Opovo is a city settlement in Serbia in Opovo Municipality in South Banat District. According to the 2011 census, there were 4527 inhabitants.
In the area of today’s Opovo used to exist two settlements – Opovo and Želj. They were located in the immediate vicinity, on the left bank of Tamiš. It’s hard to say which of these two villages is older, but it seems that it’s Želj. Namely, it was already recorded in 1334, while Opovo was mentioned only in the second half of the 17th century.
Opovo was first mentioned in 1672. Opovo and Želj, during the rule of the Turks, fell under the Pančevo nahija, or the same name sandžak. After 1716/18. Opovo was found in the Pancevo District. It remained in the district of Opovo until 1767/68. when it was abducted and included in the twelfth German-Banat regiment, which remained after 1773. By the mid-18th century, the settlement was moved to the present place. At that time reconstructions and urbanization were carried out in Banat. Opovo as a larger settlement had two parishes, when it comes to Orthodox living, and one parish when it comes to Roman Catholic life. There were two schools, Serbian and German. Of the economic activities, only agriculture, crop and livestock farming, some hunting and fishing are worth mentioning, while other activities were of little importance to the lives of people, except for domestic work.
In the surroundings of Opovo there are rich archeological sites that belong to the period of Starčevci and Vinca culture. Excavations were carried out by American archaeologists in the 1980s. Some of the items found are in the museum in Pancevo. The great merit of finding many objects belonging to the old-culture cultures in the territory of Opovo belong to the Catholic priest Andreas Majer, who collected these items and handed them over to the Pancevo Museum.
The municipality of Opovo is abundant with water surfaces. The most important in this respect is the Tamis River, and natural and artificial lakes, ponds and canals are also present. Significant natural resources are also forests, which cover an area of 1313 hectares, or 10% of the total territory of the municipality of Opovo. The forests are mainly made up of shallow and poplar trees, and there are also ash and ash trees. The pastures are covered with sweet grasses and spread over an area of 1,355 hectares.
Natural resources provide a habitat for a diverse animal world. The forests include roe deer, foxes, rabbits, pheasants, etc., and in the Tamis of fish: carp, catfish, pike, pike, babushka, white fish, cvergl…