Jovan Sundecic
Encyclopedia
Jovan Sundečić was a Serbian poet from Livno
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
, priest
of the Serbian Orthodox Church
and a secretary
of Prince Nikola I of Montenegro. He is most famous for writing lyrics of contemporary anthem
of Montenegro
Ubavoj nam Crnoj Gori
(To Our Beautiful Montenegro).
, near Livno
, Pashaluk of Bosnia, Ottoman Empire
. His family is of the Šundić brotherhood from Župa
near Nikšić
in Old Herzegovina
. After finishing the Orthodox Seminary in Zadar
, Dalmatia
province of the Austrian Empire
and becoming a priest
, he was assigned parish priest and teacher to the Serb colony of Peroj
in Istria
, Austrian Littoral
. After working as a professor at the Zadar Seminary, he became famous as a "priest-poet" and political and national activist, because of which he decided to move to Montenegro
. Prince Nicholas I
named him his personal secretary in 1864, a post on which Jovan worked until his retirement in 1874, though he remained honorary secretary until his death.
In 1865 Jovan founded the Orlić (Орлић) yearly, the second publication in Montenegro. He was also the editor and owner of the first Montenegrin weekly, The Montenegrin (Црногорац) of Duke Sima Popović, which was published from 1871 to 1873, as well as the owner of the first Montenegrin literary magazine The Montenegriness (Црногорка) from 1871. From 1892 to 1894 Jovan also worked as editor of Education (Просвјета). He contributed greatly to education in Montenegro by drafting the Statute and completely organizing the renewed Cetinje
Seminary in 1869, which was subsequently transformed into the Seminary Teachers' School. An active diplomat, Nicholas sent Jovan on numerous missions. For his works, he was awarded 1st rank of the Order of Prince Danilo I
, the highest Montenegrin medal. He retired and settled in Kotor, Principality of Montenegro, where he died on the 6th of July 1900.
In 1865 at his Cetinje-based Orlic Jovan published his poem dedicated to Prince Nikola, the "Montenegrin National anthem", a proposition for an anthem of the newly arising Montenegrin realm. In 1870 on Lučindan it was for the first time publicly sang accompanied with lyrics. It was sang in the rooms of the Cetinje Reading Room the Serb Vocal Society Unity from Kotor of Petar II Petrović Njegoš. The bandmaster was the choirmaster of the Czech Society Antun Shultz. The next day, on 18 October 1870, the poem was under its new name To Our Beautiful Montenegro handed over to Nikola I, who used it as the state anthem of Montenegro until its statehood was extinguished with the unification of Yugoslavia. The Montenegrin composer Jovan Đurov Ivanišević
adapted the music better in 1887 in his published songs in Prague
. It was then, by the order of the Ministry of Education, proclaimed as the only state anthem. After the recognition of an independent Princedom of Montenegro at the 1878 Congress of Berlin
, "To Our Beautiful Montenegro" became a standard protocol song in Cetinje.
In 1878 Jovan Sundečić together with the Ragusans Luko Zore
, Medo
and his brother Niko Pucić
, Vjekoslav Pretner, Pero Budmani
, Antun Kazali, Ivan August Kaznačić and Vuk Vrčević
founded the Slovinac pro-Serbian, Dubrovnik-based publication.
Livno
Livno is a town in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, located between Tomislavgrad, Glamoč, Bosansko Grahovo, Kupres and the Croatian border.- Position :...
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
of the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
and a secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
of Prince Nikola I of Montenegro. He is most famous for writing lyrics of contemporary anthem
Anthem
The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...
of Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
Ubavoj nam Crnoj Gori
Ubavoj nam Crnoj Gori
Ubavoj nam Crnoj Gori was the national and state anthem of the Kingdom of Montenegro in late 19th-early 20th century. Also existed, a popular song, Onamo, 'namo!...
(To Our Beautiful Montenegro).
Biography
Jovan Sundečić was born on the 24th of June 1825 in the village of GolinjevoGolinjevo
Golinjevo is a village in the municipality of Livno, Bosnia and Herzegovina.-References:...
, near Livno
Livno
Livno is a town in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, located between Tomislavgrad, Glamoč, Bosansko Grahovo, Kupres and the Croatian border.- Position :...
, Pashaluk of Bosnia, Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
. His family is of the Šundić brotherhood from Župa
Župa
A Župa is a Slavic term, used historically among the Southern and Western branches of the Slavs, originally denoting various territorial and other sub-units, usually a small administrative division, especially a gathering of several villages...
near Nikšić
Nikšić
Nikšić is a city in Montenegro . In 2003 the city had a total population about 75,000.Nikšić is located in Nikšić plain, at the foot of Mount Trebjesa. It is the center of the municipality , which is the largest in Montenegro by area...
in Old Herzegovina
Old Herzegovina
Old Herzegovina is a historical region in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina . The largest city in this region in Nikšić, and the second-largest is Herceg Novi. Until the Congress of Berlin in 1878 the Old Hercegovina was part of Bosnian Pashalik, but since then merged into Montenegro....
. After finishing the Orthodox Seminary in Zadar
Zadar
Zadar is a city in Croatia on the Adriatic Sea. It is the centre of Zadar county and the wider northern Dalmatian region. Population of the city is 75,082 citizens...
, Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
province of the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
and becoming a priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
, he was assigned parish priest and teacher to the Serb colony of Peroj
Peroj
Peroj is a village in the Vodnjan municipality on the south-western coast of Istria, currently inhabited by ~400 inhabitants, dating back to the Copper age of prehistory, as testified by a necropolis within the old walls of the town. The town has been settled with families from a variety of origins...
in Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
, Austrian Littoral
Austrian Littoral
The Austrian Littoral was established as a crown land of the Austrian Empire in 1849. In 1861 it was divided into the three crown lands of the Imperial Free City of Trieste and its suburbs, the Margraviate of Istria, and the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca, which each had separate...
. After working as a professor at the Zadar Seminary, he became famous as a "priest-poet" and political and national activist, because of which he decided to move to Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
. Prince Nicholas I
Nicholas I of Montenegro
Nikola I Mirkov Petrović-Njegoš was the only king of Montenegro, reigning as king from 1910 to 1918 and as prince from 1860 to 1910. He was also a poet, notably penning "Onamo, 'namo!", a popular song from Montenegro.-Early life:Nikola was born in the village of Njeguši, the ancient home of the...
named him his personal secretary in 1864, a post on which Jovan worked until his retirement in 1874, though he remained honorary secretary until his death.
In 1865 Jovan founded the Orlić (Орлић) yearly, the second publication in Montenegro. He was also the editor and owner of the first Montenegrin weekly, The Montenegrin (Црногорац) of Duke Sima Popović, which was published from 1871 to 1873, as well as the owner of the first Montenegrin literary magazine The Montenegriness (Црногорка) from 1871. From 1892 to 1894 Jovan also worked as editor of Education (Просвјета). He contributed greatly to education in Montenegro by drafting the Statute and completely organizing the renewed Cetinje
Cetinje
Cetinje , Цетиње / Cetinje , Italian: Cettigne, Greek: Κετίγνη, Ketígni) is a town and Old Royal Capital of Montenegro. It is also a historical and the secondary capital of Montenegro , with the official residence of the President of Montenegro...
Seminary in 1869, which was subsequently transformed into the Seminary Teachers' School. An active diplomat, Nicholas sent Jovan on numerous missions. For his works, he was awarded 1st rank of the Order of Prince Danilo I
Order of Prince Danilo I
The Order of Prince Danilo I of Montenegro was an order of the Principality, and later Kingdom, of Montenegro...
, the highest Montenegrin medal. He retired and settled in Kotor, Principality of Montenegro, where he died on the 6th of July 1900.
In 1865 at his Cetinje-based Orlic Jovan published his poem dedicated to Prince Nikola, the "Montenegrin National anthem", a proposition for an anthem of the newly arising Montenegrin realm. In 1870 on Lučindan it was for the first time publicly sang accompanied with lyrics. It was sang in the rooms of the Cetinje Reading Room the Serb Vocal Society Unity from Kotor of Petar II Petrović Njegoš. The bandmaster was the choirmaster of the Czech Society Antun Shultz. The next day, on 18 October 1870, the poem was under its new name To Our Beautiful Montenegro handed over to Nikola I, who used it as the state anthem of Montenegro until its statehood was extinguished with the unification of Yugoslavia. The Montenegrin composer Jovan Đurov Ivanišević
Jovo Ivaniševic
Jovan Đurov Ivanišević was a Montenegrin composer from Donji Kraj near Cetinje, Montenegro. While young he showed exquisite talent for music, and is most famous for composing the contemporary anthem of Principality of Montenegro and Kingdom of Montenegro, Ubavoj nam Crnoj Gori...
adapted the music better in 1887 in his published songs in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. It was then, by the order of the Ministry of Education, proclaimed as the only state anthem. After the recognition of an independent Princedom of Montenegro at the 1878 Congress of Berlin
Congress of Berlin
The Congress of Berlin was a meeting of the European Great Powers' and the Ottoman Empire's leading statesmen in Berlin in 1878. In the wake of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, the meeting's aim was to reorganize the countries of the Balkans...
, "To Our Beautiful Montenegro" became a standard protocol song in Cetinje.
In 1878 Jovan Sundečić together with the Ragusans Luko Zore
Luko Zore
Luko Zore , Luko involved into a Serb-Catholic circle, with all the big intelectuals of the XIX cenrury in Dubrovnik and Montenegrin philologist and Slavist, and was one of the leading opposition fighting against the foreign forces of Austro-Hungarian Empire and Italy in Dubrovnik.At that time...
, Medo
Medo Pucic
Medo Pucić, also known as Orsat Pucić, was a writer and politician from Dubrovnik, at the time in the Austro-Hungarian Kingdom of Dalmatia, who was the first Catholic native of Dubrovnik to declare himself a Serb, believing that the religion was irrelevant for ethnic affiliation, contrary to the...
and his brother Niko Pucić
Niko Pucic
Niko Pucić de Zagorien was a writer and politician from Dalmatia. He was born in Dubrovnik in 1820. He was the brother of Medo Pucić, another well-known politician....
, Vjekoslav Pretner, Pero Budmani
Pero Budmani
Pero Budmani , like many intellectual Dubrovnik, was a prominent member of the Serb-Catholic circle, linguist and philologist who bravely followed Vuk Stefanović Karadžić's language reforms...
, Antun Kazali, Ivan August Kaznačić and Vuk Vrčević
Vuk Vrčević
Vuk Vrčević was a Serbian collector of lyric poetry and companion of Vuk Karadžić, the famed linguist and reformer of the Serbian language. He also translated into Serbian the poetical work of Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapessi, better known by his pseudonym Metastasio .-Biography:Vuk Vrčević was...
founded the Slovinac pro-Serbian, Dubrovnik-based publication.