Dominik Katiqi Ulqinaku (Hrvt: Dominic Katic) (ital. Domenico Cattichi) was an Albanian military from Ulqin who served Venice in Zadar in the 16th century. He was active in the 1620s until his death in 1641. He owned several properties such as houses, fields and holdings. Katic carried out business activities with Zadar residents, patricians and citizens, and also students and craftsmen. His numerous and well-supported connections are also shown in the church of Zadar, who often mentioned and endowed in Katič’s testamentary legatees. Katiqi stood out as a character, and became very famous in Zadar and Dalmatian history.
Katiqi was a captain (governadore) in the Zadar army during the time. He was a Catholic Albanian form Ulqin and he served spent the final part of his life serving the Signoria in Zadar. During the period of the anti-Turkish wars, a considerable number of Albanian mercenary soldiers operated on the Zadar battlefield. originating from various parts of Venetian Albania, primarily from Ulcinj, Shkoder, Durrës and Drivast. Some of them, they stayed in Zadar and in the Dalmatian area for most of their military service, founded a family.
Dominik, a brick storey covered with tiles, situated in the appresso Castell vecchio for
eighty ducats.
The following contract, which mentions the business of Dominik Katiæ, was concluded on 14 V.
Business accounts
Dominik Katiq is recorded to have made a business transacton in 1628 where he buys a house from Antun Teletina for the price of 384 Venetian lire.
In 1629 he bought other houses Zadar. A certain Zadranka Jana sold to Dominik a small walled house covered with tiles.
Dominik would also make business with a local barber named Ivan Asolo.
Later, Dominiks wife Marija would make various purchases. Dominik and his wife bought a two-story apartment from the late priest Ivan Niokla Rado and his mother mother Gasparin, built partly of hewn stone and partly of wood and covered with tiles, located not far from the Madonna della Piazzola church for the price of 300 lire.
The last recorded account
Finally, the last recorded notarial contract in which we come across business Dominika Katic was concluded on 19. VII. 1630. Unlike the majority of previous sales of contracts in which it was mostly about dealing with houses in the city, we note that selling land parcels in Dobropoljana in Pasman. Paul Danieletti “de Serocalle” sells to Katic a part (half) of the goods that belong to him in different agricultural areas of that village (two gonjas and 47 perticas of vineyards and olive groves in Draga; four gonjas and 18 arable land in Studenac; 3/4 of arable land and 47 pertik in Gladusi. The price is thirty ducats, and the contract does not specify information about the right of purchase and lease.”
Dominik Katiqs written will in 1639
“The last information about Dominik Katics contained in the will written on 12. VIII. 1639. At the end of the will, information about the date of its opening (November 29, 1641) was entered. As the will is usually opened only after the death of the testator, when the request is submitted by one of the executors of the will or a close relative (in Katiić’s case it is his wife Marija), it can be assumed that the Ulcinj captain living in Zadar died shortly before the date of its opening, that is, in the second half of November 1641.
It is interesting to point out at the end of this essay the fact that all the documents related to Katic’s activities in Zadar were written by the same author Ivan Braicica. As the notebook itself is endowed with a legacy from the testator’s property, and another member of that family (governor Nikola Braicica) was chosen as the executor of Dominik Katiqis will, it is clear that during his life Dominik Katiqi also lived with members of that distinguished Zadar’s citizen families have strong ties of mutual trust and friendship.
Dominik Katic is a person who is not mentioned in historical literature and who historians will certainly never count among prominent and notable personalities from the Zadar and Dalmatian past. A native of Ulcinj in the Venetian military service is one of a series of less notable persons who are not remembered, in the sequence of historical events.”
References
Balkan Academia 