Ljubica (Bajić) Lalić (1910–1946) was the mother of Ivan V. Lalić, and the daughter of Serbian composer Isidor Bajić. Ljubica raised her son in Belgrade, where their family lived until she contracted tuberculosis at the age of 35. In search of treatment, she relocated to Zagreb, where she was cared for by tuberculosis specialist Dr. Stjepan Kašnar. She died in 1946, leaving behind her husband and their fifteen-year-old son.

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By all accounts, Ljubica and Ivan were exceptionally close. Her death had a profound impact on him and inspired much of his earliest poetic work. She is a consistent source of inspiration in most of his poetry collections.