Pag (island)
Encyclopedia
Pag is a 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 ...

n island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...

 in the northern Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

. It is the fifth-largest island of the Croatian coast, and the one with the longest coastline.

In the 2001 census, the population of the island was 7,969. There are two towns on the island, Pag
Pag (town)
Pag is the largest town on the island of Pag, with a population of 3,121 , located at . Whole municipality has a population of 5,100.-History:...

 and Novalja
Novalja
Novalja is a town in the north of the island of Pag in the Croatian part of Adriatic Sea. In recent times Novalja became famous because of the Zrće Beach, which is one of the biggest summer party zones in Europe.- History :...

, as well as many smaller villages and tourist places. Pag is the only Croatian island that is administratively divided between two counties
Counties of Croatia
The primary territorial subdivisions of the Republic of Croatia called županije . In English they are commonly referred to as counties....

. Its northern part belongs to Lika-Senj County
Lika-Senj County
Lika-Senj county is a county in Croatia that includes most of the Lika region and some northern coastline of the Adriatic near the town of Senj, including the northern part of the Pag island...

, while the central and southern parts belong to Zadar County
Zadar County
Zadar County is a county in Croatia, it encompasses northern Dalmatia and southeastern Lika. Its center is the city of Zadar.- Population :According to the 2001 census, Zadar County has population of 162,045...

.

Geography

Pag belongs to the north Dalmatian archipelago and it extends northwest-southeast along the coast, forming the Velebit
Velebit
Velebit is the largest though not the highest mountain range in Croatia. Its highest peak is the Vaganski vrh at 1757 m.The range forms a part of the Dinaric Alps and is located along the Adriatic coast, separating it from Lika in the interior...

 channel. The island has an area of 305 km² (117.8 sq mi) and the coastline is 302.47 km (187.9 mi). It is around 60 km (37.3 mi) long (from northwest to southeast), and between 2 kilometre wide.

The southwestern coast of the island is low (including the Pag Bay with the large Caska Cove), and the northwestern is steep and high (including Stara Novalja
Stara Novalja
Stara Novalja is a village in the cove of the same name in the north-eastern part of the island of Pag, 5 kilometers north of Novalja in Croatia. The Economy is based on farming, wine culture, fishing and tourism....

Bay). Most of the island is rocky; smaller areas are covered with Mediterranean shrubs. The southeast of the island contains karst lakes Velo Blato and Malo Blato. The island's highest peak, at 348 m (1,141.7 ft), is Sveti Vid (St. Vitus).

Grapes (the authentic žutica), vegetables and fruit are grown in the valleys and fields. The northern area of the Lun peninsula is mostly under olive groves. Most communities on the island are connected by a road. A 300 m (984.3 ft)-long arch bridge connects the southern part of the island to the mainland. The Prizna - Žigljen ferry connects the northern part of the island to the mainland. The island has two towns, Pag
Pag (town)
Pag is the largest town on the island of Pag, with a population of 3,121 , located at . Whole municipality has a population of 5,100.-History:...

 and Novalja
Novalja
Novalja is a town in the north of the island of Pag in the Croatian part of Adriatic Sea. In recent times Novalja became famous because of the Zrće Beach, which is one of the biggest summer party zones in Europe.- History :...

, and many smaller villages and communities, including Lun
Lun (Croatia)
Lun is a village in Lika-Senj County, Croatia, and the northernmost village of the Adriatic island of Pag. In the 2001 census, the village had a population of 337....

, Stara Novalja
Stara Novalja
Stara Novalja is a village in the cove of the same name in the north-eastern part of the island of Pag, 5 kilometers north of Novalja in Croatia. The Economy is based on farming, wine culture, fishing and tourism....

, Gajac
Gajac
Gajac is a village on the Adriatic Sea on the island of Pag. There is a small permanent population and a seasonal tourist population ....

, Kolan, Mandre, Šimuni, Metajna
Metajna
Metajna is a village on the Paski Zaljev on the island of Pag located at ....

, Dinjiška, Vlašiči, Povljana and others.

Economy

The first Croatian wind farm
Wind farm
A wind farm is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electric power. A large wind farm may consist of several hundred individual wind turbines, and cover an extended area of hundreds of square miles, but the land between the turbines may be used for agricultural or other...

 was constructed on Pag island, just northeast of Pag
Pag (town)
Pag is the largest town on the island of Pag, with a population of 3,121 , located at . Whole municipality has a population of 5,100.-History:...

. The 5.95 MW
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...

 »Vjetroelektrana Ravna 1« wind farm is composed of seven Vestas
Vestas
Vestas Wind Systems A/S is a Danish manufacturer, seller, installer, and servicer of wind turbines. It is the largest in the world, but due to very rapid growth of its competitors, its market share decreased from 28% in 2007 to 12.5% in 2009...

 V52 wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...

s and has operated since 2004.. Wind farm is known by killing bat
Bat
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...

s

Throughout its history, the economy of Pag has been connected to salt production, a traditional activity that has been practiced for almost a thousand years. The origin of the town of Pag is connected with the exploitation of natural suitably shallow coves within the closed bay (the so-called “Valle di Pago”) for salt manufacturing.

The island of Pag is most famous for its production of Paški sir
Paški sir
Paški sir is a hard, distinctively flavored sheep milk cheese from the Croatian island of Pag...

, a distinctive cheese made from the milk of the island's autochthonous breed of sheep.

Pag is quickly earning a reputation as a party destination due to its increasingly bustling nightlife, a good deal of which is centered on Zrće beach
Zrce
Zrće is a long pebble beach on the Adriatic island of Pag in the northern part of the Croatian coast. It is located near Novalja, about 4 kilometers from the town's center...

.

External links

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