From Prehistory to the arrival of Slavs

Life in the area of Primorsko-goranska County existed already in Prehistoric times. Traces of Prehistoric inhabitants of the area can be found in Lopar, on the island of Rab, on Osorcica, on the island of Lošinj, on the slopes of Cicarija and especially in the areas of Brsec, Mošcenice and Lovran. Traces can also be seen from Kastav to Rijeka and all the way to Lokve in Gorski kotar.

Many settlements, i.e. caves, were used also in the subsequent periods and in the Middle Ages, although at that time urbanized settlers inhabited this region. Among them the most famous are the first settlers – the Illyrians: Histrians inhabited Istria and Liburns occupied the southern areas. They influenced the emigration of Yapods from this region. The matriarchy, shriveled burial and vessels are the basic characteristics of the millennial life of this part of the Illyric tribe. Very early in time, the Hellenic tribes also began to sail into the bay of Rijeka. Some of their legends testimony to that fact, as for example about the creation of the Apsirtides – the Kvarner islands, of which Cres and Lošinj were called Apsoros. Later on the channel of Osor was made creating from Apsoros the two islands of Cres and Lošinj.

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