Gjinoc lies about 5 km south of Theranda and is a lowland settlement, mainly compact in form. Material associated with the Illyrian-Dardanian period has been found in its territory, although no comprehensive archaeological excavation has been carried out.
A document from 1348 mentions Gjinoc as “katun Ginovci” and explicitly links it with an Albanian community. This is one of the most important early documentary references for the settlement's historical identity. During the interwar period 15 Serbian colonist families were settled here. In 1956 two Albanian families emigrated to Turkey.
During the 1998–99 war most neighbourhoods, apart from the Haxhiaj area where fighting took place, were extensively burned by Serbian forces. A total of 342 residential houses were burned. Two elderly residents from the Berisha neighbourhood were burned to death and one member of the Haxhiaj family was killed. On 3 April 1999 the population was forcibly expelled toward Albania.
Source
Source and further reading
Principal source: Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani, Settlements of Kosovo 4 — Theranda (Suhareka), Prishtina, 2003.
Source entry: GJINOCI
This page presents a selected summary from the published study of the settlement. For complete archival references, family histories, microtoponymy and the full treatment, consult the original volume.