Language: Serbian
Currency: Serbian dinar (RSD)
Calling Code: 381
Serbia, officially the Republic of Serbia , the
sovereign is a country located at the crossroads of middle and
southeast Europe in the southern part of the Pannonian Plain and the
center of the Balkan Peninsula. It mainly covers the Balkan
Peninsula and , to a lesser extent , the Pannonian Plain . Serbia
borders the Hungarian border in the north, Romania in the northeast
, Bulgaria in the east , Northern Macedonia in the south, Albania
with the southwestand Montenegro , and in the west with Croatia and
Bosnia and Herzegovina (entity Republika Srpska ). Serbia excluding
Kosovo and Metohija has a population of about 7 million, while with
Kosmet it has an estimated 8.8 million inhabitants. The capital is
Belgrade , which is one of the oldest and largest cities in
Southeast Europe . With a population of 1,659,440 in the wider area,
according to the 2011 census , it is the administrative and economic
center of the country. The official language is Serbian and the
official currency is Serbian Dinar .
After Slovenian
migration to the Balkans ( 6th century ), Serbs established several
states in the early Middle Ages . The Serbian Kingdom was recognized
by Rome and the Byzantine Empire in 1217, culminating in 1346 as a
relatively short-lived Serbian Empire .
Until the mid- 16th
century , all of modern Serbia was part of the Ottoman Empire ,
until it was interrupted by the Habsburg Monarchy , which began to
spread to Central Serbia from the end of the 17th century and
maintained a foothold in modern Vojvodina . In the early 19th
century, the Serbian Revolution established the nation-state as the
first constitutional monarchy in the region, which later expanded
its territory.
Serbia, after the catastrophic losses in World
War I and unification with the former Habsburg Crown of Vojvodina
(and other territories), became a co-founder and integral part of a
common state with most of the Southern Slavs originally in the
Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later renamed the Kingdom of
Yugoslavia ), then in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ,
the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the State Union of Serbia and
Montenegro . In 2006, after a referendum was held in the Republic of
Montenegro, the peoples dispersed peacefully and the State Union
ceased to exist, and the Republic of Serbia, on the basis of the
Constitutional Charter , continued state-legal continuity with
Serbia and Montenegro.
Serbia is divided into 29 districts (okruzi), 5 of which are located in Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence, outside the central government administration. The city of Belgrade and Niš are separate administrative units.
Serbia is divided into 29 districts (okruzi), 5 of which are located in Kosovo, which unilaterally declared independence, outside the central government administration. The city of Belgrade and Niš are separate administrative units.
According to official data from 2011, Serbia had over 60 cities with
a population exceeding 10,000. inhabitants. The country's capital,
Belgrade, was the only city with over a million inhabitants; 3 cities
with a population of 100÷500 thousand; 13 cities with a population of
50÷100 thousand, 18 cities with a population of 25÷50 thousand. and the
rest of the cities below 25,000 inhabitants inhabitants.
Belgrade
Kragujevac
Kraljevo
Leskovac
Niches
Novi Sad
Smederevo
Subotica
Vranje
Zrenjanin
Đerdap National Park (pronounced Đerdap) - on the border with
Romania, the largest national park in Serbia. Its narrowest part is
called the "Iron Gate". There is an interesting rock "face" in the Iron
Gates. Đerdap is the longest river canyon in Europe (and is home to the
deepest point of the Danube - 82 m, making it the deepest river in the
world!). While hiking in the mountains, you can come across interesting
plants and animals, e.g. bears, lynxes and eagles. Fans of monuments
will also find tasty morsels - the 14th-century Golubac fortress,
Fetislam (the castle in Kladov, opposite the Romanian town of Drobeta
Turnu-Severin) and the Lepenski Vir Museum (archaeological museum).
Felix Romuliana - located in the eastern part of the country, the ruins
of the Roman residence of Emperor Galerius from the 3rd century. In 311,
Galerius died here, and here the last apotheosis (raising the deceased
emperor to the rank of a god) took place. The name comes from the name
of Galerius' mother, Romuliana (the name means: Happy Romuliana). Since
2007, the ruins have been on the UNESCO list.
Đavolja Varoš
(pronounced Dźavolja Varosz) – (Polish: Devil's City) – rock formations,
comparable to those in Cappadocia, soaring rock towers up to 15 m high
and of various shapes. The attraction is located in the south of Serbia,
close to the border with Kosovo.
Sopoćani Monastery - located west of
the city of Novi Pazar on the border with Montenegro and Kosovo, was the
first capital of the early Serbian state (Middle Ages). It is one of the
most valuable Serbian monuments, the frescoes in the interior are an
outstanding example of medieval Serbian painting. The monastery was
included on the UNESCO list in 1979.
Tara National Park - a national
park in western Serbia, on the border with Bosnia; there is a gorge of
the picturesque river - Drina, in the park area (220 km²) there are
undiscovered, not very popular mountains and deep valleys. There are
over 1,000 species of plants and animals in the park's forests. In B.C.
Tara is probably the shortest river in the world - Vrelo (365 meters
long), ending with a waterfall.
Uvac Canyon - a mountain canyon
located in the Zlatibor Mountains (southwestern Serbia). The Uvac River
meanders picturesquely, flowing among high limestone rocks with many
caves. The river in this section is exceptionally clean, and over 100
species of birds fly overhead (some are rare and endemic, e.g. the
griffon vulture!).
Studenica Monastery - a medieval Orthodox
monastery near Ivanjica on road No. 29. It is a combination of
Romanesque and Byzantine styles, for many years it was an important
center of religious, cultural and political life of the Serbian nation.
Its most valuable parts are the churches of Our Lady and the Royal
Church, built of white marble. Both temples feature 14th-century
Byzantine frescoes. Since 1986, the monastery has been on the UNESCO
World Heritage List.
House on the Drina - located on the border of
Serbia with Bosnia, on a small island in the middle of the Drina River,
located near Bajina Bašta, survived several floods (the owners looked
for it and towed it back to its place). It was built in 1969 by a group
of Serbian teenagers who were looking for a place to rest and sunbathe.
Currently (2015) private property.
Ravanica Monastery/Ravanica -
Orthodox men's fortified monastery in east-central Serbia. Originally
built in 1377, destroyed several times (1385, 1398, 1436, 1683). In the
mid-19th century, it was necessary to completely rebuild the monastery.
It was last plundered in 1943 by the Nazis. The monastery is built of
stone and bricks, the walls are covered with frescoes by unknown
authors. The history of the founding of the monastery is described in
the folk song Building Rawanica.
Manasija Monastery - a 15th-century
monastery, surrounded by huge walls, which makes it similar to a
medieval fortress (the walls are several times larger than the monastery
itself!). In the 15th century, the monastery was a famous center of
culture and art, as well as a kind of home for refugees - writers and
artists - emigrants from provinces already conquered by the Turks -
lived there. Ultimately, the monastery was taken over by Muslim Turks.
It is located in the central-eastern part of Serbia.
Subotica – a
city in the north of the country, near the border with Hungary (15 km
from the border). There are many Art Nouveau Hungarian tenement houses
from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, a synagogue, a town hall
and a nice old town.
Visas
For European Union citizens, a visa is not required for
a tourist stay of less than 90 days. The document entitling you
to entry is an ID card or passport. If we are traveling for
purposes other than tourism, even if the stay does not exceed 90
days, we must apply for a visa at the Embassy of Serbia (Serbia
does not issue visas at the borders).
Select travel time
You can visit Serbia all year round, but it is best to do it in
July or August, when the weather is usually the best, the days
are long and the monuments are open longer.
Currency
exchange
The zloty is basically an inconvertible currency in
Serbia, you need to take euros/US dollars from Poland (the euro
is a better idea, because it is valid in Montenegro and Kosovo,
it is also worth paying with it at the gates), these can be
easily exchanged for dinars at a fairly good exchange rate in
every larger town.
Insurance
Due to the fact that
treatment in Serbia for foreigners is paid, it is recommended to
purchase a policy (covering treatment costs, personal accident
insurance and return to the country). It is also advisable (in
the case of traveling by car) to have additional motor insurance
(assistance and AC), the Green Card does not apply. However, it
is not necessary.
By car
From Poland, access mainly through Hungary. You should
be prepared for long waiting times at border crossings,
especially on weekends and during the holiday season, when the
traffic of drivers from Western European countries to Turkey and
vice versa increases. The biggest congestion can be expected at
the motorway crossing in Roszke, at the small border crossing in
Asotthalom (when returning from Serbia, going to Serbia, the
crossing is almost completely empty), and at the border with
Bulgaria. To avoid traffic jams, you can use smaller, peripheral
border crossings (on the border with Hungary around Subotica and
Sombór, e.g. Tompa/Kelebija or Hercegszanto/Backi Breg). On
summer weekends in 2014, waiting times for passenger cars from
Serbia to Hungary ranged from 30 minutes to 8 hours.
By
plane
The largest airport in Serbia is Belgrade International
Airport. N. Tesla. There are direct connections from Poland,
planes to Serbia also fly from Germany or Budapest (usually
WizzAir). You can also fly from Poland to Budapest and take the
Budapest-Belgrade train (more below).
By rail
An
international ticket from Budapest is in this case one of the
most profitable solutions. For example, a journey from Budapest
to Belgrade (without a transfer) costs about 15 euros.
By
bus
The AdamisTours bus from Poland to Greece (goes through
Serbia and stops in the three largest cities; Novi Sad, Belgrade
and Niš) runs every Tuesday. It leaves Katowice and Warsaw, but
stops in e.g. Kraków, Kielce, Rzeszów, Radom, Ostrowiec
Świętokrzyski, Nowy Sącz... Detailed information here.
With Hungary
Tompa – Kelebia
Röszke–Horgoš (highway)
Röszke
– Horgoš II (7-19, side passage parallel to the highway)
Hercégszantó
– Bački Breg
Ásotthalom – Bački Vinogradi (from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.)
Szeged–Kanjiža (river)
Bajmok – Bačalmaš
Đala – Tisasiget
With Bosnia
Road
Sremska Rača – Rača
Badovinci-Popovi
Trbušnica–Šepak
Mali Zvornik (Novi bridge) – Karakaj
Mali Zvornik
(Stari most) – Zvornik (Stari most)
Ljubovija – Bratunac
Bajina
Bašta – Skelani
Kotroman – Vardište
Uvac
With Croatia
Road
Bezdan – Batina
Bogojevo – Erdut
Bačka Palanka – Ilok
Neštin – Ilok
Ljuba – Principovac
Sot – Principovac
Berkasovo -
Bapska open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. from April 1 to October 31, from 6
a.m. to 6 p.m. from November 1 to March 31; for border traffic.
Šid –
Tovarnik
Batrovci – Bajakovo
Jamena – Strošinci open from 6 a.m.
to 8 p.m. from April 1 to October 31, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. from
November 1 to March 31; for border traffic.
Railway
Bogojevo –
Erdut
Šid – Tovarnik
With Montenegro
Road
Špiljani/Jablanica
Gostun/Dobrakovo
Jabuka
With Romania
Road
Vrbica – Valkanj
Nakovo – Lunga
Srpska Crnja – Žombolj
Međa–Foeni 1
Jaša Tomić – Foeni 2
Vatin – Stamora Moravica
Kaluđerovo – Najdaš
Đerdap – Portile de Fier 1
Kusjak – Portile de
Fier 2 (passenger cars only)
Railway
Kikinda – Žombolj
Vršac – Stamora Moravica
With Kosovo
NOTE: according to the
Serbian authorities, these are not border crossings, but only "police
points". Serbia recognizes Kosovo as its own province and the term "the
state of Kosovo" should not be used when talking to representatives of
the Serbian services. Arriving in Kosovo from the territory of another
country (e.g. Macedonia) is considered by Serbs to be illegal entry into
Serbia and if you try to later enter from Kosovo to Serbia, you will be
turned back at the border, you will have to go from Kosovo through
Montenegro or Macedonia back to Serbia (then Kosovo stamps will be
canceled).(as of: January 2015)
Road
Merdare-Jarinje
Konculj – Brnjak
Prices are lower than in Poland (sometimes even three times!), you can buy cigarettes, bread (especially peccary!), rakija (local Balkan alcohol) and agricultural produce very cheaply. This is because Serbia is generally an agricultural country and the main food producer for the entire Balkans.
The Serbian culinary pride (and the flagship Serbian dish) is burek,
also known as gibanica - something like a half-puff pastry, stuffed with
meat, cheese, fruit, vegetables or mushrooms. It is often rolled into a
roll. It is quite a heavy, stuffy (it can be a modest dinner) dish with
a fairly affordable price (about PLN 3-5/piece, depending on the place,
the most expensive burkas are in Belgrade and the cheapest in the
provinces).
Another dish is čevapcici/čevapi, which consists of
minced/chopped meat and various additives (e.g. onion, garlic, flour,
herbs) - all rolled into rolls and grilled/fried.
Hotels are geared more towards demanding and wealthy tourists. You may come across sobe/apartman(s) (private accommodation, it is often written in Cyrillic; собе, Serbs are a hospitable people). Campsites are a bit cheaper, but they are not of a very high standard. There are hostels in large cities. The last option is sleeping in the wild (free of charge, the obligation to register in Serbia was abolished in 2011, so there are no problems at the border).
The Academy of Sciences and Arts is the most prestigious scientific and research organization in Serbia. The largest and most important Serbian university is the University of Belgrade. The most famous art school in Serbia is the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgrade. The other major universities are: University of Novi Sad, University of Niš, University of Kragujevac and University of Novi Pazar. To study in Serbia, you need a student visa, which is issued at the Serbian embassy in Warsaw.
You need a work visa to work in Serbia. Unfortunately, the salary in Serbia is not very high, the best chance of finding a job is in a foreign company (preferably for specialists/after knowing the employer), and foreigners are rather reluctantly admitted to Serbian companies. Moreover, there is relatively high unemployment (approx. 25%).
Serbia is a safe country, but as everywhere, you must first use common sense. Most people are hospitable and friendly, but it is better not to talk to them about Kosovo, the Balkan war and the Albanians, these are kind of taboo topics.
Most medical services for foreigners are paid and are of an average level.
Hepatitis A – hepatitis A – vaccination not necessary
Hepatitis B
– hepatitis B virus – vaccination not necessary
JZM – Japanese
encephalitis – vaccination not necessary
MK – meningococcal vaccine
(a+c) – vaccination not necessary
ŻG – yellow fever – vaccination not
necessary
W – rabies – vaccination not necessary
BTP – diphtheria,
tetanus, polio – vaccination recommended
DB – typhoid fever –
vaccination not necessary
Telephone
Roaming in Serbia is very expensive (PLN 6/minute). At
the beginning of 2015, its price is to be reduced to the EU price (i.e.
the same as in Poland). (as of: 2014)
Internet
Wi-Fi is more
common in larger cities, but it is not a big problem. It is not worth
using the Internet on your phone there, it is not cheap, it is best to
take a laptop.
Police 92
Fire Department 93
Ambulance 94
The name of the country "Sr̀biјa" comes from the
ancient Slavic ethnonym "Serbs" (self-name - Srbi). The origin and
etymology of the ethnonym remain a matter of debate. Theoretically, the
root -sъrbъ was associated with the Russian "paserb", the Ukrainian
"priserbitisya" ("join"), the Indo-Aryan "-sarbh" ("fight, murder"), the
Latin "sero" ("compose") and the Greek "siro" ( ειρω, "to repeat").
However, the Polish linguist Stanisław Rospond (1906–1982) derived the
word "Srb" from "srbati" (cf. "Sorbo, absorbbo"). The Sorbian scientist
H. Schuster-Shevts suggested a connection between the Proto-Slavic verb
“-sьrb” and such “relatives” as “Serbat” (Russian), “Sorbati”
(Ukrainian), “Serbats” (Belarusian), “Srbati” (Slovak), "sarbam"
(Bulgarian) and "serebati" (Old Russian).
From 1945 to 1963, the
official name of Serbia was "People's Republic of Serbia", from 1963 to
1990 - "Socialist Republic of Serbia". Since 1990, the official name of
the country is "Republic of Serbia", from 1992 to 2006 the official
names of the country were "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" and "State
Union of Serbia and Montenegro".
Location and boundaries
80% of the
territory of Serbia is located on the Balkan Peninsula, 20%
is occupied by the Pannonian lowland. The length of the
borders is 2,364.4 km: with Romania - 546.5 km, with
Bulgaria - 367.1 km, with North Macedonia - 282.9 km, with
Montenegro - 249.5 km, with Albania - 111 km, with Bosnia
and Herzegovina - 370.9 km, with Croatia - 261.7 km, with
Hungary - 174.4 km. The total length of the borders is 2,364
kilometers, of which 751 kilometers lie along rivers, and 43
kilometers along lakes.
extreme points
Northern:
46°11'N sh., 19°40' E d.
South: 41°53'N latitude, 20°36'
E d.
Eastern: 43°11'N sh., 23°00’E d.
Western: 45°55'N
sh., 18°51’E d.
Relief
Mountains occupy two thirds
of the country's territory. In its southwestern part, there
are medium-altitude folded ridges of the eastern part of the
Dinaric Highlands (Tara, Zlatibor, Chemerno, Golia) with
hilly foothills. In the south, there are folded-block
massifs of the Serbian Highlands (Kopaonik, Yastrebac,
Radan, Kukavitsa), as well as the Kosovo-Pole and Metohija
basins, the southern border of which is the Shar-Planina
ridge. The Yunichka-Planina ridge stretches along the border
with Albania. In the east of the country, the East Serbian
Mountains (Kuchay, Suva Planina, Kraishte) are located,
which are part of the Carpatho-Balkan mountain arc.
The north of Serbia is located within the southern periphery
of the Middle Danube Plain, which is composed of
horizontally occurring sandy-argillaceous
Pliocene-Quaternary deposits overlain by a layer of alluvium
in river valleys and loess on watersheds. Here the relief is
complicated by island blocky hills (Fruška Gora, Vršacke
Mountains).
The highest point in Serbia is Mount
Jeravica (2656 m) in the Prokletije mountain range. 31
mountain peaks of the country have a height of more than
2000 m above sea level.
Minerals
Serbia has
significant mineral reserves. Among them are the ores of
copper, lead, zinc. Also known are deposits of molybdenum,
gold, silver, iron ores, chromium, platinoids, nickel,
cobalt, tungsten, antimony, selenium, lithium, boron,
bauxite. In the northern part of the country there are oil
and gas fields. There are several large brown coal and
lignite basins. There are also deposits of dolomites,
magnesite, asbestos, graphite, rock salt, cement raw
materials.
Hydrology
The rivers of Serbia belong
to the basins of three seas - the Black, Adriatic and
Aegean. Most of Serbia belongs to the basin of the Danube
River, which flows into the Black Sea, the length of which
in Serbia is 588 kilometers. On the plain, the Danube has a
meandering channel with a width of 300 to 1200 m, a depth of
2 to 19 m and a calm current. Where the river crosses the
Carpatho-Balkan mountain system, its channel narrows to 150
m, the depth increases to 82 m, and the flow speed reaches 5
m/s. On the plain above this area, during a flood, the water
level rises significantly, and large spills occur.
In
addition to the Danube, the navigable rivers are the Sava
(206 km), the Tisza (168 km), the Begei (75 km), and the
partially navigable ones are the Bolshaya Morava (3 km out
of 185 km) and the Tamish (3 km out of 101 km). Other major
rivers in Serbia are the Western Morava (308 km), South
Morava (295 km), Ibar (272 km), Drina (220 km) and Timok
(202 km). Part of the south of Serbia belongs to the basin
of the rivers White Drin and Radika, which flow into the
Adriatic Sea. Also located in the south of Serbia, the
rivers Pchinja, Lepenac and Dragovishtitsa belong to the
Aegean Sea basin.
A number of artificial canals have
also been built in Serbia, which are used for flood
protection, irrigation, etc. Their total length is 939.2 km,
of which 385.9 km are used for navigation of ships with a
tonnage of up to 1000 tons. The largest canal system is the
Danube-Tisa-Danube, which includes the Great Bach Canal and
the Small Bach Canal.
The largest natural lake in
Serbia is Paliski Lake with an area of 5.6 km². The
largest reservoir is the Đerdap reservoir with a total area
of 253 km², of which 163 km² is in Serbia. The largest
island in Serbia is located on the Danube near Kostolac.
There are also waterfalls in Serbia, the largest is
Elovarnik, its height is 71 meters, it is located in the
Kopaonik National Park.
Soils
Serbia has a diverse
soil cover. In Vojvodina there are large areas of fertile
chernozem soils, low in humus and leached, in combination
with meadow chernozem solonetsous and often saline soils.
Brown forest, mountain-forest brown and mountain-forest
humus-calcareous soils are developed in mountainous regions.
In the intermountain basins of the Serbian Highlands and the
East Serbian Mountains, dark-colored slitozems with
significant natural fertility are characteristic.
On the territory of Serbia there are two zonal
vegetation or two biomes. The first is the biome of temperate
broad-leaved and mixed forests, which includes most of the country's
territory. The second is the tundra biome (areas above the upper forest
line). There are four ecoregions in the forest biome: Balkan mixed
forests (occupying most of the territory south of the Sava and Danube),
Pannonian mixed forests (occupying the Middle Danubian lowland with
surrounding areas), Dinaric mixed forests (a small area in southwestern
Serbia), and Rhodopean mountainous mixed forests (a small area in
southeastern Serbia). The lower belt of the mountains is occupied by oak
forests, and the upper belt by beech forests. Alpine herbaceous
vegetation of alpine meadows and rocks, as well as subalpine thickets of
mountain pine, are represented within the tundra biome. In addition to
zonal vegetation, there are also fescue and forb-grass meadow steppes
and peat bogs.
According to the inventory of the forest fund
conducted in 2009, 29.1% of the territory of Serbia was occupied by
forests. Their total area is 2,252,400 hectares. Of these, 53% are
managed by the state, 47% are owned by private owners. There are 0.3
hectares of forest per inhabitant.
Deciduous species predominate
in the forest fund of the country, their share is 81%. Among them, oak
and beech are the most common. The share of conifers is 19%. Of the
conifers, spruce, fir, Scots pine and black pine are most common.
Serbia is home to 51% of the European fish fauna, 40%
of the European reptile and amphibian species, 74% of the European bird
fauna, and 67% of the European mammal fauna. Mammals include deer, roe
deer, wild boars, hares, wolves, otters, badgers, wild goats, and
others. Birds include storks, eagles, sea eagles, wild ducks, geese,
quail, pheasants, black grouse, partridges, turtle doves, woodcocks, and
others. Trout, perch, carp, catfish, carp, pike, etc. are found in the
country's water bodies. Also, 17 species of snakes live in Serbia, of
which eight are poisonous.
In Serbia, 50 species of mammals, 307
species of birds, 36 species of reptiles and amphibians, 30 species of
fish have been taken under protection.
Environmental protection in Serbia has a long
tradition. As early as the 14th century, King Dushan banned excessive
deforestation. Serbia has five national parks. The largest of them is
Djerdap itself, covering an area of 63,000 hectares. All of them are
members of the European Federation of National Parks - EUROPARC.
According to Serbian law, a national park is an area with a variety of
natural ecosystems of national importance, outstanding landscape
features and cultural heritage, where people live in harmony with
nature. The purpose of creating a national park is to preserve existing
natural values and resources, the general landscape, geological and
biological diversity, meet scientific, educational, spiritual and
aesthetic, cultural, tourism, health and recreational needs, as well as
conduct other activities in accordance with the principles of nature
protection and sustainable development.
In total, there are five
national parks in the country:
Djerdap (Serb. Ђrdap). Founded in
1974, its area is 63,000 hectares
Kopaonik (Serb. Kopaonik). Founded
in 1981, its area is 19,985 hectares
Tara (Serb. Tara). Founded in
1981, its area is 19,200 hectares
Frushka Gora (Serb. Frushka Gora).
Founded in 1960, its area is 25,393 hectares
Shar Planina (Serb. Shar
Planina). Founded in 1993. Its area is 39,000 hectares
Serbia has a temperate continental climate with more
or less distinct characteristics depending on location, topography,
presence or absence of rivers, vegetation, or degree of urbanization.
The north of the country is characterized by a continental climate with
cold winters and hot, humid summers, influenced by air masses from
northern and western Europe. At the same time, in the southern regions
of the country, closer to the Adriatic Sea, summers are hot and dry, and
autumns and winters are relatively cold, accompanied by heavy snowfalls,
since these areas are under the influence of the Mediterranean Sea. This
influence is somewhat limited to the Dinaric Alps and other mountain
ranges, which help to cool the masses of hot air.
Between 1961
and 1990, the mean annual temperature was 10.9°C up to 300 m. In areas
between 300 and 500 m, the average temperature was 10.0°C, and above
1000 m, 6.0°C. July is the warmest month of the year with an average
temperature of 11 to 22 °C; in particular, in regions below 300 m above
sea level, the average temperature is between 20.0 and 22 °C, as in some
areas of southern Serbia at an altitude of 400 to 500 m. Above 1000 m,
the average temperature in July is between 11.0 to 16°C. The lowest
temperatures in 1961-1990 Were recorded in January; they ranged from
−35.6 °C (in Senica) to −21.0 °C (in Belgrade). Since the beginning of
measurements, the highest temperature recorded in Serbia was 44.3 °C on
July 22, 1939 in Kralev, and the lowest temperature was −39.5 °C on
January 13, 1985 in Karajukicha-Bunari on the Peshter Plateau in Raska.
Ecology and environmental protection in Serbia is handled by the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Environmental Protection Agency. The NATO war against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia caused enormous damage to the Serbian ecology. Alliance aircraft not only used depleted uranium ammunition, but also bombed industrial facilities and warehouses, resulting in toxic emissions. The soil, atmosphere and water bodies were contaminated. The Serbian authorities continue to deal with the aftermath of the bombing. The situation in the field of waste processing remains difficult. Of these, only 15% are being reused, but measures are being taken to improve the situation.
Prehistoric and Antique Serbia
Starchevo-Krish
culture dates back to the 7th – 5th millennia BC. The tribes of
this culture were engaged in cattle breeding, hunting and fishing.
They settled in clay-coated wicker houses near rivers. Artifacts are
represented by polished stone axes and rough kitchen ceramics. The
bearers of the culture belonged to the Mediterranean race, which
sharply distinguished them from the local Mesolithic Cro-Magnons,
descendants of the Lepenski-Vira culture. Starchevo-Krish culture
was supplanted by a wave of Anatolian farmers belonging to the Vinca
culture.
The lifetime of Vinca culture is not precisely
defined. The earliest moment of occurrence is considered the VI
millennium BC. e., its extinction dates from the middle of the V
millennium BC. or the beginning of the IV millennium BC. Settlements are represented by dugouts with clay stoves, later huts
with gable roofs began to be built. They totaled up to five rooms,
the floors were wooden. The bull’s head was reinforced above the
entrance to the house. The culture is also characterized by a large
number of clay figurines of men and women found.
During the
existence of the Roman Empire, all of modern Serbia was part of the
Roman state (most of the territory of modern Serbia, then inhabited
mainly by Illyrian tribes, was part of the province of Upper
Moesia). After the empire was divided into 2 parts around 395, these
lands were assigned to the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) empire. The
Romanization of Upper Moesia remained insignificant and, in contrast
to the coastal regions, there were no large urban settlements, with
the exception of Singidunum (Belgrade), Vimination (Kostolac) and
Naissus (Niš).
Medieval Serbian State
The resettlement of
the Slavs and the creation of statehood
From the middle of the VI
century, the gradual expansion of Slavic tribes began on these
lands, accompanied by the devastation of the Balkans. The ancestors
of the Serbs settled the lands south of the Sava to the Adriatic.
They assimilated or ousted the former inhabitants of this territory
- Illyrians, Celts, Greeks and Romans - to cities, mainly on the
coast, as well as to the mountains of the Dinaric Highlands and
Albania. In some places, Illyrian and Wallachian enclaves arose in
the lands inhabited by the Slavs.
The process of state
formation among the Serbs was slowed by the isolation of various
Serbian communities and the lack of economic ties between them. The
early history of the Serbs is characterized by the formation of
several centers of statehood, which in turn became centers of
unification of the Serbian lands. Proto-state formations formed on
the coast - Sklavinia Pagania, Zahumye, Travuniya and Duklja, in the
interior (the eastern part of modern Bosnia and Sandzak) - the
Serbian principality. Nominally, all Serbian territories were part
of Byzantium, but their dependence was weak. From the 7th century,
the Christianization of Serbian tribes began, which ended in the
second half of the 9th century with the direct participation of the
disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
In the middle of the
9th century, under the influence of an attack on the Serb regions of
the Proto-Bulgarians, princely power and a state were formed in the
Serbian principality, headed by Prince (zupan) Vlastimir, who
managed to drive back the Bulgarians and subordinate part of the
coastal territories. The hereditary principle of the transfer of
power, however, did not work out, which led at the end of the 9th
century to civil strife, weakening of Raska and its transition under
the rule of the First Bulgarian Kingdom, and then, after its fall,
Byzantium. Some strengthening of Serbia in the middle of the 10th
century during the reign of Prince Caslav, which significantly
expanded the territory of the state, was replaced after its death in
950 by the collapse of the country. At the same time, the active
penetration of bogomilism from Bulgaria began, which also
contributed to the weakening of central authority in Raska. In
1040-1041, Belgrade and the Morava Valley became the center of a
mass Slavic uprising led by Peter Delyan against Byzantium.
In the middle of the XI century, the center for the unification of
Serbian lands moved to Dukla, where an independent principality was
formed, headed by Stefan Vojislav. Unlike Byzantine-oriented Raska,
Zeta sought support in the West, primarily in Catholic Rome and
among the Normans of southern Italy. In 1077, the ruler of the Zeta
was crowned king of the Serbs. Under Konstantin Bodin, at the end of
the 11th century, Duklja established control over the internal
Serbian regions, including Raska and Bosnia, and the Bar became the
center of a separate Serbian church metropolis subordinate to the
pope. However, after the death of Konstantin Bodin in 1101, the
Duklian kingdom fell apart.
In the mid-12th century, the strengthening of one
of the Serbian state formations, Raska, began, which gradually freed
itself from the power of Byzantium. In 1168, Stefan Nemanja, the
founder of the Nemanichi dynasty, became the supreme zupan of Raska.
If at the beginning of his reign he remained a faithful vassal of
the empire, then after the death of Emperor Manuel I, Stefan
launched a struggle for independence and the unification of Serbian
lands. As a result of several military campaigns, by the end of the
XII century, most of the lands inhabited by Serbs, including the
coastal regions, Zeta, Kosovo and, temporarily, Northern Macedonia,
became part of a single state. Stefan Nemani’s war with Dubrovnik
was unsuccessful, but the Dubrovnik merchants received from him the
right to free trade in Serbia, which subsequently contributed to the
recovery of the country's economy. In 1190, the Byzantine Empire
recognized the independence of Serbia, and in 1217, the son of
Stefan Nemani, Stefan the First-Crowned, was crowned king of the
Serbs. In 1219, thanks to the activities of St. Sava, an
autocephalous Serbian church was created with a center in the
Zhichansky monastery.
The heyday of Serbia
Under the
immediate successors of Stephen the First Crown, the Serbian state
experienced a short period of stagnation and increased influence of
neighboring powers, primarily Hungary. At the turn of the XIII and
XIV centuries, Serbia was divided into two states: in the north, in
Machva, Belgrade, the Branichev region, as well as in Usor and Salt,
Stefan Dragutin ruled based on Hungary, the rest of the Serbian
lands were ruled by his younger brother Stefan Milutin focusing
mainly on Byzantium.
Despite the temporary division of the
state, the strengthening of Serbia continued: a centralized system
of local governance was formed, law was reformed, an internal
communications system was created, and the transition to conditional
holding and a pronary system in land relations began. At the same
time, the influence of the higher clergy and the church intensified.
Monasticism was actively developing, many Orthodox monasteries arose
(including Studenica, Жić, Mileshevo, Gracanitsa, as well as the
Hilandar Monastery on Mount Athos), and their churches were built in
accordance with the already established original Serbian
architectural tradition (“Rash school”). The belonging of Serbia to
the Byzantine-Orthodox world was finally fixed, the Catholic
influence was practically eliminated, and the Bogomils were expelled
from the country. At the same time, the process of byzantization of
the public administration system began, a pompous royal court was
created on the model of Constantinople. There was an upsurge in
mining (largely due to the influx of Saxon settlers), agriculture
and trade, in which Dubrovnik merchants had a decisive role. The
population of the country increased rapidly, cities grew.
Milutin and his son Stefan Dechansky also managed to significantly
expand the territory of the state. Although Belgrade, Usora, and
Soli were lost after Dragutin’s death, Serbia included Nis, northern
Macedonia and Dirrahiy, and Skopje became the new capital. In 1330,
at the Battle of Velbuda, Serbian forces defeated Bulgaria and put
an end to Bulgarian hegemony in the Balkans.
The heyday of
the medieval Serbian state occurred during the reign of Stephen
Dusan (1331–1355). During a series of military campaigns, Stefan
Dusan subjugated all of Macedonia, Albania, Epirus, Thessaly and the
western part of Central Greece. As a result, Serbia has become the
largest state in Southeast Europe. In 1346, Stefan Dusan was crowned
king of the Serbs and Greeks, and the Archbishop of Pecs was
proclaimed patriarch. The Serbo-Greek kingdom of Stefan Dusan
combined Serbian and Byzantine traditions, the Greeks retained the
highest positions in the cities and their land holdings, culture had
a strong Greek influence. In architecture, a Vardarian style
developed, the vivid examples of which were the temples in
Gracanitsa, Pec and Lesnov. In 1349, the “Lawyer of Stefan Dusan”
was published, which formalized and codified the norms of Serbian
law. The central authority sharply strengthened, a ramified
administrative system was formed along the Byzantine model, while
maintaining the essential role of the assemblies (sabors) of the
Serbian aristocracy. The tsar’s domestic policy, based on a large
land nobility and leading to the expansion of its prerogatives,
however, did not contribute to the strengthening and consolidation
of the state, especially given the ethnic diversity of the Dushan
state.
Fall and Turkish conquest
Shortly after the
death of Stephen Dushan, his state collapsed. Part of the Greek
lands again came under the rule of Byzantium, and the rest formed
semi-independent principalities. In Serbia proper, large landowners
(rulers) left the central government, began to pursue their own
policies, mint coins and collect taxes: the reign of Balsic was
established in Zeta, the Mrnyavchevich in Macedonia, Prince Lazar,
Nicola Altomanovic and Vuk Brankovich in Old Serbia and Kosovo . The
unity of the Serbian lands after the death of the last
representative of the Nemanich dynasty, Stefan Uros V in 1371, was
supported almost exclusively by the unity of the Orthodox Church in
the person of the Pecsk Patriarchate, which in 1375 achieved
canonical recognition by the Patriarchate of Constantinople. In
1377, the Bosnia’s Serbian crown was taken by the ban of Bosnia,
Stefan Tvrtko I, however, although Prince Lazar and Vuk Brankovich
recognized his royal title, the power of Tvrtko I was purely
nominal. The internecine wars between the princes greatly weakened
the defense of the Serbian lands in the face of the growing Turkish
threat. Already in 1371, in the Battle of Maritsa, the Turks
defeated the troops of the South Serb rulers, led by King Vukashin,
after which the territory of modern Macedonia came under the rule of
the Ottoman Empire.
An attempt to unite the Serbian lands to
organize a rebuff to the Turks, made by Prince Lazar with the
support of the Serbian Orthodox Church, was unsuccessful: on June
15, 1389 (on the day of St. Vitus - Vidovdan) in the battle on
Kosovo, despite the heroic efforts of the Serbs, they were defeated
. Prince Lazarus is dead. Although his son Stefan Lazarevich
retained his power, he was forced to recognize the suzerainty of the
Ottoman Empire and participate in Turkish campaigns. The battle of
Kosovo and the deed of Milos Obilic, who killed the Ottoman Sultan
Murad I at the beginning of the battle, later became one of the most
important subjects of Serbian national folklore, a symbol of
self-sacrifice and unity of the Serbian people in the struggle for
independence.
In the first half of the XV century, when the
onslaught of the Turks temporarily weakened due to a threat from
Tamerlane, Stefan Lazarevich attempted to restore the Serbian state.
He took the Byzantine title of despot and, relying on an alliance
with Hungary, which transferred Belgrade and Machva to him, again
subjugated Zeta (except Primorye), Srebrenica and a number of South
Serbian regions. The central administration was revived, the
prince's power was strengthened, mining and urban crafts were
actively encouraged, the ideas of humanism and the Renaissance began
to penetrate into Serbia. Architecture (the “Moravian school”,
represented, in particular, by the monasteries of Resava and
Ravanica) and literature (works by Patriarch Danil III and Stephen
Lazarevich himself) experienced a new upsurge. The capital of
Serbian despotism was Belgrade, in which a well-fortified fortress
was built, partially preserved to this day. Although Nis and
Krusevac were lost as a result of the Turks' new invasion in 1425,
and then Belgrade came under Hungarian rule, the new capital of
Serbia, Smederevo, founded by despot George Brankovich, experienced
its heyday and won the glory of the second Constantinople. But
already in 1438 the next Ottoman offensive began. In 1439, Smederevo
fell. The long campaign of the Hungarian troops Janos Hunyadi in
1443-1444 allowed the Turks to be expelled from the territory of
Serbia and to restore its independence for a short time. However,
the defeat of the crusaders near Varna in 1444, the defeat of the
Hungarian army in the Second Battle of Kosovo in 1448 and the fall
of Constantinople in 1453 determined the fate of the country. In
1454, Novo Brdo and Pristina were captured, and in 1456 Belgrade was
besieged. Finally, in 1459 Smederevo fell. Bosnia was conquered by
1463, Herzegovina by 1482, and finally Mountain Zeta in 1499. The
Serbian state ceased to exist.
Social and economic development
The basis of
the economy of the medieval Serbian state was agriculture, primarily
agriculture, as well as cattle breeding, especially in mountainous
areas. Significantly longer than in Bulgaria and Croatia, Serbia
retained the importance of large patriarchal families - friends and
the communal system. In peasant farming, collective ownership of
land continued to dominate. Gradually, however, the processes of
feudalization of land relations and enslavement of peasants
intensified. Already in the "Lawyer of Stephen Dushan" the dependent
position of the peasantry was legally enshrined and the right to
transfer was canceled. Among the dependent categories of peasants,
the merokhs [35], who have hereditary rights to their allotment and
are obliged to the feudal lord for working duties (100 days a year),
Vlachs — cattle breeders paying natural rents to the feudal lord
(mainly to monasteries), and lads who were the personal property of
the master . No significant peasant uprisings have been noted in
medieval Serbia. The feudal ownership of the land was of two types:
hereditary unconditional ownership - the tower, and conditional
holding for service under the king or other large aristocrat -
pronity, and the role of the latter steadily increased. The largest
landowner was the Orthodox Church. The immune rights of the feudal
lords were limited to the preservation of the royal court, the
fiscal and military duties of landowners to the crown. The
monasteries possessed the broadest immunity, the possessions of
which actually turned into feudal lords and which subjugated the
small feudal lords - warriors.
From the end of the 12th
century, the importance of mining began to grow for the country's
economy. The centers of extraction of copper, iron, gold, silver and
lead were Novo-Brdo, the Kopaonik plateau and the Rudnitskaya
planina. Field development was mainly carried out by German
colonists. Legally, the supreme ownership of the mines belonged to
the king, but in fact they were in the possession of Saxon,
Dubrovnik and Kotor merchants. The mining tax and metal export
duties were an essential part of the state budget. The role of
mining for the Serbian economy particularly increased during the
Turkish invasions, when cultivated land was devastated and the
population declined sharply.
Serbian cities were initially
extremely underdeveloped and did not play a significant role in the
country's economy. The only exceptions were the coastal cities -
Kotor, Ulcinj, Budva, Bar, which at an early stage turned into large
centers of maritime intermediary trade. With the development of
mining and crafts in the XIII century, the revitalization of the
cities of the internal regions of Serbia began: Novo Brdo, Pristina,
Nis, Branichevo and others. The main export items were metals, honey
and leather. Trade gravitated to the Adriatic and was concentrated
in the hands of the Dubrovnik, Kotor and Italian merchants. The
level of development of city self-government remained low (except
for Kotor and some cities of Primorye), they did not play any
noticeable role in the political system of Serbia and were governed
by the knights appointed by the king.
Serbia ruled by the Ottoman Empire
As a result
of the Turkish conquest, Serbian lands were devastated, agriculture
fell into decay, mining production almost ceased. A massive outflow
of population began over the Danube and the Sava, as a result of
which the ethnic territory of the Serbs significantly expanded
northward. Serbs were massively resettled on the lands of modern
Hungary and Croatia, which were then part of the Habsburg
possessions, forming a military estate there. In exchange for
military service, guarding the border and participating in battles
with the Turks, the border guards received land and were exempted
from paying a number of taxes. At the same time, Turks, Vlach cattle
breeders and Albanians began to move to the depopulated lowland
areas, and especially to the southern regions of the country
(Kosovo). The Christian population was limited in civil rights.
However, unlike Albania, Bosnia and Macedonia, only a small part of
the population converted to Islam in Serbia. The main merit in this
belonged to the Pecsk Patriarchate, restored in 1557, which during
the Ottoman rule played the role of a center of national and
cultural unity of the Serbian people. The Orthodox Church as a whole
retained its privileges and possessions and, as a special
confessional community (millet), used self-government in cultural
and religious matters, including the ability to create primary
schools.
After the conquest, a military-prison system was
extended to Serbia, in which most of the land was owned by the state
and was divided into flax, whose holders are Spahia, were obliged to
perform military service. The rest of the land was transferred to
church and public organizations (waqfs) or secured on the right of
ownership to individual representatives of the Turkish aristocracy
(mulk) or the family of the Sultan (Sultan Khas). Administratively,
the territory of Serbia became part of the Rumeliya Eylet, and after
the Turks conquered Hungary in the middle of the 16th century, the
areas north of Niš were transferred to the Buda Eylet. Eylets were
divided into sanjaks. The former territory of the Serbian despot
formed Smederevsky (after the conquest of Belgrade in 1521 -
Belgrade) sandzhak. Like the Greeks, Serbs, having converted to
Islam, could rise to public service in public service.
The
feudal class of the period of Ottoman domination was represented
almost exclusively by Muslims, both Turks and Slavs who converted to
Islam (Turchens). The basis of the population was the dependent
peasantry - paradise, which had the right of hereditary use of
allotments and paying land (haraj) and capitation (jizya) taxes to
the Sultan, as well as various payments to the feudal lord. In
southern Serbia and the Danube regions, a significant stratum of
Vlach pastoralists has been preserved, which enjoys certain
privileges and is used for border service. The bulk of the peasants
was attached to the land and could not leave it without the
permission of the local feudal lord or official.
Since the
16th century, revival of handicraft production and urban life began
in Serbia. New urban centers located at the intersection of the
trade routes of the Ottoman Empire, primarily Belgrade, captured by
the Turks in 1521, which soon became the largest trade and craft
center of the Serbian lands, came to the fore. Nevertheless, the
cities remained divorced from the district, their growth had
practically no effect on the progress of neighboring lands.
Handicraft production was organized in an oriental fashion into
closed corporations, separate for Muslims and Christians. At first,
dominance of foreign capital remained in trade - Dubrovnik, Venetian
and Genoese merchants, and orientation towards the Adriatic coast.
However, starting from the 17th century, with the weakening Italian
city-states, local merchants began to play an increasingly important
role in trade. Nevertheless, the economic development of the Serbian
lands was still significantly behind the European level.
In the XVII century, the process of the decline of
the Ottoman Empire began. The military system began to decompose,
the Spahis departed from military service and switched to the active
exploitation of their lands and dependent population. Land ownership
gradually began to pass into the hands of trade and craft circles
and the Janissaries and gain a foothold on the right of ownership
(Chiftliks). The central government weakened, the state experienced
a chronic financial crisis. Local feudal lords actually came out of
submission to the Sultan, anarchy reigned in the country, there were
constant internecine clashes between Spakhia, Janissaries and Pasha,
trying to expand their possessions and commit extortionate raids on
the lands of their neighbors. This was accompanied by an increase in
tax and feudal oppression and a significant deterioration in the
position of the Christian majority. The remnants of the autonomy of
the Vlachs were eliminated, and religious antagonism intensified.
In the eighteenth century, the economic growth of northern
Serbia and especially Belgrade continued, while the economy of the
central and southern regions of the country was in stagnation, which
was greatly facilitated by the new ruins during the Austro-Turkish
wars of the late XVII - early XVIII centuries. From 1716 to 1739,
Northern Serbia was under the control of Austria, which gave a
significant impetus to its economic development and the growth of
trade, especially the Danube, with Central Europe. After the return
of Northern Serbia to the power of the Ottoman Empire in 1739, it
retained a special position. The border Belgrade pashalyk was
created here, the Turkish population has declined significantly,
local authorities began to pass into the hands of the local
aristocracy. This was accompanied by the weakening of feudal
oppression, the collapse of the spahic system and the acceleration
of the development of the economy, especially cattle breeding,
oriented to Austria.
Liberation struggle
Immediately after
the Turkish conquest of Serbian lands, migration of part of the
Serbs to unoccupied lands by the Turks beyond the Danube and Sava
began: in Srem, Bachka, Banat, Slavonia, as well as in northern
Bosnia. In southern Hungary (present-day Vojvodina), a Serbian
military administration was created with a center in Kupnik (Srem),
headed by princes who considered themselves heirs to the rulers of
the Serbian despot. Serbs actively participated in the
Hungarian-Turkish wars of the late XV - early XVI centuries,
however, after the defeat of the Hungarian kingdom under Mojac in
1526, these lands also fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire.
The liberation movement of the Serbian people against Turkish
domination developed in two directions: the guiduism, often
indistinguishable from ordinary banditry, and the uprisings confined
to the wars of the European powers with the Ottoman Empire. At the
head of the movement was the Pechersky Patriarchate, which managed
to establish political relations with Hungary, Austria and Spain.
Already during the Austro-Turkish war of 1593-1606, an uprising
against the Turks broke out in Banat, supported by Patriarch Jovan
II.
The liberation movement reached its highest rise
during the Holy League war at the end of the 17th century. Serbian
rebels, working in collaboration with the Austrian army, liberated
most of the country. In 1688, Belgrade was taken, the Austrian
troops of General Eneo Piccolomini penetrated into Macedonia.
However, in 1690, the Turks retaliated. The Austrians were driven
out of Serbia, the power of the Ottoman Empire was restored. The
country was devastated, mass repressions against participants in the
uprisings began. In response, Patriarch Arseny III called on the
Serbs to emigrate beyond the Danube. The “Great Relocation of Serbs”
began: tens of thousands of Serbian families left their homes and
moved to Austrian territory: to Banat, Bachka, Srem, Baranya. The
second big wave of migration of Serbs passed after the unsuccessful
war for Austria of 1737-1739 for Austria.
The great
resettlement of Serbs has become one of the key events of Serbian
history. It caused significant changes in the political and social
life of the Serbs, and also seriously changed the ethnic borders of
the Serbian people. Southern Serbia (Raska, Kosovo and Metohija)
lost the dominant Serbian component. In place of the Serbs who left
these regions, Albanians and Turks moved in large numbers. Since
that time, Raska also received the Turkish name Sanjak. The ethnic
map of Central Serbia has changed less, however, from there the
Serbian population also went north. The great resettlement led to a
sharp increase in the number of Serbs in the territories of
Slavonia, Bachka, Baranya and Southern Hungary.
Relocating
the Albanians to the regions of southern Serbia, the Ottoman Empire
did its best to incite antagonism between them. Muslim Albanians
were in a much more privileged position than the Orthodox Serbs, who
had a minimum of rights under the Turks. By betting on the
Albanians, Istanbul sought to stop the development of political
activity of the Serbs and to prevent among them the growth of the
liberation struggle.
Istanbul also sought to limit the
political activities of the Orthodox clergy in Serbia. From the
first half of the 18th century, the Turks began to appoint
patriarchs themselves, who were previously elected at church
councils and only approved by the Sultan Berats. Monasteries and
churches were plundered by Muslims, and economic oppression of the
clergy began. Since the late 1730s, they began to appoint the Greeks
loyal to the Empire as patriarchs, who, in turn, sought to pursue a
Hellenization policy and simply plundered the property of the
patriarchy. In 1766, the Pecsk Patriarchate was abolished, and a
year later the Ohrid Archbishopric, subordinate to the Patriarch of
Constantinople. This deprived the Orthodox population of the Western
Balkans of the institution, which was previously one of the factors
of its consolidation.
The role of the Pecsk patriarch in the
liberation movement forced the Ottoman Empire to reconsider its
attitude towards the Serbian Orthodox Church: the patriarch began to
be appointed from Istanbul, accelerated Hellenization of the church
began, in 1767 the Pecsk patriarchy was abolished, and the Serbian
church was subordinated to Constantinople. Soon the Orthodox Church
lost its importance as a unifying force in the liberation struggle.
After the defeat of Austria in the Austro-Turkish war of 1737-1739,
a temporary decline in the liberation movement took place. A new
stage in the struggle began after the Russo-Turkish war of 1768-1774
and the signing of the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi peace, which granted Russia
the right to protect the Orthodox population in the Ottoman Empire.
During the years of the war of Austria and Russia with Turkey in
1787-1792 in Serbia, primarily in the Belgrade Pashalyk, a major
uprising broke out against the Ottoman authorities. Serbian
volunteer units were formed, fighting in the Austrian army, which,
however, was defeated.
After the war, the Turkish authorities began to significantly expand the powers of local authorities in Belgrade Pashalyk and took measures to limit the autocracy of the Janissaries. But already in 1801, in the conditions of the weakening of central power, the Janissaries made a coup and seized power in Belgrade. This was followed by the division of lands, an increase in feudal payments, the removal of the local aristocracy from participation in the administration and bloody repressions against the Serbs. In response, in 1804, the First Serbian Uprising broke out in Belgrade Pashalyk. At the head of the rebels stood the Grand Duke Karageorgii. Soon, almost the entire territory of the pashalyk was liberated from the Turkish authorities. If initially the rebels opposed only the dominance of the Janissaries, then after the failure of negotiations with the central government and the start of the Russian-Turkish war, they began to focus on achieving independence. The Turks were expelled, their possessions and property redistributed between the Serbs. Central authorities, the local administration, and the judiciary were formed. At the same time, disagreements began between the leaders of the uprising: Karageorgii, who declared himself in 1808 the hereditary supreme leader of the Serbian people, and other Serbian princes. After the conclusion of the Bucharest peace of 1812 and the withdrawal of Russia from the war, a massive offensive by the Turks began. Despite the heroic defense, in 1813 the Turks captured Belgrade. The uprising was crushed, followed by massive repression.
As a result of the First Serbian Uprising (1804-1813), the Serbian
Principality was formed. In 1813 the uprising was crushed. The second
Serbian uprising, which began in 1815, was more successful, and fifteen
years later the Sultan officially recognized Miloš Obrenović as the
ruler of Serbia. In 1878, on July 13, under the terms of the Berlin
Peace, Serbia gained independence, in 1882 it was proclaimed a kingdom.
By the beginning of the 20th century, a parliamentary monarchy had
developed in Serbia, and a rapid rise in the economy and culture began.
As a result of the Balkan Wars (1912-1913), the territories of
Kosovo, part of Macedonia and a significant part of the Sandzak were
included in Serbia. In World War I, Serbia sided with the Entente
countries. During the war, Serbia lost, according to some estimates, up
to a third of the population. After the end of the war, Serbia became
the core of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (since 1929 - the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia). During the Second World War, the territory of
Serbia was occupied by German troops from April 1941, part of the
territory of the state was transferred to the satellites of Germany -
Hungary and Bulgaria, as well as Albania. By 1945, Serbia was liberated
by the Red Army, partisan and regular detachments of the People's
Liberation Army of Yugoslavia.
In 1945, the Federal People's
Republic of Yugoslavia (since 1963 - SFRY) was proclaimed, which
included the People's Republic of Serbia (since 1963 - the Socialist
Republic of Serbia).
The growth of interethnic confrontation,
separatist actions led in the early 1990s to a series of civil wars and
the collapse of Yugoslavia. The long period in power of the Socialist
Party of Serbia ended in 2000 after the bombing of Serbian cities by
NATO aircraft (1999) and the entry of UN peacekeeping forces into
Kosovo. In June 2006, after a referendum held in Montenegro, the state
union of Serbia and Montenegro ceased to exist.
executive branch
The President of Serbia (Serb. Chairman) is
elected for a five-year term in general direct elections, and can hold
this position for no more than two terms. According to the Constitution,
he is the commander-in-chief of the Serbian Armed Forces, represents
Serbia in the world, appoints ambassadors and diplomatic
representatives, proposes candidates for the post of prime minister to
the National Assembly, can dissolve the National Assembly and veto laws.
Also among the duties of the president is the declaration of a state of
emergency, as well as the presentation of state awards.
The
President has the same immunity as the deputies of the National
Assembly.
According to the results of the presidential elections
on April 2, 2017, Serbia was headed by the leader of the Serbian
Progressive Party Aleksandar Vučić, who received more than 55% of the
vote.
The government (Serb. Vlad) is the bearer of executive
power and consists of 20 members, including the prime minister, one or
more deputy prime ministers and several ministers. Its composition is
approved by the National Assembly of Serbia by a majority vote, as well
as the head of the Cabinet of Ministers, whose candidacy is proposed by
the President of Serbia.
According to the Serbian Constitution,
the Cabinet of Ministers is responsible for defining and implementing
policies, implementing and drafting laws, organizing and controlling
public authorities, and so on.
The Prime Minister and members of
the Government enjoy the same immunity as the deputies of the National
Assembly. They are not responsible for opinions expressed at a meeting
of the Government or Parliament.
The current composition of the
Government was approved by the National Assembly on October 28, 2020.
Ana Brnabic became prime minister.
Legislature
In September
1990, during the democratic transformations in Yugoslavia, a new Serbian
constitution was adopted, which established a unicameral parliament -
the National Assembly (Serb. People's Assembly of the Republika Srbije),
250 deputies of which are elected for a four-year term.
The next
parliamentary elections in Serbia were held on June 21, 2020. In the
period leading up to the elections, an inter-party dialogue took place
through the mediation of the European Parliament and certain changes
were made to the electoral legislation. Numerous parliamentary and
non-parliamentary political parties boycotted the elections, including
the largest opposition coalition, the Alliance for Serbia, which said
conditions for free and fair elections had not been created. This
resulted in the lowest voter turnout since the creation of the
multi-party system in 1990.
As a result of the election, a
coalition led by the Serbian Progressive Party of President Aleksandar
Vučić won 188 seats in the National Assembly. The second largest was the
coalition led by the Socialist Party of Serbia, led by Ivica Dacic.
Also, four parties representing the interests of national minorities
entered the National Assembly.
Judicial branch
The Serbian
Constitution provides for the autonomy and independence of state bodies
that protect the freedoms and rights of citizens, the legally approved
rights and interests of legal entities, and ensures constitutionality
and legality. Judicial power belongs to the courts and operates
independently of the legislative and executive branches. Judicial
decisions are taken on behalf of the people and on the basis of the
Constitution and the law, ratified international treaties and
regulations adopted on the basis of the law. Court decisions are binding
on everyone and cannot be subject to extrajudicial control. The decision
of the court may be reviewed only by decision of the competent court in
the manner prescribed by law. Everyone is obliged to respect the
decisions of the court.
Courts of the republican level: the
Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court of Cassation, the Arbitration
Court of Appeal, etc.
Courts of general jurisdiction:
Principal courts - for a city or one or more municipalities
Superior
Courts - in the territory of one or more main courts
Courts of Appeal
- for several higher courts
Supreme Court of Cassation
The
Constitutional Court is an independent state body that protects
constitutionality and legality, as well as human and minority rights and
freedoms. Decisions of the Constitutional Court are final and subject to
mandatory execution. The Supreme Court of Cassation is the highest court
in the Republic of Serbia and the highest court for arbitration and
administrative courts, etc.
The anthem of Serbia is a slightly modified anthem of the Kingdom of Serbia "God Truth", which for several years was also the anthem of the Republika Srpska. The coat of arms of Serbia, adopted on August 17, 2004, is the Serbian coat of arms during the reign of the Obrenović dynasty. The country has two flags: national and official. The first is a red-blue-white cloth, and the second is the same with the state emblem.
Serbia is represented abroad by 64 embassies and 22 consulates
general. On the territory of Serbia itself there are 70 embassies and 5
consulates general. After the collapse of Yugoslavia, Serbia inherited
about a third of the property of the Foreign Ministry of the SFRY.
Serbia is a member of such international organizations as: UN,
Council of Europe, OSCE, Interpol, World Bank, Partnership for Peace,
Stability Pact for Southeast Europe, UNESCO, World Tourism Organization,
Universal Postal Union, World Confederation of Labor, World Customs
Organization, World Meteorological Organization, World Health
Organization and so on.
During the collapse of Yugoslavia, Serbia
was in international isolation, numerous sanctions were applied against
it: military, economic, cultural and others. Public opinion in many
countries of the world was opposed to it, the country was considered
guilty of unleashing bloody conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia and
Herzegovina. After the end of the wars in the former Yugoslavia, the
sanctions regime was eased, but in 1998-1999, Serbia was again isolated
and became the target of NATO air strikes. The United States and EU
countries resumed cooperation with Serbia only after the overthrow of
President Slobodan Milosevic and the coming to power of Vojislav
Kostunica, Serbia's relations with most Western countries normalized.
Currently, the country's foreign policy is characterized by the desire
to join the EU, the diplomatic struggle against the recognition of the
independence of the autonomous province of Kosovo and the development of
comprehensive relations with many countries of the world.
Prior
to the arrest of General Ratko Mladic and former President of the
Serbian Krajina Goran Hadzic, the International Tribunal for the Former
Yugoslavia had a significant influence on Serbian politics. In
particular, EU functionaries have repeatedly stated that Serbia's
further European integration depends on its cooperation with the
tribunal. After the arrest of the above persons, President Boris Tadic
said that he considers the obligations to The Hague to be fully
fulfilled.
Later, a number of EU functionaries stated that the
issue of Serbia's accession to this organization directly depends on
whether Belgrade can normalize relations with Kosovo and recognize it as
an independent state. These statements caused a heated debate in Serbian
society and a decrease in the number of supporters of Serbia's European
integration.
On March 1, 2012, Serbia received the official
status of a candidate for EU membership.
Since June 10, 2009, a
visa-free regime has been established between Serbia and Russia for 30
days for citizens of both states. Prior to that, for Russian citizens,
the visa-free period in Serbia was 90 days (the rule has been in effect
since March 2008), but Serbs needed a visa to enter Russia. Citizens of
Serbia, with the exception of those residing within Kosovo and Metohija
(the "Republic of Kosovo"), since December 2009 have the right to
visa-free entry to the countries of the European Union. Thus, Serbia has
a visa-free regime with both Russia and the European Union.
Back
in 2006, Serbia and NATO signed an agreement on military cooperation.
Serbia cooperates with NATO in the framework of the Partnership for
Peace program. In 2014, the parties agreed on an individual partnership
plan for a program designed to build trust between participants.
In 2015, the Serbian Parliament, the Assembly, ratified with NATO a
secret agreement known as SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement), which was
signed in 2014. Under the agreement, Serbia, not being a member of NATO,
assumed obligations equal to those of full NATO members. As a result,
Serbia became de facto a NATO member with obligations but no rights.
On February 19, 2016, Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic signed an
agreement with NATO, according to which the representatives of the
Alliance receive special diplomatic immunity and freedom of movement
throughout the country, as well as access to Serbian military
facilities. The agreement led to right-wing protests across the country.
Opponents of the agreement argue that it is contrary to the
Constitution.
On January 12, 2022, Serbian President Aleksandar
Vučić said in an interview on national television that the republic
intends to strengthen its own army in order to protect itself, and not
join NATO.
Army
The Serbian Armed Forces have come a long way of reform and
restructuring. In 1992, after the collapse of the SFRY, the Armed Forces
of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (Serb. Yugoslav Army) were
created. In 2000, the share of military spending was 9.1% of GDP (one of
the highest rates in Europe), and the number of military personnel was
114.2 thousand people. In 2003, the Armed Forces of Serbia and
Montenegro (Serbian Armed Forces of Serbia and Crne Gora) were created.
In 2006, their units stationed on the territory of Serbia were
registered in the Armed Forces of Serbia (Serbian Vojska Srbije). At the
same time, another large-scale military reform was launched.
The
Serbian Armed Forces number 36,000 soldiers and officers, of which
11,000 are professional soldiers and 22,000 are volunteer soldiers.
After the military reform, instead of about a hundred brigades, 12
brigades were formed: 4 infantry, mixed artillery, a special brigade,
two aviation, one rocket and one artillery, a communications and
logistics brigade. Also in the Serbian Army are separate battalions of
military police and communications. The corps and armies were replaced
by brigades and battalions, which became the backbone of the new
structure of the Serbian Army.
The Serbian army consists of
ground forces, air force and air defense. Most of the weapons were
inherited from the SFRY and FRY. Periodically, new samples are acquired
in small quantities. Since 2011, military service has become voluntary.
Prior to this, the term of urgent military service was 6 months,
alternative service - 9 months. Military spending in 2011 amounted to
2.8% of the country's GDP.
Serbia is the largest arms exporter in
the region. In 2009, the value of Serbian military exports was $500
million.
Police
The Serbian Police is under the jurisdiction
of the Ministry of the Interior, which consists of several departments.
The police force includes 161 municipal stations, 62 border control
stations and 49 traffic control stations. The Serbian Police is a
professional organization with 42,740 officers and 26,527 civilians as
of 2006. Until January 3, 1997, the police were called militia. The
renaming was carried out in accordance with the Law on Internal Affairs.
The structure of the police includes several special forces. The
oldest of them is the Gendarmerie (Serb. Gendarmerie), which performs
both civilian and military functions. Other well-known special forces
are the Special Anti-Terrorist Unit (Serb. Spetsialna Anti-Terrorist
Unit) and the Anti-Terrorist Group of Serbia (Serb. Anti-Terrorist
Unit), designed to combat terrorism and organized crime. The first was
founded back in the SFRY and participated in the hostilities in Kosovo
and Metohija, while the second was created in 2003, during large-scale
anti-mafia actions. Another well-known special unit is the Helicopter
Detachment (Serb. Helicopter Unit), created in 1965 and currently
numbering 22 helicopters.
special services
The main security
service in Serbia is the Security and Information Agency (Serb.
Bezbedno-informative agency). It is responsible for intelligence and
counterintelligence issues, the fight against organized crime and
terrorism. The Information Security Agency is controlled by the Assembly
and the Government of Serbia, to which it must provide reports twice a
year on its activities and the security situation in the country.
The agency was formed on 11 July 2002 and is headquartered in
Belgrade. Its predecessor was the State Security Service (Serb. Dzhavne
Security Service). Since July 17, 2008, the Information Security Agency
has been headed by Sasha Vukadinovic.
During the existence of the
BIA since 2002, the Agency was headed by:
Andria Savich;
Misha
Milicevic;
Rade Bulatovich;
Sasha Vukadinovic.
The territory of Serbia is divided into districts, districts into
cities and communities. The counties do not have local self-government
(except for the county of Belgrade).
The representative body of
the city is the city assembly (city council), elected by the population,
the executive bodies of the city are the city council (city council),
headed by the mayor (city governor), and consisting of politicians,
elected by the city assembly, and the city council (city council),
consisting of professional officials elected by the city assembly.
The representative body of the community is the community assembly
(Skupshtina opshtine), elected by the population, the executive bodies
of the community are the community council (opshtynsko veћe), headed by
the chairman of the community (chairman opshtine), and consisting of
politicians, elected by the community meeting, and the community
council, consisting of professional officials elected by the community
assembly.
Statistical regions
According to the Regulation on
the nomenclature of statistical territorial units, introduced in 2009
and slightly amended in 2010 (Serb. Uredba on the nomenclature of
statistical territorial units), three levels of statistical territorial
units are distinguished within Serbia: the NSTJ level 1 - Serbia-North
and Serbia -South level HCTJ 2 - within Serbia-North: Belgrade region
and Vojvodina region, within Serbia-South - regions of Šumadija and
Western Serbia, Eastern and Southern Serbia, Kosovo and Metohija. level
NSTJ 3 - administrative regions (total within Serbia - 29 with Kosovo
and Metohija, 24 without them).
These regions are formed as
statistical units in order to collect information for the Republican
Bureau of Statistics and for local governments.
Counties and
local government units
Along with this, the territory of Serbia is
divided into the territory of the city of Belgrade (Serb. Grad Beograd)
and 29 districts (Serb. Upravn okrug), which, in turn, are divided into
units of local government (Serb. unit of local self-government):
communities (Serb. opshtine) and urban settlements (Serbian gradovi).
Belgrade is a single unit of local government. Each district is headed
by a district head who is directly responsible to the Serbian
government.
On the territory of the Autonomous Province of
Vojvodina there are 7 districts - Sremsky, North Banatsky, South
Banatsky, Sredne-Banatsky, North Bachsky, West Bachsky, South Bachsky,
which include 45 units of local self-government.
On the territory
of Kosovo and Metohija there are 5 districts - Kosovo, Pech, Prizren,
Kosovo-Mitrovitsky, Kosovo-Pomoravsky, which include 29 local government
units.
There are 17 districts on the territory of central Serbia:
Bor, Branichevo, Zaecarsky, Zlatiborsky, Kolubarsky, Machvansky,
Moravichsky, Nishavsky, Pirotsky, Podunaisky, Pomoravsky, Pchinsky,
Rasinsky, Rashsky, Toplichsky, Šumadija, Yablanichsky districts, which
include 99 units of local self-government .
The representative
bodies of the communities are community meetings (Serb. Skupshtina
opshtine), the executive bodies are community councils (Serb. Opshtinsko
veje).
Cities
Serbia has 29 cities, 195 urban-type settlements
and 6158 villages and hamlets. According to the 17th article of the Law
on the Territorial Organization of the Republic of Serbia, the status of
a city has a settlement, which is the economic, administrative,
geographical and cultural center of a certain area and other settlements
located in it. All other large settlements are considered urban-type
settlements (Serb. gradsko nasee).
Prior to the adoption of this
law, when determining the status of a city, an administrative-legal
criterion based on population census data was used. This criterion,
introduced by the famous demographer Milos Matsura, divided the
country's settlements into three types - rural, mixed and urban. The
urban-type settlement was supposed to consist of 2000 inhabitants, 90%
of whom were not employed in agriculture.
The following
settlements have the official city status: Belgrade, Bor, Valjevo,
Vranje, Vrsac, Zajecar, Zrenjanin, Kikinda, Kragujevac, Kraljevo,
Krushevac, Leskovac, Loznica, Nis, Novi Pazar, Novi Sad, Pancevo, Pirot,
Pozarevac, Pristina, Prokuplje, Smederevo, Sombor, Sremska Mitrovica,
Subotica, Uzhice, Cacak, Šabac, Yagodina. Of these, Belgrade, Kragujevac
and Nis are divided into several municipalities, while the rest of the
cities are organized as a single area of local self-government.
According to the Law on the Territorial Organization of the Republic of
Serbia, the status of a city belongs to a locality, which is the
economic, administrative, geographical and cultural center of a certain
region and other localities located in it. The representative body of
the city is the city assembly (city council), elected by the population,
the executive bodies of the city are the city council (city council),
headed by the mayor (city governor), and consisting of politicians,
elected by the city assembly, and the city council (city council), made
up of professional officials elected by the city assembly
The population of Serbia according to the results of the census held
in October 2011 is 7,186,862 people, in 2002 this figure was 7,498,001
people. By regions of Serbia, the population is distributed as follows:
Serbia-North - 3556 thousand people, including the Belgrade region 1639
thousand people, the Vojvodina region - 1917 thousand people.
Serbia-South - 3565 thousand people, including Šumadija and Western
Serbia - 2013 thousand people, Southern and Eastern Serbia - 1551
thousand people. The Serbian population figures do not include the
population of Kosovo and Metohija and the Albanians of southern Serbia,
who boycotted the census. Serbia has been in an acute demographic crisis
since the early 1990s, when the death rate continuously exceeded the
birth rate (the death rate for 2011 exceeds the birth rate - 14.2 and
9.3, respectively). Serbia has one of the most negative population
growth rates in the world, ranking 225 out of 233 countries. The total
fertility rate of 1.44 children per mother is one of the lowest in the
world.
In the self-proclaimed "Republic of Kosovo", the census
was conducted in the summer of 2011, the population was determined at
1,733,872 people. The majority of the population of the self-proclaimed
Kosovo are Albanians, the second largest ethnic group is the Serbs. The
north of Kosovo did not correspond with some estimates of about 68,000
people living there, most of them Serbs.
According to some
estimates, about 300,000 people left Serbia in the 1990s, about 20% of
them with higher education. Due to the low birth rate and the emigration
of young people, the country is among the ten countries in the world
with the highest average age of the population.
Serbs are the largest ethnic group in Serbia, accounting for 83% of
the total population, excluding Kosovo and Metohija. The second largest
ethnic group are Hungarians - 3.9% in all of Serbia and 14.3% of the
population in Vojvodina. Other minorities include Bosniaks, Gypsies,
Albanians, Bulgarians, Montenegrins, Macedonians, Slovaks, Rusyns,
Vlachs, Romanians. Serbia also has a significant Chinese diaspora.
Serbia has the largest number of refugees in Europe. Their share in
the country's population ranges from 7% to 7.5%. Hundreds of thousands
of refugees during the breakup of Yugoslavia arrived in Serbia from
Croatia and the former Serbian Krajina, from Bosnia and Herzegovina and
Kosovo and Metohija. All these migrations significantly changed the
ethnic composition of the country.
According to the 2011 census,
there were 1,135,393 representatives of national minorities living in
Serbia (excluding Kosovo and Metohija).
The official language of the country is Serbian in Cyrillic. It has national status. Along with it, 12 more languages are also officially used at the regional and local levels. In the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina since 2002, five languages can be officially used along with Serbian: Hungarian, Slovak, Croatian, Romanian and Ruthenian. In Kosovo and Metohija, the Albanian one also has the status of a regional one. As for the local level (community), a non-Serbian language receives official status there if the proportion of its speakers reaches a certain indicator. For example, in Vojvodina, a minority language receives official status throughout the community if representatives of this minority make up at least 15% of its population. As a result, Hungarian has official status in 30 municipalities of Vojvodina, Slovak in 13, Romanian in 9, Ruthenian in 8, Croatian in 3, Czech in 1. In Central Serbia, almost all communities use only Serbian. Only in certain communities of Central Serbia do other languages also have official status: Bulgarian in Bosilegrad and Dimitrovgrad, Albanian in three communities bordering Kosovo, Bosnian in several communities of the historical region of Sandjak. In addition, according to the European Charter for Regional Languages ratified by Serbia, the Ukrainian language received official status.
Serbia is a secular state. The Constitution and laws of Serbia
guarantee freedom of religion. The 2006 law divides all religious
organizations into two categories: "traditional churches and religious
associations" (Serbian Orthodox Church, Roman Catholic Church, Slovak
Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession, Reformed Christian
Church, Evangelical Christian Church, Jewish and Islamic religious
communities) and "confessional associations" (16 organizations).
The difference is that traditional churches and religious associations,
unlike confessional associations, have the right to organize religious
education in schools. In addition, the 2006 law prohibited the
registration of a religious organization if its name is identical to the
name of a religious organization already registered in the register or
the name of an organization that is being registered. In addition, there
are other problems. For example, the existence of two Muslim communities
in Serbia and their tense relations with each other, the issue of church
property nationalized during the years of the SFRY, and sporadic attacks
on representatives and objects of small religious communities. In
1945-1946, the Yugoslav authorities nationalized most of the property of
churches and monasteries and constitutionally separated church from
state. At the same time, the Macedonian Church achieved independence
from the Serbian Orthodox Church.
According to the 2011 census,
the religious composition of the population of Serbia, excluding Kosovo,
is as follows:
Orthodox - 6,079,396 (84.59% of the population),
Catholics - 356,957 people. (4.97% of the population),
Muslims -
222,828 people. (3.1%),
Protestants - 71,284 people. (0.99% of the
population).
Also among the population of Serbia there are
adherents of Judaism, other religions and agnostics. During the 2011
census, 220,735 people did not wish to indicate their religion, and
another 80,053 people reported that they were atheists. The religious
affiliation of 99,714 people could not be established during the census.
The wars in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina caused massive
waves of Serbian refugees from these countries. In 1994, there were more
than 180,000 refugees and displaced persons from Croatia in the
territory of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In 1995, after the
destruction of the Serbian Krajina, between 230,000 and 250,000 Serbs
became refugees. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia received them on its
territory. 12,000 people were sent to Kosovo, 60,000 settled in
Vojvodina, 180,000 settled in Central Serbia. At the same time, 25,000
of them were in collective refugee camps. The influx of refugees created
an extremely tense humanitarian situation in Yugoslavia. A difficult
question arose about their status. The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina
also caused a significant influx of Serbian refugees into Yugoslavia.
The actions of the Kosovo Liberation Army and the bombing of NATO
aircraft during the Kosovo War forced the majority of the non-Albanian
population to leave Kosovo and Metohija. Up to 790,000 Albanians also
fled the region to escape the bombardments. Most of them went to Albania
or Macedonia, but some found refuge in Serbia and Montenegro. In 2000,
more than 200,000 people left the region in Yugoslavia. In 2001, a
census of refugees was carried out. In total, there were 451,980 of them
in the country, of which 63% were from Croatia, the rest from Bosnia and
Herzegovina. In the same year, there were 408 collective centers in
Serbia, housing 20,949 refugees from Croatia and BiH and 9,107 IDPs from
Kosovo and Metohija. About 10,000 more were in unregistered collective
centers. The rest of the refugees and IDPs rented accommodation or
stayed with relatives or friends.
From the moment they arrived in
Serbian territory, many refugees received citizenship or, after some
time, returned to Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, in 2012
there were 97,000 refugees from Croatia and Bosnia and 236,000
internally displaced persons from Kosovo. In 2011, there were 60
collective centers in the country, where 4,700 refugees and IDPs were
accommodated. Thus, Serbia remains the first country in Europe and is
among the top five countries in the world with the greatest refugee
problems.
Advantages: in 2000-2001. foreign financial aid and investment
resumed. The economic potential of the Danube.
Weaknesses: severe
consequences of UN sanctions and NATO bombings in 1999. Small hard
currency reserve. Outflow of qualified specialists. Corruption.
The Serbian economy is in transition. Despite the dominance of the
market sector, the public sector still has a large share in the economy.
The economy relies on manufacturing and exports and relies heavily on
large foreign investment. A significant share of the economy is
agriculture, industry and services. At the turn of the 80-90s of the XX
century, the state was favorable. The collapse of Yugoslavia, the loss
of trade ties with the Comecon and within the former Yugoslavia, a long
period of international economic sanctions, NATO bombing in 1999 pushed
the economy back to the level of 1945.
Serbia has carried out
some trade liberalization, enterprise restructuring and privatization,
however, many large enterprises, including those in the electric power
industry, telecommunications companies, gas company, national air
carrier and others remain state-owned. The structural economic reforms
needed to ensure the country's long-term prosperity have largely stalled
since the onset of the global financial crisis. Serbia, however, is
gradually recovering from its effects. Economic growth in 2011 was 2.0%,
after a modest 1.0% growth in 2010 and a contraction of 3.5% in 2009. In
2010, the Cvetkovic government adopted an economic development plan that
calls for a quadrupling of exports within ten years and heavy investment
in basic infrastructure.
The serious problems of the Serbian
economy are the inefficiency of the judiciary, the high level of
corruption and the aging of the population. At the same time, there are
favorable conditions for economic growth - a strategic location, a
relatively inexpensive and skilled labor force, free trade agreements
with the European Union, Russia and Turkey, as well as favorable
investment conditions. From January 1, 2021, the minimum wage (gross) is
from 39,370.61 din. (€335.03) up to 45,667.79 din. (€388.61) depending
on the month. From January 1, 2021, the minimum wage (net) is from
29,428.80 din. (€250.43) up to 33,843.12 din. (€287.99). From January 1,
2022, the minimum wage (gross) is from 43,174.32 din. (€367.13) up to
50,063.45 din. (€425.71) depending on the month. From January 1, 2022,
the minimum wage (net) is from 32,195.20 din. (€273.77) up to 37,024.48
din. (€314.83). As of December 2021, the average wage in Serbia is
102,196 din. (€868.78 gross) and 74629 din. (€634.27 net) per month.
The currency of Serbia is the Serbian dinar. 1 Serbian dinar is
equal to 100 par. In Kosovo and Metohija, in the territory controlled by
the Albanian authorities of the Republic of Kosovo, the euro is used.
Despite international sanctions and hostilities in the territory of
the former Yugoslavia, tourism in Serbia has developed dynamically.
Between 1990 and 2000 it grew by 50%, and total revenues by 80%. This
stimulated the further expansion of the tourism industry and the search
for investments abroad.
The modern strategy for the development
of tourism in Serbia provides for a selective approach. First of all, as
the most promising, she highlights rural tourism, within which there are
tourist villages in the mountains. They, in turn, offer healthy and
environmentally friendly food, outdoor activities, ethnic villages, etc.
Since 2000, a new stage has begun in the tourism sector in Serbia,
characterized by an increase in the flow of tourists, both domestic and
from abroad. A feature of Serbia is a relatively small number of
citizens traveling abroad for tourism purposes. For example, in 2012,
the outbound tourist flow in Serbia amounted to 631 thousand people. By
European standards, this is very small. For example, in Slovakia, a
country with a smaller population, in 2012 the outbound tourist flow
amounted to 3017 thousand people.
Serbian transport suffered significant damage from international
sanctions against Yugoslavia and the NATO bombing of the country in
1999. However, it quickly recovered after a few years, the needs of the
economy affected.
The transport infrastructure is represented by
developed road, rail, air and river transport.
Direct rail links
to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, North
Macedonia and Montenegro. Indirect with Italy, Greece, Turkey, Germany,
Switzerland, Slovenia, Russia, Austria, Albania and Ukraine. The
modernization of the railways has become one of the priorities of the
Serbian government. For these purposes, the country has taken several
loans. Part of the funds was spent on updating the train fleet.
The most significant highways are: E65 (Bielo Polje - Skopje), E70
(Slavonski Brod - Timisoara), E75 (Subotica - Kumanovo), E662 (Subotica
- Osijek), E761 (Sarajevo - Zajecar), E763 (Belgrade - Bijelo Polje ),
E771, E885 (from Albania to Pristina). There are also other major roads
in the country: A1 (Batrovci - Sremska Mitrovica - Belgrade - Nis -
Leskovac), A2 (Belgrade - Nis), A3 (Nis - Pirot - border with Bulgaria).
Several modern highways are currently under construction. It is also
planned to expand and update existing ones. The Serbian government has
repeatedly stated that the developed infrastructure was one of the
priorities of the Cabinet of Ministers of Mirko Cvetkovic.
There
is also water transport in the country, carrying out transportation
mainly along the Danube and Sava rivers. Ports on the Danube: Belgrade,
Novi Sad, Pancevo, Smederevo. Ports on the Sava: Šabac.
The
capital region has a developed air service. The main and largest airport
in the country is Nikola Tesla Belgrade International Airport. The
largest national airline is Air Serbia.
As of 2010, 1,567,113
cars, 38,229 motorcycles, 8,034 buses, 162,799 trucks, 23,552 special
vehicles (2009 data), 239,295 tractors and 99,025 trailers are
registered in Serbia.
The country has enterprises in the automotive, chemical, electronic, textile, food, woodworking, and mechanical engineering industries.
Most of the energy in Serbia is produced by thermal power plants and
hydroelectric power plants (about 25.4%). CHP plants in Serbia run on
coal. The largest of these is the Nikola Tesla CHPP with 14 units, most
of which are located near the town of Obrenovac, southwest of Belgrade.
This CHPP makes up one third of the total potential of the "Electricity
of Serbia" and is the largest in South-Eastern Europe.
The main
producer of oil and gas is the Oil Industry of Serbia, most of whose
shares are owned by the Russian OJSC Gazprom Neft. NIS and Gazprom Neft,
together with the Serbian government, planned the construction of the
Serbian section of the South Stream gas pipeline. However, the pipeline
project was later closed. Joint efforts of Russian and Serbian companies
created the Banatski Dvor gas storage facility, located 60 kilometers
northeast of Novi Sad. It has become one of the largest gas storage
facilities in Southeast Europe.
According to paragraph 267 of the
Serbian Criminal Code, the construction of nuclear power plants is
prohibited on its territory. Serbia became the sixth country in the
world to remove enriched uranium from its territory.
Agriculture is an important part of the Serbian economy with an
annual export potential of 12 billion euros. The total area of
agricultural land exceeds 6.12 million hectares. Agricultural
production is most established in northern Serbia on the fertile Middle
Danube lowland and in the southern valleys adjacent to the Sava, Danube
and Morava rivers. A sharp decline in the scale of agricultural activity
has been observed since 1948, when almost three-quarters of the
country's population was employed in agriculture, while at present it is
only one-quarter.
Serbia produces various agricultural products:
mainly cereals, fruits and vegetables. All this makes up a significant
part of GDP and exports. The country is the world's second largest
producer of raspberries (84,299 metric tons, topped by Russia) and plums
(146,776 metric tons, topped by China). The country is also a major
producer of corn (6,158,120 metric tons, 32nd in the world) and wheat
(2,095,400 metric tons, 35th in the world). The cultivation of sugar
beets (2,299,770 metric tons) and sunflower seeds (454,282 metric tons)
satisfies domestic demand for sugar and vegetable oil, with the surplus
being exported: about 180,000 tons of sugar are supplied to the European
Union.
The national currency of Serbia is the Serbian dinar. 1 Serbian dinar
is formally equal to 100 pairs, coins or banknotes denominated in pairs
are not currently issued. There are coins in denominations of 1, 2, 5,
10 and 20 dinars; banknotes - 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000 and
5000 dinars.
The design of the Serbian dinars is identical to the
design of the Yugoslav dinars of the 2000-2002 model. Serbia currently
has a floating exchange rate regime. The criterion for the effectiveness
of the exchange rate policy (the exchange rate anchor) is inflation
indicators.
As of 2014, the main foreign trade partners of Serbia were the
European Union and Russia. The volume of foreign trade for 2014 is 35452
million dollars. Geographic distribution of Serbia's foreign trade (as
of 2014):
EU countries - 64% (22592 million dollars);
Russia -
9.5% (3369 million dollars);
China - 4.4% ($1,575 million);
Turkey
- 2.3% ($821 million);
Americas - 2.5% ($872 million);
African
countries - 0.9% ($309 million).
Connection
Fixed telephony throughout the country (including
Kosovo at least north of Ibra) is provided by Telekom Srbija. Its
division mt: s (Mobilna telefonija Srbije, which has nothing to do with
Russian Mobile TeleSystems) is responsible for mobile communications
along with the Norwegian operator Telenor and the Slovak Vip. Anyone can
anonymously and absolutely legally buy a SIM card at a newsstand.
Mail
Public postage was introduced in Serbia in 1840. The first
postage stamp was printed in 1866. In 1874, together with 21 other
countries, the Universal Postal Union was founded. Currently, postal
functions are performed by the Serbian Post. It was founded in 1990 as
the Srbija State Communications Enterprise and is currently the largest
infrastructure and logistics network in the country.
Internet
Dial-up was the only way to access the Internet until the early 2000s,
when several ISPs began providing wireless access through unlicensed
equipment. The necessary equipment for access was too expensive for most
people (about 200 euros), so this connection method became popular only
in some urban areas. The situation changed only in 2002, when Serbia
Broadband offered subscribers access to cable Internet at a speed of 128
kbps. Not earlier than in 2005 Telekom Srbija offered ADSL access
services.
In Serbia, Internet access services are provided by
several companies. The national TLD of Serbia is .rs. In 2010, the
number of Internet users per 100 inhabitants was 40 people. According to
studies conducted in 2011, two million people in the country, 99.5% of
students and 99% of businesses have regular access to the Internet.
Education in Serbia is regulated by the Ministry of Science and
Education. The education process begins either in pre-schools or in
primary schools. Children enter primary school at the age of seven and
study there for eight years. After that, it is possible to either attend
school for another four years, or study at a special school for 2 to 4
years, or enter a vocational school for studies for a period of 2 to 3
years. After graduating from high school or a special school, students
can enter universities.
The largest universities in Serbia:
Belgrade University
Kragujevac University
Nis University
Novi
Sad University
University of Pristina
Novi Pazar University
The University of Belgrade is the oldest and currently the largest
university in Serbia. Founded in 1808, it has 31 faculties and has
produced about 330,000 graduates since its inception. The universities
of Novisad (founded in 1960), Kragujevac (founded in 1976) and Nis
(founded in 1965) also have a significant number of teachers and
graduates.
According to the law, education is publicly available
on equal terms. Representatives of national minorities have the right to
education in their native language.
Conditions for the
development of science and education in Serbia did not exist during the
Ottoman rule. The first attempt at national education was the Great
School in 1808, which supported the Serbs in Austria. Only in the period
1835-1878 leads to the institutionalization of education. A large school
was opened in 1863 and was converted into a university. The
establishment of the National Museum in 1844 and the Society of Serbian
Letters in 1841, which developed into the Serbian Academy of Sciences
and Arts, provided the conditions for an organized teaching practice.
Many young and talented Serbs during this period were educated
abroad at the expense of the state in order to get experts for further
development. In Austria, the Serbs organized the Serbian Matica in 1826,
as well as their own cultural institution. He later moved his
headquarters from Budapest to Novi Sad. The situation in Austria was
much more favorable for the development of Serbian education and
science.
Famous scientists from Serbia: naturalist Josif Pancic,
geographer Jovan Cvijch, mathematician Mihailo Petrovich, astronomer
Milyutin Milankovic, chemist Pavle Savic. In addition, some Serbian
scientists worked while immigrating and gained worldwide recognition in
other countries: physicist Mihailo Pupin (USA) and inventor Nikola Tesla
(USA).
The emergence of Serbian writing is associated with the activities of
Cyril and Methodius. The first monuments of Serbian literature date back
to the 11th century, they are written in the Glagolitic alphabet.
Already in the XII century, texts written in Cyrillic appeared. In the
same period, the oldest known book in the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet was
written - the "Gospel" of the Zakhum prince Miroslav. It is the most
ancient and beautifully illustrated Serbian book during the Middle Ages.
During the Turkish rule, lyrical and epic literature spread among
the Serbs.
In the 17th century, baroque trends appeared in
Serbian literature. Under his influence, Andrija Zmaevich, Gavril
Stefanovich Venclovic, Jovan Rajic, Zacharie Orfelin and others worked.
Dositej Obradovic was the most prominent figure of the Enlightenment,
and Jovan Steria Popovich became the most famous representative of
classicism, although there were elements of romanticism in his work.
A significant role in the formation of Serbian literature and in the
development of early romanticism was played by the Montenegrin
Prince-Metropolitan Peter II Petrovich. The main theme of his poems was
the struggle of Montenegrins and Serbs against the Ottoman Turks, and
his dramatic poem "Mountain Crown" preached the idea of uniting the
southern Slavs.
During the national revival in the first half of
the 19th century, Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic translated the New Testament
into the Serbian vernacular and reformed the Serbian language and
orthography. This laid the foundations for the Serbian literature of the
New Age. Famous Serbian authors of the 19th century: Branko Radicevic,
Petar Petrovich Negosh, Laza Kostic, Djura Jaksic and Jovan Zmaj. The
20th century in Serbian literature was marked by such names as Ivo
Andric, Isidora Sekulich, Milos Crnyansky, Mesha Selimovic, Dobrica
Chosic, Danilo Kish, Alexander Tishma. Among the famous poets were:
Milan Rakic, Jovan Ducic, Desanka Maksimovic, Miodrag Pavlovic, Miroslav
Antic, Branko Milkovic and Vasko Popa.
At the end of the 20th and
at the beginning of the 21st century, the most famous authors were David
Albahari, Milorad Pavic, Momo Kapor, Nebojsa Evrich, Goran Petrovich,
Svetlana Velmar-Jankovic, Svetislav Basara.
The earliest composer whose compositions were intended for
performance at Orthodox services and have survived to this day is Cyrus
Stefan Serb (1350 (?)-1430 (?)). His works are written in the late
calophonic style.
Serbia has a long tradition of folklore and
folk music. Dances under the name of Kolo are the most popular form of
folklore in Serbia and differ from region to region. The most popular
folk cola are užičko and moravac. The most important Serbian composer of
musical art was Stevan Stojanovic Mokranjac (1856–1914). He was a
musicologist and collector of folk music and director of the first music
school in Serbia. His most famous piece of music is the choral songs of
the Rukovet.
Other well-known Serbian composers are Kornely
Stankovic, Stevan Hristich, Stanislav Binichki.
In the 19th
century and earlier, gusle and pipe were typical folk instruments, while
dombra and bagpipes are used in Vojvodina. Later, the accordion and
violin became the main instruments in the newly composed folk music,
which remain so to this day.
In 1910, the first feature film about the Serbian national hero
Karageorgi was shot. After the end of the Second World War, several film
studios were created in Yugoslavia, which began to shoot feature films.
Initially, this was done in cooperation with Soviet film studios, but
then films began to be made independently. After the animation studio
was established in Zagreb in 1956, Yugoslavia soon became a recognized
leader in the field of animated films.
Joakim Vujic is the
founder of modern Serbian theatre. He founded the Princely Serbian
Theater in Kragujevac in 1835. Notable Serbian playwriters were Jovan
Sterija Popović and Branislav Nušić. Since 1967 Belgrade has hosted the
BITEF International Contemporary Theater Festival. Traditionally, the
best theater scenes in Serbia are the National Theater in Belgrade,
Atelier 212, the Yugoslav Drama Theater and the National Theater of
Serbia in the city of Novi Sad.
Freedom of the press and freedom of speech are guaranteed by the
Constitution of Serbia. The country ranks 54th in a list of 180
countries published in 2014 by Reporters Without Borders. According to
him, the Serbian media and journalists themselves still face some
government pressure on editorial policy. Serbian media are also
characterized by high dependence on state support and advertising
contracts.
According to research conducted in 2009 by AGB Nielsen
Media Research, Serbians spend an average of 5 hours a day watching TV,
which is the highest among European countries.
In 2022, the most
popular websites among the Serbian Internet audience were Google,
Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, Wikipedia, the websites of the Blitz
newspaper, the B92 radio and the Kurir newspaper, as well as the
KupujemProdajem classifieds website.
There are 5 names on the UNESCO World Heritage List in Serbia, which
is 0.3% of the total (1154 in 2021). All objects are included in the
list according to cultural criteria, and 2 of them are recognized as
masterpieces of human genius (criterion i). In addition, as of 2014, 11
sites in Serbia are among the candidates for inclusion in the World
Heritage List.
The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ratified the
Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage
on 11 September 2001. However, the first object located on the territory
of Serbia was included in the list back in 1979 at the 3rd session of
the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, when the country was part of the
SFRY. The cultural site Orthodox Monasteries in Kosovo, as of 2010, is
included in the list of World Heritage in Danger due to possible attacks
by Kosovo Albanians. All four monasteries and temples within this
heritage site are protected by KFOR.
1979 - the town of Stari Ras,
the monastery of Sopochany and the Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and
Paul (Stari Ras)
1986 - Studenica Monastery
2004-2006 – Vysoki
Dečany Monastery, Gracanitsa Monastery, Patriarchate of Peć and the
Church of Our Lady Levishka
2007 - Galerius Palace
"Gamzigrad-Romuliana"
2016 - Medieval graves ("stechki")
The largest and most famous festivals and cultural events taking
place in Serbia are:
Belgrade Book Fair
"Vukov Sabor"
Belgrade
International Theater Festival
Gucha Trumpet Festival
EXIT is an
annual music festival held in Novi Sad on the territory of the
Petrovaradin Fortress.
The most popular sports in Serbia are football, basketball,
volleyball, handball, water polo and tennis. In 2009, Belgrade hosted
the Summer Universiade, and the Belgrade Marathon is the largest
sporting event in the country. For the first time, the Serbian national
team appeared at the Olympic Games in 1912. After that, Serbian athletes
were part of the national team of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and
Slovenes, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the SFRY, the FRY. The results of
the national teams of "small Yugoslavia" are now attributed to the
achievements of the Serbian sports unions. In 2006, Serbian athletes
became representatives of the now independent country. For the first
time in this status, they performed at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Basketball is one of the most popular sports in Serbia. Serbia has
hosted the finals of the European Basketball Championship three times.
Basketball players "Partizan" in 1992 became the winners of the
Euroleague. Serbian basketball clubs take an active part in the Adriatic
League. Several Serbian basketball players have been recognized as the
best in Europe: Drazen Dalipagic, Dragan Kichanovic, Vlade Divac,
Aleksandar Djordjevic, Predrag Danilovic, Predrag Stojakovic and Milos
Teodosic.
Tennis in Serbia has become popular and widespread
thanks to such people as Novak Djokovic, Ana Ivanovic, Jelena Jankovic
and others. Djokovic won 20 Grand Slam singles tournaments, including
nine times the Australian Open.
Volleyball is also popular in
Serbia, the modern Serbian team is the direct heir to the SFRY team. In
2005, Serbia, together with Italy, hosted the European Championship, and
in 2007 and 2013 at the European Championship, the Serbian team won a
bronze medal. In 2011 she won the European Championship.
The
men's water polo team is traditionally strong. This sport was brought to
the country at the beginning of the 20th century by students studying at
the universities of Germany and Austria-Hungary. The Yugoslav national
team repeatedly achieved brilliant results, and after the collapse of
the country, the Serbian national team continued its traditions. In
2009, she won the World Championship, in 2006, 2012, and 2014 she won
the European Championship, in 2008 she took second place, and won a
bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Famous water polo
players: Igor Milanovich, Aleksandar Shoshtar, Vladimir Vuyasinovich,
Aleksandar Shapic and Vanya Udovichich.
Other popular Serbian
athletes: Milorad Cavic and Najja Higl (swimming), who won gold medals
at the 2009 World Aquatics Championships, Olivera Jevtic and Dragutin
Topić (athletics), Aleksandar Karakashevich (table tennis), Jasna
Sekarić (shooting).
January 1 and 2 New Year
January 5 Tutsindan
January 7
Christmas
January 14 Orthodox New Year Working Day
January 27 St.
Sava's Day Schoolchildren do not study on this day
February 15
Statehood Day Serbian Army Day
Passing date Maundy Monday
Rolling
date Good Friday
Passover date
May 1 and 2 Labor Day
May 9
Victory Day (World War II VE day)
June 28 Vidovdan
October 21 Day
of Remembrance for the Victims of World War II
November 11 World War
I Armistice Day