Historical population of Belgrade

Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. Ancient times Belgrade, formerly known as Celtic Singidunum, was founded in the 3rd century B.C., near the site of a prehistoric settlement of Vinča (Vinča culture), which ranks the city among the oldest ones in Europe and the world. There are some evidence that might show that the city was also a Greek colony in the ancient times although this has not been scientifically verified. The first verifiable mention of the settlement under its ancient name, Singidunum, was in 279 B.C., which some consider to be a founding year of the city. During the Celtic period it was a small town of several hundred, up to a thousand people, so it was more of a fishing village than a real town, even though it was fortified (which can still be seen today in Karaburma, a suburb of Belgrade). On the eve of a new era the city was taken over by the Romans and refortified; in the Roman period the importance of the city as a border- and river port spot will grow, and so would its population. In 86 A.D. Singidunum became a Roman colony under Legio IV Flavia Felix, and a golden era of the city begun; by the middle of the 2nd century, when the city has evolved into a municipium, the city has numbered some 10,000 people, roughly 6,000 of them serving for the Roman Imperial Army, and the rest being civilians. Its fort grew stronger and bigger due to continuous clashes with the Dacians. The city at that time has had its theatres, sewage system, temples and was touched by Christian movement at a very early stage. At one time it abolished its status to Rome and became an independent colony. 3rd century brought turmoil to the Empire, as it was a subject to invasions from the East, by the Goths; the city also crumbled both in population and importance, being a strategic town and suffering numerous invasions. It continued throughout 4th and 5th centuries as well, when the city was included into the Eastern Roman Empire as a guardian of its northern border; it was repeatedly sacked by Huns- under Attila himself-, Ostrogoths, Avars, Gepides, Sarmatians and Serbs. Justinian retook the city and guarded it for some 50 years, but the ancient glory was never restored. The name of the city has also been erased from the records by its new conquerors- Serbs, who renamed it Beograd (the white city), marking the beginning of a new chapter of its history.