Sheep farming in the district of Glamoč during the Austro-Hungarian administration

Abstract

After the occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austro-Hungary essentially kept the Ottoman administrative-territorial division. The district (srez or kotar) of Glamoč, composed of the Glamočko polje (field) and the mountains that surround it, belonged to the district of Travnik. To a greater extent, the villages were concentrated along the edges of the fields, with the town of Glamoč, the economic center of the surrounding villages, located in the center of the field. The majority of the population were in a serf position, and the absolute majority were Orthodox Serbs. The main occupation of the inhabitants was agriculture, primarily livestock breeding, and, to a lesser extent, farming. According to the livestock census of 1895, sheep represented 74.21% of the total livestock, the highest in Bosnia and Herzegovina. With 776.01 sheep per 100 inhabitants, the district of Glamoč had the highest number of sheep per inhabitant. The only breed of sheep in this district was the autochthonous domestic “Pramenka,” named so because of its long and coarse wool, with shaggy hairs distributed in strands on either side of the back. It belongs to the breeds of sheep with combined production capabilities, being used equally for meat, milk, and wool production, although it produces these prod ucts to a minimal extent compared to other breeds. Livestock and livestock products were used by the people for their own needs, and the surplus was mostly sold to traders in Glamoč on market days (Saturdays) and at the annual fairs held on Ilindan (Day of St. Elijah) and Mala Gospojina (Birth of the Virgin Mary). The sheep grazed in the fields, on the hillsides, and on the mountain pastures. In the summer, they mostly spent the night in pens, watched over and guarded by shepherds and dogs, while in the winter, they stayed in wooden barns where they were fed hay and other food. The First World War and mobilization caused a shortage of male labor in agriculture and a decrease in yields. Food shortages were caused by the requisition of livestock and grain. The great drought of 1917 worsened the situation even more. During the war, the number of sheep in the district of Glamoč decreased significantly. After the war, there was a recovery of sheep breeding and an increase in the number of sheep.