Essential Information & explanations, latest texts & monographs on Croatia.

The Bone Woman : A Forensic Anthropologist's Search for Truth in the Mass Graves of Rwanda,Bosnia, Croatia, and Kosovo by CLEA KOFF

Croatia (Eyewitness Travel Guides) by Dorling Kindersley Publishing

Lonely Planet Croatia (Croatia, 2nd Ed) by Jeanne Oliver

Rough Guide to Croatia (Rough Guide. Croatia) by Jonathan Bousfield

Michelin Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnie-Herzegovina, Rfederal Republic of Yugoslavia, Former Yug. Rep. of Macedonia by Michelin Travel Publications

Slovenia - Croatia Road & Travel Map by Cartographia by Cartographia Kft.

Croatian Adriatic by Radovan Radovinovic

Insight Pocket Guide with map Croatia (Insight Guides) by Jane Foster

Croatia: A History by Ivo Goldstein

Croatia: A Nation Forged in War by Marcus Tanner

Croatia: The Bradt Travel Guide by Piers Letcher

Rape Warfare: The Hidden Genocide in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia by Beverly Allen

Footprint Croatia Handbook by Jane Foster

Plum Brandy: Croatian Journeys (Terra Incognita Series, 7) by Josip Novakovich

The Suitcase: Refugee Voices from Bosnia and Croatia by Julie Mertus

Croatia

The Republic of Croatia is a country in Europe bordering the Mediterranean, Central Europe and the Balkans. Its capital is Zagreb, and it is a former republic of Yugoslavia. Republika Hrvatska (Details) (Details) National motto: None Official language Croatian Capital Zagreb President Stjepan Mesić Prime Minister Ivo Sanader Area - Total - % water Ranked 123rd 56,542 km² 0.01% Population - Total (2003) - Density Ranked 119th 4,422,248 83/km² Independence 1991 Currency kuna Time zone UTC +1 National anthem Lijepa naša domovino Internet TLD .hr Calling Code 385 Table of contents showTocToggle("show","hide") 1 History 2 Politics 3 Counties 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Demographics 7 Culture 8 Miscellaneous topics 9 External links History Main article: History of Croatia Croats are a Slavic people probably with origins in ancient Persia, who migrated from areas of what is today's Galicia and settled in present-day Croatia during the 7th century. It became one of the most powerful kingdoms in the region. In 1102 the Croatians ended a civil war by agreeing to submit themselves to Hungarian authority. By the mid-1400s, the Hungarian kingdom was gravely impacted by the Ottoman expansion which led the Croatian Parliament to invite the Habsburgs, under Ferdinand I, to assume control over Croatia. Habsburg rule eventually did prove to be successful in thwarting the Ottomans, and by the 18th century, much of Croatia was free of Turkish control, while Dalmatia was under Venice. In 1868, Croatia gained domestic autonomy while remaining under Hungarian authority. Following World War I and the demise of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Croatia joined the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which became Yugoslavia in 1929). Yugoslavia was invaded during World War II and Croatia was made into a fascist puppet-state named the Independent State of Croatia. After the defeat of the Axis powers, Yugoslavia became a federal independent socialist state under the strong hand of Josip Broz Tito. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic and often bitter fighting with the Serbs before the end of the war in 1995. Peaceful reintegration of all rebel territories in was completed in 1998 under UN supervision. Politics Main article: Politics of Croatia Since the adoption of the 1990 Constitution, Croatia has been a parliamentary democracy. The President of the Republic (Predsjednik Republike) is head of state and elected for a five-year term. In addition to being the commander in chief of the armed forces, the president appoints the Prime minister with the consent of the Parliament. The Croatian Parliament (Hrvatski Sabor) is a unicameral legislative body of up to 160 representatives, all elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The Sabor meets twice a year--from January 15 to July 15 and from September 15 to December 15. The Government (Vlada) is headed by the Prime minister who has 2 deputy prime ministers and 14 ministers in charge of particular sectors of activity. The executive branch is responsible for proposing legislation and a budget, executing the laws, and guiding the foreign and internal policies of the republic. Croatia has a three-tiered judicial system, consisting of the Supreme Court, county courts, and municipal courts. The Constitutional Court rules on matters regarding the Constitution. Counties Main article: Counties of Croatia Croatia is divided into 20 counties and one city*:

Zagrebačka

Krapinsko-zagorska

Sisačko-moslavačka

Karlovačka

Varaždinska

Koprivničko-križevačka

Bjelovarsko-bilogorska

Primorsko-goranska

Ličko-senjska

Virovitičko-podravska

Dubrovačko-neretvanska

Međimurska

Grad Zagreb*

See also: List of cities in Croatia Geography Main article: Geography of Croatia Croatia is situated between central, southern and eastern Europe, because it has a rather peculiar shape that resembles a crescent or a horseshoe. This accounts for its many neighbours: Slovenia, Hungary, Serbian part of Serbia and Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegrin part of Serbia and Montenegro, and Italy across the Adriatic. Its terrain is diverse, containing:

plains, lakes and rolling hills in the continental north and northeast (Central Croatia and Slavonia, part of the Pannonian plain);
densely wooded mountains in Lika and Gorski Kotar, part of the Dinaric Alps;
rocky coastlines on the Adriatic Sea (Istria, Northern Seacoast and Dalmatia).

Croatia has a mixture of climates. In the north and east it is continental, Mediterranean along the coast and a semi-highland and highland climate in the south-central region. Economy Main article: Economy of Croatia Croatia has a post-communist economy based mostly on various services and some, mostly light industry. Tourism is a notable source of income. Main problems include massive structural unemployment followed by the lack of economic reforms, deterred by public resistance. Of particular concern is the gravely backlogged judiciary system combined with inefficient public administration, especially involving land ownership. These and other factors reduce the investment competitiveness and prevent faster economic growth towards the favourable conditions of the late 1980s. Demographics Main article: Demographics of Croatia Croatia is inhabited mostly by Croats. Minority groups include Serbs, Bosniaks, Hungarians and others. The demographic transition is completed -- the natural growth rate is minute. Life expectancy and literacy rates are reasonably high. The predominate religion is Catholicism, with some Orthodox and Sunni Muslim minorities. The official and common language, Croatian, is a South Slavic language, using the Roman script. Culture Main article: Culture of Croatia Croatian culture is based on thirteen century long history during which the country has attained many monuments and cities, which gave birth to a fair number of brilliant individuals. The country includes six World Heritage sites and eight national parks. Three Nobel prize winners came from Croatia, as did numerous important inventors and other notable people. Interestingly enough, Croatia also has an place in the history of neckwear as the origin of the necktie (cravat). The country has a long artistic, literary and musical tradition. Miscellaneous topics

Communications in Croatia
Transportation in Croatia
Foreign relations of Croatia
Military of Croatia
Holidays in Croatia
Reporters without borders' press freedom index rankings: 33 (2002), 69 (2003)

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The above article is adapted from from Wikipedia All Wikipedia article text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

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Note again ... some material here is adapted from from Wikipedia All Wikipedia article text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

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