Bilje () is a municipality in the Baranja region of Osijek-Baranja County, in north-eastern Croatia. It is 5 km northeast of Osijek, on the edge of the Kopački Rit nature park.
Name
Its name derived from the Slavic word "bilje" ("herb" in English). In German the village is known as Belje, in Hungarian as Bellye, and in Serbian Cyrillic as Биље. The area occupied by the municipality of Bilje is 260.15 km².
Geography
The municipality of Bilje include following settlements and population (2011 census): Bilje - 3,613 Kopačevo - 559 Kozjak - 69 Lug - 764 Podunavlje - 1 Tikveš - 10 Vardarac - 630 Zlatna Greda - 5
Demographics
There are 5,642 inhabitants in the municipality (2011 census), including: 62.87% Croats 29.62% Hungarians 3.83% Serbs 1.05% Germans 0.71% Romani
Politics
Minority councils
Directly elected minority councils and representatives are tasked with consulting tasks for the local or regional authorities in which they are advocating for minority rights and interests, integration into public life and participation in the management of local affairs. At the 2023 Croatian national minorities councils and representatives elections Hungarians and Serbs of Croatia each fulfilled legal requirements to elect 10 members municipal minority councils of the Bilje Municipality.
History
In the late 19th and early 20th century, Bilje was part of the Baranya County of the Kingdom of Hungary.
References
Populated places in Osijek-Baranja County
Municipalities of Croatia
Baranya (region) Populated places in Croatia where Hungarian is an official language