Bosnia and Herzegovina History, Geography, Economy and Important Events

The country has a rich but complex history, first inhabited by South Slavic peoples who today populate the area from the 6th to 9th centuries. The 12th-century ban of Bosnia was established, which developed into the Kingdom of Bosnia in the 14th century, after which it was merged into the Ottoman Empire, under whose rule it was from the mid-15th century to the 19th century. Ottomans brought Islam to the region, and greatly changed the cultural and social outlook of the country. It was then merged into the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, which lasted until World War I. Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the interwar period, was part of the empire of Yugoslavia and after World War II, it was granted full republic status in the new constituted Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. After the dissolution of Yugoslavia, in 1992 the Republic declared independence.

Bosnia is in the Western Balkans, bordering Croatia (932 km) to the north and west, Serbia (302 km) to the east and Montenegro (225 km) to the southeast. Neem is around 20 km long around the city. The name of the country comes from two alleged regions Bosnia and Herzegovina whose border was never defined. Historically, Bosnia's official name did not include any of its many territories until the annexation of Austria-Hungary.

The war in the 1990s caused a dramatic change in the Bosnian economy. GDP fell to 60% and the destruction of physical infrastructure devastated the economy. Despite a lot of production capacity being unrestricted, the Bosnian economy still faces considerable difficulties. Statistics show that GDP and per capita income have risen by 10% from 2003 to 2004 and Bosnia's shrinking national debt has a negative trend and high unemployment at 38.7% and a large trade deficit remains a cause for concern.

The constitution of Bosnia does not specify any official language. However, academics Hilary Footit and Michael Kelly have stated in the Dayton Agreement that it has been done in "Bosnian, Croatian, English and Serbian", and they describe it as "the de facto recognition of the three official languages" at the state level .