Mato Vodopić (13 December 1816 – 13 March 1893) was a Croatian prelate of the Catholic Church who served as bishop of Dubrovnik from 1882 until his death in 1893 and Apostolic Administrator of Trebinje Mrkan from 1882 until 1890. He wrote poems for some special occasions, and was a storyteller and collector of folk ballads. He remains the only native to serve as the bishop of Dubrovnik since the abolishment of the Republic of Ragusa in 1808. Biography Vodopić was born in Dubrovnik, a year after Dubrovnik became a part of the Austrian Empire, as a member of noble Vodopić family. He was the son of Niko, a sea captain from Dubrovačko Primorje and Jela Maškarić, member of the noble family of nearby Ston. Vodopić also had a 10 years younger brother Niko. He attended a gymnasium, where classes were held in Italian language. While at the gymnasium, Vodopić met his lifetime friend Đuro Pulić. The two gave each other nicknames "Friday" and "Saturday" because Vodopić was born just one day before Pulić. Although their friendship continued, Vodopić and Pulić were separated because Vodopić had to repeat a year due to illness. As a gymnasium student he wrote poems in Italian. After graduating from the gymnasium in 1833, Vodopić too, like his father, wanted to become a sailor. His family managed to arrange for him a job with captain Botta. While waiting for a job on the ship, Vodopić worked as the municipal scribe. Suddenly he expressed his intention to become a priest to his mother, who, after ensuring his intentions were serious, sent him to a seminary in Zadar. He started writing poems in Croatian while in a seminary in Zadar. His poems were published in Matica Dalmatinska, Dubrovnik, Biser and Slovinac, however, they didn't have high artistic value. At first, Vodopić studied two years of philosophy in Zadar, and after four years of theology. He was amongst the best students. Along with regular studies, Vodopić became occupied with the language, especially Old Slavic and Croatian. Since then, he wrote more and more in Croatian. After finishing his studies, Vodopić celebrated his first Mass on 25 November 1840 in Dubrovnik. His novitiate started two days after. At first, he served as the parish priest's assistant in Smokovljane, and a year later he was appointed a parish administrator in Ošlje. He stayed there for four years, until 1845. While