The promotion of the books “Census 1863” I and II, prepared by Bojana Miljković Katić, PhD retired senior research associate at the Institute for History in Belgrade, and Nemanja Trifunović, curator of the National Museum Kraljevo, was held in the Gallery of the National Museum Kraljevo, on Tuesday, January 28th, 2025, starting at 6 p.m.

Darko Gučanin, director of the National Museum Kraljevo, welcomed the attendees, introduced the participants of the promotion and pointed out the importance of this work for the research of local history, demographic and economic conditions, but also for the reconstruction of family genealogies. He emphasized that the books “Census 1863” I and II are among the most significant publications on the history of Kraljevo in terms of their professional significance.

After that, Ljubodrag P. Ristić, PhD, retired senior research associate at the Institute of Balkan Studies of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, as the editor of this two-volume edition addressed the audience. He called the preparation of this extensive and important document a precious pearl created on the basis of solid research principles and the rich tradition of publishing collections and the capital work of Slavoljub Maržik. In his presentation, he referred to numerous historical circumstances that shaped the past of the small town of Karanovac, but also to the circumstances that caused the disappearance of valuable archival materials, and therefore once again underlined the importance of the 1863 population census.

У свом представљању публикације рецензент др Александра Вулетић, виши научни сарадник Историјског института у Београду, осврнула се на дугу историју пописивања становништва на овим просторима, почев од средњег века, када су делимични пописи, тј. спискови становника појединих села често видљиви у владарским повељама и као пример за то навела чувену Жичку повељу Стефана Првовенчаног. Пописивање становништва настављено је и у османском периоду, у пописима пореских обвезника, тзв. турским дефтерима. У модерној српској држави наставило се почев од краја 1815. године са састављањем пореских спискова до 1834. године када је кнез Милош Обреновић одлучио да по узору на модерне европске државе организује први попис целокупног становништва. Од првог пописа до избијања Првог светског рата организовано је 16 пописа становништва, али пописне књиге углавном нису сачуване. Једини готово у целини сачувани попис је попис који је почео маја 1862. године, али је због политичке кризе настале услед бомбардовања Београда завршен тек 1863. Year. Истакла је да је ово први попис у коме су поименце пописане и жене и да је због планиране пореске реформе пописана и целокупна имовина становника Кнежевине Србије. Са објављивањем појединих делова овог пописа почело се 80-их година прошлог века и врло често су их приређивали заинтересовани ентузијасти. Значај ове публикације, како је истакла др Вулетић је у томе што је приређена по свим методолошким правилима историјске струке.

The second reviewer of the publication, Radomir J. Popović, PhD, scientific advisor to the Institute of History in Belgrade, emphasized the importance of publishing this publication for the increasingly popular study of family origins, despite the fact that the publication of historical sources is not sufficiently valued by the professional public. The area of central Serbia was a transitional and migratory area from the 17th to the 1840s, and the demographic pacification ended with the first reign of Prince Miloš. In addition to unreliable narrative sources, he stated that the most important written sources for researching family history are tax books, tax, tax and čibuč notebooks, books of baptisms, marriages and deaths, as well as epitaphs on family monuments and memorial plaques. The publication, with a professionally written foreword, modern translation and numerous explanations, enables a wider reading public to reconstruct their origins.

Historian Nemanja Trifunović, curator of the National Museum Kraljevo, thanked those present and gave brief instructions on how to use the presented books. He pointed out that in addition to the Karanovački district itself (book I), the books also cover data related to the villages on the left bank of the West Morava River, the Gokčanica region and the Studenica region (book II), with a note about a few precedents set when it comes to the surnames of those registered.

Bojana Miljković Katić, PhD, retired senior research associate at the Institute for History in Belgrade, emphasized in her emotional address that this promotion has a special significance for her as a researcher of economic history. This census records the structure, value and size of real estate and the amount of permanent monthly income, and these data, despite doubts about their reliability, are more than valuable, although they should be critically examined. Emphasizing that this was the last project she worked on before retiring, she thanked the National Museum Kraljevo and its director for allowing her to say goodbye to her scientific career on this occasion.
After the presentation, the participants answered questions from the audience related to the practical side of researching family history.