Jovan Šević or Ivan Šević (, ; died ) was an 18th-century military officer of Serb origin. He reached the rank of lieutenant colonel in the Serb militia forces in the Pomorišje region, then in the Military Frontier of the Habsburg monarchy. When it became obvious that privileges granted to Serb militiamen would be reduced or completely revoked after Pomorišje and Potisje lost their frontier status, Šević left Habsburg military service in 1750 and moved to Russia. At the end of 1752, he led the second wave of colonists who migrated from Pomorišje, Potisje and Slavonia to the Russian Empire (modern-day Ukraine) where they settled the newly established administrative region of Slavo-Serbia at the beginning of 1753. To enable him to recruit more of his fellow officers, Šević was promoted to the rank of General by the Russian Empress, Elizabeth. He commanded a Serb Hussar Regiment consisting of the colonists he brought to Russia. After Šević's death, Slavo-Serbia was disestablished, and many of his descendants became notable military officers in the Russian Imperial Army. Over time, all the Serb colonists became assimilated. Miloš Crnjanski described the migration led by Šević in his most notable work, the novel Migrations (). Family Jovan Šević was born into a Serbian noble family that had migrated from Ottoman-occupied Serbia to the territory of the Serbian Despotate in Hungary in the first half of the 16th century. In some accounts, he is referred to as Ivan or Živan. Šević's grandfather was named Radoslav. Šević's father was Georgije, better known as Đurka Šević, who was an oberkapitän (upper captain) in the Serb militia in the Pomorišje military frontier (near Arad). Đurka succeeded Jovan Tekelija in this position in the first half of 18th century, while at that time, his son was an oberkapitän in Čanad (modern-day Magyarcsanád). By the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, many of Šević's descendants had become successful officers in the Imperial Russian Army. Šević had a son named Petar, who was a lieutenant in the Moriš Brigade before the migration to Russia, where he reached the rank of lieutenant colonel. Another one of Šević's sons, Ivan, was a colonel, and his son Georgije later reached the rank of General in the Imperial Russian Army. Georgije's son, Ivan (Šević's great-grandson) also became a Russian General. In 1812, he was decorated for bravery at the Battle of Borodino,