Hum, Buzet

Hum, Buzet, Croatia

About

Hum (Italian: Colmo; German: Cholm) is a town in the central part of Istria, northwest Croatia, 7 km from Roč, 14 km southeast of Buzet on a hill above the Mirna valley. The elevation of the town is 349 m. This small fortified habitation has maintained all the features of medieval urban architecture and organization. On its western side it is enclosed by town walls and on the remaining sides houses are built into the defensive walls. It was first mentioned in documents dating from 1102, at which time it was called Cholm which comes the italian name Colmo. A bell and watch tower was built in 1552 as part of the town's defenses beside the town loggia.[1] The present Parish Church of St. Jerome (Sveti Jeromim) with its classical facade was built in 1802 on the side of an earlier church which was built by the local master Juraj Gržinič. The "Hum Glagolitic wall writings" are preserved in the church, written in the formative period of Glagolitic (the second half of the 12th century) and they are one of the oldest examples of Croatian Glagolitic literary culture in the Middle Ages.[1] Hum has a population of only 6 people (2001 census)[2], but is officially a town, and is the Guinness World Record holder for the smallest town in the world.[3] The town museum displays a few Glagolitic writings.