Perentin Sergio

Sergio Perentin is the oldest, now retired, fisherman in Piran. He was born in 1927 in Izola into a peasant family, and as a five-year old child moved, together with his parents, sister and brother, to Piran, where he dedicated his entire life to the sea and fishing – and his family, of course.  He was widowed at a relatively young age; he now lives with his daughter and her family close to the Piran harbour.

Fishery has always been one of the most important industries in our coastal towns, including Piran. As a very young fisherman, Perentin worked before and during World War II within the framework of the local fishing cooperative. After the liberation and subsequent annexation of Istria to Yugoslavia, he witnessed quick and epochal social, political, demographic as well as ethnic changes taking place along the Istrian coast. While the majority of Italian fishermen left in the 1950s for Italy or elsewhere, Perentin decided to stay at home, and as a fisherman he contributed a great deal in the founding and development of post-war fishing cooperative, which also took exemplary care of, among other things, the traditional catch of mullets in the Bay of Piran.

Today, Sergio Perentin is one of the most precious and respected witnesses to the traditional fishing and history of fishing cooperatives in Piran.

Franco Juri