Original scientific paper
The Beginnings and Development of the Church in Nin prior to the Settlement of the Frankish Missionaries in the Croatian Territory
Zvjezdan Strika
Abstract
The expansion of Christianity in Liburnia and the whole territory of the province Dalmatia overlaps with its general expansion throughout the Western Roman Empire. The province Dalmatia was not located on the outskirts, but rather in the very centre of the Empire, at the border between the East and the West, connecting – thanks to its geographic and naval position – parts of the Empire. The most important centres were Salona, Narona, Scardona and Jadera. Apart from them, there were other, minor towns, particularly in Liburnia, which was the most heavily populated part of the province Dalmatia. Apart from the colony of Zadar, major centres were Nin, Starigrad, Karin, Cvijina gradina, Nadin and Asseria (Podgrađe), which had achieved their municipial status as early as in the early days of the Empire. During its expansion, Christianity did not detour Dalmatia; Christian communities were formed in towns even before the Edict of Milan. Among them was the town of Nin, where the new monotheistic religion became inveterated and expanded during the late Antiquity throughout the present areas of Ravni kotari and Bukovica. The first Christian building in Nin had initially been a tenement house, which subsequently an apse was annexed to on the eastern side. It is assumed that it had originally been dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and only later named after St. Anselm (Asellus). Later, another church was built in Nin; Ejnar Dyggve (1887 – 1961), a Danish archaeologist, discovered its foundations under the remains of the church of St. Mary. In the late Antiquity, this church was demolished, and in its place, a new basilica was erected. Nearby, in the 10th century, a Benedictine monastery was built. Churches were built in the suburban area surrounding Nin – in most cases on the former pagan cult localities. They are witnesses of the rapid development of Christian structures in Liburnia even before the settlement of the Croats. In this context, the question regarding the diocesan seat must be raised: did Nin have its own town bishop as early as in the Antiquity? Based on many archaeological finds and relative literature, it is necessary – when further studying the development of Christian structures in the Croatian lands – to presume that the diocese with the seat in Nin had existed even prior to the settlement of the Frankish missionaries in the Croatian territory. The Frankish authorities used it while it was carrying out the systematic expansion of Christianity in the area today inhabited by the Croats.
Keywords
Church history; Nin; Liburnia; Dalmatia; early Christianity
Hrčak ID:
75048
URI
Publication date:
23.12.2011.
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