Hvar

Hvar is a Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea off the Dalmatian coast.

The town of Stari Grad located on the north of the island (population 2,817, 2001) was the site of one of the first human settlements on the Adriatic islands during the antiquity. The Greek settlers named it Pharos, after the Aegean island of Paros.

The town of Hvar on the opposite side of the island (population 4,138, 2001) is the site of the first public theatre in Europe, opened in 1612.

Hvar was a long time property of the Venetian Republic, and was referred to as Lesina in Italian.