Ugljan Island History

The island has been inhabited since prehistoric times. The Liburnians inhabited the area of the islands of Ugljan, Rivanj, and Sestrunj. On the hilltops, you can see the Liburnian hillforts. During Roman times, the island saw the development of agricultural estates and many villae rusticae, and the Roman centuriation of Ugljan´s farmland remains visible to this day. Croatian inhabitants settle on the islands. During the Middle Ages, numerous small churches were established on the island. Most of the land on the island was still owned by the commune of Zadar, which assigned it for use or ownership to the most famous aristocratic families from Zadar who built residential-farm buildings on the island, summer residences. The old Coatian name for the island is Uljan/Uglan. The name itself points to a very long tradition of olive oil production on the island. The most prevalent scientific claim is that Ugljan got its name from the Roman landowner Gellius, as the name of the island derives from the term praedium Gellianum, meaning Gellius´ estate. In classical antiquity, the writer Pliny the Elder referred to it as Issa: “contra Jadera est Issa…“ In the Middle Ages, the island was called Insula Sancti Michaelis (Island of Saint Michael), and in the 16th century, it was referred to as Lissa or Isola de Zara. 

In the early modern period, the opulence of the summer residences of the Zadar nobility starkly contrasts with the modest life of the island´s inhabitants, as the island´s beauty offers them a peaceful oasis. In the 19th century, the island lives the life of the peasants and fishers. The survival of families is also supported by island women, who contribute to the household by washing laundry for the gentry of Zadar. With the end of the First World War, the Island of Ugljan found itself separated from its administrative centre, the city of Zadar, and the Zadar Channel became the border between the two states. In the Second World War, the islanders made great sacrifices to liberate the island from foreign rule. From 1991. to 1995. There was the Croatian War of Independence. The establishment of the free and democratic Republic of Croatia. In 1933, the Island of Ugljan was divided into three administrative centres, three municipalities: the Municipality of Preko, the Municipality of Kali, and the Municipality of Kukljiica. Since 2013. The island of Ugljan has been part of the larger European family.

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