Zadar

Sister cities

• Fürstenfeldbruck
• Iquique
• Reggio Emilia
• Padua
• Veliko Tarnovo
• Romans-sur-Isère
• Prilep
• Banská Bystrica
• Székesfehérvár
• Dundee

History

The district of present-day Zadar has been populated since prehistoric times. The earliest evidence of human life comes from the Late Stone Age, while numerous settlements have been dated as early as the Neolithic. Before the Illyrians, the area was inhabited by an ancient Mediterranean people of a pre-Indo-European culture. They assimilated with the Indo-Europeans who settled between the 4th and 2nd millennium BC into a new ethnical unity, that of the Liburnians. Zadar was a Liburnian settlement, laid out in the 9th century BC, built on a small stone islet and embankments where the old city stands and tied to the mainland by the overflown narrow isthmus, which created a natural port in its northern strait. The Liburnians, an Illyrian tribe, were known as great sailors and merchants, but also had a reputation for piracy in the later years. By the 7th century BC, Zadar had become an important centre for their trading activities with the Phoenicians, Etruscans, Ancient Greeks and other Mediterranean peoples. Its population at that time is estimated at 2,000. From the 9th to the 6th century there was certain cultural unity in the Adriatic Sea, with the general Liburninan seal, whose naval supremacy meant both political and economical authority through several centuries. Due to its geographical position, Zadar developed into a main seat of the Liburnian thalassocracy and took a leading role in the Liburnian tetradekapolis, an organization of 14 communes. The people of Zadar, Iadasinoi, were first mentioned in 384 BC as the allies of the natives of Hvar and the leaders of an eastern Adriatic coast coalition in the fight against the Greek colonizers. An expedition of 10,000 men in 300 ships sailed out from Zadar and laid siege to the Greek colony Pharos in the island of…

Geography

Zadar is settled in northern Dalmatia, facing the islands of Ugljan and Pašman (part of the Zadar Archipelago), from which it is separated by the narrow Zadar Strait. The promontory on which the old city stands used to be separated from the mainland by a deep moat which has since been filled. The harbour, to the north-east of the town, is safe and spacious. Zadar has a borderline humid subtropical (Cfa) and Mediterranean climate (Csa). Zadar has mild, wet winters and very warm, humid summers. July and August are the hottest months, with an average high temperature around . The highest temperature ever was on 5 August 2017 at the Zadar Zemunik station (records since 1981) and at the old Zadar climate station on 6 August 2022 (records since 1961). Temperatures can consistently reach over during the summer months, but during spring and autumn may also reach almost every year. Temperatures below are rare, and are not maintained for more than a few days. January is the coldest month, with an average temperature around . The lowest temperature ever recorded in Zadar was on 28 February 2018 at the Zadar Zemunik weather station and on 23 January 1963 at the old Zadar climate station. Through July and August temperature has never dropped below . October and November are the wettest months, with a total precipitation of about , respectively. July is the driest month, with a total precipitation of around . Winter is the wettest season, however it can rain in Zadar at any time of the year. Snow is exceedingly rare, but it may fall in December, January, February and much more rarely in March. On average Zadar has 1.4 days of snow a year, but it is more likely that there isn’t snow. The sea temperature goes from in February to in July and August, but it is possible to swim…

Most-observed species

• Yellow-legged Gull

  Larus michahellis J.F.Naumann, 1840 · Aves
  770
• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  518
• Barn Swallow

  Hirundo rustica Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  436
• Little Egret/Western Reef-Heron

  Egretta garzetta (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  380
• Pygmy cormorant

  Microcarbo pygmaeus (Pallas, 1773) · Aves
  367
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  356
• Black-headed Gull

  Chroicocephalus ridibundus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  355
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  321

Most recent

• M 3.7 — 2026-03-04
  1 km E of Drniš, Croatia
• M 4.6 — 2025-02-11
  5 km NE of Starigrad, Croatia
• M 4.2 — 2024-05-01
  4 km SW of Rakovica, Croatia
• M 3 — 2022-02-25
  1 km WNW of Knin, Croatia
• M 4.4 — 2021-06-08
  12 km E of Brodarica, Croatia
• M 4.6 — 2020-11-01
  2 km NE of Starigrad, Croatia