In the book Bilježnički zapisi 1355 – 1356 Andreas Condam Petri de Canturio[1] under number 60, there is an entry dated May 10, 1355, according to which Mileša of the late Kaleb from Brbinj, pays Stjepan, the son of the late Stanoje from Zadar, the sum of 15 ducats to serve on the galley instead of him, and will give him another 9 gold ducats and 24 small Venetian denars, which he will receive from the Venetian municipality. According to this entry, we could assume that the current surname Kaleb may come from the personal name of Kaleb from Brbinj, who is the father of Mileša from Brbinj and who lived at the beginning of the 14th century. Without other confirmation of this assumption, of course it can also be a mere coincidence. This is yet another indication that the thesis of the late don Riko Finka, who believed that families from distant regions often immigrated to the island in Brbinje, is not correct, but that all or most of the families from Brbinj have been settled in Brbinj for a long time.

Regarding the Kaleb family, don Riko writes that they are mentioned around 1655 and that they are an old family, that there are Kaleb surname in Bosnia and Tisno, and that the Kaleb family in brbinj are probably immigrants to the islands. If the Kaleb surname really came from Kaleb, the father of Mileša from Brbinj, it would mean that the Kaleb family are a much older family in Brbinj since 1655.

Ante Kalebov is listed between the Bahajev (Odvitović) and Meštrović (Masnov) in the list of souls of Brbinj parish from 1697. Kate Kalebova and Mara Kalebova were registered as "women's heads". Anton Šurbarić, later Ive Šurbarić, Šime Šurbarić and Miho Šurbarić, is entered in the list of souls of Brbinj parish from 1698 between Ivo Meštrović (Masnov) and Lovre Rančić (Rančev) and Mate and Šime Odvitović (Bahajev). Of the women, only Kata Šurbarić was registered without Mara Kalebova, but the death register of Brbinj parish recorded the death of Mara Šurbarić, Mihovil Šurbarić's wife in 1697, which agrees with my assumption that the "second" surname of the Kaleb family was Šurbarić.

In the list of souls of Brbinj parish from 1699, between the Bahajev (Odvitović) and Meštrović (Masnov), Ante Kaleb, Ive Kaleb, later Mihovi Šurbarić and Šime Šurbarić are entered, from the wives Kate Šurbarić. In 1700, in the list of souls between the Bahajev (Odvitović) and Meštrović (Masnov), Ante Šurbarić, Ive Šurbarić, Mihovi Šurbarić, Šima Šurbarić and Kate Kalebova are listed as wives.

So, in the lists of the state of souls of the parish of Brbinj, the Kaleb family members are marked both as Kaleb and as Šurbarić. Also, the place of their entry in the Book of the State of Souls (mostly between the Bahajev and the Masnov family members) corresponds to the location of their house in Brbinj, and a look at the list of the states of souls of Brbinj parish shows that the Glagolitic priests from Brbinj made the lists according to the order or position of the houses of the Brbinj clans, with certain exceptions for certain years, especially this deviation from the given order can be noticed in the years when a new priest who is not from Brbinj comes to the Brbinj parish, which also happened in 1710 with the parish priest Ante Šegota from Žman. 

In the population census from 1608, there are no Kaleb family members registered in Brbinj, but Matthio Susbarich is registered. In the Fragments of the oldest Glagolitic register books of the parish of Brbinj, there are also no entries of the Kaleb surname, but the Šurbarić are entered. Thus, in 1601, the "witness" at a wedding in Brbinj was Matij Šurbarić. Elena, daughter of Matij Šurbarić and Lucija Barićević, was baptized in 1603, and Jivan, son of Matij Šurbarić, was baptized in 1608. Lucija Šurbarić and Margarita Šurbarić were registered as godparents at the baptism in 1604.

For the Kaleb family, however, I did not find direct formulations Šurbarić "deto" (called) Kaleb or vice versa, which would directly indicate the uniqueness of these families, so my conclusion that the Kaleb family also had a "second" surname Šurbarić is of a lower degree of certainty than with other Brbinj families with whom I, for the most part, have on several occasions, found formulations such as Perin deto Španol, Bahaja deto Odvitović, Kaštelanić deto Mikljanić or others.

In the register of deaths of the Brbinj parish in 1707, it was recorded that on February 15, Mihovil Kaleb and his daughter Mare, who had drowned, died. In 1669, a marriage between "Mihovil Kaleb and Elina, daughter of Šime Mrakalić" was registered in the register of marriages of Brbinj parish. In 1681, the confirmation of Anton and Šimun, sons of Miho Kalebov and his wife Ela, was recorded in the Book of Chrisms, and in 1687, the confirmation of Mara, daughter of Miha Šurbarić and his wife Ela. Is this Mare Šurbarića actually Mare Kalebova from Mihovil Kaleb, with whom he was registered together on February 15, 1707?

By examining the registers of Brbinj parish, we find that in 1677, Anton Kaleb died at the age of 80, in 1697, Ivan Kaleb died at the age of 65, Mihovil Kaleb drowned as previously mentioned, in 1725, Anton Kaleb died at the age of 50, and in 1793. Ivan Kaleb, 74 years old. According to the information that I have obtained, the Kaleb family were not an excessively numerous family, but they had a large number of male children, and I did not find any information about the adoption of "mulaca" (adopted children) or the arrival of man on the Kaleb family estate.[2], so they could be one of the rare families in Brbinj which, at least according to my research, are truly Kaleb in the male line.

The Kaleb family are sometimes also called the Mihovils, probably after Mihovil Kaleb. In the Book of Chrisms in 1709, there is an entry of the confirmation of "Jle daughter of Šimun Mihovilov and Mande his true wife", while in the register of births in 1702, the baptism of Ela, daughter of Šimun Šurbarić and Manda, is entered. In the register of marriages in 1698, the marriage between Šimun Šurbarić and Manda Božulić was entered. In the registry of marriages in 1728, the marriage between "Jovan son of Anton Božićević from Brgul and Matijon" was entered. Šimun Mihovilev's son? from Brbin". I believe that Manda Mihovil is the daughter of Šimun Kaleb and his wife Manda, born in 1709, whose grandfather is Mihovil Kaleb.

[1] Leljak, Robert and Kolanović, Josip: Andrija Petrov from Cantu, notary records 1355-1356, volume II, State Archives Zadar, 2003,

[2] For information on children born in the Kaleb family, see the register of births in the years 1709, 1711, 1713, 1718, 1722, 1724, 1744, 1750, 1753, 1756, 1757, 1758, 1762. , 1765, 1779, 1781, 1782, 1785, 1787, and for information on children born under the surname Šurbarić, see the register of those born in the years 1694, 1698, 1701, 1702 and 1706.