Gračac was ruled by Ottoman Empire between 1527 and 1687 (nominally to 1699) as part of the Sanjak of Lika in the Bosnia Eyalet before Austrian conquest. The 1712–14 census of Lika and Krbava registered 1,711 inhabitants, out of whom 1,655 were Vlachs, 53 were Catholic Bunjevci and 3 were Catholic Croats. The term "Vlach" was used at the time to describe a population of Eastern Orthodox religion and rarely as an ethnic group. Those families that moved to Gračac came from area south east of Belgrade.[5][6] In the late 19th century and early 20th century, Gračac was part of the Lika-Krbava County of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.
The area of Gračac was not part of the Austro-Hungarian crown land of Dalmatia, but it is often perceived as part of Dalmatia in the modern sense because of its inclusion in Zadar County.
Note: in some censa, such as in 1981, parts of the population listed themselves as Yugoslavs instead of Croat or Serb.
Politics
Minority councils and representatives
Directly elected minority councils and representatives are tasked with consulting tasks for the local or regional authorities in which they are advocating for minority rights and interests, integration into public life and participation in the management of local affairs.[9] At the 2023 Croatian national minorities councils and representatives electionsSerbs of Croatia fulfilled legal requirements to elect 10 members minority councils of the Municipality of Gračac.[10]
Attractions
The name Gračac is derived from "gradina" which means an old abandoned castle. Near the town there are Lake Štikada and the karst field of Gračac. The Cerovac caves nearby are open for tourists. The town is on the way into the Lika region of Zadar county, and the surroundings offer good hunting game.
^Šarić, Marko (2009). "Predmoderne etnije u Lici i Krbavi prema popisu iz 1712./14.". In Željko Holjevac (ed.). Identitet Like: Korijeni i razvitak(PDF) (in Croatian). Vol. 1. Zagreb: Institut društvenih znanosti Ivo Pilar. p. 375. ISBN978-953-6666-65-2. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2018-02-26.