Voćin

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Location of Voćin in Croatia

Voćin is a village and municipality in western Slavonia, Croatia, located southwest of Slatina and east of Daruvar. The population of the municipality is 2,500, with 1,161 people living in Voćin itself (census 2001).

Voćin is a famous pilgrimage place in the nice and peaceful valley of the small river Voćinska Rijeka at the foot of Papuk Mountain. The village features a nice park, protected as a horticultural monument. The attractive surroundings is notable for the arboretum Lisičine (one of the three arboretums in Croatia, the other two being Trsteno (near Dubrovnik) and Opeka (near Varaždin)), the special forest vegetation reserve Sekulinačke Planine, which includes the large primaeval forest of mountain beech, and the unique geological monument of Rupnica, famous for the secretion of albite (white feldspar) riolite.

Columnar basalt at Rupica

The major annual event is related to the Birth of Mary (September 8), when a number of pilgrims visit the ruins of the late Gothic Catholic church of St. Mary. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Voćin was part of the Virovitica County of the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia. The church was destroyed during World War II and rebuilt in 1973.

Voćin has rich cultural heritage regarding folk music and dances. The annual Festival of Folk dances, Folk clothing and Folk customs called ''Kestenijada" is celebrating the Autumn and chestnut as a trademark of Voćin because above the center of the village there is an hundred years old chestnut forrest.

Demographics

According to the 2001 Census, the village had 2,421 inhabitants of whom:

• Croats: 2 069 / 85.46%
• Serbs: 315 / 13.01%

Voćin in 2001
ethnic groups			percent
Croats			85.46%
Serbs			13.01%

See also

• Voćin massacre

External links

• Voćin, commune of Voćin