Dusanovac

Dušanovac exists because Serbian villages honor rulers—and because Emperor Stefan Dušan's 14th-century expansion left toponymic traces across the lands he conquered. This village (population 236, 2002 census) in Leskovac municipality, also known as Dušanovo, takes its name from Serbia's most powerful medieval ruler, who first mentioned Leskovac by name in 1348 when donating it to the Hilandar Monastery.

Dušan 'the Mighty' (r. 1331–1355) transformed Serbia from a kingdom to an empire, conquering much of the Balkans and promulgating the famous Zakonik (law code) of 1349. Villages named in his honor—Dušanovac, Dušanovo, and variants—mark the territory of his expanded realm and the memory of his brief imperial glory, which collapsed within decades of his death.

Leskovac municipality hosts 144 villages, making it Serbia's most administratively fragmented jurisdiction. Dušanovac is one of these fragments—a settlement whose imperial namesake controlled an empire, but whose 236 residents in 2002 faced the same challenges as every other small Serbian village: agricultural decline, youth emigration, and the consolidation of services in larger towns. By 2026, the emperor's name persists; the village's population likely continues shrinking.