People / group

Crnojević noble family

15th century · 15th century · Also known as Crnojević dynasty, Crnojevići

The Crnojević family ruled Zeta, the core of present-day Montenegro, in the fifteenth century. Rising after the decline of the Balšić lords, they led the highland clans between the Ottomans and Venice. Ivan Crnojević moved the seat to Cetinje in 1482, and his son Đurađ printed the first Cyrillic books among the South Slavs. The Ottomans absorbed their lands in the 1490s.

Crnojević noble family
Image: Медун 1876 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 3 state histories

Zeta under the BalšićiZeta under the CrnojevićiPrince-Bishopric of Montenegro

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Crnojević noble family. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/crnojevic-noble-family
MLA
“Crnojević noble family.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/crnojevic-noble-family. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Crnojević noble family.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/crnojevic-noble-family.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Crnojević noble family’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/crnojevic-noble-family (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻