Bosnia and Herzegovina

**Bosnia and Herzegovina** (; ; , ), abbreviated **BiH** () or **B&H**, sometimes called **Bosnia–Herzegovina** and often known informally as **Bosnia**, is a country in Southeastern Europe, located in the Balkans with an area of 51,197 km<sup>2</sup> and 4,600,000 people. Countries around Bosnia and Herzegovina are Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro. The capital is Sarajevo, and other important cities are Banja Luka, Mostar, Bihać, Zenica and Tuzla. The three largest ethnic groups are Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats. Most Bosniaks are Sunni Muslim, most Serbs are Serbian Orthodox Christians, and most Croats are Roman Catholic. The majority religion is Islam.

## History

The first state in modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina was in the Middle Ages. After the conquest of Bosnia by the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century, Islam was introduced to the local population. During the Ottoman Empire, it was a very important province in the Balkans and the capital, Sarajevo, had 100,000 people. In the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), Austria-Hungary occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina and annexed it in 1908. In 1914 the Archduke Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, were assassinated in Sarajevo, leading to World War I. From 1918 until 1992, the country was a part of Yugoslavia. After a 3-year long war, part of the Yugoslav Wars, Bosnia and Herzegovina proclaimed independence as a country consisting mostly of Serbs, Croats and Bosnian Muslims.

## Divisions

The country is divided into two entities: Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is then divided into 10 cantons. Both entities are divided into municipalities. The Brčko District is not part of either entity. Officially, it is governed by both together.

### Cities

This is a list of the ten largest towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Only Sarajevo and Banja Luka have more than 200,000 people.
||Name of municipality|Population|
| --- | --- | --- |
|1.|Sarajevo|460,000|
|2.|Banja Luka|250,000|
|3.|Tuzla|131,640|
|4.|Zenica|127,105|
|5.|Bijeljina|115,692|
|6.|Mostar|111.186|
|7.|Prijedor|105.000|
|8.|Brčko|82.000|
|9.|Doboj|80.000|
|10.|Bihać|61.287|

## Sports

Bosnia and Herzegovina has produced many athletes. Many of them were famous in the Yugoslav national teams before Bosnia and Herzegovina's independence.

The most important international sporting event in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina was the hosting of the 14th Winter Olympics, held in Sarajevo.

The Borac handball club has won seven Yugoslav Handball Championships, as well as the European Championship Cup in 1976 and the International Handball Federation Cup in 1991.

The Bosna basketball club from Sarajevo were European Champions in 1979. The Yugoslav national basketball team medaled in every world championship from 1963 through 1990. The team included Bosnian players such as Dražen Dalipagić and Mirza Delibašić. Bosnia and Herzegovina regularly qualifies for the European Championship in Basketball. Jedinstvo Aida women's basketball club, based in Tuzla, has won the 1989 European Championships in Florence.

Bosnia has many world-class basketball players, notably Mirza Teletović, the first Bosnian in the NBA. Among others are, Elmedin Kikanović, Nihad Đedović, Ognjen Kuzmić, Jusuf Nurkić, Nedžad Sinanović, and Nemanja Mitrović.

The Tuzla-Sinalco karate club from Tuzla has won the most Yugoslav championships, as well as four European Championships and one World Championship.

The Bosnian chess team has been Champion of Yugoslavia seven times. In addition the club ŠK Bosna Sarajevo won four Chess Club Cup : 1994 in Lyon, 1999 in Bugojno, 2000 in Neum, and 2001 in Kallithea Elassonos. Chess grandmaster Borki Predojević has also won European Championships: Under-12 years Litochoro (Greece) in 1999, and Under-14 years Kallithea Elassonos (Greece) in 2001, and in 2003 won World Championship Under-16 years Halkidiki (Greece).

Middle-weight boxer Marijan Beneš has won several Championships of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslav Championships and the European Championship. In 1978 he won the World Title against Elisha Obed from the Bahamas. Another middle-weight boxer, Anton Josipović won the Olympic Gold in Los Angeles, 1984. He also won Yugoslav Championship in 1982, the Championship of the Balkans in 1983, and the Belgrade Trophy in 1985.

Association football is the most popular sport in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It dates from 1903, but its popularity grew significantly after World War I. At the local level, FK Sarajevo (1967 and 1984), Željezničar (1972) have both won the Yugoslav Championship. The former Yugoslav national football team has included a number of Bosnian players, such as Josip Katalinski, Blaž Slišković, Dušan Bajević, Enver Marić, Mehmed Baždarević, Ivica Osim, Safet Sušić, Vahidin Musemić and Mirsad Fazlagić.

Today, the team of Bosnia and Herzegovina has modern footballers like Edin Džeko, Zvjezdan Misimović, Vedad Ibišević, Emir Spahić, Asmir Begović, Miralem Pjanić, Sejad Salihović, Senad Lulić and others. The independent Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team has not qualified for a European or World Championship but has played twice in the play-off stages.

Bosnian national teams have struggled to draft the best national players. Many players born in Bosnia and Herzegovina choose to play for other countries because of their ethnic identification. For example, Nikica Jelavić and Vedran Ćorluka were both born in Bosnia and Herzegovina but play for Croatia. Other internationally famous players from Bosnia and Herzegovina, who have made similar choices, are: Dejan Lovren, Mladen Petrić, Mario Stanić, Neven Subotić, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Marko Marin, Boris Živković, Zlatko Junuzović, Savo Milošević, and Zdravko Kuzmanović.

Bosnia and Herzegovina was the world champion of volleyball at the 2004 Summer Paralympics and 2012 Summer Paralympics. Many among those on the team lost their legs in the Bosnian War.

## Cuisine

Bosnian cuisine uses many spices, in moderate quantities. Most dishes are light, as they are cooked in lots of water. The sauces are fully natural, with little more than the natural juices of the vegetables in the dish. Typical ingredients include tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, cucumbers, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, spinach, zucchini, dried beans, fresh beans, plums, milk, paprika and cream called Pavlaka. Bosnian cuisine is balanced between Western and Eastern influences. As a result of the Ottoman administration for almost 500 years, Bosnian food is closely related to Turkish, Greek, and other former Ottoman and Mediterranean cuisines. However, because of years of Austrian rule, there are many influences from Central Europe. Typical meat dishes include mostly beef and lamb. Some local specialties are ćevapi, burek, dolma, sarma, pilaf, goulash, ajvar and a whole range of Eastern sweets. Local wines come from Herzegovina where the climate is suitable for growing grapes. Herzegovinian loza (similar to Italian Grappa but less sweet) is very popular. Plum or apple alcohol beverages are made in the north. In the south, distilleries used to produce vast quantities of brandy. Brandy is the base of most alcoholic drinks.

Coffeehouses, where Bosnian coffee is served in džezva with rahat lokum and sugar cubes, are in many places in Sarajevo and every city in the country. Coffee drinking is a favorite Bosnian pastime and part of the culture. Bosnians are believed to be some of the heaviest coffee drinkers in the world.

## Related pages

- Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Olympics
- Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
- List of rivers of Bosnia and Herzegovina

## Infobox (country)

- **conventional long name**: Bosnia and Herzegovina
- **common name**: Bosnia and Herzegovina
- **native name**:

- **image flag**: Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg
- **image coat**:
- **national anthem**:

("National Anthem of Bosnia and Herzegovina")
- **image map**: Map of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Europe.svg
- **capital**: Sarajevo
- **largest city**: capital
- **languages type**: Official languages
- **languages**: None
- **languages2 type**: Official languages
- **languages2**: Bosnian language, Bosnian
Serbian language, Serbian
Croatian language, Croatian
- **ethnic groups year**: 2013
- **religion year**: 2013 census
- **demonym**: Bosnians, Bosnian, Herzegovina#Population, Herzegovinian
- **government type**: Federal republic, Federal parliamentary republic
- **leader name1**: <sup>a</sup>
- **leader title2**: Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chairman of the Presidency
- **leader title3**: Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Members of the Presidency
- **leader title4**: Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers
- **leader name4**: Borjana Krišto
- **legislature**: Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Parliamentary Assembly
- **upper house**: House of Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina, House of Peoples
- **lower house**: House of Representatives of Bosnia and Herzegovina, House of Representatives
- **sovereignty type**: History of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Establishment history
- **established event1**: Bosnia (early medieval polity)
- **established date1**: 10th century
- **established event2**: Banate of Bosnia
- **established date2**: 1154
- **established event3**: Kingdom of Bosnia
- **established date3**: 1377
- **established event4**: Ottoman conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ottoman conquest
- **established date4**: 1463
- **established event5**: Austro-Hungarian rule in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austro-Hungarian conquest and 1908 annexation
- **established date5**: 1878
- **established event6**: Creation of Yugoslavia
- **established date6**: 1 December 1918
- **established event7**: State Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, ZAVNOBiH
- **established date7**: 25 November 1943
- **established event8**: Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina within Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia
- **established date8**: 29 November 1945
- **established event9**: 1992 Bosnian independence referendum, Independence from Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia
- **established date9**: 3 March 1992
- **established event10**: Washington Agreement (1994), Washington Agreement
- **established date10**: 18 March 1994
- **established event11**: Dayton Agreement
- **established date11**: 14 December 1995
- **area km2**: 51,129
- **area rank**: 125th
- **area sq mi**: 19,741
- **percent water**: 1.4%
- **population estimate**: 3,824,782
- **population census**: 3,531,159
- **population estimate year**: 2021
- **population estimate rank**: 130th
- **population census year**: 2013
- **population density km2**: 69
- **population density sq mi**: 179
- **gdp ppp**: $56.432 billion
- **gdp ppp year**: 2022
- **gdp ppp rank**: 114th
- **gdp ppp per capita**: $17,363
- **gdp ppp per capita rank**: 77th
- **gdp nominal**: $23.006 billion
- **gdp nominal year**: 2022
- **gdp nominal rank**: 115th
- **gdp nominal per capita**: $7,078
- **gdp nominal per capita rank**: 89th
- **gini**: 32.7
- **gini year**: 2015
- **gini change**: decrease
- **gini rank**: 47th
- **hdi**: 0.780
- **hdi year**: 2019
- **hdi change**: increase
- **hdi rank**: 73rd
- **currency**: Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, Convertible mark
- **currency code**: BAM
- **time zone**: Central European Time, CET
- **utc offset**: +01
- **utc offset dst**: +02
- **time zone dst**: Central European Summer Time, CEST
- **date format**: d. m. yyyy. (Common Era, CE)
- **drives on**: right
- **calling code**: Telephone numbers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, +387
- **cctld**: .ba
- **footnote a**: The High Representative is an international civilian overseer of the Dayton Agreement with authority to dismiss elected and non-elected officials and enact legislation.
- **footnote b**: Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chair of current presidency (Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croat)
- **footnote c**: Current presidency member (Bosniaks, Bosniak)
- **footnote d**: Current presidency member (Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serb)