Concept

Osijek

Summary
Osijek (ôsijeːk) is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja County. Osijek is on the right bank of the Drava River, upstream of its confluence with the Danube, at an elevation of . The name was given to the city due to its position on elevated ground, which prevented the city being flooded by the local swamp waters. Its name "Osijek" derives from the Croatian word oseka, which means "ebb tide". Due to its history within the Habsburg monarchy and briefly in the Ottoman Empire, as well as the presence of German, Hungarian, and Serbian minorities throughout its history, Osijek has (or had) its names in other languages - Hungarian: Eszék, Essek, Esseg or Essegg, Essek, Ösek, Esgek. Its ancient name was Mursa and is supposed to come from the Proto-Indo-European word *móri (sea, marshland). The same root is perhaps seen in the toponyms "Marsonia" and "Mariniana". The origins of human habitation of Osijek date back to Neolithic times, with the first known inhabitants belonging to the Illyrians and later invading Celtic tribes. After the conquest of Pannonia, Osijek, known at the time as Mursa, was under the administration and protection of the Roman 7th legion, which maintained a military castrum at the colony and a bridge over the river Drava. The Roman emperor Hadrian raised the old settlement of Mursa to the status of a colony with special privileges in 131. After that, Mursa had a turbulent history, with several decisive battles taking place at its immediate proximity, among which the most notable are the battle between Aureolus and Ingenuus in 260 and especially brutal and bloody Battle of Mursa Major in 351. These battles, especially the latter one, had long-term consequences for the colony and the region, which was already under ever-increasing pressure from the invading Goths and other invading tribes.
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