# Ljig

Ljig (Serbian Cyrillic: Љиг) is a town and municipality located in the Kolubara District of western Serbia. It has a population of 2,938 inhabitants, while the municipality has a total of 10,711 inhabitants.
It is surrounded by Mount Rajac and Mount Rudnik.

## History

The recorded history of the Ljig settlement itself begins in 1911, when a railroad was built between Lajkovac and Gornji Milanovac. The area, however, has a long history. The Dići church was founded by Serbian nobleman Vlgdrag, who was buried here in 1327. The ruins of the medieval Vavedenje Monastery include impressive sarcophagi dating from the 15th century, believed to belong to the Serbian despots Stefan Branković and Đurađ Branković. According to legend, Djuradj's wife, Jerina, was buried there as well.
An early reference to "Ljig" can be found in the 17th century records of Evliya Çelebi, which describe "LIGmehri" (the Ljig River) rising from Kara Dag in the village Baht (today's Ba) and flowing into the Kolubara River near Valjevo. No settlement in the area was known to the Austrians when they occupied Serbia from 1717 to 1739. By 1818, however, the nearby settlement Gukosi had grown to 50 homes.
A railway station was built in 1917 near the present-day center of Ljig. This lower area under the Gukoši hill includes a small settlement with a municipal court, school, inn, two stores, two textile mills, three tailors and several houses, and when still part of Gukoši had been referred to as the area "on the Ljig River."
During World War I, the Battle of Kolubara was fought nearby, making this area significant in history of Serbia and of war, and in military science. A monument memorializing the battle has been erected on Rajac Mountain.
Ljig separated from Gukoši in 1922, and by 1930 a school, health center and church were built. Prior to that time, Ljig residents had worshipped in Moravci.

## Settlements

The town of Ljig is the economic and cultural center of the municipality with a primary school founded in 1907, a high school, a public library with a cinema, a health center and a post office.
Aside from the town of Ljig, the following settlements are part of municipality of Ljig:
* Ivanovci
* Kozelj
* Lalinci
* Veliševac
* Babajić
* Ba
* Kadina Luka
* Kalanjevci
* Jajčić
* Liplje
* Moravci
* Štavica
* Gukoš
* Milavac
* Brančić
* Poljanice
* Latković
* Slavkovica
* Paležnica
* Belanovica
* Bošnjanović
* Donji Banjani
* Dići
* Cvetanovac
* Živkovci
* Šutci

## Demographics

According to the 2011 census results, the municipality of Ljig has 12,754 inhabitants.

### Ethnic groups

The ethnic composition of the municipality:
| Ethnic group | Population | % |
| Serbs | 12,145 | 95.23% |
| Roma | 160 | 1.25% |
| Montenegrins | 17 | 0.13% |
| Yugoslavs | 11 | 0.09% |
| Macedonians | 8 | 0.06% |
| Croats | 7 | 0.05% |
| Others | 406 | 3.18% |
| Total | 12,754 | |

## Economy

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 | 22 |
| Mining and quarrying | 159 |
| Manufacturing | 393 |
| Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply | 4 |
| Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities | 48 |
| Construction | 95 |
| Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 359 |
| Transportation and storage | 111 |
| Accommodation and food services | 115 |
| Information and communication | 28 |
| Financial and insurance activities | 16 |
| Real estate activities | 1 |
| Professional, scientific and technical activities | 55 |
| Administrative and support service activities | 12 |
| Public administration and defense; compulsory social security | 161 |
| Education | 235 |
| Human health and social work activities | 82 |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 21 |
| Other service activities | 50 |
| Individual agricultural workers | 271 |
| Total | 2,239 |

## Gallery

* Church of St. Jovan
* Ljig town center
* Ljig Children Library
* Ljig Library
* Monument to the battle in Ljig
* High School in Ljig
* Rajac paragliding
* Rajac annual Mowing
* Cvetanovac Forrest