Serbia

Full name of country: Republic of Serbia

Region: Europe

Official language: Serbian

Population: 6,652,212 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Serb(s) (noun), Serbian (adjective)

Land area: 77,474 sq km (29,913 sq miles)

Capital: Belgrade (Beograd)

National anthem: "Boze pravde" (God of Justice), by Jovan Dordevic/Davorin Jenko

National holiday: National Day, February 15

Population growth: -0.61% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +1

Flag: Serbia's flag features a tricolor of pan-Slavic colors—red (top), blue (middle), and white (bottom), emblazoned with the coat of arms of Serbia slightly left of center. The coat of arms features a two-headed eagle holding a red shield underneath a bejeweled crown.

Independence: June 5, 2006 (from Serbia and Montenegro)

Government type: parliamentary republic

Suffrage: Universal for those eighteen years of age (those who are between sixteen and eighteen and are employed are allowed to vote as well)

Legal system: civil law

Located in Eastern Europe's Balkan Peninsula, Serbia is a country that has evolved out of various earlier political entities. It was part of the former Yugoslavia, which began to break up into smaller states in the late 1980s, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), which became an independent nation in 1992. In a 2003 Constitutional Charter, the FRY was renamed Serbia and Montenegro in recognition of the union between the two states, which shared defense responsibilities but had their own currencies and capitals. A referendum in 2006 declared Montenegro and Serbia separate countries once again. Serbia established a new constitution in 2006.

Like other Balkan states, Serbia has faced considerable ethnic tension and violence. During the 1990s, the persecution of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo and the human rights abuses of former Serbian president Slobodan Milošević led to a United Nations intervention and an extensive bombing campaign of the region. In 2008 Kosovo declared its independence, which Serbia initially refused to recognize. However, the Serbian government eventually began taking steps to normalize relations and make other reforms with the goal of joining the European Union (EU).

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: Most of the population of Serbia are ethnic Serbs (83.3 percent). Hungarians (3.5 percent) and Bosniaks (2 percent) are among the minorities in the country, along with Romani, who officially make up 2.1 percent of the population but are often undercounted and may in fact account for 5–11 percent. About 3.4 percent of the population's ethnicity is undeclared or unknown, especially as most who identified as ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census these figures derive from.

According to the 2011 census, the majority of citizens belong to the Serbian Orthodox Church (84.6 percent). Around 5 percent are Roman Catholic, 3.1 percent are Sunni or Shiite Muslims, and 1 percent belong to various Protestant denominations. About 1.1 percent of the population identifies as atheist, 0.8 percent follow other religions, and 4.5 percent are of undeclared or unknown religious belief.

Serbian is the language most commonly spoken in the country. Because Serbia was rapidly industrialized during the second half of the twentieth century, a little over half of its population is urban.

Serbia's HDI value for 2022 is 0.805— which put the country in the Very High human development category—positioning it at 65 out of 193 countries and territories.

Indigenous People: Like many Balkan nations, Serbia includes territory that has historically been home to a diverse range of ethnic groups. The Slavic tribe known as the Serbs settled in the region in the sixth and seventh centuries, and today make up the majority of Serbia's population. Minority groups with roots in the area include Hungarians, Bulgarians, Romanians, Albanians, and Bosniaks, or Bosnian Muslims. Because they were persecuted by Milosevic's forces, many Albanians and Muslims fled Serbia during the civil war to neighboring countries. There is also a long-established Romani (Roma) population in the region.

Education: Serbia has a literacy rate of about 99.5 percent (2019 estimate), and students must attend eight years of primary school. Participation in a preschool program became mandatory in 2006.

Instruction is carried out in the Serbian language. Ethnic groups like the Romani have been underserved in education, while refugees, children with disabilities, and displaced persons are often excluded from the educational system.

Lower secondary education lasts for four years and can take place at a grammar, vocational, or art school. Students generally attend secondary school between the ages of fifteen and nineteen, and receive a certificate upon graduation. The Ministry of Education, Science, and Technological Development supervises school curricula.

Students may continue on to higher education, and pursue either a university or non-university program. Universities in Serbia include the University of Belgrade and the University of Nis.

Health Care: Since gaining independence, Serbia has attempted to reform its health system. The disorder and economic collapse of the 1990s, coupled with an outdated socialist health care system, created public health challenges. One area of focus has been the health of children and women, including the need for better vaccination programs and early childhood care. The country has successfully eradicated polio.

In addition to improving primary care, the nation has also strived to restructure its hospitals and human resources system. In Serbia, the Ministry of Health oversees public health and administers the National Health Insurance Fund.

Food: The food in Serbia reflects the country's Balkan and Slavic heritage. Soups made from vegetables like cabbage, as well as meat stew, are common meals in the region. Meats are often smoked, grilled, or minced. Vegetables like peppers and cabbage are frequently stuffed with rice or meat, and pickled vegetables are common. Fish is often grilled or prepared in chowder.

Sweets and desserts include strudel and pancakes with nuts and fruit. There are a number of domestic beers, or piva, brewed in the country, and wine and brandy are also popular alcoholic beverages. A plum brandy known as slivovitz is the country's national drink. In some parts of the country, tap water is not treated and can be harmful to drink.

Arts & Entertainment: Serbia has made some important contributions to art, literature, music and film, and boasts a vibrant artistic community. Music known as turbofolk is popular in the country's clubs; it is a mixture of traditional folk music and modern rock. Western-style rock, punk, and hip-hop music have made great inroads in Serbian culture.

Serbian writers of note include Nobel Prize–winning author Ivo Andric, who wrote the 1945 novel The Bridge on the Drina. Other recognized authors include Dobrica Cosic and Mileta Prodanovic. Famous Serbian poets include Vasko Popa, Jovan Ducic, and Desanka Maksimovic. Theater is also very popular in Serbia, and Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica has been recognized at the international Cannes Film Festival.

Favorite sports in the country include soccer, basketball, and gymnastics. Hunting and fishing are popular outdoor pastimes.

Holidays: In addition to celebrating Orthodox Christian holidays like Christmas and Easter, Serbia observes several national holidays. Serbia National Day is held on February 15. Constitution Day is observed throughout the nation on April 27.

May Day, a spring festival that occurs at the beginning of May and lasts for two days, often involves political rallies and speeches alongside the festivities. The holiday has also become associated with the labor movement, and labor demonstrations have taken place in Belgrade.

Environment and Geography

Topography: Serbia is in southeastern Europe, in the center of the Balkans region. Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia are adjacent to the west; Hungary is to the north; Romania and Bulgaria are eastward; and North Macedonia, Kosovo, and Albania are to the south.

Much of Serbia is mountainous, particularly in the western and central regions, and earthquakes are fairly common. Its two largest rivers are the Danube and the Sava. The highest hills in Serbia are the Fruska Gora Hills in the west, which reach an altitude of 540 meters (1,765 feet). The highest peak is Midžor, measuring 2,169 meters (7,116 feet) above sea level. Serbia's mountains fall within the Dinaric Alps and the Carpathian and Rhodope ranges. In the northeast, the Iron Gate Gorge reaches depths of 30 meters (90 feet), and is 100 kilometers (60 miles) long.

Natural Resources: Serbia is a mineral-rich country. Among its resources are coal, lead, zinc, nickel, gold, pyrite, and chrome. Copper and iron ore are found there in great quantities. Energy resources like oil and natural gas have been discovered in the country, but not in significant amounts.

Serbia has extensive air and water pollution in urban areas and along the Adriatic coast.

Plants & Animals: Serbia has extensive forests of oak and beech trees. Cypress forests can also be found in the south. While there is evidence that the region was once heavily forested, erosion and agriculture have changed the landscape considerably.

Animals that are commonly found in Serbia include bears, deer, martens, and wild pigs. The region is also home to predators like wolves and foxes. The region's many bird species include the pygmy cormorant (Phalacrocorax pygmeus), the ferruginous duck (Aythya nyroca), the long-legged buzzard (Buteo rufinus), and the endangered saker falcon (Falco cherrug).

Climate: Serbia experiences a seasonal continental climate, with cold winters and warm summers. The weather tends to be cooler and drier in the mountains, while the plains and valleys experience warmer and more humid conditions. In the southern regions, the average summer temperature reaches 22° Celsius (71° Fahrenheit), while the mountainous north has an average temperature of about 18° Celsius (64° Fahrenheit).

The late spring and autumn tend to be the rainiest times of year. During the winter, the country experiences an average of approximately forty days of snow in the lowlands; the mountains can receive three times as much snow.

Experts warned that ongoing climate change meant that Serbia, like other countries, faced increased temperatures as well as extreme weather events.

Economy

The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia faced serious economic problems beginning in 1998. These problems were due in part to high inflation, economic sanctions, and war. The country also faced difficulties in privatizing companies that had been socially owned during the years of communism. Foreign investment in Serbia continues to be slow, although economic reforms have helped to stabilize the currency. The country's gross domestic product (GDP) was US$162.213 billion in 2023. The GDP per capita was US$24,500 

Industry: Serbia is a highly industrialized country. Belgrade is the largest industrial center in Serbia.

Goods that are manufactured in the country include automobiles, automobile parts, and electronic equipment. Iron and steel, as well as textiles, are also produced in the country.

Serbia's most important trading partners are Russia, Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, China, and Germany.

Agriculture: Serbia has a long tradition of farming. Some of the major agricultural products of Serbia include cereal crops like maize and wheat, sugar beets, sunflowers, and potatoes.

Pigs and dairy cattle are also raised in Serbia. Some families in more remote villages engage in subsistence agriculture.

Tourism: In spite of the political turmoil and violence of the 1990s, tourism has been a growing industry in Serbia. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the travel and tourism sector represented 6.9 percent of total GDP and 7.3 percent of total employment in 2022.

Government

The region known today as Serbia has a long history of war and annexation. The area fell under the control of the Ottoman Turks in the Middle Ages, and in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries many ethnic Serbs migrated to land ruled by the Habsburg Empire, which battled the Ottomans for influence in the region. The nineteenth century saw the formation of the independent Kingdom of Serbia, which grew in the early twentieth century through the Balkan Wars. In 1914 Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by a Serbian radical named Gavrilo Princip, one of the events that incited World War I. Montenegro was also allied against Austria during World War I, and was later annexed by Serbia.

The Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes—dominated by ethnic Serbs—was formed in 1918 following World War I. (The Montenegrin population resisted Serbian control, and tensions culminated in the Christmas Uprising of 1919.) In 1929 the country's name was officially changed to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Other countries that were part of Yugoslavia included Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia, while Kosovo and Vojvodina were autonomous provinces in the country.

Yugoslavia was invaded by the Axis powers in World War II, and was liberated by the Allies in 1944. Serbia remained the most powerful part of Yugoslavia, and Serbians the dominant ethnic group. Serbia also embraced communism, and after World War II Yugoslavia became a communist country. Communist leader Josip Broz Tito ruled the country from 1945 until 1980.

When Tito died in 1980, separatists within the former countries of Yugoslavia began to demand independence, and nationalist feelings were strong. In 1989, Slobodan Milošević came to power in Kosovo and Vojvodina. Between 1991 and 1992, amid the outbreak of civil war, Yugoslavia broke apart into the separate nations of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY; made up of Serbia and Montenegro). Milošević remained powerful in the FRY, becoming president in 1997. He persecuted ethnic Albanians in the province of Kosovo who demanded independence and was accused of horrific human rights abuses and genocide during the ongoing Balkan conflicts. Milošević was voted from power in 2000 and later tried for war crimes.

With the authoritarian Milošević out of power, the FRY was officially renamed Serbia and Montenegro in 2003. However, the sociopolitical situation remained rocky. In 2006 Montenegro held a referendum on independence, in which over 55 percent of voters favored ending the union with Serbia. The Serbian government announced itself as the independent successor to Serbia and Montenegro in 2006, and a new constitution was created. Another, more controversial secession came in 2008, when Kosovo declared independence against strong objections from Serbia. An agreement to normalize relations between Serbia and Kosovo was signed in 2013.

Serbia's president is chief of state, while the prime minister is head of government. The executive branch also includes a cabinet, which is elected by Serbia's legislative branch, the unicameral National Assembly. The nation's judicial branch features a Supreme Court of Cassation and a Constitutional Court as the highest courts.

Employed citizens may begin voting at age sixteen, and suffrage is universal at eighteen years of age.

Interesting Facts

The word "Yugoslavia" means "Land of the South Slavs."

In 2016, archaeologists unearthed amulets that were found beside skeletons thousands of years old at the site of an ancient Roman city in Serbia. The amulets contained scrolls with writing on them that was studied extensively.

Serbia is among the world's top exporters of raspberries.

Ana Brnabic made history in 2017 by becoming Serbia's first female and first out gay prime minister.

In 2023 Serbian professional tennis player Novak Djokovic claimed the record for most Grand Slam titles won in men's singles with twenty-four.

Bibliography

Human Development Report 2021/2022. United Nations Development Programme 13 Mar 2024, hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2021-22pdf‗1.pdf. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.

"Serbia." The World Bank, data 2024.worldbank.org/country/serbia. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.

"Serbia." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/serbia/. Accessed 15 Jan. 2025.

"Serbia." World Health Organization, www.who.int/countries/srb/en/. Accessed 14 Nov. 2023.

Serbia: 2023 Annual Research: Key Highlights. World Travel and Tourism Council, 2023, assets-global.website-files.com/6329bc97af73223b575983ac/645a7569b39616ba157855fa‗Serbia2023‗.pdf. Accessed 14 Nov. 2023.