Zadar City Map Poster

About Zadar

Zadar (; Croatian pronunciation: [zâdar]) is the capital and largest city of Zadar County in Croatia. In the 2011 census, it had a population of 75,082. Zadar is a Dalmatian coastal city situated on the Adriatic Sea, located at the mouth of river Zrmanja. The area was long inhabited by Illyrians and Thracians before being colonised by Greeks in 5th century BC as "Zantē". It remained under Greek rule until 219 BC when it was incorporated into Roman Empire as "Iader" (Latin: Iadera). During Roman rule its name was changed to "Sidus Iulium" or simply "Julium", with an occasional Latin spelling such as Jul(i)a or Julia appearing on some ancient coins even though toponyms were still written in Ancient Greek for centuries after that time.