Country Basics
Croatia is slightly smaller than the U.S. state of West Virginia and has a population of four million people. It borders the countries of Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Slovenia. Its coastline along the Adriatic Sea stretches more than 1100 miles and amidst the water Croatia shares a maritime border with Italy.
Off the mainland, Croatia has more than a 1000 islands and islets but only 48 of them are inhabited. Overall, ten percent of the nation’s land is preserved including eight national parks.
One of the best-known national parks is one you’ll visit – Plitvice Lakes National Park. Its forested land includes 16 emerald lakes, limestone karsts and waterfalls. Outside the parks, the largest city in the country is its capital Zagreb.
Croatia has cemented itself as a tourist destination since the war in Yugoslavia. Amid growing tensions between Croats and Serbs, Croatia declared itself independent from Yugoslavia on June 25, 1991, the same day as Slovenia. After the declaration, the Croatian War of Independence and the Bosnian War unfolded.
During the Bosnian War, Croatia took in about 700,000 Bosnian refugees. Following the conflicts, tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs who had fled Croatia also returned. Today these groups live together peacefully in a nation with a constitutional parliamentary democracy.
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Language
Croatian is the official language of the country, called Hrvatski by the local people. Before the war ethnic groups in Yugoslavia were encouraged to use a common language, but after the split the differences between languages were emphasized.
The Croatian language, unlike Serbian, uses a Latin alphabet with 30 letters. It does not have the letters q, w, x, and y, but it has these additional letters: č, ć, dž, đ, lj, nj, š, and ž.
The language includes three dialects, which are further divided into sub-dialects. This can make things confusing, but here are a few basic words and phrases that may help.
- Dobar dan! – Hello!
- da – yes
- ne – no
- Hvala. – Thanks.
- Žao mi je. – I’m sorry.
- Kako se Vi zovete? – What’s your name?
- Ja sam… – I am…
- Kako si? – How are you?
- Odlično! – Great!
- Doviđenja! – Goodbye!
- nema više – no more (can be used if you’re offered more food but would like to decline)
Many Croatians speak English, so that is helpful to English-speaking travelers.
One interesting factoid about the Croatian language is that like some other older languages it has fewer words for certain colors. Therefore, in Croatia people may use the word for blue hair to describe someone with blonde hair.
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Social Norms & Expectations
Croatians are quite hospitable and like to socialize with guests, even ones who are unannounced. To be a gracious guest, here are a few social norms to remember:
- Avoid overly casual clothes. Croatians dress rather modestly and neatly, so something not in line with that may be considered inappropriate.
- Greet people. Croatians often acknowledge strangers in public.
- Be on time. Punctuality is common in Croatia.
- Accept food or coffee when offered. If you do want a second serving, say nema više.
- Avoid putting your hands on the table.
- Pause before eating to see if someone wants to say a prayer of thanks.
In Croatia, lunch is considered the main meal of the day. Therefore, people may go home from school or work for lunch. One interesting cultural note in Croatia is that gift givers bringing flowers will ensure there is an odd number of flowers in the bunch. An even number is reserved for the deceased.
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Currency
Croatia adopted the euro in January 2023. Exchange rates have been fluctuating. But generally the euro and U.S. dollar are close to a one-to-one exchange rate with the euro being slightly stronger.
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