Hi, this week I have written an article about the culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which I suppose, is not a very well-known country. Therefore, I thought it would be interesting to share some basic information about the country with you all through this article. Keep reading to know more!

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country in southeastern Europe and is situated on the Balkan Peninsula. The country borders with the Republic of Croatia in the north, west, and southwest and with Serbia and Montenegro in the east and south. The country has an incredible nature along with an appealing landscape. There are humongous rocky mountains with turquoise blue rivers flowing between, the surrounding mountain sceneries, the waterfalls that carpet most of the country, and much more. Other than the nature, the villages and old towns that have a fascinating history, are also indescribable.

Some of you may have heard the name of the country in the context of an international armed conflict that ended about twenty years ago. The conflict is called the Bosnian conflict, which was a domestic situation, similar to the current state of Syria. One main cause of the conflict was separatism stemming from ethnic and religious differences. As some of you may know, Yugoslavia was one big country after World War II. However, it broke up into six Balkan states: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, and (North) Macedonia due to declarations of independence from the individual states. This has resulted Bosnia and Herzegovina to consist of three distinct religious groups: the Serbs (Orthodox Christians), Bosniaks (Muslims), and Croats (Catholic Christians).

With a complicated history, it was a part of the Ottoman Empire (now Turkey) for hundreds of years. This has particularly influenced the food of the country. They usually include lamb or beef that are slow-cooked with spices and vegetables that tend to be a light portion. One of these foods includes Cevapi, which is a Bosnian pita bread served with grilled minced beef sausages. Another dish is called a Burek, which is a crusty pastry with meat, cheese, or spinach fillings. Lastly, there is a dessert made from layers of pastry with layers of nuts, syrup, and honey, called Baklava and goes very well with Bosnian coffee.

In the same way, architecture was strongly authorized by the Ottomans and is still distinctive up to this time. In the 1400 and 1500s, the Ottomans introduced Islam to the people there and so the first architecture that developed in Bosnia was a mosque. Because of this, majority of the people there are, Croats, Serbs, or Christians. Specifically, they were impacted in using monumental architecture to affirm, extend and consolidate their colonial holdings. This emerged the form and organization of urban areas in Bosnia, which are still recognizable today.

Although there was a dark history back then and nearly three-quarters of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital was destroyed by bombs during the war, the majority of the places have returned to being the spirited city and is even considered as a nation that owns the title of “The Heart of Europe”.