Milka Trnina and Why There Is a Street Named After Her

One day while I was walking through Savica, I noticed a street named Milka Trnina. It was located in the middle of the neighbourhood called Folnegovicevo and it was full of trees. What a lovely street, I thought. In no time, I realised that I barely knew anything about Milka Trnina. Who was she? Why was she so important that a street was named after her? I decided to find out more about this famous person. So, here is the story about that diva.

Image credit: Love Zagreb, Iva Gotlin

Who was Milka Trnina?

Milka Trnina was born in 1863 in a small Croatian village called Vezisce. As a child, she lived very modestly. One day, after her father came back from the fair, he fell ill and died soon after. Father's death separated Milka from her family. Her mother and brother stayed in Vezisce while Milka, almost like an orphan, had to move in with Janko Jurkovic - her uncle. That was a great opportunity for Milka because he was a friend of Ida Wimberger Brkic, a headmaster of the private singing school.

How did she become a Diva?

After graduating Ida's school, Milka Trnina studied with Joseph Gansbacher at the conservatory in Vienna. She had made her opera debut while still a student in Zagreb, singing Amelia in the opera by Giuseppe Verdi. Zagreb stage was soon substituted with those in Leipzig, Graz and Bremen, and she was given a prestige title of Bavarian royal chamber singer. She sang all over the world and her glory was never ending. But after a while, Milka ended her singing career at the age of 43 due to her medical issues. In the meantime, she became an honorary member of the Academy of Music and a teacher of solo singing. Just like her father, Milka died from pneumonia in 1941. Her last wish was to have a funeral ceremony without any flowers and before noon while Croatian national anthem was playing. It is considered that Milka had all of her singing records destroyed, so some of the people call her a Voiceless Soprano. 

Image credit: Love Zagreb, Iva Gotlin

I'm sure that now when you know who Milka Trnina was and how great she was, you don't have any doubts as to why this beautiful street got the name after her. But there's one more thing that makes me wonder. Does Milka chocolate have anything to do with Milka Trnina as well? 

Header Image Credit: Iva Gotlin

Author: Klara Banek