Vià ¡njan () is a village and municipality in Istria, west Croatia. Vià ¡njan is the site of Vià ¡njan Observatory (an astronomical observatory). The observatory is home of several long-running international summer programs for youth in astronomy, archeology, marine biology and other disciplines.
Vià ¡njan is located 12 kilometers east of Poreàand 3 kilometers west of Pula-Koper road. Vià ¡njan is located on elevation of 244m and average municipality elevation is between 200-300m. One of the most notable sinkholes in Istria, Baredina, is located in the municipality.
According to the 2021 census, its population was 2,096 with 664 living in the village of Vià ¡njan itself.
The municipality consists of the following 56 settlements:
According to the 2001 census Vià ¡njan had a population of 625 with a total municipal population of 2,187 of which 71.7% were Croats, 9.1% were Italians and 6.2% declared themselves as Istrians. Like most settlements in Istrian interior Vià ¡njan is experiencing depopulation in the last decades as people are migrating towards the coast.
According to the 1921 census, the majority of the population were Italian speakers.
Preserving traditional Italian place names and assigning street names to Italian historical figures is legally mandated and carried out.
In the village of StrpaÃÂiÃÂi, 1 km from Vià ¡njan copper earrings and needles were found. Illyrians came to the region somewhere between 2000 and 1000 BC and were later replaced by Celts. The remains of the Celtic era can be found on the nearby Montemez hill which is Celtic for nice hill. Remnants of pottery can be found all over the area as well in the town itself. A few kilometers west from Vià ¡njan there is a prehistoric and medieval settlement called Dilian with a monastery and church named Saint Mihovil dating from the 11th century. Vià ¡njan was first mentioned in a document from 1003 AD. Vià ¡njan was surrounded by a defense wall until the 18th century. The City was entered through a gate crowned with a Venetian lion and an open book. Vià ¡njan was part of the Motovun municipality until 1847 when it became an independent municipality. It was subsequently incorporated into Poreàmunicipality in 1947. In 1976 an astronomical observatory was built in Vià ¡njan and the town became the astronomy centre of Yugoslavia. In 1993 Vià ¡njan again became an independent municipality.
Vià ¡njan is partially surrounded by walls built in the 13th and 14th centuries, and in the town there is a Gothic church of St. Anton from the 15th century and the church of St. Quirik and Julita from the 19th century.
Most of Vià ¡njan's economy comes from agriculture mostly olive growing and viticulture. Vià ¡njan is also known as one of the last resorts in Istria of autochthon Istrian bovine Boà ¡karin. Boà ¡karin, the first geno-park in Croatia, was founded With the intention of preserving Boà ¡karin in Vià ¡njan . Most of the people work on the coast and travel daily to work.