Bjelovar
History
The city was built according to plan as a training ground and administrative headquarters of the Križevačka and Đurđevačka border infantry regiments, which is why it has a regular, square structure in the very center of the city, which was built first. Its name is derived from the adjective “bijel” (white) to which the Hungarian word vár, which means city, is added, and it is said to have originated from the term “white soil”, which means hard-to-cultivate land. The flag of the city is white with the coat of arms of Bjelovar, which is shown in the form of a silver-white shield in which we see a green hill with three brown stumps, a white fort with a crown and a red roof, a loophole and an open door next to which a sergeant stands with a rifle.
Recognition
Bjelovar is known for the beautiful, tame nature offered by the slopes of Bilogora. It is also called the City of Cheese, since the production of cheese in our city has a centuries-old tradition. It is marked by great handball successes; the Bjelovar Handball Club was the European champion in 1972. It is also called “Enigmopolis” (the City of Puzzles) because, thanks to the wide-ranging activities of the puzzle society Čvor, it has become the capital of puzzles in Croatia. It is a multicultural city where 21 national minorities live out of a total of 22 registered in the entire Republic of Croatia. Many famous and successful Croatian men and women were born in the Bjelovar region, including Edo Murtić, Bogdan Diklić, Ivo Robić, the Navojec brothers, Nasta Rojc, Vojin Bakić and a number of others.