I.

Introduction

Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnian Bosna i Hercegovina), country in southeastern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Formerly a constituent republic of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina declared its independence in March 1992. War then broke out among Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims), Croats, and Serbs in the country (see Wars of Yugoslav Succession). At the end of the war, in 1995, Serbs controlled 49 percent of the country’s territory, comprising an area known as the Serb Republic (Republika Srpska). The remaining territory, officially known as the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Federacija Bosna i Hercegovina), was controlled by a federation of Bosniaks and Croats. Today, the Bosniak-Croat federation and the Serb Republic together constitute the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In reality, since the war the country has remained divided three ways—among the Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs—despite international attempts to unite it.

In the 14th century the principality of Bosnia joined with a duchy to the south that would eventually be called Herzegovina as part of a short-lived medieval kingdom. The modern-day country of Bosnia and Herzegovina, often referred to simply as Bosnia, is still divided geographically into a northern region of Bosnia and a southern region of Herzegovina. The republic is bounded on the north and west by Croatia and on the east by the republics of Serbia and Montenegro. Bosnia also has 20 km (12 mi) of coastline along the Adriatic Sea, wedged between Croatian territories. The capital and largest city is Sarajevo.