Okolicsányi (historically: Akalichnai, Okolicany, Okolicsányi, Okolicsányi, Okolicsányi, Okoličáni, Okoličiansky)Novák, Jozef; Vítek, Peter. Okoličiansky z Okoličného. In: Lexikón erbov šľachty na Slovensku. Volume II: Liptovská stolicaVítek, Peter; Maťugová, Soňa. Okoličáni z Okoličného. In: Lexikón erbov šľachty na Slovensku. Volume III: Oravská stolica. Bratislava: Hajko & Hajková, 2007. 183 p, ISBN 978-80-88700-69-2, pp. 93 – 94. (in Slovak) are one of the important and ancestral noble families in Liptov in the Kingdom of Hungary.Genealogicko-heraldický hlas, ISSN 1335-0137, p. 15, Matica slovenská, Martin 1/1999. (in Slovak) In central Liptov, they owned extensive estates and villages: Veterná Poruba, Štefanka, Lazisko, the settlement of Črmnô, Harankfiahaza (now unknown) and Okoličné,Nagy Iván. Magyarország családai. Volume 8, Pest, 1861, pp. 204 – 212. Online(in Hungarian) from which they probably derived their surname. The family gradually acquired, mainly through marriages, properties in Pavčina Lehota, Svátý Kríž, Ančikovany and Vitálišovce. In the last quarter of the 18th century, the family also acquired the town of Bobrovec. Some members of the "Miškovci" branch, namely Vendel, Karol and Baltazár, changed their name with higher permission to Szemesi in 1864.Nagy Iván. Magyarország családai. Volume 12, Pest, 1865, p. 221. Online(in Hungarian)Klein, Belo. Zemianstvo Liptova a jeho slovenskosť. Martin: Matica Slovenská, 1924, p. 72. (in Slovak)
In the oldest documents, individual members of the family appear as "domini et heredes de Okoliczna" (or Akalichna) - lords and descendants of Okoličné and with the Latin designation comes/comitis.Húščava, Alexander. Archív zemianskeho rodu z Okoličného - Litterae tabulario Okolicsányiorum gentis nobilis prolatae. Bratislava: Slovenská akadémia vied a umení, 1943, 188 p. (in Slovak and Latin) Functions and titles containing comes, such as the French "comte" or the English "count", come from the Latin word for "companion". It is a title in European countries denoting a position between the high and lower nobility.Pine, L. G. Titles: How the King Became His Majesty. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1992, p.73. In a later period, members of the family appeared under the general term "nobilis".
Origin and historical development
Liptov around 1230 In 1230, King Andrew II issued the first deed of gift for the territory called Mogorfalú to two so-called "guests", namely Bench and Hauch (Hank) Polko (some authors distinguish three and not two persons, namely Beuch, Hauch and Polko).Klein, Belo. Zemianstvo Liptova a jeho slovenskosť. Martin: Matica Slovenská, 1924, p. 24. (in Slovak) This territory extends from the Revúcá River to the Bocký stream without the territory of Sliače, Liptovská Mara, Sielnica and Bobrovec. It was an "empty land", located in Liptov, which once belonged to the village of Uhorská Ves. The term "empty land" - terra vacans - should be understood not as uninhabited, desolate land without a population, but as property legally unoccupied, which therefore fell under the donation authority of the Hungarian kings.Genealogicko-heraldický hlas. Martin: Matica slovenská, 1/1999, ISSN 1335-0137, p. 4. (in Slovak)
The origin of almost all Liptov noble families was directly related to military service to the Hungarian kings. The possession of land and acquired property was then closely linked to it. Until the mid-13th century, Liptov nobles performed their military service mainly in the bands of the Zvolen governors, after the construction of Liptov Castle in the mid-13th century they were tied primarily to this castle.
Ancestors of the family Authors J. Novák and P. Vítek consider Bohumír as one of the oldest ancestors of the family. He was the son of the Czech knight Lawrence (listed as Lauryn in the Liptov register). In 1241, Lawrence participated as the commander of a military unit in the Battle of Mohi.
Bohumír spent a long time at the royal court, where, based on his prudence and bravery, he gained an important position. He fought alongside the king and also earned merit as a special envoy in the then Poland and Russia. This is how he is mentioned in the decree issued in 1267 by King Béla IV, in which he donated a large forest area between Hybica and the border with Spiš. He also hosted King Ladislaus IV at his residence, who in 1273 donated the "Solomon's Land" (later Črmno and Svatý kříž) separated from the Paludza territory. Bohumír also used the title "comes", but in his case this rank was of a military nature (qui regem in bellum comitebat - who accompanied the king to war).Klein, Belo. Zemianstvo Liptova a jeho slovenskosť. Martin: Matica Slovenská, 1924, pp. 35-36. (in Slovak)
After 1280 The authors trace the origin of the family to the reign of King Bela IV (1235–1270) to Serafín I., A. Húščava in his study, which he devoted exclusively to this problem, confirmed that the founder of the Okolicsányi family was Serafín I, the first mention of whom dates back to 1282. Serafín served as a servient of the Zvolen governor Mikuláš in the royal army. In the autumn of 1280, he actively participated in the battle of Lake Hód (today Hódmezóvásárhely – north of Szeged), where the royal army, led by King Ladislaus IV, defeated the Cumans.Sopko, Július. Kroniky stredovekého Slovenska: stredoveké Slovensko očami král̕ovských a mestských kronikárov. Budmerice: RAK, 1995, p. 62. (in Slovak) Serafin allegedly acted extremely heroically in the battle, when "not without shedding his own blood he valiantly cut off the head of a noble Cuman and showed it to the king". For this and many other services, Ladislaus IV confirmed his ownership of Črmno and the Svätý kríž in 1282.
It is impossible to determine exactly when Serafín acquired Okoličné from written sources, but in 1293 his son Peter appears to have been in possession of it. Serafín also had another son, Mikuláš, and both brothers divided Okoličné between themselves after their father's death. Mikuláš, however, died soon after and his share of the property was inherited by his son Pavol, who served in the royal army. He could not therefore devote himself to his Liptov property and gave it to his uncle Peter, his father's brother, for use, as the Turčiansky convent testified to in 1288.Húščava, Alexander. Archív zemianskeho rodu z Okoličného - Litterae tabulario Okolicsányiorum gentis nobilis prolatae. Bratislava, 1943. p. 43. (in Slovak and Latin) In 1295, Pavol acquired land between Okoličné and Vrbica. However, Pavol himself fell shortly after that during the siege of the castle of Kysak (Kôszeg) and his property thus fell to the monarch, since he had no heirs. However, already in 1297, Andrew III donated Pavol's part to his uncle Peter, the son of Serafín, and ordered the Zvolen and Šariš county governor Demeter to bring Peter into possession of the entire and indivisible village of Okoličné. However, Peter had some problems with the possession of his properties in Okoličné and Črmno, and therefore in 1326 he asked the monarch for its confirmation. The monarch complied and, as special merits of Peter, recalled his loyalty and services, which he showed to the king in Orava against the people of Matúš Čák Trenčiansky and also in Zagreb and Transylvania. Shortly after, undoubtedly after the death of his father, Peter's son Ján lost his property in Liptov when, during the reign of Charles Robert, for unknown reasons was unable to submit documents proving his ownership for review. His property was taken from him and assigned to the property of Hrádok Castle.
Only in 1352 did King Louis I the Great return them to him again, for his many military merits during the expedition to Naples, Italy, during which he allegedly lost an eye. In addition to Peter's son Ján, the recipients of the new donation were also his other sons, Marek, Vavrinec and Serafín, and it was only this donation from 1352 that became the permanent legal property basis of the Okolicsányi family in the future. During the revision led by the regional judge Imrich Bubek, the sons of Mark I and the son of Serafil II Ján proved themselves with donation documents from kings Ladislaus IV, Andrew III and Charles I However, the judge declared only the donation documents from King Louis I to be valid.
Louis I donated the southern part of the Revúcka Valley to Marek I (Markus), son of Peter of Okoličné, in 1367Genealogicko-heraldický hlas. Martin: Matica slovenská, 1/1999, ISSN 1335-0137, p. 9. (in Slovak) and after a conflict with the forger Ján Literát of Madočany, Matúš of Stošice and his brother, he acquired Grienovište (formerly: Boztelek, Bozefold, Kovachfelde) from Louis I in 1381 in exchange for an estate called Reuchetornya.
In 1435, Michal I of Okoličné, son of Ján II of Okoličné, granted partial city privileges to Okoličné, modeled on privileges of Nemecká Ľupča (today Partizánská Ľupča).Buran, Dušan; Čičo, Martin; Pomfyová, Bibiana; Ragač, Radoslav. Majster z Okoličného a gotické umenie Spiša okolo roku 1500. Bratislava: Slovenská národná galéria, 2017, 175 p., ISBN 978-80-8059-207-3. (in Slovak) Michal (documented in the years 1464–1484) acted in various judicial functions. In 1464, as a respected nobleman, he was a witness in a property dispute, which was resolved by the Liptov governor together with his servants. In 1480, he is listed among the arbitrators in another document. In 1466, Michal is also documented as a lay member of the Liptov religious brotherhood (confraternity), which brought together Liptov parish priests and also representatives of the local nobility. In 1453, Michal from Okoličné managed from the Archbishop of Esztergom to have the chapel of St. Cosmas and Damian elevated to a parish church. At the same time, he requested that members of his family, as well as members of noble families, whose dead were previously buried at the parish church in Liptovský Mikuláš, to be able to have their final resting place in this building. Michal probably died at the end of 1484. A document from January 1, 1485, already mentions Uršula, the widow of Michal of Okoličné, who became the wife of his namesake, another Michal of Okoličné.
From the next generation living at the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries, the brothers Leonard and Bernard stood out from the Okolicsányi family. In 1495, they appear as patrons of the Okoličné church of St. Cosmas and Damian. Bernard is mentioned in 1512 as a judge in a dispute and in the following year as a Liptov servant. He is also a relevant member of the family who could have influenced the donation of the original main altar of the church of the Virgin Mary - Queen of Angels with the Franciscan monastery in Okoličné (today the Church of St. Peter of Alcántara).
Members of the family The most accurate genealogical table from Serafín I to the end of the 15th century was published by A. Húščava, the younger Okolicsányi family was provided by I. Nagy. The family gradually acquired properties, especially in Liptó, but also in other counties of Slovakia. Outside the territory of Slovakia, we meet the Okolicsányi mainly in the Heves and Vas County counties, from 1818 in the Szabolcs County and a few years later also in the Pest county. The most important members of the family are described in the Encyclopedia of Slovakia, namely Imrich, who was a canon priest of Spiš, in 1773 a canon priest of Esztergom, St. Stephen's provost, titular bishop of Ansár, in 1779 a governor and in the years 1782–1786 and 1790–1795 a court councilor and referent, who died in Vienna in 1795. As well as Ján Okoličáni († 1736), bishop of Bratislava, later St. Stephen's provost and bishop of Varadin, to whom the Church of the Holy Trinity in Trnava owes its existence. He also expanded the seminary in Bratislava.