Omoljica

Ponjavica river

The place name is a diminutive and means Little Homolje. A legend tells about Rascian people who came first from this region to the northern territory during the time of Arsenije III Čarnojević. There is no deed or evidence of founding by first settlers or its real origin. The German place name Homolitz had the same meaning.

Omoljica is located nearby the Ponjavica river at 44°45′38″N 20°43′41″E, approximately 15 km SE of Pančevo. Since 1995, there is a protected nature park Ponjavica south of Banatski Brestovac.[3]

In the mid-1960s, the Naftagas company was drilling in the area searching for oil. Near Omoljica, in 1968, at depth of 600 m (2,000 ft), instead of oil, a water began to pour onto the surface. Warm, 25 to 30 °C (77 to 86 °F) and sulfuric, it was soon attended by the local population and then by te visitors from nearby cities. Though it became known as the Omoljica Spa, it never officially achieved that status. Municipality of Pančevo ordered the expertise and it turned out that the water is mineral and medicinal, probably good for the gastrointestinal and rheumatic diseases and for the rehabilitation of the orthopedic injuries. It resembles the waters of the famous Hungarian Harkány spa. The inhabitants self-organized and built a small pool, while the larger one, with the area of 30 m² (320 sq ft) was constructed in 1994. Local authorities tried to expand the facility through the Ministry of National Investment Plan, including the building of the small hotel, but the state wasn't interested to invest. The large pool has been neglected and out of use but the local enthusiasts still use the old, small pool, even though the use of it has been forbidden due to the bacteriological contagion. A documentary on the Omoljica Spa, Kažu da je banja ("They say that this is the spa") was filmed.[4][5]

National Archives of Austria, Map of the Josephinian Land Survey (1769-1772)

The communal area was a part of Temeşvar Eyalet in Ottoman Empire since 1552, after the Treaty of Požarevac a part of Habsburg's Banat, since 1765 of the military frontier (Austrian Empire) and then it belonged to the Torontál county of Austria-Hungary. After World War I was that area a part of provisional Torontalsko-tamiške županja (Treaty of Trianon), in 1922 of Belgrade oblast and since 1929 of the Danube Banovina in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In the time after World War II its belonged to the Srez Pančevo of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The communal area of Omoljica was a part of the administrative region of the Pančevo municipality from all these centuries to the present.[6]

After the collapse of the First Serbian Uprising, in October 1813 a wave of Serbian refugees fled Serbia, crossing over the Danube and the Sava rivers into the southern parts of the Austrian Empire. There were 22 crossing points over the Danube in the Banat area, including one at Omoljica, named Homolitz in Austrian documents. There were also numerous refugee camps all over the southern Banat, and one was located in the village. In this camp, Serbian linguist and language reformer Vuk Karadžić found shelter, with his father and brother, before moving further to Vienna. There is a memorial table in the village, made of marble, commemorating his stay in Omoljica, which he called Halmalica in his writings. As usual in this period, the camp had a quarantine hospital (konutmac) where hundreds of refugees were kept at times. Local Serbian population was bringing them food but Austrian soldiers were trying to prevent them, so there were clashes. Many died due to the harsh conditions and the marshy environment, and were left unburied as they had no money for the proper burial (3 shillings). In time, group by group, Austrian soldiers were dispatching Serbs further. Unlike Karadžić, majority of Serbs from Omoljica continued to Moldavia.[7]

There is an impression of the old village which is recorded on the map of the Franciscan land survey from the early 19th century in the National Archives of Austria. In 1904, cadastral maps of the village were recorded which are located at the National Archives of Hungary.[8][9]

Since 1971, there is an annual amateur film festival named Žisel, paired with the photography festival two years later. The name is coined from ži(vot) sel(a), Serbian for "life of the village" as it is dedicated to the subject. In time, the festival gained regional and international recognition, attracting even authors from Australia and the United States. As of 2017 it is the longest running village film festival in Serbia and the only one dealing with the subject of the country life. Since 2010, there is a cultural association named Žisel in the village.[13][14][15]