engleski

Analysis and spatial islolation issues of Roma settlemets in Međimurje county

Međimurje County stands out as a developed, densely populated and highly-urbanized county of Central Croatia. Demographic and and socio- economic developmental trends of Međimurje indicate the mentioned status: age structure, birth rates, population activity rates and share of jobs are significantly higher than the Croatian average. At the same time, Međimurje is the home of the largest Croatian Roma community, ethnically homogeneous and spatially isolated, whose predominantly unfavorable geographical features make the opposite developmental pole of previously described developed areas populated by the Croats. The "averaged" development indicators at county level have omitted concrete living conditions of Roma. They inhabit the rural periphery characterized by social and spatial segregation, unemployment and the existence on the margins of society and settlements. Therefore, the subject of the research is the distribution, functions and system of 12 exclusively Roma settlements in Međimurje. The Roma part of the settlement Kuršanec is analyzed in a case study using the results of a field research conducted in 2013. as a part of UNDP's project "Platform for Social Inclusion of Roma in Međimurje." The aim of the research is to define a typology of Roma settlements in Međimurje considering the specific characteristics of housing (dominant in Roma- settlements) and economic functions (non- existing), spatial mobility patterns (between Roma settlements) and cultural landscape. The practical value of the research is focused on identifying local specificities of Roma settlements in Međimurje's rural periphery that have so far been largely neglected by standard typologies. By pointing out the need for successful integration of Roma into Međimurje's developmental frameworks, attempts to overcome the urban-rural dichotomy will be presented.

Međimurje; Roma; settlement network; population distribution

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