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Република Србија Republika Srbija Republic of Serbia
Flag Coat of arms of Serbia Coat of arms
Motto: None
Anthem: Bože Pravde
Capitaland largest city	Belgrade
Official languages	Serbian
Government	Republic
Independence
• Water (%)	N/A
Population
• 2005 estimate	9,396,411 (84th if ranked)
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
• Total	$28.37 billion (95th if ranked)
• Per capita	$3,200 (123rd if ranked)
HDI (N/A)	N/A Error: Invalid HDI value (N/A)
Currency	Dinar (CSD)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Calling code	381
ISO 3166 code	RS
Internet TLD	.yu

The Republic of Serbia (Serbian: Република Србија or Republika Srbija) is a republic in southeastern and central Europe, which is united with Montenegro in a loose commonwealth known as the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. The capital is Belgrade. Serbia borders Hungary to the north; Romania and Bulgaria to the east; the Republic of Macedonia and Albania to the south; and Montenegro, Croatia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina to the west.

History

Part of a series on the
History of Serbia
By century 9th 10th
Prehistory Paleolithic Mesolithic Neolithic Bronze Age Iron Age
Pre-Roman Illyrians Autariatae Dardani Triballi Moesi Scordisci Dacians
Early Roman Illyricum Pannonia Pannonia Inferior Dalmatia Moesia Moesia Superior Dacia Dacia Aureliana
Late Roman Moesia Prima Dacia Mediterranea Dacia Ripensis Dardania Praevalitana Pannonia Secunda Diocese of Moesia Diocese of Dacia Diocese of Pannonia Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum
Early Middle Ages White Serbia around 600 AD Principality of Serbia Duklja, Travunia, Zachlumia, Narentines, Raška, Bosnia 7th–10th century Catepanate of Ras around 969–976
High Middle Ages Duklja (Zeta) 11th–12th century Theme of Sirmium 1018–1071 Grand Principality 1071–1217 Kingdom of Serbia 1217–1346 King Dragutin's realm 1282–1325 Empire Fall 1346–1371 Lordship of Prilep 1371–1395 Prince Lazar's Serbia 1371–1402 Vuk's Land 1371–1412 Despotate of Serbia 1402–1537
Early Modern Ottoman-ruled Serbia 1459–1804 Jovan Nenad / Radoslav Čelnik 1526–1530 Banate of Lugoj and Caransebeș 16th–17th Habsburg occupation 1686–1699 Great Serb Migrations 1690 and 1737–1739 Military Frontier 1702–1882 Habsburg-ruled Serbia 1718–1739 Koča's frontier 1788–1791
Serbia 1804–1918 Serbian Revolution 1804–1815 Principality of Serbia 1815–1882 Serbian Vojvodina 1848–1849 Serbia and Banat 1849–1860 Kingdom of Serbia 1882–1918
Serbia since 1918 Kingdom of Yugoslavia 1918–1941 Axis occupation 1941–1944 Federal unit of Socialist Yugoslavia 1944–1992 Constituent state with Montenegro 1992–2006 Republic of Serbia 2006–present
Serbia portal
v t e

The roots of the Serbian state reach back to the 7th century and the House of Vlastimirović. The Serbian kingdom (centered around Duklja) was established in the 11th century. Marked by a disintegration and crises, it lasted until the end of 12th century.

The renewal of the medieval Serbian state in the Raška region was performed by Stefan Nemanja, the Serbian Grand Župan who lived in the 12th century. In 1220, under Stefan the First Crowned, Serbia became a kingdom, and in 1346, an empire under Stefan Dušan was established. The Empire was disintegrated and fell to the Ottoman Turks, after the historic Serbian defeat at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, and the northern Serbian territories (the Serbian Despotate) were conquered by 1459, when Smederevo fell. Bosnia fell a few years after Smederevo, and Herzegovina followed in 1482.

In the period between 1459 and 1804, Serbia remained under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, despite three Austrian invasions and numerous rebellions. Islam expanded during this time, and many Serbs converted to this new religion.

The First Serbian Uprising of 1804-1813, lead by Đorđe Petrović (also known as Karađorđe or Black George), and the Second Serbian Uprising of 1815 resulted in the establishment of the Principality of Serbia which was semi-independent from the Ottoman Empire, and the formation of modern Serbia.

From 1815 to 1903, the Serbian state was ruled by the House of Obrenović, with a break in the period from 1842 to 1858, when Serbia was ruled by Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević. In 1903, the House of Obrenović was permanently replaced by the House of Karađorđević, descended from Đorđe Petrović.

The struggle for a modern society, human rights and a nation state lasted almost three decades and was completed with the adoption of the constitution on 15th February 1835. In 1876, Montenegro, Serbia, and Bosnia declared war against the Ottoman Empire and proclaimed their unification. However, the Treaty of Berlin of 1878, which was agreed at the Congress of Berlin by the Great Powers, granted complete independence only to Serbia and Montenegro, leaving Bosnia and Raška to Austria-Hungary, which blocked their unification until the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, and WWI (1914-1918).

The June 28, 1914 assassination of Austrian Crown Prince Franz Ferdinand at Sarejevo by Serbian Nationalist within the Austria-Hungary Empire served as a pretext for Austria-Hungary to declare war on Serbia. This started a chain of events where Russia started to mobilise its troops in defence of its ally Serbia and then Germany declaring war on Russia in support of its ally Austria-Hungary. This culminated eventually into all the major European powers going to war. The Serbian Army won several major victories during World War I, but it was finally overpowered by the joint forces of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria. In World War I, Serbia had 1,264,000 casualties — 28% of its population, which also represented 58% of its male population.

After 1918, Serbia, along with Montenegro, was a founding member of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later known as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. During World War II, from 1941 to 1944, Serbia was a Nazi-occupied puppet state. In 1945, after World War II, Serbia was established as one of the federal units of the second Yugoslavia, the Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia.

From 1992, after the collapse of the second Yugoslavia, to 2003, Serbia, together with Montenegro, was part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Despite, Serbia remaining peaceful until 1998, when the clashes between Serbian security forces and the Kosovo Liberation Army began, some sources alleged that it indirectly participated in the wars in neighbouring Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina by arming and supporting Serb troops which fought in the two countries. This is an ongoing, though largely unproven, accusation also formally made by Bosnia and Herzegovina at The Hague.

Between 1998 and 1999, continued reported clashes in Kosovo between Serbian and Yugoslav security forces and the K.L.A in most of the western media led to NATO aerial bombardment, which would last for 78 days. The attacks were stopped following an agreement, where president of Yugoslavia, Slobodan Milošević, agreed to remove all of country security forces including the military and the police, and have them replaced by a body of international police, in return for which, Kosovo would formally remain within the Yugoslav Federation (See: Kosovo War).

Since 2003, Serbia has been part of the State Union of Serbia & Montenegro, into which the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was transformed.

Geography

Serbia is located in the Balkans (a historically and geographically distinct region of southeastern Europe) and in the Pannonian Plain (a region of central Europe). It shares borders with Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, the Republic of Macedonia, and Romania. Serbia is landlocked, although access to the Adriatic is available through neighbouring Montenegro, and the Danube River provides shipping access to inland Europe and the Black Sea.

Serbia's terrain ranges from the rich, fertile plains of the northern Vojvodina region, limestone ranges and basins in the east, and, in the southeast, ancient mountains and hills. The north is dominated by the Danube River. A tributary, the Morava River, flows through the more mountainous southern regions.

The Serbian climate varies between a continental climate in the north, with cold winters, and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall patterns, and a more Adriatic climate in the south with hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall inland.

Administrative subdivisions

Serbia is divided into 29 districts and the city of Belgrade. The districts are further divided into 108 municipalities. It has two autonomous provinces: Kosovo and Metohija* in the south (with 30 municipalities), which is presently under the administration of the United Nations, and Vojvodina in the north (with 54 municipalities).

The part of Serbia that is neither in Kosovo nor in Vojvodina is called Central Serbia. Central Serbia is not an administrative division (unlike the two autonomous provinces), and it has no regional government of its own. In English this region is often called "Serbia proper" to denote "the part of the Republic of Serbia not including the provinces of Vojvodina and Kosovo", as the Library of Congress puts it . This usage was apparently also employed in Serbo-Croatian during the Yugoslav era (in the form of "uža Srbija" literally: narrow Serbia). Its use in English is purely geographical without any particular political meaning being implied.

Politics

On 4 February 2003 the parliament of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia agreed to a weaker form of cooperation between Serbia and Montenegro within a commonwealth called Serbia and Montenegro.

After the fall of Slobodan Milošević on 5 October 2000, the country was governed by the Democratic Opposition of Serbia. Tensions gradually increased within the coalition until the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) left the government, leaving the Democratic Party (DS) in overall control. Nevertheless, in 2004 the DSS gathered enough support to form the new Government of Serbia, together with G17 Plus and coalition SPO-NS, and the support of the Socialist Party of Serbia. The Prime Minister of Serbia is Vojislav Koštunica, leader of the Democratic Party of Serbia.

The current President of Serbia is Boris Tadić, leader of the Democratic Party (DS). He was elected with 53% of the vote in the second round of the Serbian presidential election held on 27 June 2004, following several unsuccessful elections since 2002.

The current Prime Minister of the Government of Serbia, as of March 2004, is the former Yugoslav president, Vojislav Koštunica, who replaced Slobodan Milošević as Yugoslav president in October of 2000. The government is formed around the of national conservative party DSS, with G17Plus, SPO-NS and is supported by the Milosevic Socialists (SPS), who do not take part in the government, but in exchange for the support hold minor government and justice positions and influence policies.

Laws concerning the state union must be approved by the Parliament of Serbia and Montenegro, while bills concerning only Serbia are submitted to the National Assembly of Serbia.

Economy

• Central Serbia and Vojvodina

Communications

Transportation

Serbia, in particular the valley of the Morava, is often described as "the crossroads between East and West", which is one of the primary reasons for its turbulent history. The Morava valley route, which avoids mountainous regions, is by far the easiest way of travelling overland from continental Europe to Greece and Asia Minor.

European routes E65, E70, E75 and E80, as well as the E662, E761, E762, E763, E771, and E851 pass through the country. The E70 westwards from Belgrade and most of the E75 are modern highways of motorway / autobahn standard or close to that.

The Danube River, central Europe's connection to the Black Sea, flows through Serbia.

There are three international airports in Serbia: Belgrade, Priština, and the newly rebuilt Niš airport.

The national carrier is Jat Airways and the railway system is operated by Beovoz in Belgrade and by ZTP Yugoslavia on the national level.

Demographics

Serbia is populated mostly by Serbs. Significant minorities include Albanians (who are a majority in the province of Kosovo-Metohia), Hungarians, Muslims (as a nationality), Bosniaks, Roma, Croats, Slovaks, Bulgarians, Romanians, etc. Serbia consists of three territories: the province of Kosovo and Metohia, the province of Vojvodina and Central Serbia (Serbian Cyrillic: Централна Србија, Serbian Latin: Centralna Srbija, English: Central Serbia. Note: The English language sometimes uses the varieties such are "Serbia proper" or "Narrower Serbia"). The two provinces are ethnically diverse, which is a result of the division of the country between the Muslim Ottoman Empire in the south and Catholic Austro-Hungarian Empire in the north.

The northern province of Vojvodina is the most developed part of the country in terms of economic strength. Together with the former Yugoslav republics of Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Vojvodina was under the administration of Austria-Hungary before the First World War. Vojvodina is one of the most ethnically diverse territories in Europe, with more than 25 different national communities. According to the last completed census (2002), the province has a population of about 2 million, of which: Serbs 65%, Hungarians 14.3%, Slovaks 2.79%, Croats 2.78%, undeclared 2.71%, Yugoslavs 2.45%, Montenegrins 1.75%, Romanians 1.50%, Roma 1.43%, Bunjevci 0.97%, Ruthenians 0.77%, Macedonians 0.58%, regional affiliation 0.50%, Ukrainians 0.23%, others (Albanians, Slovenians, Germans, Poles, Chinese etc).

Population statistics of Serbia (Estimate May 2005)

• Serbia (total): 9,396,411
  • Vojvodina: 2,116,725
  • Central Serbia: 5,479,686
  • Kosovo and Metohija: 1,800,000

Cities

Major cities (over 100,000 inhabitants) - 2002 data, for Kosovo and Metohija current UNMIK estimates (unofficial) :

• Beograd (Belgrade): 1,281,801 (inner city area); 1,576,124 (wider city area)
• Novi Sad: 216,583 (299,294 metro)
• Priština: 200,000 (2002 estimation)
• Niš: 173,724 (235,159 metro)
• Kragujevac: 146,373 (175,802 metro)
• Prizren: 121,000 (2002 estimation)
• Subotica: 99,981 (148,401 metro)

Serbian holidays

Culture

See also

• Serbian language
• Serbo-Croatian language
• Serbian literature
• Serbian law
• Music of Serbia
  • Folklore and traditional music of Serbia
  • Classical and contemporary music of Serbia
  • Serbian hip hop
• Serbian cuisine
• Serbian art
  • Painting in Serbia
  • Sculpture in Serbia
  • Contemporary art in Serbia
  • Photography in Serbia
  • Cinematography in Serbia
• Architecture of Serbia
• Religion in Serbia
• Serb Orthodox Church
• Famous Serbian people
• History and culture of Serbs in Vojvodina
• Savez Izviđača Srbije i Crne Gore
• Serbian Unity Congress
• Serbian citizenship

Categories

• Serbian culture
• European culture

Sport

Miscellaneous

• On August 17 2004 the National Assembly of Serbia adopted Bože Pravde as the country's anthem.
• In addition, the Obrenović royal coat of arms now replaces the Coat of Arms of Serbia adopted after World War II. It was first used in the 19th century. The arms are those of the royal Obrenović dynasty; they are used in two versions, the large (pictured) and small (just the central shield with eagle and crown surmounting). Use of these arms is 'recommended' which means that the coat of arms is not yet official. It will become so if adoption of the Obrenović arms is approved by more than 50% of the voters in a constitutional referendum.
• 1564 Srbija is discovered by Milorad B. Protić and named after Serbia.
• Serbia grows about one-third of the world's raspberries.

Gallery

• Temple of Saint Sava, Belgrade
• Kalemegdan, Belgrade Kalemegdan, Belgrade
• Novi Sad
• Golubac
• Miloš Obrenović
• Subotica Subotica
• Kalenić village in Šumadija
• Niš Niš

See also

• Serbia and Montenegro
• Montenegro
• Yugoslavia
• List of Serbs
• List of computer systems from Serbia

External links

Government links

• Serbian Government
• National Assembly of Serbia
• The EU integration Office of Serbian Government
• People's Office of Serbian President
• National Bank of Serbia
• RTS - Serbian Broadcasting Corporation
• Republic of Serbia Statistical Office
• National Tourism Organisation of Serbia

Other external links

• The Origin of the South Slavs
• Glas Javnosti One of the most popular newspapers - Online
• B92 Most visited news portal in Serbia
• Burek Forum The biggest forum in Serbia
• Serbian Genealogical Society & White Eagle
• Serbia Live
• Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding Serbia
• Foundation Rastko
• Serbian Unity Congress
• Serbia Blog

Footnotes

1. "Bosnian Serb Official Says Serbia Actively Participated in Bosnian War", Coalition For International Justice, 27 November 2003

Template:Serbia and Montenegro

• Serbia
• Subdivisions of Serbia and Montenegro
• Republics