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Budva, Будва, Panorama of Budva

Budva is located in Montenegro
 
Location of Budva
Coordinates: 42°17′17″N 18°50′33″ECoordinates: 42°17′17″N 18°50′33″E
Country      Montenegro
Settlements     33
Area
 - Total     122 km2 (47.1 sq mi)
Population (2003 census)
 - Total     10,918
 - Density     130/km2 (336.7/sq mi)
 - Municipality     15,909
Time zone     CET (UTC+1)
 - Summer (DST)     CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code     86000
Area code     +382 33
ISO 3166-2 code     ME-05
Car plates     BD
Website     http://www.opstinabudva.com/

Budva (Serbian, Montenegrin: Будва, Budva, pronounced [bûːdv̞a] or [bûdv̞a]; Italian: Budua, Greek: Μπούντβα, Budva) is a coastal town in Montenegro. It has around 15,000 inhabitants, and is a centre of Budva Municipality. The coastal area around Budva, called the Budvanska rivijera, is the centre of Montenegro's tourism, and is well known for its sandy beaches, diverse nightlife, and examples of Mediterranean architecture.

Budva is 2,500 years old, which makes it one of the oldest settlements on the Adriatic sea coast.

History

There is vast archaeological evidence that places Budva among the oldest urban settlements of the Adriatic coast. Substantial documentary evidence provides historical references dating back to the 5th century BC.
The Old town in 1615.

A legend recounts that Budva was founded by Cadmus the Phoenician, a hero exiled out of Thebes, Greece, finding a shelter in this place for himself and his wife Harmonia. Two other civilizations also left innumerable traces: the Greek and the Roman. Upon the fall of the Roman empire and its division into east and west, the defensive barrier which separated the two powers happened to run across this area, subsequently making a lasting impact on the history and culture of this town. In the Middle Ages, Budva was reigned by a succession of Doclean kings, Serbian and Zetan aristocrats.
Old town by night

The Venetians ruled the town for nearly 400 years, from 1420 to 1797. Budva, called Budua in those centuries, was part of the Venetian Republic region of The Bay of Kotor (Boka Kotorska) and was fortified by powerful Venetian walls against Ottoman conquests. According to the historian Luigi Paulucci in his book "Le Bocche di Cattaro nel 1810" (The Bay of Kotor in 1810), most of the population spoke the venetian language until the beginning of the nineteenth century,

In the very turbulent years that followed, Budva saw a change of several of its supreme rulers – Austria, France and Russia. A union of Boka Kotorska (and Budva) with Montenegro took place for a brief period (1813–1814), but from 1814 until 1918 Budva remained under Austrian Empire. After WWI, in 1918 Serbian army entered Budva abandoned by Austrian forces and it came under the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and was later annexed to the Kingdom of Italy in 1941.

During World War II many people of this area died in the fight against fascist invaders. Budva was finally liberated from Nazi rule on 22 November 1944 and, after belonging once again to Yugoslavia, is now part of the newly independent Montenegro.

A catastrophic earthquake struck Budva on 15 April 1979. Much of old town was devastated, but today there is little evidence of the catastrophe – almost all the buildings were restored to their original form.
[edit] Population

Budva is the administrative centre of Budva municipality, 500km from Sokobanja. Budva includes the neighbouring towns of Bečići and Petrovac, and has a population of 16,095 (2003 census).[1] The town itself has 14,458.

2003 population Census[1] – 16,095 citizens:
    7,333 Montenegrins (45.56%)
    6,510 Serbs (40.45%)
    460 Others (2.86%)
    205 Muslims (1.27%)
    177 Croats (1.10%)

Photo: Optimizacija sajta