About Subotica

The name Subotica, which first appeared in 1653, may derive from Subota, the Serbian / Bunjevac word for "Saturday", and would mean "a little Saturday". Another theory claims that city was named after SubotaVrlić, who was a palatine and treasurer of a Emperor Jovan Nenad, which ruled from this city in the 16th century. An older Serbian name used for the city in the 16th century was Sabatka, while Ottoman Turkish name was Sobotka.

The town was renamed in the 1740s for Maria Theresa of Austria, Archduchess of Austria and Queen of Bohemia and Hungary. The town was officially called Sent-Maria in 1743, but was renamed in 1779 as Maria-Theresiapolis. These two official names were also spelled in several different ways (most commonly the German Maria-Theresiopel or Theresiopel), and were used in different languages.