Croatian Littoral - Geography

Geography

Croatian Littoral is a geographical region of Croatia comprising the area between Dalmatia to the south, Mountainous Croatia to the north and east, and Istria and the Kvarner Gulf of the Adriatic Sea to the west. The region encompasses a large part of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County and the coastal part of Lika-Senj County. The island of Pag is sometimes included in the region, although it is normally considered to be part of Dalmatia. The islands of Cres, Lošinj, Krk, and Rab, as well as further comparatively small nearby islands, are also considered part of the region, contributing to an alternate name for the region—Kvarner Littoral or Kvarner. Various definitions exist as to the extent of "Croatian Littoral" and "Kvarner Littoral" as geographical terms. Specifically, Kvarner Littoral is variously considered to extend east to Senj, or even further east. On the other hand, Kvarner is normally considered to include Istria east of Učka mountain, making Kvarner synonymous with the coastal areas and islands of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. The term "Croatian Littoral" developed relatively recently, since the 18th and 19th centuries, reflecting the complex development of Croatia in historical and geographical terms. The term is also applied to the entire Adriatic coast of modern Croatia in general terms, which is then divided into the Southern Croatian Littoral comprising Dalmatia, and the Northern Croatian Littoral comprising Istria and Croatian Littoral in the strict meaning of the term.

Croatian Littoral covers 2,830 square kilometres (1,090 square miles), has a population of 228,725, and the region as a whole has a population density of 80.82/km2 (209.3/sq mi). The islands, encompassing 1,120 square kilometres (430 square miles), are home to 39,450 residents. More than half the region's population lives in the city of Rijeka—by far the largest urban centre in the area. All other settlements in the region are relatively small, with only four of them exceeding a population of 4,000: Crikvenica, Mali Lošinj (the largest island settlement), Senj, and Kostrena.