë e Madhe) is a village in the municipality of Orahovac, in Kosovo.[lower-alpha 1] It is one of the Serb enclaves in Kosovo, and houses some 13 Orthodox church buildings, most of which date to the Serbian Middle Ages.

Geography

Velika Hoča is situated in the historical region of Metohija.

History

Velika Hoča is one of the oldest settlements in Metohija. It was given as metochion by Stefan Nemanja to Hilandar in 1198–99 (Charter of Hilandar).[1] In the Middle Ages, Velika Hoča was a strong economical and spiritual centre with 24 churches and three monasteries. 8 monasteries and five ruins have been preserved from that period. The Dečani wine is made from vineyards in Velika Hoča since at least the reign of Emperor Stefan Dušan (r. 1331-1355).

It was the location of a fight between Serbian Chetniks and Ottoman askeri on May 25, 1905.

Demographics

Up until the Kosovo War, there were no Albanian inhabitants in the village and its surroundings. Since, the village is surrounded by Albanian-inhabited villages. As of January 2009 the village has around 700 residents, Serbs. Before the Kosovo War the village had around 2000 residents.

Agriculture

The main economic activity of Velika Hoča is viniculture.

Culture

Velika Hoča is a significant cultural centre of Serbs in Kosovo. The village is noted for its 13 churches, some dating from the 12th century and reign of Serbian Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja, others from the 14th to 16th centuries. There are also several tower houses, one that belonged to Lazar Kujundžić.

List of churches

Annotations

  1. ↑ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Serbia. The Republic of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence on 17 February 2008, but Serbia continues to claim it as part of its own sovereign territory. The two governments began to normalise relations in 2013, as part of the Brussels Agreement. Kosovo has been recognised as an independent state by 108 out of 193 United Nations member states.

References

  1. ↑ Branislav Krstić (2002). Spasavanje kulturne baštine Srbije i Evrope na Kosovu i Metohiji. Koordinacioni centar Savezne vlade i Vlade Republike Srbije za Kosovo i Metohiju. Велика Хоча је једно од најстаријих насеља у Метохији. Помиње се у даровном писму које је Стефан Немања (1198-1199) дао манастиру Хиландару.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Velika Hoča.

Coordinates: 42°23′03″N 20°40′36″E / 42.3842°N 20.6767°E / 42.3842; 20.6767

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