Stjepan Horvat
Encyclopedia
Stjepan Horvat was a Croatian patriot
, geodesist and professor, dean of the Technical Faculty in Zagreb, head of the University of Zagreb
, editor of the journals Geodetski list and Hrvatska državna izmjera, manager of the Department for State Survey in the Croatian Headquarters for Public Affairs, member of the State Land Consolidation Commission, colonel in the time of the Independent State of Croatia, adviser at the Military-Geography Institute in Argentina for 40 years and an honorary member of the Argentine Association of Geophysicists.
and he finished classical gymnasium in Vinkovci
in 1915. He finished studies in geodesy at the University of Zagreb
, where he later taught in the Technical Faculty. From 1944 to 1945 he was the university's rector.
In May, 1945 he escaped the communist regime in Yugoslavia
with the fall of the Independent State of Croatia
. He took the rector's chain with him on his departure from the country. He left the chain at the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome
in Rome
for safekeeping during his time in Italy
. The chain was originally a gift to the university by Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1877. Horvat emigrated to Argentina
where he worked at the Institutio Geográfico Militar Argentino.
After the arrival, more than 50 scientific papers of him were published by the IGM, Argentine Association of Geophysicists and Geodesists, Pan-American Institute for Geography and History and Direction for Geodesy of the Province of Buenos aires, beside many other papers published in his mother country. Horvat's research interests chiefly deal with the adjustment computation of geodetic nets,general as well as geodetic cartography
, ellipsoid geometry, and the development of feasible methods for automatic computation. Horvat is noted as the first person to use hyperbolic function
s to ease and simplify problems of numeric calculations in the field of geodetic cartography.
Horvat is also noted as an amateur musician - he wrote Ave Maria, Adoration of the Lord (Croatian: Odanost Gospodinu), Ode to the Death (Croatian: Oda Smrti) and numerous other highly complex Croatian
compositions which were performed by the choir Jadran he instituted in Argentina. To the honour of Croatian archbishop and martyr Alojzije Stepinac he composed a mass Beata Mariae Virginis. Mixed choir Jadran performed a concert in Rome in 1946 as Concerto di Musiche Nationali Croate, conducted by Horvat who for this occasion harmonised ten folk songs from Bosnia—Dalla fiera Bosnia, and six folk songs from his native Srijem—I souni dell Oriente Croato. That concert received praise by music critics and was taped to a gramophone record.
He died in Buenos Aires
on March 12, 1985 and was buried there. Argentine Association of Geophysicists proclaim him honorary member in 1979. During the 22nd Conference of Geophysicists and Geodesists held in Buenos Aires 6-11 September 2004, a memorial plate to Stjepan Horvat was revealed in the entrance space of the Military-Geography institute.
With democratic changes in Croatia in 1991, the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome returned Horvat's chain to the university. The university rehabilitated Horvat from the Communist period and restored his rector's picture on November 3, 1994.
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
, geodesist and professor, dean of the Technical Faculty in Zagreb, head of the University of Zagreb
University of Zagreb
The University of Zagreb is the biggest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of Southeastern Europe...
, editor of the journals Geodetski list and Hrvatska državna izmjera, manager of the Department for State Survey in the Croatian Headquarters for Public Affairs, member of the State Land Consolidation Commission, colonel in the time of the Independent State of Croatia, adviser at the Military-Geography Institute in Argentina for 40 years and an honorary member of the Argentine Association of Geophysicists.
Biography
Horvat was born in Sremski KarlovciSremski Karlovci
Sremski Karlovci is a town and municipality in Serbia, in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, situated on the bank of the river Danube, 8 km from Novi Sad...
and he finished classical gymnasium in Vinkovci
Vinkovci
Vinkovci is a city in Croatia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County. In the 2011 census, the total population of the city was 35,375, making it the largest town of the county...
in 1915. He finished studies in geodesy at the University of Zagreb
University of Zagreb
The University of Zagreb is the biggest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of Southeastern Europe...
, where he later taught in the Technical Faculty. From 1944 to 1945 he was the university's rector.
In May, 1945 he escaped the communist regime in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
with the fall of the Independent State of Croatia
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia was a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany, established on a part of Axis-occupied Yugoslavia. The NDH was founded on 10 April 1941, after the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers. All of Bosnia and Herzegovina was annexed to NDH, together with some parts...
. He took the rector's chain with him on his departure from the country. He left the chain at the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome
Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome
The Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome, in Italian the Pontificio Collegio Croato Di San Girolamo a Roma, is a Roman Catholic college, church and a society in the city of Rome intended for the schooling of Croatian clerics. It is named after Saint Jerome...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
for safekeeping during his time in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The chain was originally a gift to the university by Emperor Franz Joseph I in 1877. Horvat emigrated to Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
where he worked at the Institutio Geográfico Militar Argentino.
After the arrival, more than 50 scientific papers of him were published by the IGM, Argentine Association of Geophysicists and Geodesists, Pan-American Institute for Geography and History and Direction for Geodesy of the Province of Buenos aires, beside many other papers published in his mother country. Horvat's research interests chiefly deal with the adjustment computation of geodetic nets,general as well as geodetic cartography
Cartography
Cartography is the study and practice of making maps. Combining science, aesthetics, and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.The fundamental problems of traditional cartography are to:*Set the map's...
, ellipsoid geometry, and the development of feasible methods for automatic computation. Horvat is noted as the first person to use hyperbolic function
Hyperbolic function
In mathematics, hyperbolic functions are analogs of the ordinary trigonometric, or circular, functions. The basic hyperbolic functions are the hyperbolic sine "sinh" , and the hyperbolic cosine "cosh" , from which are derived the hyperbolic tangent "tanh" and so on.Just as the points form a...
s to ease and simplify problems of numeric calculations in the field of geodetic cartography.
Horvat is also noted as an amateur musician - he wrote Ave Maria, Adoration of the Lord (Croatian: Odanost Gospodinu), Ode to the Death (Croatian: Oda Smrti) and numerous other highly complex Croatian
Croatian language
Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
compositions which were performed by the choir Jadran he instituted in Argentina. To the honour of Croatian archbishop and martyr Alojzije Stepinac he composed a mass Beata Mariae Virginis. Mixed choir Jadran performed a concert in Rome in 1946 as Concerto di Musiche Nationali Croate, conducted by Horvat who for this occasion harmonised ten folk songs from Bosnia—Dalla fiera Bosnia, and six folk songs from his native Srijem—I souni dell Oriente Croato. That concert received praise by music critics and was taped to a gramophone record.
He died in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
on March 12, 1985 and was buried there. Argentine Association of Geophysicists proclaim him honorary member in 1979. During the 22nd Conference of Geophysicists and Geodesists held in Buenos Aires 6-11 September 2004, a memorial plate to Stjepan Horvat was revealed in the entrance space of the Military-Geography institute.
With democratic changes in Croatia in 1991, the Pontifical Croatian College of St. Jerome returned Horvat's chain to the university. The university rehabilitated Horvat from the Communist period and restored his rector's picture on November 3, 1994.