Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina Official name : Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Area: 51,129 square kilometers (19,741 square miles) Highest point on mainland: Mount Maglic (2,386 meters / 7,828 feet) Lowest point on land: Sea level Hemispheres: Northern and Western P.M. = noon GMT Longest distances: 325 kilometers (202 miles) from north to south; 325 kilometers (202 miles) from east to west Land boundaries: 1,459 kilometers (907 miles) total boundary length; Croatia, 932 kilometers (579 miles); Serbia and Montenegro, 527 kilometers (327 miles) Coastline: 20 kilometers (12 miles) Territorial sea limits: None 1 LOCATION AND SIZE The nation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is located in southeastern Europe on the Balkan Peninsula, between the countries of Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro.

With a total area of 51,129 square kilometers (19,741 square miles), the country is slightly smaller than the state of West Virginia. 2 TERRITORIES AND DEPENDENCIES Bosnia and Herzegovina has no outside territories or dependencies. 3 CLIMATE Most of the country has hot summers and cold winters. Areas of higher elevation have shorter, cooler summers and longer, severe winters. The areas closer to the coast have mild, rainy winters. Annual rainfall is about 62.5 centimeters (24.6 inches). S 0°C (32°F) 4 TOPOGRAPHIC REGIONS The Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina lies inland along the eastern side of the Adriatic Sea, at the intersection of central Europe and the Mediterranean Sea. High plains and plateaus are in northern Croatia, between Bodanska Gradiška and Bijeljina. The central region, between Banja Luka and Sarajevo, has low mountains; the higher Dinaric Alps cover the southwestern edge of the country.

Tectonic fault lines run through the central part of the country, from Bodanska Gradiška to Sarajevo, and also exist in the northwest corner between the Sana and Unac Rivers. A thrust fault also runs through southern Bosnia and Herzegovina in the vicinity of Mostar. These structural seams in Earth's crust periodically shift, causing tremors and occasional destructive earthquakes. 5 OCEANS AND SEAS Seacoast and Undersea Features The Adriatic coast of Bosnia and Herzegovina is only 20 kilometers (12 miles) long. There is one main town, Neum, on the coast, but the area is not suitable for shipping. The Adriatic Sea is an extension of the Mediterranean Sea. It separates Italy from Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Albania. It is about 772 kilometers (480 miles) long with an average width of 160 kilometers (100 miles), covering an area of about 160,000 square kilometers (60,000 square miles).

6 INLAND LAKES The country's largest lake is Buško Blato, which has a surface area of 55.8 square kilometers (21.5 square miles). It lies 716.6 meters (2,351.2 feet) above sea level within the Dinaric Alps and has a maximum depth of 17.3 meters (56.8 feet). Jablaničko Jezero is a long, narrow lake that lies at the bend of the Neretva River, southwest of Sarajevo. Smaller lakes include Bilecko, Matura, Vijaka, Sanicani, Busko, Plivsko, Deransko, Boracko, and Ramsko. 7 RIVERS AND WATERFALLS The Sava River, the longest river in the country, travels 947 kilometers (589 miles). The first 221 kilometers (137 miles) flows through Slovenia, and the remaining 727 kilometers (452 miles) forms the border between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina (as well as a small section of Serbia and Montenegro), eventually joining the Danube River.

The Bosna River (245 kilometers/152 miles) begins near Sarajevo and flows northward to the Sava. The Drina River (346 kilometers/215 miles) forms much of the border with Serbia and Montenegro and crosses through a southeastern segment of Bosnia and Herzegovina. 8 DESERTS There are no desert regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 9 FLAT AND ROLLING TERRAIN The Peri-Pannonian Plain, near the northern border with Croatia, contains the country's most fertile soils, used for farmland and grazing. The plain was once occupied by an ancient sea that was filled in with rich soil carried from the mountains by the rivers and deposited on the plains. The region contains wide valley basins, alluvial plains (areas where soil has been carried and deposited by rivers), sandy dunes, and low, rolling hills covered with fertile loam (a light soil mixture). In general, the area is low and flat. 10 MOUNTAINS AND VOLCANOES About two-thirds of Bosnia and Herzegovina is mountainous.

There are sixty-four mountains, with some peaks exceeding 1,500 meters (4,922 feet) above sea level. Mount Maglic, at 2,386 meters (7,828 feet), is the highest peak in the country, lying in the southeast adjacent to the Serbia and Montenegro border. Nearby are the country's second and third highest mountains: Volujak—at 2,336 meters (7,664 feet) and Velika Ljubušnja—at 2,238 meters (7,343 feet). The Dinaric Alps consist of ridges that run parallel to the coast. The limestone ranges of the Dinaric Alps, referred to as karst or karstland, are marked by underground drainage channels, formed by water seepage down through the soluble limestone. Over the years, this water seepage has formed many large depressions and left the surface dry. Beech forests cover much of the mountainous areas; mixed forests of beech, fir, and spruce blanket the higher mountains.

Mount Maglic lies within the Sutjeska National Park, the country's oldest national park, which also contains the old-growth Perucica forest. 11 CANYONS AND CAVES At 1,300 meters (4,265 feet) deep, Tara Canyon is Europe's deepest canyon. The canyon follows the Tara River along the southeastern border with Yugoslavia. 12 PLATEAUS AND MONOLITHS There are no plateau regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina. 13 MAN-MADE FEATURES The sixteenth-century Mostar Bridge, destroyed by Croatian forces in violent conflict during 1993, was being rebuilt as of 2002. The bridge, measuring 20 meters (66 feet) in height and 30 meters (100 feet) in length, was first built in 1566 by Mimar Hajrudin, an Ottoman Empire architect. 14 FURTHER READING Brân, Zoë. After Yugoslavia . Oakland, CA: Lonely Planet, 2001. Filipovic, Zlata. Zlata's Diary: A Child's Life in Sarajevo .

New York: Viking, 1994. Lovrenovic, Ivan. Bosnia: A Cultural History . New York: New York University Press, 2001. Malcolm, Noel. Bosnia: A Short History . New York: New York University Press, 1996. Web Sites The Embassy of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Washington, D.C. (accessed June 1, 2003). Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Government. (accessed April 29, 2002). Republic of Srpska Government. (accessed April 29, 2003).

Bosnia and Herzegovina | history - geography | Britannica.com Bosnia and Herzegovina Alternative Title: Republika Bosna i Hercegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina national anthem of Bosnia and Herzegovina Official name Bosna i Hercegovina (Bosnia and Herzegovina) Form of government emerging republic with bicameral legislature (House of Peoples [151]; House of Representatives [42]) Head of state nominally a tripartite presidency with a chair that rotates every eight months; Chairman Bakir Izetbegović International authority Prime Minister: Denis Zvizdić (Chairman of the Council of Ministers) Capital Literacy: percentage of population age 15 and over literate Male: (2015) 99.5% 2High Representative of the international community per the 1995 Dayton Peace Agreement/EU Special Representative. 3The KM is pegged to the euro. 4The euro also circulates as semiofficial legal tender. Country Data Overview (PDF) Bosnia and Herzegovina, country situated in the western Balkan Peninsula of Europe .

The larger region of Bosnia occupies the northern and central parts of the country, and Herzegovina occupies the south and southwest. These historical regions do not correspond with the two autonomous political entities that were established by the internationally brokered Dayton Accords of 1995: the Republika Srpska (Bosnian Serb Republic), located in the north and east, and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, occupying the western and central areas. The capital of the country is Sarajevo ; important regional cities include Mostar and Banja Luka . Bosnia and Herzegovina The rebuilt stone arch bridge across the Neretva River at Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The … Robert Everts—Stone/Getty Images The land has often felt the influences of stronger regional powers that have vied for control over it, and these influences have helped to create Bosnia and Herzegovina’s characteristically rich ethnic and religious mix. Islam , Orthodox Christianity , and Roman Catholicism are all present, with the three faiths generally corresponding to three major ethnic groups: Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats, respectively.

This multiethnic population, as well as the country’s historical and geographic position between Serbia and Croatia , has long made Bosnia and Herzegovina vulnerable to nationalist territorial aspirations . Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Ante Pavelić Ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the 15th century, the region came under the control of Austria-Hungary in 1878 and subsequently played a key role in the outbreak of World War I . In 1918 it was incorporated into the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes , where it had no formal status of its own. After World War II it became a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . Following the disintegration of that state in 1991, the majority of the population of Bosnia and Herzegovina voted for independence in a 1992 referendum. Much of the country’s Serb population, however, opposed independence and boycotted the referendum. War soon consumed the region, as ethnic nationalists within Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the support of Serbia and Croatia in some cases, tried to take control of territories they claimed as their own.

Horrific ethnic cleansing campaigns between 1992 and the end of 1995 killed thousands and violently displaced more than two million people in much of Bosnia and Herzegovina. International intervention into the Bosnian conflict led finally to a peace agreement, the Dayton Accords , in late 1995. The Dayton agreement ended the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but it also established the country as a fragile, highly decentralized, and ethnically divided state in which an international civilian representative remains authorized to impose legislation and to remove domestic officials in order to protect the peace. Although the vast majority of citizens continue to desire sustainable peace, they hold to different ideas about the best configuration of the state, and some even question its future existence. Land Facebook Twitter YouTube Instagram Pinterest Herzegovina has more affinity to the Croatian region of Dalmatia , which can be oppressively hot in summer. In Mostar , situated along the Neretva River , the coldest month is January, averaging about 42 °F (6 °C), and the warmest month is July, averaging about 78 °F (26 °C). Mostar experiences a relatively dry season from June to September.

The remainder of the year is wet, with the heaviest precipitation between October and January. Plant and animal life About two-fifths of the country is forested with pine, beech, and oak. Fruits are common; among them are grapes, apples, pears, and especially plums. The country’s rich and varied wildlife includes bears, wolves, wild pigs, wildcats, chamois (goatlike animals), otters, foxes, badgers, and falcons. People Ethnic groups and religions Bosnia and Herzegovina is home to members of numerous ethnic groups. The three largest are the Bosniaks , the Serbs , and the Croats . Continuing efforts by the international community to promote the return of persons forcibly displaced during the Bosnian conflict (1992–95) to their original homes, as well as domestic political sensitivities, blocked the conduct of a census well into the 21st century. Nevertheless, it is estimated that Bosniaks constitute more than two-fifths, Serbs roughly one-third, and Croats less than one-fifth of the population. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. The three groups share the same South Slav heritage.

The major cultural difference between them is that of religious origin or affiliation—a difference that may be explained in part by the legacy of the Ottoman Empire , which allowed autonomous religious communities to coexist under its rule. Indeed, “Serb” and “Croat” referred first to the people of two South Slav tribes and then mainly to the people of Serbia and Croatia until the 19th century, when nationalist movements in the Balkans encouraged Bosnians practicing Serbian Orthodoxy to be labeled as Serbs and Bosnians practicing Roman Catholicism to be labeled as Croats. The idea of a broader Serb or Croat “nation” was appealing to regional leaders who coveted Bosnia and Herzegovina’s territory. Serb or Croat nationalism also appealed to educated Bosnians, who were often excluded from high state positions by Bosnia and Herzegovina’s imperial rulers. (The Ottoman Empire was succeeded by Austria-Hungary , which took control in 1878.) A sense of nationalism later developed among Bosnian Muslims as well.

In the 20th century “Muslim” came to be used as an ethnic, not only religious, identifier; it was replaced in the 1990s by “Bosniak.” Muslims praying inside Gazi Husrev Bey Mosque, Sarajevo, Bos.-Her. Dean Conger/Corbis Mountain village of Kladanj, on the Drinjača River, eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. © David C. Williamson, London An urban-rural divide is a significant part of Bosnian culture , with urbanites tending to view villagers as primitives and villagers often being defensive about this view. Young villagers are frequently anxious to move to town. During the 1960s and ’70s the urban population almost doubled. This shift particularly affected the economic and industrial centres of Sarajevo , Banja Luka , Zenica, Tuzla , and Mostar , around which sprawling suburbs of apartment blocks were built. Traditional settlement patterns were disrupted by the postindependence war, with the population of many cities swelled by refugees. Sarajevo, Bos.-Her. Axel Schmidt—DPA/Corbis Patterns of ethnic distribution before 1992 created an intricate mosaic.

Certain areas of the country contained high concentrations of Serb, Croat, or Bosniak inhabitants, while in others there was no overall ethnic majority or only a very small one. Towns were ethnically mixed. Many larger villages also were mixed, although, in some of these, members of different ethnic groups tended to live in different quarters. Most smaller villages were inhabited by only one group. Much of the violence of the postindependence war had the aim of creating ethnic purity in areas that once had a mixture of peoples. In addition to killing thousands, this ethnic cleansing displaced about half the population of Bosnia and Herzegovina either within its borders or abroad. Estimates suggest that hundreds of thousands of displaced persons eventually returned to their prewar homes, but a significant portion of the displaced population resettled in areas where they were among the majority ethnic group . Bosniac women fleeing the town of Jusići, Bos.-Her., following a breakdown in the Dayton … SPC Cabello/U.S.

Department of Defense Demographic trends When it was a part of the Yugoslav federation, Bosnia and Herzegovina had one of the lowest death rates and among the highest live birth rates of Yugoslavia’s republics, and its natural rate of increase in population was high in comparison with most of them. By the early 21st century, however, the birth rate had declined, the death rate had climbed, and the natural rate of increase had fallen below zero. The 1992–95 war had radically altered the demographic situation. Of the hundreds of thousands of people displaced during the war, a significant portion of them emigrated. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Economy As a republic of the Yugoslav federation, Bosnia and Herzegovina adhered to the unique economic system known as socialist self-management . In this system, business enterprises, banks, administration, social services, hospitals, and other working bodies were intended to be run by elected workers’ councils , which in turn elected the management boards of the bodies.

In practice the level of workers’ control was extremely variable from enterprise to enterprise, since ordinary workers often were not motivated to participate except in matters such as hiring, firing, and benefits and in any case lacked the necessary time and information to make business decisions. In the 1980s Yugoslavia ’s large foreign debt and rising inflation lowered the standard of living in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the period immediately following the 1991 war in Croatia , Bosnia and Herzegovina’s official economy collapsed. Huge increases in the price of oil, falling imports and exports, hyperinflation, shortages of food and medicine, insolvent banks, and unpaid pensions all resulted in a swelling black market , or informal economy. In addition, the 1992–95 war (see Bosnian conflict ) caused widespread destruction. International financial organizations were heavily involved in the postwar reconstruction of the economy. As a result, inflation fell, exports increased and were diversified, and the gross domestic product (GDP) experienced growth, at least until a global financial crisis began in 2008. However, privatization was contentious and remains incomplete.

Moreover, the number of workers in the informal sector and the unemployment rate both remain stubbornly high. Remittances from Bosnians working abroad continue to be a significant source of income. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing Bosnia and Herzegovina is a significant agricultural region, with some one-third of its land under cultivation or in pasture. The most fertile soils are in the north, along the Sava River valley. In hillier areas, land is employed for both cultivation and grazing. Principal crops include corn (maize), potatoes, wheat, plums, cabbages, and apples. In Herzegovina and in the more sheltered areas of Bosnia, tobacco is grown. Sheep are the major livestock, although cattle and pigs are raised, and apiculture is practiced. With about two-fifths of the country forested, timber, as well as furniture and other wood products, have been important exports. Fishing potential is increasingly exploited.

Power and resources Bosnia and Herzegovina has reserves of iron ore around Banja Luka and in the Kozara Mountains, bauxite near Mostar , and lignite and bituminous coal in the regions around Sarajevo , Zenica, Tuzla , and the Kozara Mountains. Zinc, mercury, and manganese are present in smaller quantities. Forests of pine, beech, and oak provide a source of timber. The country possesses considerable hydroelectric potential; there are several hydroelectric and thermal power plants. Manufacturing Manufacturing historically represented a large part of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s economy. In the wake of the war, however, the country struggled to reinvigorate industrial production. Metal manufactures, iron and steel, sawn wood and wood products, food, and textiles are among the products produced in various parts of the country. Finance, trade, and services The Dayton Accords created a largely autonomous central bank, which has sole authority over monetary policy and the issuing of currency. The national currency, the convertible marka (konvertibilna marka; KM), is pegged to the euro . After the war, fiscal consolidation was strong, and most banks are now privately owned.

Foreign direct investment was substantial in the early 21st century, but foreign investors faced serious obstacles, including a complex legal and regulatory framework, less than transparent business procedures, and a weak judiciary. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s largest trading partners are Croatia, Serbia, Italy , and Germany . Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. The service sector accounts for more than half of the country’s GDP, with retail trade and restaurants being an important component. There have been efforts to revive tourism by attracting visitors to the country’s rich cultural heritage sites, gorgeous mountains, and aquamarine rivers. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Labour and taxation The largest portion of the labour force is engaged in services, followed respectively by manufacturing and agriculture. Labour unions have been largely fragmented and weak in the postwar economy. Bosnia and Herzegovina’s autonomous entities, the Republika Srpska (Bosnian Serb Republic) and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, have different tax policies. The individual income tax rate in both entities is relatively low. Other taxes include corporate tax, property tax, and value-added tax .

Transportation and telecommunications The major obstacle to transportation in Bosnia and Herzegovina has always been the mountainous topography . In addition, much of the transportation infrastructure was destroyed in the postindependence war. The railway system, begun under Austro-Hungarian rule (1878–1918), connects Sarajevo with major towns to the north and with Zagreb (Croatia) and Belgrade (Serbia). Another line runs south from Sarajevo to Mostar and on to Ploče on Croatia’s Adriatic coast. However, few lines are direct, and as a result roads of variable quality have in many cases been the preferred means of passenger and freight transportation. Scheduled air services connect Sarajevo with other Balkan capitals, such as Belgrade and Zagreb, as well as with other European and international destinations. Although Bosnia and Herzegovina has lagged behind its neighbours with regard to citizens’ use of telecommunications, the number of cellular phone subscribers increased dramatically during the first decade of the 21st century. During the same period, the number of Internet users grew exponentially.

Government and society Constitutional framework The internationally brokered Dayton Accords —the peace agreement negotiated in Dayton, Ohio, U.S., in November 1995—established Bosnia and Herzegovina as a state composed of two highly autonomous entities, the Republika Srpska (Bosnian Serb Republic) and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina . The latter is a decentralized federation of Croats and Bosniaks. Each entity has its own legislature and president. The central institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina include a directly elected tripartite presidency, which rotates every eight months between one Bosniak, one Serb, and one Croat member. The presidency, as the head of state, appoints a multiethnic Council of Ministers. The chairman of the council, who is appointed by the presidency and approved by the national House of Representatives, serves as the head of government. The parliament is bicameral. Members are directly elected to the 42-seat lower house (House of Representatives), in which 28 seats are reserved for the Federation and 14 for the Republika Srpska.

Members of the upper house (the House of Peoples, with five members from each ethnic group) are chosen by the entity legislatures. Division of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as agreed upon in the Dayton Accords. U.S. Department of Defense The central institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina are weak, with the bulk of governmental competencies residing in the two entities. Internationally led efforts to replace the unwieldy and costly constitutional structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina with a more functional one, capable of integrating into the European Union , have been opposed by the country’s nationalist leaders. Local government The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is decentralized; it is administratively divided into 10 cantons, which in turn are divided into dozens of municipalities (općine). The Republika Srpska is relatively centralized and is administratively divided into dozens of municipalities (opštine). Citizens of both entities directly elect mayors and representatives to municipal and cantonal assemblies. Arbitration in 1997 established Brčko , in the northeast, as a self-governing special district.

Justice The Dayton Accords established the Constitutional Court, which has exclusive jurisdiction to decide any dispute that arises between the entities, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the entities, or between the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Three of the nine members of the Constitutional Court are appointed by the president of the European Court of Human Rights ; the others are selected by the entities. The State Court, comprising administrative, appellate, and criminal divisions, has jurisdiction over matters regarding national law. Each entity also has its own Supreme Court and lower courts. Since its establishment by the United Nations Security Council in 1993, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia has exercised jurisdiction over grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions as well as for war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. In 2002 Bosnia and Herzegovina’s national courts gained jurisdiction over cases that did not involve major political and military figures. Political process In 1990 the League of Communists of Yugoslavia fragmented, and multiparty elections were held in each of the country’s six constituent republics.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina the national parties—the Bosniak Party of Democratic Action (Stranka Demokratske Akcije; SDA), the Serbian Democratic Party (Srpska Demokratska Stranka; SDS), and the Croatian Democratic Union (Hrvatska Demokratska Zajednica; HDZ)—formed a tacit electoral coalition . The three swept the elections for the bicameral parliament and for the seven-member multiethnic presidency, which had been established by constitutional amendment “to allay fears that any one ethnic group would become politically dominant.” They attempted to form a multiparty leadership, but their political and territorial ambitions (and those of their powerful patrons in Zagreb [Croatia] and Belgrade [Serbia]) were incompatible. The parliament failed to pass a single law, and war was stoked by neighbouring nationalists in the spring of 1992.

Following the establishment of peace in 1995, the nationalist SDS, HDZ, and SDA continued to win voter support, although other parties that shared nationalist agendas, such as the Serb Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (Stranka Nezavisnih Socijaldemokrata; SNSD) and the Bosniak Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina (Stranka za Bosnu i Hercegovinu; SBiH), gained prominence as well. The institutionalization of ethnicity in the political system has put parties with less ethnocentric agendas, such as the Social Democratic Party (Socijaldemokratska Partija; SDP), at a disadvantage, though the SDP, too, has gained seats in the parliament and the tripartite presidency. Resident casting his vote in a local election in Mostar, Bos.-Her., in 1996, following the signing … SRA Marvence D. Braswell, USAF/U.S.

Department of Defense Security The Yugoslav People’s Army was designed to repel invasion, and, as part of its strategy, it used the geographically central republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a storehouse for armaments and as the site of most military production. Bosnian Serb forces, aided by the Yugoslav People’s Army and fighting for a separate Serb state, appropriated most of this weaponry. Elsewhere the Croatian Defense Council, aided by Zagreb, and the (mainly Bosniak) Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina were formed, but cooperation between them soon broke down. The Dayton Accords provided for the state to retain two separate armies, one from the Republika Srpska and the other from the Federation. At the urging of international actors eager to facilitate Bosnia and Herzegovina’s integration into Euro-Atlantic structures, the army was unified in 2003. Policing, however, remains decentralized. Health, welfare, and housing The health system in Bosnia and Herzegovina is decentralized, which in practice has resulted in inequitable access to health care and uneven levels of service. Informal payments for care are more common than legally mandated co-payments.

The poverty rate in rural areas is about twice that of urban areas. In the early 21st century the country ranked toward the bottom of the “high human development” level of the United Nations ’ Human Development Index, which broadly measures quality of life. It ranked lower than virtually all other European countries, excepting some former Soviet republics. International programs have helped to rebuild housing stock that was significantly damaged during the postindependence war. In urban areas, most citizens reside in apartments privatized after the war, while those living in rural areas largely reside in private homes. Buildings and vehicles destroyed in Grbavica, a suburb of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, during … Lt. Stacey Wyzkowski/U.S. Department of Defense Education Taken when Bosnia and Herzegovina was still part of Yugoslavia, the 1991 census reported that 14 percent of people aged 15 or older were illiterate, with older women accounting for a significant portion of the illiterate population. In independent Bosnia and Herzegovina citizens have good access to educational opportunities, and it is estimated that the adult illiteracy rate fell to about 5 percent by the early 21st century.

However, the current fractured educational system, in which students learn according to ethnically coloured, often biased curricula, has had the effect of creating three separate sets of citizens, each unfamiliar with and distrustful of the others. The higher education system is also ethnically divided, although reforms have been launched to meet European higher education standards. The oldest and largest of the country’s universities, the University of Sarajevo , was founded in 1949. The Universities of Banja Luka , Tuzla , and Mostar were founded in the 1970s. Page 1 of 2 Mediterranean Sea | Britannica.com Mediterranean Sea Artemidorus Mediterranean Sea, an intercontinental sea that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean on the west to Asia on the east and separates Europe from Africa. It has often been called the incubator of Western civilization. This ancient “sea between the lands” occupies a deep, elongated, and almost landlocked irregular depression lying between latitudes 30° and 46° N and longitudes 5°50′ W and 36° E.

Its west-east extent—from the Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco to the shores of the Gulf of Iskenderun on the southwestern coast of Turkey —is approximately 2,500 miles (4,000 km), and its average north-south extent, between Croatia ’s southernmost shores and Libya , is about 500 miles (800 km). The Mediterranean Sea, including the Sea of Marmara , occupies an area of approximately 970,000 square miles (2,510,000 square km). The Mediterranean Sea. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Ibiza, one of the Balearic Islands, in the western Mediterranean Sea off the east coast of Spain. © Goodshoot/Jupiterimages The western extremity of the Mediterranean Sea connects with the Atlantic Ocean by the narrow and shallow channel of the Strait of Gibraltar, which is roughly 8 miles (13 km) wide at its narrowest point; and the depth of the sill, or submarine ridge separating the Atlantic from the Alborán Sea, is about 1,050 feet (320 metres).

To the northeast the Mediterranean is connected with the Black Sea through the Dardanelles (with a sill depth of 230 feet [70 metres]), the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Bosporus (sill depth of about 300 feet [90 metres]). To the southeast it is connected with the Red Sea by the Suez Canal . Physiographic and geologic features Natural divisions A submarine ridge between the island of Sicily and the African coast with a sill depth of about 1,200 feet (365 metres) divides the Mediterranean Sea into western and eastern parts. The western part in turn is subdivided into three principal submarine basins. The Alborán Basin is east of Gibraltar , between the coasts of Spain and Morocco. The Algerian (sometimes called the Algero-Provençal or Balearic) Basin, east of the Alborán Basin, is west of Sardinia and Corsica , extending from off the coast of Algeria to off the coast of France . These two basins together constitute the western basin.

The Tyrrhenian Basin, that part of the Mediterranean known as the Tyrrhenian Sea , lies between Italy and the islands of Sardinia and Corsica. The Mediterranean Sea. Editor Picks: Exploring 10 Types of Basketball Movies The northern shores of the eastern Mediterranean are highly complex and, unlike the southern shores, have variable fold mountains that offered favourable sites for the development of the Mediterranean civilizations. The north coast of Africa bordering the eastern Mediterranean is low-lying and of monotonous uniformity except for the Cyrenaica highlands in Libya, which lie to the east of the Gulf of Sidra . The largest islands of the eastern Mediterranean are Crete and Cyprus , both of which are mountainous. Low-lying coast on the Gulf of Tunis, at Al-Marsā, northeastern Tunisia. Steve Vidler/Leo de Wys, Inc. Hydrologic features and climate Hydrology Mediterranean hydrodynamics are driven by three layers of water masses: a surface layer, an intermediate layer, and a deep layer that sinks to the bottom; a separate bottom layer is absent. Deepwater formation and exchange rates and the processes of heat and water exchange in the Mediterranean have provided useful models for studying the mechanisms of global climatic change.

The surface layer has a thickness varying from roughly 250 to 1,000 feet (75 to 300 metres). This variable thickness is determined in the western basin by the presence of a minimum temperature at its lower limit. In the eastern basin the temperature minimum generally is absent, and a layer of low-temperature decrease is found instead. The intermediate layer is infused with warm and saline water coming from the eastern Mediterranean and is characterized by temperature and salinity maxima at 1,300 feet (400 metres). This layer is situated at depths between 1,000 and 2,000 feet (300 and 600 metres). The deep layer—containing the great bulk of Mediterranean water—occupies the remaining zone between the intermediate layer and the bottom. In general, the water of this layer is homogeneous . The Mediterranean Sea receives from the rivers that flow into it only about one-third of the amount of water that it loses by evaporation . In consequence, there is a continuous inflow of surface water from the Atlantic Ocean. After passing through the Strait of Gibraltar, the main body of the incoming surface water flows eastward along the north coast of Africa.

This current is the most constant component of the circulation of the Mediterranean. It is most powerful in summer, when evaporation in the Mediterranean is at a maximum. This inflow of Atlantic water loses its strength as it proceeds eastward, but it is still recognizable as a surface movement in the Sicilian channel and even off the Levant coast. A small amount of water also enters the Mediterranean from the Black Sea as a surface current through the Bosporus, the Sea of Marmara, and the Dardanelles. Trending Topics Economic aspects Biological resources Plant nutrients such as phosphates, nitrates, and nitrites are scarce in the Mediterranean Sea. Just as in all other seas, these nutrients show seasonal fluctuations, generally with a rise in the spring, the phytoplankton blooming season. However, several factors account for the scarcity of nutrients in Mediterranean waters, the most important being that the Mediterranean receives most of its water from the surface water of the Atlantic Ocean. Despite low nutrient levels, the Mediterranean has a rich diversity of marine biota. Nearly one-third of its roughly 12,000 species are endemic .

The effective potential productivity in various regions of the Mediterranean can be measured by radioactive methods using carbon-14 dating to determine the amount of carbon produced in a given volume of water over a period of time. The lowest values are observed in the Levant and also in the Ionian Basin. The highest primary-production values in the Mediterranean Sea have been observed in springtime (March–May) off the Egyptian coast in areas under the influence of the outflow of the Nile. Commercial fisheries are highly valuable in the nutrient-poor Mediterranean. There is great demand for fish, and total catches for consumption in Mediterranean countries—both from within and outside the region—constitute a significant portion of the total world catch. The high price of fresh fish in most Mediterranean countries has favoured the development of a large number of small-scale local fisheries, which take small catches in short trips. Though the boats used rarely exceed 70 feet (20 metres) in length, their numbers are sufficient to deplete the local stocks through overfishing. The tendency to overexploitation is strengthened by the use of trawl nets with very small mesh size that retain the smallest individuals.

Efforts to reduce the catch of undersized fish through controlling mesh size have not been successful, because equipment varies from country to country and compliance is difficult to monitor. The most recent trend has been to use drift nets up to 15 miles (24 km) long that extend 40 feet (12 metres) into the water. These nets kill many noncommercial species, including dolphins, whales, sea turtles, and the endangered Mediterranean monk seal. The fishes of the Mediterranean are related to subtropical Atlantic species. Of the demersal (bottom-living) fishes, flounder, soles, turbot, whitings, congers, croakers, red mullet, gobies, gurnard, lizard fish, redfishes, sea bass, groupers, combers, sea bream, pandoras, and jacks and cartilaginous fishes such as sharks, rays, and skates are all caught by the trawlers . Among the demersal fishes, hake is one of the more commercially important in all countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. The coastal hake, sole, and red mullet fisheries have been seriously overexploited.

Rocky coasts once provided a valuable harvest of crabs, shrimps, prawns, and other shellfish, but coastal pollution and overfishing have largely depleted natural fisheries. Aquaculture has become increasingly important, especially in the eastern Mediterranean. In Egypt, coastal lagoons have been impounded to raise fish. About half of the Mediterranean catches are of pelagic species (those caught in the upper layers of the sea). Sardines constitute the main catch in the western and northeastern parts of the Mediterranean. Occasionally sardines also appear in relatively small quantities in the southeastern part. Closely related fishes (Sardinella aurita and S. maderensis), however, occur in large quantities in the southern and southeastern region of the Mediterranean. The sprat is taken in some quantities in the most northern parts, such as in the northern Adriatic. Anchovy fishing is important in most regions of the Mediterranean. The bluefin tuna is one of the high-value large fishes.

It moves into the Mediterranean from the Atlantic and disperses in several directions: toward the southern and eastern coasts of Spain, the coasts of the Balearic Islands , the northern coast of Morocco, and the coasts of Sardinia, Sicily, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. Related commercially valuable species are the bonitos and mackerels. Varying quantities are caught by nearly all Mediterranean countries. Important nonedible marine products include the corals of Naples and the sponges of the Dodecanese islands , the Gulf of Gabes, and the western coasts of Egypt. Mineral resources Sea salt has been produced by evaporation in coastal pans along the eastern Mediterranean and elsewhere for millennia. In addition to its use as a seasoning, salt is now utilized by the chemical industry. Since the early 1980s, interest has grown in petroleum and natural gas exploration and production in the Mediterranean. Offshore wells produce a significant proportion of the oil and gas output of bordering countries. Italy, Libya, Egypt, and Algeria are the largest producers. Drilling also has been done off the coasts of Libya, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Tunisia.

Bouri, in Libyan waters, is the most active Mediterranean offshore oil field. While Mediterranean oil and natural gas production is only a small fraction of world production, a significant proportion of total world oil refining takes place in the Mediterranean region. Refineries and petrochemical works in a number of major Mediterranean ports process crude oil from Persian Gulf countries shipped through the Suez Canal, as well as oil from Mediterranean countries. In addition, petrochemicals and other petroleum derivatives are produced for domestic consumption and export. Transportation and tourism The 2,000-mile (3,200-km) access that the Mediterranean offers to rain-bearing westerly winds in the temperate zone, the ease of communications across the western, central, and eastern straits, and the prevailing freedom from storms in the summer months all made the Mediterranean the “inland sea” of early civilizations. Trade and communication flourished and declined with the fortunes of the Mediterranean civilizations. Following the Middle Ages, Constantinople ( Istanbul ), Barcelona , and the Italian commercial states assumed the role of trade intermediaries between the Orient and northwestern Europe.

In the 15th century, however, the rise of the Ottoman Turks was followed by a rule of oppression and exploitation, and piracy made traffic on the sea hazardous. Moreover, the discovery at the end of the 15th century of the route to Asia around the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa created a safer and easier sea route connecting northwestern Europe directly with the Orient. Mediterranean lands lost their commercial function as intermediaries between Europe and Asia, and, for more than two and a half centuries, the Mediterranean Sea remained a backwater of world ocean trade and traffic. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, together with the advent of the steamship, continued industrialization in northwestern and central Europe, and French colonization in North Africa made the Mediterranean again one of the busiest sea-lanes of the world. Much of the traffic, however, passed through the sea en route between Asia and northwestern Europe. Countries in the Mediterranean basin had not been able to industrialize and had retained their agricultural and artisan economies, which limited their purchasing power and reduced their ability to trade.

The growth of the Mediterranean oil and gas industries has been paralleled by an increase in trade and transportation of the diverse consumer and industrial goods needed by expanding cities on both the northern and southern Mediterranean coasts. Coastal zones—especially in Egypt, Turkey, Algeria, and Morocco—have some of the world’s fastest-growing urban areas. Increased economic consolidation of Europe, however, has stimulated new trading patterns. The lands ringing the Mediterranean Sea include some of the world’s most renowned tourist destinations, which lie either directly on the sea or its embayments (e.g., the French and Italian Riviera and Athens) or are close by (e.g., Rome and the Holy Land of the Middle East). Tourism is now a major source of income for those coastal countries, where a significant portion of world income from tourism is generated annually. Tens of millions of people descend each year to enjoy the Mediterranean’s beaches and culture-rich shores. Ravello on the Tyrrhenian Sea, southern Italy; it lies on the Amalfi Coast, designated a UNESCO … David C.

Tomlinson—Photographer’s Choice/Getty Images Impact of human activity Growing industrialization, shoreline populations, and tourism since the mid-20th century have resulted in severely polluted waters in many Mediterranean coastal areas. Pollution in the Mediterranean tends to remain near its source of discharge because of relatively weak tidal and current movements. Despite the absence of significant transborder effects, the countries of the region have agreed to cooperate to control the threat of marine pollution. Assisted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), 16 countries adopted the Mediterranean Action Plan ( Med Plan) in 1975. The Med Plan comprises four elements: legal measures, institutional and financial support, integrated planning to prevent environmental degradation , and coordinated pollution monitoring and research. The two most important legal measures are the Barcelona Convention (1976), which calls for protective action against all forms of pollution, and the Athens Protocol (1980), which requires state parties to adopt programs to prevent and control pollution from land-based sources. The Med Plan has been widely regarded for successfully raising awareness of pollution in the Mediterranean; however, improvements in environmental quality under the plan have been limited.

Oceanographers sponsored by the European Union have discovered that major dam projects on rivers emptying into the Mediterranean (notably the Aswān High Dam on the Nile River in Egypt and the heavily impounded Ebro River in Spain) have been changing the Mediterranean’s hydrological characteristics. The reduced flow of fresh water from those rivers has been replaced by increased flows of saltier water from the Atlantic and the Red Sea. The saltier (and thus denser) seawater has modified circulation patterns, as evidenced by observed elevated flows from the Aegean Sea into the deeper parts of the Mediterranean. The impact of such changes, including the potential effects on Atlantic currents influenced by high-salinity Mediterranean waters exiting the Strait of Gibraltar, has been the focus of much research. Page 1 of 2 Mediterranean Sea - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) The area surrounding the Mediterranean Sea has been called the "cradle of civilization." The sea lies between Europe to the north and west, Africa to the south, and Asia to the east. Including the Sea of Marmara, the area of the Mediterranean is 970,000 square miles (2,512,000 square kilometers).

The sea evokes images of Homer’s early stories and of deep blue water against light blue skies. It is so vast that it could be divided into ten lakes, each as large as the combined five Great Lakes of North America. Article Contributors

Question: What region of the Mediterranean Sea separates Italy from Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Answer: Adriatic