Trebinje (, ) is a city and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the southernmost city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is situated on the banks of the Trebià ¡njica river in the region of East Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 31,433 inhabitants. The city's old town quarter, the Walled town of Trebinje, dates to the 18th-century Ottoman period and includes the ArslanagiàBridge on the Trebià ¡njica River, as of recently also known as PeroviÃÂa Bridge. The city is one of the regionâÂÂs popular tourist spots
The city lies in the Trebià ¡njica river valley, at the foot of Leotar, in southeastern Herzegovina, some by road from Dubrovnik, Croatia, on the Adriatic coast. There are several mills along the river, as well as several bridges, including three in the city of Trebinje itself, as well as a historic Ottoman ArslanagiàBridge nearby. The river is heavily exploited for hydro-electric energy. After it passes through the Popovo Polje area southwest of the city, the river â which always floods in the winter â naturally runs underground to the Adriatic, near Dubrovnik. Trebinje is known as "the city of the sun and plane-trees", and it is said to be one of the most beautiful cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The city is the economic and cultural center of the region of East Herzegovina.
The Trebinje municipality is located in the most southern part of Republika Srpska and borders the municipalities of BileÃÂa, Ljubinje, and Ravno in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Trebinje municipality has an area of 904 km<sup>2</sup> and makes up 3.68% of the total territory of the Republic of Srpska.
Trebinje experiences a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) with heavy precipitation, typical of the southern Adriatic coastal areas.
Tribulium was the original name for this settlement, and the etymology of it may be analyzed as tri-bulium, or the place of the 'three hills', from the numeral 'three' (*trei-) and an appellative derived from the IE root *b(h)eu- 'to swell, puff.
De Administrando Imperio by Constantine VII (913âÂÂ959) mentioned Travunija (äõÃÂòÿàýùñ). Serbian Prince Vlastimir (r. 830âÂÂ51) married his daughter to Krajina, the son of Beloje, and that family became hereditary rulers of Travunija. By 1040, Stefan Vojislav's state stretched in the coastal region from Ston in the north, down to his capital, Skadar, set up along the southern banks of the Skadar Lake, with other courts set up in Trebinje, Kotor, and Bar.
The town commanded the road from Ragusa to Constantinople, which was traversed in 1096 by Raymond IV of Toulouse and his crusaders. Trebinje diocese has its episcopal seat in Polje near Trebinje. At the end of the 12th century Stefan Nemanja conquered provinces that include Trebinje. Under the name of Tribunia or Travunja it belonged to the Serbian Kingdom and the Serbian Empire. In 1373, Trebinje was taken by the Balà ¡iànoble family, and later it was incorporated into the expanded medieval Bosnian state under Tvrtko I in 1377. There is a medieval tower in Gornje Police whose construction is often attributed to Vuk BrankoviÃÂ. The old Tvrdoà ¡ Monastery dates back to the 15th century.
Under Bosnian rule, Trebinje became part of KosaÃÂa noble family domains. It was conquered by Ottoman forces for the first time in 1465, but already in 1470 it was returned to Vlatko HercegoviàKosaÃÂa. By 1478, the town was finally captured and incorporated into the Ottoman Empire. The Old Town-Kastel was built by the Ottomans on the location of the medieval fortress of Ban Vir, on the western bank of the Trebià ¡njica River. The city walls, the Old Town square, and two mosques were built in the beginning of the 18th century by the Resulbegoviàfamily. The 16th-century Arslanagiàbridge was originally built at the village of ArslanagiÃÂ, north of the town, by Mehmed-Paà ¡a SokoloviÃÂ, and was run by Arslanagiàfamily for centuries. The ArslanagiàBridge is one of the most attractive Ottoman-era bridges in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has two large and two small semicircular arches.
Among noble families in the Trebinje region mentioned in Ragusan documents were LjubibratiÃÂ, StarÃÂiÃÂ, PopoviÃÂ, KrasomiriÃÂ, PreljuboviÃÂ, PoznanoviÃÂ, DraganÃÂiÃÂ, KobiljaÃÂiÃÂ, Paà ¡troviÃÂ, Zemljiàand StanjeviÃÂ.
The burning of Saint Sava's remains after the Banat Uprising provoked the Serbs in other regions to revolt against the Ottomans. Grdan, the vojvoda of Nikà ¡iÃÂ, organized revolt with Serbian Patriarch Jovan Kantul. From 1596, the center of anti-Ottoman activity in Herzegovina was the Tvrdoà ¡ Monastery in Trebinje, where Metropolitan Visarion was seated. In 1596, the uprising broke out in BjelopavliÃÂi, then spread to Drobnjaci, Nikà ¡iÃÂ, Piva and Gacko (see Serb Uprising of 1596âÂÂ97). The rebels were defeated at the field of Gacko. It ultimately failed due to lack of foreign support.
The hajduks in Herzegovina had in March 1655 carried out one of their greatest operations, raiding Trebinje, taking many slaves and carrying with them out much loot.
On 26 November 1716, Austrian general NastiÃÂ with 400 soldiers and 500 hajduks attacked Trebinje, but did not take it over. A combined Austro-Venetian-Hajduk force of 7,000 stood before the Trebinje walls, defended by 1,000 Ottomans. The Ottomans were busy near Belgrade and with hajduk attacks towards Mostar, and were thus unable to reinforce Trebinje. The conquest of Trebinje and Popovo field were given up to fight in Montenegro. The Venetians took over Hutovo and Popovo, where they immediately recruited militarily from the population.
Ottoman rule lasted from 1466 until 1878. The Trebinje region suffered especially in the 16th century, mostly from the hand of uskoks of Senj and various hajduk bands. The calmer period during the Ottoman rule was the 18th century. The Serb elders from Trebinje, together with the people of Nikà ¡iÃÂ, planned a great uprising in the summer of 1805, under the influence of the First Serbian Uprising. Their project was suppressed by the Ottoman pasha and probably with the help from the local Slavic Muslims.
The Christians of Trebinje, together with the Montenegrins, fought against Napoleon's troops and in several conflicts they managed to defeat the French troops, such as the knife fight which took place on 2âÂÂ3 October 1806 leaving several thousands of French soldiers dead, after which the French withdrew for a while.
Notable participants in the Herzegovina Uprising (1852âÂÂ62) from Trebinje include MiÃÂo LjubibratiÃÂ.
During the Herzegovina Uprising (1875âÂÂ77), the BileÃÂa and Trebinje region was led by serdar Todor MujiÃÂiÃÂ, Gligor MiliÃÂeviÃÂ, Vasilj Svorcan and Sava Jakà ¡iÃÂ.
With the Austro-Hungarian occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, many reforms took place. New administrative division was introduced and a large number of Austro-Hungarian troops were located in Trebinje, which was seen as a city of strategic value and position. No factories or bigger investments were made in Trebinje during the AU rule.
After the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand Croat-Muslim volunteer corps (German: Schutzcorp) terrorized Serb civilians of BogojeviÃÂi and other villages in Trebinje, which resulted in 83 children killed and 85 adults hanged. Those and related actions resulted in migrations of the local population to Serbia.
During the period of Austro-Hungarian administration (1878âÂÂ1918), several fortifications were built on the surrounding hills, and there was a garrison based in the town. The imperial administrators also modernized the town, expanding it westwards, building the present main street, as well as several squares, parks, schools, tobacco plantations, etc.
Trebinje grew rapidly in the era of Josip Broz Tito's Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia between 1945 and 1980. It especially developed its hydroelectric potential with dams, artificial lakes, tunnels, and hydroelectric plants. This industrial development brought a large increase in the urban population of Trebinje.
Trebinje was the largest town in Serb-held eastern Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. It was controlled by Bosnian Serb forces from the fall of 1991, and was used as a major command and artillery base by Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) troops besieging the Croatian town of Dubrovnik. In 1992 Trebinje was declared the capital of the self-proclaimed Serbian Autonomous Region of Herzegovina (). Bosniak residents were subsequently conscripted to fight with the JNA and if refused they were executed, and thus they fled the region. Ten of the town's mosques were razed to the ground during the war.
The Mitrovdan Offensive was launched in November 1992 against Serb positions in the region, with numerically superior combined CroatâÂÂBosniak forces attempting to break through the defensive lines of the Army of Republika Srpska. The operation was unsuccessful and ended in a Serb victory. The battle is annually commemorated.
During the late 2010s and the 2020s, Trebinje underwent a notable boom in new apartment construction, with property prices increasing.
In January 2026, a new modern hospital, âÂÂSaint Archdeacon Stephen â the 9th January,â was opened in Trebinje, built in cooperation between Republika Srpska entity and Serbia.
Trebinje is one of two municipalities created from the former Yugoslav municipality of Trebinje of the 1991 census, the other being Ravno in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2018, it has a total of 178 settlements that compose it (including city proper area of Trebinje):
According to the 2013 census results, the city of Trebinje has 31,433 inhabitants.
The Serbian Orthodox church in Trebinje, Saborna Crkva, was built between 1888 and 1908. The HercegovaÃÂka GraÃÂanica monastery, a loose copy of the GraÃÂanica monastery in Kosovo, was completed in 2000. The churches are located above the city, on the historic Crkvina Hill. The 15th-century Tvrdoà ¡ monastery is located two kilometres south-west of Trebinje, including a church which dates back to late antiquity. The Duà ¾i Monastery is located 10 kilometres west of Trebinje. There is also the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Birth of Mary in the town centre. The Osman-Paà ¡a Resulbegoviàmosque, located in the Old Town, was originally built in 1726 and fully renovated in 2005.
Monuments dedicated to acclaimed poets Njegoà ¡ and Jovan DuÃÂià(who was from the town) are located in the city centre.
The Old Town walls are well preserved. The ArslanagiÃÂ Bridge (1574) is located 1 km north of the town center.
The Music & More SummerFest has recently become an annual tradition in Trebinje, spanning approximately two weeks in August. The festival is held at a variety of venues, including the Amphitheater Crkvina, KCT culture center Trebinje, local music school, Villa Lastva, and the Museum of Herzegovina.
The local football club, FK Leotar Trebinje, plays in the First League of the Republika Srpska, the second-tier competition in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The headquarters of Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske, which is the largest employer in Republika Srpska (as of 2016), is located in Trebinje. As of 2016, most of its economy is based on services.
The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):
Trebinje is twinned with: