Jasenak, Croatia

Jasenak
Jasenak
Settlement
	View of resort from Vrelo
	Jasenak Location of Jasenak in Croatia
	Coordinates: 45°13′52″N 15°02′31″E / 45.231°N 15.042°E
Country	Croatia
County	Karlovac County
City	Ogulin
Area
• Total	86.9 km2 (33.6 sq mi)
Population (2021)
• Total	175
• Density	2.0/km2 (5.2/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	47300 Ogulin
Area code	+385 (0)47

Jasenak is a village in Karlovac County, Croatia.^[4] It is located in the municipality of Ogulin, on the Jasenačko polje, a karst polje. In 2021, its population was 175.^[2] It is the site of the former Bjelolasica Olympic Centre. The village is known for its proximity to Bjelolasica mountain.

History

In the 1930s, Simo Kosanović of Jasenak was the caretaker of Hirčeva kuća in Bijele stijene.^[5]^: 250

WWII

When Ante Pavelić arrived in Delnice on 13 April 1941, he was awaited by a small group of Frankists. They asked Pavelić for assistance against some Royal Yugoslav Army soldiers who were in the hills nearby, and received from Pavelić a number of Ustaše in response. More concretely, a large group of Yugoslav soldiers had been retreating from the Italian border through Jelenje, Lokve, Mrkopalj and Jasenak. Upon entering Mrkopalj, they were met by a Croat force belonging to Mačekova zaštita [hr], but the Yugoslav soldiers refused to disarm.^[6]^: 347

At the beginning of June, the Ustaše arrested about ten villagers, to whom they read the names of some prominent individuals in and around Jasenak, requesting that they come to Ogulin. They then let all villagers go, so when the villagers who were let go relayed their message to those named on the list, the named complied. From Ogulin they were taken to Gospić, then to the Jadovno concentration camp where they were killed.^[6]^: 356

In late June or early July 1941, the priest in Jasenak was arrested. In early July, he had not yet been sent away. As of a 15 July document, all he had been sent to a concentration camp.^[6]^: 359

Around July 8, the Ogulin kotar began the process of deporting the families to the Sisak concentration camp on a list of 55 people marked for moving to make room for Slovene arrivals, from Jasenak, Josipdol, Munjava, Trojvrh and Vajin Vrh. The deportations were never carried out thanks to Pavelić interrupting the process, but thanks to the mass arrests scaring the Serbs off, none of the attempted arrests in this area succeeded, since none of the named could be found at their house. So great was the fear that women would flee at the sound of a suspicious car.^[a] So the kotarski predstojnik of Ogulin proposed to wait 8 to 10 days until the atmosphere was calmer.^[6]^: 367

Demographics

Village of Jasenak: Population trends 1857–2021

v

population	383	542	741	955	1028	1130	1022	1124	592	643	590	453	382	331	301	226	175
	1857	1869	1880	1890	1900	1910	1921	1931	1948	1953	1961	1971	1981	1991	2001	2011	2021

Sources:Croatian Bureau of Statistics publications

In 1835, Jasenak belonged to Ogulin. There were 18 houses, with a population of 244. Its residents were Eastern Orthodox. It had a Gemeinde-Fruchtmagazine.^[7]^: 307

Climate

A weather station exists there at an elevation of 618 metres (2,028 ft). The minimum recorded temperature for the winter of 2024–2025 was −16.7 °C (1.9 °F), on February 20th.^[8]

Infrastructure

In 1913, there were 8 gendarmeries in Delnice kotar: Ogulin, Drežnica, Generalski Stol, Jasenak, Saborsko, Josipdol, Modruš and Plaški.^[9]

Gallery

Bjelolasica piste
WWII monument

Notes

^ "Zbog učestalih zločina žene budno paze na svaki auto i čim opaze nekakav dolazak sumnjivog automobila, odmah bježe."^[6]

References

^ Register of spatial units of the State Geodetic Administration of the Republic of Croatia. Wikidata Q119585703.
^ ^a ^b "Population by Age and Sex, by Settlements" (xlsx). Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in 2021. Zagreb: Croatian Bureau of Statistics. 2022.
^ List of Croatian settlements and delivery post offices. Wikidata Q125763583.
^ "Zakon o područjima županija, gradova i općina u Republici Hrvatskoj". Narodne novine (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 2023-06-07.
^ Plaček, Josip (1939) [1939-05-05]. "Izvještaj tajnika" (PDF). Hrvatski planinar (in Croatian). Vol. 35, no. 7–8. pp. 238–264. ISSN 0354-0650.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Škiljan, Filip (2011-12-01). "Teror ustaškog režima nad srpskim stanovništvom na području kotareva Vrbovsko, Delnice i Ogulin u proljeće i ljeto 1941. godine" [Terror of the Ustasha Regime against the Serbian Population in the Territory of the Vrbovsko, Delnice and Ogulin Districts in the Spring and Summer 1941]. Radovi Zavoda za hrvatsku povijest Filozofskoga fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu: Radovi Zavoda za hrvatsku povijest Filozofskoga fakulteta Sveučilišta u Zagrebu (in Croatian). 43 (1): 343–372. eISSN 1849-0344.
^ Fras, Franz Julius (1835). "Oguliner-Kompagnie" [Ogulin Company]. Vollständige Topographie der Karlstädter-Militärgrenze mit besonderer Rücksicht auf die Beschreibung der Schlösser, Ruinen, Inscriptionen und andern dergleichen Ueberbleibseln von Antiquitäten: nach Anschauung und aus den zuverlässigsten Quellen dargestellt für reisende, und zur Förderung der Vaterlandsliebe (in German). Zagreb: Franz Suppan. pp. 304–307.
^ "Bjelolasica, Zrnići". Pljusak.com. n.d.
^ Kraljevski zemaljski statistički ured (May 1913). "Razmještaj Kr. oružništva u Kraljevinama Hrvatskoj i Slavoniji". Političko i sudbeno razdjeljenje i Repertorij prebivališta Kraljevina Hrvatske i Slavonije po stanju od 1. siječnja 1913. Zagreb: Kraljevska hrvatsko-slavonsko-dalmatinska zemaljska vlada, 🖶 Kraljevska zemaljska tiskara. pp. XXXIV–XXXV.