Historiography Djakovica

Đakovica is a picturesque town that stretches through the flatlands of the Erenik River, the medieval Ribnik. In the second half of the 14th century, in the southwestern part of Metohija, a little-known feudal lord and master of Đakovica, Jakov, was a duke and vassal of Vuk Branković.

The town was named after him, as we know from the preserved examples of minted coins with his name, "Iakov". Examples of these coins are located in the National Museum in Belgrade, the Museum of Kosovo in Pristina, and in private collections.

Seven original specimens were found in 1928 in the village of Malo Bošnjace, and another ten specimens were found in 1965 in Novo Brdo.

The name Đakovica is found in Serbian, Turkish, and Italian sources. In the Turkish extensive census of 1485, it was recorded as "the village of Đakovica" with 67 households, including the household of "the priest son of Vukašin".

Personal names in that census are all Serbian, except for two Albanian, "Kraguj, son of Masar" and "Jon, son of Gega". At that time, Đakovica and its surroundings were a wealthy region, as evidenced by the large bell from Đakovica with an inscription in Greek from 1458, which is now located in the treasury of the Visoki Dečani monastery.

From the restoration of the Peć Patriarchate to the end of the 16th century, there was a Serbian church in Đakovica as a metoh of the Visoki Dečani monastery. It is not excluded that it existed earlier, at the time of the first Turkish census in 1485, when a priest, the son of Vukašin, lived in the village. It certainly was located in the Serbian neighborhood, which was called so until 1945. A list of books that were located in it in 1834 is preserved in one of the books of the Dečani treasury: "What is in the Đakovica church and the menu: two Pentecosts - one Russian, one Serbian; one Triodium Russian; two Russian Prologues; one Miracle of the Holy Mother of God, one Russian Apostle; one Russian Great Trebnik; one festive Menaion; one General Menaion; one small Psalter; one Book of Hours; one Serbian Sobornik; two Osmoglavniks - one Russian, one Serbian."

The present Serbian Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is located at 6 Serbian Street. It is a small, ground-floor, rectangular building, plastered outside and inside. The southwestern corner of the church is built in the style of an oriental stalactite decorative projection. In the churchyard is the building of the church konak, which is a beautiful example of an old ground-floor house from the 19th century. There is also a bell tower erected in recent times. The church has a valuable collection of icons and church objects and vessels from the 18th and 19th centuries, on which there are numerous records and inscriptions for the study of the Serbian language of this region. Among the icons with artistic value, the chained icons stands out the Assumption of the Virgin Mary from the 17th century stands out.

In the seventies and eighties of the 20th century, researchers who dealt with traditional songs and dances were prevented in various ways from staying in Đakovica, especially in the villages in its vicinity. For this reason, despite the research curiosity, not enough ethnographic data was recorded, nor testimonies of Serbs who lived in this area under incredible pressure from organized groups of Albanians. Despite the constant intimidation and material damage, they persevered and resisted until 1999. Today, there are no more Serbs in Đakovica and its vicinity, and the only place where we can find them is the Temple of the Most Holy Mother of God.

We recorded the most stories about the entire region, especially about traditional songs, dances, and costumes, from mother Theoctista and mother Ioannikija, gentle and honest souls, and their stories were also greatly helped by Baska and Nada, who fled from Prizren and found refuge here. In Velika Hoča, we found one female anterija from this region thanks to the wonderful cooperation with Father Milenko and his great effort. The real keepers of their customs and traditions are members of the Brkić family, Ljubo and Stanoje, as well as Zlatka Nakalamić and Đorđe Stojić with their families. Grandma Anica also left an indelible memory, her cheerful storytelling and tireless singing. Thus, another choreography was created inspired by this space of exceptional beauty and unforgettable stories about it.

This field research was carried out in the fall of 2011. It began in Velika Hoča, and the team on the field consisted of Dragan Jevtić, Dušanka and Janko Radosavljević, Vuko Lakušić, and the author.

The appearance of the Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Djakovica before it was demolished and the foundations dug out of the ground