County Vodice and village Vodičevo were mentioned for the first time in 1197 and, after that, in 1200. This county belonged to the Babonici princes.[2]
Count Stephen of Gorica of the Babonici family, who was awarded the estate of Vodičevo in Bosnia for his successful defence of the border in White Carniola, ceded part of this estate to the Templars before 1210.[3]
During the Turkish rule, Gornje Vodičevo was mentioned as a village in Kostajnica nahija (sub-district) in 1604.[4] A sign of the Turkish rule over this region are ruins of a fortress which was 4m long, 2m wide (inner dimensions) and 7m high made of stone. The fortress walls were 65–70 cm thick.[5] The fortress was located on the north side of hamlets Bundale and Rekići and on the right bank of the water stream called Vodičevo River.
In the time of Bosnia uprising 1875-1877 a great repression of the Turks on the villagers was reported. Two of Vodičevo villagers, Jovan Gligić and Simo Kolundžija, were killed by Turks and a great number of Serbs from Vodičevo and other villages escaped to Austria-Hungary.[6]
During the second World War this village was known by their organized resistance to foreign occupation.[7][8][9]
20th century censuses of the village population
According to a Yugoslav federal census as of 1948, this village had 142 homes and 750 inhabitants.[10] In 1953 there were 725 inhabitants living in the village, in 1961 - 705, in 1971 - 646 and in 1981 - 499. Out of 499 inhabitants in 1981 there was one Croat, no Muslims, 414 Serbs, 82 Yugoslavs and 2 of unknown ethnicity.[11]
Geography
A geological study of Gornje Vodičevo[12] was commissioned by Austro-Hungarian government in 1902. It was discovered that the village has large deposits of coal.
Customs and beliefs
Serbs of Bosnian Krajina believe that hazel protects men against lightning strike and that this tree belongs to Perun, the god of thunder and lightning. In this village, on account of this belief, people, after receiving Communion, eat hazelnuts that must be cracked only by stone.[13]
References
^Official results from the book: Ethnic composition of Bosnia-Herzegovina population, by municipalities and settlements, 1991. census, Zavod za statistiku Bosne i Hercegovine - Bilten no.234, Sarajevo 1991.
^Dragomir Vukičić, Asim Peco, Nevenka Gošić; Zbornik referata i materijala V jugoslovenske onomastičke konferencije
, Akademija nauka i umjetnosti Bosne i Hercegovine, 1985 page 79
^The Crusades and the Military Orders: Expanding the Frontiers of Medieval Latin Christianity by Zsolt Hunyadi, József Laszlovszky, Central European University Press, 2001 page 136
^Mirela Slukan Altić: Državni arhiv Bjelovar, page 56
^Ljubo Mihić: Kozara: priroda, čovjek, istorija, Dnevnik, 1987 page 289
^Građa, Volumes 6-10, Akademija nauka i umjetnosti Bosne i Hercegovine. Odjeljenje istorijsko-filoloških nauka 1960 - Bosnia and Hercegovina p. 192-193 Zovem se Trifun Mačak, iz Prusaca, kod Novoga, Kostajničkog kajmakamata, 55 godina star, grč. izt. vjere, oženit, otac 7 djece, poljodjelac, turski podanik, bjegunac. Mi smo Pruščani bili sve ovo posliednje vrieme mirni, te nismo mislili na nikakovu bunu ili izselenie, niti smo znali sto o kakovom ustanku. Bihaćki panduri došli su doduše i u našu obćinu te su nas po volji plačkali, i zlostavljali, te su poslie toga sa našim otetim nam blagom u Knežpolje otišli, a Turci razglasiše naokolo, da su ih Kršćani poubijali. Njekoliko dana zatim nahrupiše na naša obližnja sela turske čete, te ih počeše harati i paliti, a naročito Dobrljin i Vodičevo, te smo se radi toga i mi za naš život i imetak ustrašili, te počesmo na ovu stranu bježati. Turci nas u bjegu našem proganjahu, te nam tom prigodom mnogo blaga pootimaše, a dvojicu od naših Kršćana i ubiše naime: Jovana Gligića i Simu Kolundjića, koji su svoje blago branili. Kao svi Kršćani u Bosni, tako moradosmo i mi uz prevelike zakonom odredjene terete, jošte svakojake druge samovoljne namete koli desetarah toli naših spahijah podnosili. Ovi nam oduzimahu mnogo više, negoli je zakonito odredjeno, a postupahu kod toga pobiranja poreza tolikom okrutnosti, koja se samo u Turskoj jošte dogoditi mogu. Kad nemogosmo naše daće odmah naplatiti svakako nas zlostavljahu, u svinjce nas zatvarahu, dimom, zimom i gladju nas moriše, da smo morali višeput i posliednju nam kravu prodati, da se samo tih muka spasimo
^Ratno djetinjstvo: zbornik dokumenata i sjećanja o postanku, razvoju i radu saveza pionira u Bosni i Hercegovini, Svjetlost Sarajevo, 1961 page 62 Najveći pionirski odred bio je u selu Gornje Vodičevo. U njemu je bilo sto pionira. Prvi rukovodioci toga odreda bili su najaktívniji pioniri (Ljuban M. Kolundžija i Rade M. Zec). Pioniri okupljeni u svoje organizacije učili su da čitaju i pišu, pomagali su članovima narodnih odbora u selu u prikupljanju hrane za NOV
^Kozara: priroda, čovjek, istorija by Ljubo Mihić
Dnevnik, 1981 page 778 4. brigada krenula je pravcem selo Svodna-Agino polje-Pošta brdo-selo Lješljani-selo Gornje Vodičevo, gdje se razmjestila u rezervu divizije
^Milorad Vignjević: Kozara u narodnooslobodilačkom ratu: Zapisi i sjećanja. Sjećanja prikupio Milorad Vignjević, Volume 1, Vojnoizdavački zavod, 1971, page 502 Још у току фронталних борби, почетком августа 1941, створен је и први народноослободилачки одбор у селу Горње Водичево (за Водичево, Добрљин и Куљане). Он се бринуо о исхрани одреда и избјеглог становништва.
^Konačni rezultati popisa stanovništva od 15 marta 1948 godine, Book 1, Savezni zavod za statistiku (Yugoslavia) SZS, 1951 page 305
^Marinko Grizelj, Anđelko Akrap: Stanovništvo Bosne i Hercegovine: narodnosni sastav po naseljima, Državni Zavod za Statistiku, 1995 - Bosnia and Hercegovina, p. 66
^Wissenschaftliche Mitteilungen aus Bosnien und der Herzegowina, Volume 8, Das Museum, 1902, 27. Das kohlevorkommen von Vodicevo, III Naturwissenschaft chapter pages 372-373
^Шпиро Кулишић: О светковању четвртка (De la celebration du jeudi), Glasnik: Bulletin, Volume 14, Etnografski muzej u Beogradu, 1939 page 95
Sources
Borislav P. Đukić, Milivoj Rodić: Vodičevo: vijekovima na granici imperija; Viktorija, 2007
