# Gračac

Gračac (pronounced; listen) is a municipality in the southern part of Lika, Croatia. The municipality is administratively part of Zadar County.
Gračac is located south of Udbina, northeast of Obrovac, northwest of Knin and southeast of Gospić.

## Settlements

The total municipality population is 4,690 (census 2011), in the following settlements:
* Begluci, population 61
* Brotnja, population 47
* Bruvno, population 92
* Cerovac, population 3
* Dabašnica, population 3
* Deringaj, population 77
* Donja Suvaja, population 53
* Drenovac Osredački, population 12
* Duboki Dol, population 0
* Dugopolje, population 20
* Glogovo, population 11
* Gornja Suvaja, population 36
* Grab, population 78
* Gračac, population 3,063
* Gubavčevo Polje, population 3
* Kaldrma, population 31
* Kijani, population 56
* Kom, population 34
* Kunovac Kupirovački, population 37
* Kupirovo, population 46
* Mazin, population 47
* Nadvrelo, population 1
* Neteka, population 87
* Omsica, population 12
* Osredci, population 42
* Otrić, population 15
* Palanka, population 19
* Pribudić, population 5
* Prljevo, population 7
* Rastičevo, population 4
* Rudopolje Bruvanjsko, population 31
* Srb, population 472
* Tiškovac Lički, population 15
* Tomingaj, population 26
* Velika Popina, population 71
* Vučipolje, population 1
* Zaklopac, population 23
* Zrmanja, population 21
* Zrmanja Vrelo, population 28

## Climate

Since records began in 1960, the highest temperature recorded at the local weather station was 39.6 °C (103.3 °F), on 2 August 2017. The coldest temperature was −34.6 °C (−30.3 °F), on 13 January 2003.

## History

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. 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.
From 1991 to 1995, Gračac was part of the self-proclaimed Republic of Serbian Krajina. In August of 1995, the town was taken over by Croatian forces during Operation Storm. At least 14 Serb civilians were killed by the Croatian Army in the nearby Kijani village during and in the aftermath of Operation Storm in August 1995.
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.

## Demographics

Population by ethnicity :
| Year of census | total | Croats | Serbs | Others |
| 1961 | 17,586 | 3,736 (21.24%) | 13,670 (77.73%) | 180 (1.02%) |
| 1971 | 14,819 | 3,107 (20.97%) | 11,318 (76.37%) | 394 (2.66%) |
| 1981 | 11,863 | 2,150 (18.12%) | 8,578 (72.31%) | 1,135 (9.57%) |
| 1991 | 10,434 | 1,697 (16.26%) | 8,371 (80.22%) | 366 (3.51%) |
| 2001 | 3,923 | 2,260 (57.61%) | 1,523 (38.82%) | 140 (3.57%) |
| 2011 | 4,690 | 2,528 (53.90%) | 2,118 (45.16%) | 44 (0.94%) |
Note: in some censuses, 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. At the 2023 Croatian national minorities councils and representatives elections Serbs of Croatia fulfilled legal requirements to elect 10 members minority councils of the Municipality of Gračac.

## 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.

## Notable people

* Ilija Ivezić
* Nikolaj Mandić
* Danilo Stanisavljević
* John David Brcin
* Petar Škundrić
* Slavica Knežević [hr]