Dobrinj, situated 200 metres above sea level, is the centre of twenty or so surrounding villages that make up the municipality of Dobrinj, locally called “Dobrinjsko”. Although located in the northeast of the island of Krk, Dobrinjsko partly comprises the island’s east coast too. Geographically speaking, Dobrinjsko can be divided into three parts: Dobrinj, as the center and a separate unit, the villages by the sea (Šilo, Klimno, Čižići, Soline, Meline and Rudine) and the hinterland (Polje, Žestilac, Sveti Vid, Gostinjac, Hlapa, Županje, Kras, Gabonjin, Sveti Ivan, Rasopasno, Sužan, Tribulje, Klanice). Fifty years ago, the hinterland also included Dolovo, now an extinct village located between Dobrinj and Kras. In terms of relief, Dobrinjsko can be divided into the so-called “Highland zone” (Dobrinj, Kras and Gabonjin), and the “Lowland zone” (The Soline Bay).
The fact that the villages are so scattered but on the other hand spatially and culturally so connected is one of the particularities of this region, which distinguishes it from other parts of the island of Krk.
