From the Nemanjićs to the endowment in the 21st century
“I had no children, but I chose the Serbian people as my child. To them I leave everything I have acquired.”
In the Serbian tradition, an endowment is a gift “for the soul”: a present given for the sake of lasting general benefit, not personal glory. Ktitors built monasteries, merchants built university palaces and hospitals, and emigrants set up funds for the schooling of pupils. Today the path is different – one need be neither a ruler nor a millionaire, and there are more forms of giving than ever.
This guide summarises what benefactors teach us, drawn from our collection of benefactors, and what you need to know today so that your gift truly outlasts you. If you are looking for a historical introduction, start with the History of Endowment-Building page.
According to the definition we use on this site, an endowment is a lasting gift in the form of private property or a good deed, irrevocably donated for the general benefit, in the way the benefactor himself envisioned it. That sentence rests on three foundations, which hold true today as well:
The gift is irrevocably set apart from personal property and serves its purpose even when its giver is no longer here.
Education, culture, science, health, protection of heritage: the goal is that of the community, not of the family.
The benefactor alone determines the purpose. The more precisely the will is written down, the better protected the gift.
The modern benefactor adds to this what the old ones often could not: open governance, public reporting, measurement of impact and a visible trace in the digital world. That is no less noble than the old pattern, but its continuation adapted to the times.
Each of them left a practical lesson as well. Here are examples from our collection, and you can read their stories in full.
He founded a literary fund to support writers as early as 1861, and then by testament left a fund for a Serbian university. Today it is the Kolarac Endowment.
Lesson: do not wait for the testament. Begin with a smaller fund while you are here to manage it.
From apprentice to one of the richest Belgraders. His endowment, according to the data we cite, was worth more in 1939 than the famous Nobel Foundation.
Lesson: what matters for an endowment is not the starting capital but discipline and a plan.
He left a house in Šabac and ducats “for the publication of books of instructive and moral content”. The endowment's board, which included prominent men of his age, began work in 1874.
Lesson: one clear sentence on purpose and a board of respected people safeguard the giver's will.
Tekelijanum (1838) educated poor and gifted Serbian pupils, among them Laza Kostić and Jovan Jovanović Zmaj. It became the “Serbian Pantheon” in a foreign land.
Lesson: the most lasting endowment is one that educates people, not one that merely raises buildings.
From America he established a fund in honour of his mother Pijada for the schooling of pupils, as well as funds at the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts and the National Museum.
Lesson: a fund in honour of a loved one and a fund within an existing institution are two proven paths.
His testament of 1889 was long delayed by court disputes and heirs' claims, so the funds were used only ten years after his death.
Lesson: a testament drawn up with expert help saves years of disputes.
More examples: Luka Ćelović bequeathed his property to the University by testament, and Sima Andrejević Igumanov turned his own parental grief into an endowment for young people. You can see them all on the interactive map.
A legal entity need not be established at once. Choose a form according to the amount, the goal and the time you can devote to the gift.
| Form | When it makes sense | What is needed |
|---|---|---|
| Direct donation | A single project or institution; quick and simple support. | A written donation agreement with the recipient and a clearly defined purpose. |
| Fund within an existing organisation | You want permanence without your own legal entity (like Pupin's funds at the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts). | An agreement with the organisation on purpose, criteria and manner of governance. |
| Foundation | A lasting charitable purpose, without large initial capital. | A founding act in writing; entry in the register at the Business Registers Agency (APR). The law does not prescribe minimum initial assets. |
| Endowment | A larger, long-term gift with its own assets that lasts for generations. | Act of establishment, contract or will; initial assets of at least 30,000 euros in the dinar equivalent; a board of at least three members and a manager; entry with the APR. |
| Bequest (will) | A gift that begins after your lifetime, as with Kolarac and Ćelović. | A will drawn up with a notary or lawyer; it must respect the compulsory portion due to forced heirs. |
| Patronage and sponsorship | Businesspeople and the diaspora who want visible, occasional support for culture. | An agreement on a programme or project; a sponsorship or donation contract. |
The information on endowments and foundations refers to the Law on Endowments and Foundations (“Official Gazette of the RS”, no. 88/2010). Before deciding, check the current text of the law and seek expert advice (see the note at the end of the page).
If you cannot say it in one breath, the purpose is not yet clear enough.
Scholarships, hospitals, publishing, restoration of monuments, young artists: one clear field is better than five vague ones.
Money, real estate, copyright, a library or a collection. Decide also on the timing: all at once, annually, or by bequest.
Compare the table above. It is good practice to start with a smaller fund and then, once the patterns have proved themselves, to establish a foundation or endowment.
A lawyer or notary determines the form, and a tax adviser the form of the gift. This is where you save the most aggravation later.
The law requires at least three members for an endowment. Choose people of different professions, reputable and independent of the family and of the beneficiaries.
The register is kept by the Business Registers Agency. According to APR guidance, the deadline for a decision is 30 days from a duly submitted application.
Who may apply, who decides, how conflicts of interest are avoided and how much is spent each year.
An annual report, public calls and the names of recipients build trust, and trust attracts new donors.
A name, an archive, photographs, a document on its history and a digital record. What is not remembered is hard to continue.
With classic endowments the principal is preserved and only the income from it is spent. In this way the gift lasts beyond your generation and the next.
A purpose that is too narrow is in time exhausted or becomes outdated, and one that is too broad becomes diluted. Leave room for the board to adapt the means, but not the aim.
An endowment is a legal entity to which the assets no longer belong. Its management must serve the aim, not the founder and his family.
A public report on income, payments and beneficiaries is the cheapest investment in reputation.
How many scholarship holders completed their schooling? How many books were published? Numbers and stories together show that the gift has achieved its aim.
Pupin is an example that a donor can live far from the homeland. Open the possibility for others to join you with small contributions.
Determine how new board members are chosen and what happens if the aim becomes unachievable. Without this, even the best will grows stale.
Today memory is also preserved online. A digital record of an endowment, like this register, is part of its permanence.
The path of Tekelijanum and Kolarac: schooling the gifted who lack means. Tekelijanum
Hospitals, equipment, help with treatment. Hospital in Krupanj
Books, research, prizes for works of lasting value. Čupić Endowment
Young artists, concerts, festivals, restoration of works of art.
Restoration of monasteries and monuments, archiving and digitisation. Studenica
Programmes connecting emigrants and the motherland, as in Pupin's Idvor. People's House in Idvor
This guide is informative and does not replace legal, tax or accounting advice. Laws change, so before any decision check the current text and consult a notary, lawyer or tax adviser.
If you are planning a gift to culture, education or the preservation of heritage, get in touch. We will help you find the right form and the right project.
