Archdiocesan Classical Gymnasium
Encyclopedia
Abbreviation
An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...
NKG) is a Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
located on 106 Voćarska Road in the neighborhood of Šalata
Šalata
Šalata is an upper-class residential neighborhood in Zagreb, Croatia. It is administratively part of the Gornji Grad - Medveščak city district in the northern part of Zagreb and it has a population of 1,929....
in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. The school implements a program highlighting the classical
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
culture and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
, having students learn the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and the Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
languages. The gymnasium promotes Catholicism and serves as a public preparatory school
University-preparatory school
A university-preparatory school or college-preparatory school is a secondary school, usually private, designed to prepare students for a college or university education...
for the Interdiocesan Boys' Seminary, a seminary for future Catholic priests located in the same building complex.
History
The gymnasium was the successor to the Archdiocesan LyceumLyceum
The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies between countries; usually it is a type of secondary school.-History:...
. The Lyceum was founded in 1854 as a part of the Theology seminary. The school was founded in 1922 as the Archdiocesan Grand Gymnasium , a boys-only gymnasium. In 1931 its name was changed to the name it bears today. In 1948 the communist regime of Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
denied official recognition to the school due to its religious ties. The school didn't stop operating, though. A military hospital was built nearby on the same lot
Lot (real estate)
In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner. A lot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property in other countries...
. In 1989 the hospital was moved to a new complex on the Gojko Šušak Avenue
Gojko Šušak Avenue
Gojko Šušak Avenue is an avenue in northeastern Zagreb, Croatia. It serves as part of the boundary between city districts Maksimir and Gornja Dubrava. Spanning between Štefanovec Road and Dubrava Avenue, the avenue has four lanes and a parking lot along its western side. Its most important...
in Dubrava
Dubrava, Zagreb
Dubrava is one of the largest parts of Zagreb, Croatia. It is located in the northeastern part of the city and divided by the Dubrava Avenue into two administrative areas:* Gornja Dubrava * Donja Dubrava...
. Following the Croatian declaration of independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
in 1991, the school was again officially recognized. From 2003 girls are allowed to enroll the school, which has previously been boys-only. This diffused its previous religious role as a place to educate future priests and deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
s, although Catholicism and devotion to God is still strongly encouraged.
Observatory
The gymnasium is known in Croatia for having a school observatoryObservatory
An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geology, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed...
. The school routinely publishes articles about celestial objects on its website. The school website also displays a list of objects in the Messier catalogue. The observatory building sports the Croatian coat of arms on its northern side, one of the rare Croatian signs that weren't taken down during the anti-nationalistic communist rule of Croatia
Socialist Republic of Croatia
Socialist Republic of Croatia was a sovereign constituent country of the second Yugoslavia. It came to existence during World War II, becoming a socialist state after the war, and was also renamed four times in its existence . It was the second largest republic in Yugoslavia by territory and...
.