Zenica

Zenica ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna river valley, about 70 km north of Sarajevo. The city is known for the Ironworks Zenica and the second heavy industry but also as a significant university center. According to the final results of 2013 population census in BiH, the settlement of Zenica itself counts 70,553 citizens and the administrative area 110,663.
The urban part of today's city is formed in several phases, including Neolithic, Illyrian, Roman Municipium Bistua Nuova with early Christian dual basilica. Traces of an ancient settlement have been found here as well; villa rustica, thermae, a temple and other buildings were present too. Earliest findings in the place date from the period 3,000–2,000 B.C.; they were found on the localities of Drivuša and Gradišće. Zenica's current name was first mentioned in 1415. Medieval church has been unearthed in Zenica, as well as Franciscan Monastery of St. Mary. Time of the independence of the Medieval Bosnia is directly connected to Zenica . During the Ottoman rule , Zenica became a Muslim town ; at the very end of the 17th century, Zenica had 2,000 citizens, mostly Muslims; Orthodox and Catholic Christians get mentioned again from the end of the 18th century, and Jews in the 19th century. Zenica has been mostly built in the Austro-Hungarian and Yugoslavian periods. The population rose rapidly during the 20th century, and from the Bosnian War until 2013 city lost a quarter of its population. Municipality of Zenica became the City of Zenica in 2014.

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