Old-Vlax Era from the Ivanjica district: Construction from the time of Jovan Cvijić and contemporary images

Abstract

The paper gives a brief account of the ethno-psychological research among Serbs, with a particular emphasis on Jovan Cvijić’s work on psychological characters among old-Vlax Eras. We make comparisons on attitudes on psychological characters of the contemporary population of the Ivanjica district (sense of humor, religious affiliation, hospitality, loyalty to the local tradition, knowledge as an ideal) with Cvijić’s descriptions on mentality of the same population. A conclusion to be drawn is that the personality of old-Vlax Era, since the Cvijić’s writings until today, did not change very much. The personality of Era is in a phase of adaptation to contemporary time, but it did not lose values of the earlier generations, that is, it still incorporates the traditional inheritance.