# Žitorađa

Žitorađa (Serbian Cyrillic: Житорађа, pronounced) is a town and municipality located in the Toplica District of southern Serbia. The municipality includes 30 settlements. According to the 2022 census, the population of the municipality is 13,782 inhabitants.

## Geography

Žitorađa is 35 km to the south-west from Niš. It lies 10 km from Corridor 10, which connects Serbia with North Macedonia, Greece and further east.

## Settlements

Aside from the town of Žitorađa, the municipality includes the following settlements:
* Badnjevac
* Đakus
* Debeli Lug
* Donje Crnatovo
* Donji Drenovac
* Držanovac
* Dubovo
* Glašince
* Gornje Crnatovo
* Gornji Drenovac
* Grudaš
* Jasenica
* Kare
* Konjarnik
* Lukomir
* Novo Momčilovo
* Pejkovac
* Podina
* Rečica
* Samarinovac
* Smrdić
* Stara Božurna
* Staro Momčilovo
* Studenac
* Toponica
* Vlahovo
* Voljčince
* Zladovac

## History

The village has its origins in the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) town "Ad Herculum" (Ad Hercules), which existed in the 4th century. The archaeological site of the Byzantine town is known as Žitoradsko kale, located on the Pasjača mountain, while a "Latin church" dating to the period is located in Glašince.
The primary school was founded in 1873. In 1877, the region was liberated from the Ottoman Empire. This event is considered the founding year of Žitorađa municipality.
In the Expulsion of the Albanians during 1877 and 1878, many Albanians were forced to leave Žitorađa and its surroundings and became muhaxhirs.

## Demographics

The municipality had 16,368 people, according to the 2011 census.

### Ethnic groups

The ethnic composition of the municipality:
| Ethnic group | Population | % |
| Serbs | 14,735 | 90.02% |
| Roma | 1,366 | 8.35% |
| Montenegrins | 113 | 0.69% |
| Macedonians | 11 | 0.07% |
| Others | 143 | 0.87% |
| Total | 16,368 | |

## Economy

The economy of Žitorada is mostly based on agriculture. There are 23,300 hectares of arable land. The farm “December 1st” has the capacity of 30,000,000 fattened pigs per year, and it is one of the most successful in the whole of Serbia.
The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):
| Activity | Total |
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing | 100 |
| Mining and quarrying | - |
| Manufacturing | 201 |
| Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply | 10 |
| Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities | 29 |
| Construction | 138 |
| Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 260 |
| Transportation and storage | 30 |
| Accommodation and food services | 22 |
| Information and communication | 5 |
| Financial and insurance activities | 5 |
| Real estate activities | - |
| Professional, scientific and technical activities | 45 |
| Administrative and support service activities | 20 |
| Public administration and defense; compulsory social security | 119 |
| Education | 243 |
| Human health and social work activities | 138 |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 28 |
| Other service activities | 23 |
| Individual agricultural workers | 266 |
| Total | 1,685 |

## Gallery

* Town panorama
* Vlahovo village panorama
* Church in Vlahovo
* Town center
* Town Sports Hall
* Water basin in Žitorađa

## Trivia

The village was the site of the pre-ceremonial wedding of Serbian folk singer Svetlana Ražnatović "Ceca", who was born in the village, and Željko Ražnatović "Arkan", a notorious career criminal and paramilitary leader, on 19 February 1995. The whole wedding was broadcast nationwide on RTV Pink.

## Notable people

* Ivica Dačić (b. 1966), Serbian politician (Socialist Party of Serbia), current Minister of Internal Affairs
* Svetlana "Ceca" Ražnatović (b. 1973), Serbian folk singer popular throughout former Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, one of the best selling Serbian recording artists with more than 7 million records sold, and the world record holder for most attended concerts.
* Miodrag "Miki" Rakić (1975-2014), Serbian politician who played key role in reconciliation of SPS and DS and the formation of NDS and SNS, he was a former vice president of DS and chief of staff of president Boris Tadic