DEMOGRAPHIC DYNAMICS OF THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX POPULATION IN SYRMIAN CITIES IN 1802–1910

A statistical study about the evolution of the Serbian Orthodox population in urban areas of Syrmia (Srem in Serbian), i.e. the former Syrmian County within the Kingdom of Hungary, in the 1802–1910 period, reveals a steady pattern of a relative decline both in the share and absolute numbers. Orthodox believers in the cities of Zemun, Sremski Karlovci and Sremska Mitrovica constituted the absolute majority of the population in the early 19th century. In Vukovar and Ruma, the Orthodox community made up almost a half of the population. In Vinkovci and Petrovaradin, Orthodox believers were a strong and influential minority. Due to losses during the Revolutionary War in 1848/49, the overall population declined in almost all cities. The Orthodox urban population declined in an even more severe way. In all Syrmian cities the Orthodox population lost significantly in its share and that process continued until the beginning of the 20th century. Despite some demographic recovery in the 1860s, the Serbian Orthodox population did not grow as fast as other religious and ethnic groups. The impact of the 1848/49 Revolution on the demographic capacities of the Orthodox communities must have been quite severe. In the 1828/30–1910 period, the total urban population of Syrmia increased by 77% and, meanwhile, the Orthodox urban population declined by 5%. The share of the Orthodox in the urban population declined from 54% in 1820/30 to only 29% in 1910. In 1910 Sremski Karlovci remained the only city with an Orthodox majority.