Croatian, a language spoken by a mere 4 million people, is a linguistic oddity. It’s a Slavic tongue with Latin influences resulting in a language that can sound both familiar and utterly foreign, much like a peculiar coworker who shows up to a holiday gathering wearing a questionable hat.
The Croatian language, with its intricate grammar and peculiar pronunciation, is a labyrinth of linguistic complexity capable of bewildering even the most seasoned linguist. Still, if you find yourself in Croatia, you may want to know more about the language and learn a few essential phrases to help you avoid the pitfalls of miscommunication and the scornful glances of the locals. I shall endeavor to be your guide through this tumultuous terrain.
- Where the Croatian Language is Spoken
- A Brief History of the Croatian Language
- Helpful Croatian Phrases to Know
- More Tips
Where the Croatian Language is Spoken
Let me do my best here. Serbo-Croatian, Serbo-Croat, Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) are all different names for the South Slavic language that is the primary language of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia.
And within Serbo-Croatian, there are four standard varieties (Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin) that are similar enough to one another that a speaker of one variety should have no problem communicating with a speaker of another variety.
Serbo-Croatian can be written using variants of the Latin alphabet or the Cyrillic alphabet. But the Croatian variety is written in Gaj’s Latin alphabet, which consists of thirty upper and lower case letters.
Croatian is the national official language in Croatia, and one of the official languages in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and the Serbian province of Vojvodina. It is also a recognized minority language in the rest of Serbia.
A Brief History of the Croatian Language
I shall endeavor to provide a brief overview of the Croatian variant of the Serbo-Croatian language and how it came to be. I confess that much of my information comes directly from wikipedia and thus certain details may be slightly askew. Nevertheless, a brief examination of the language’s past may provide context in understanding its present-day usage.
Origins
The Croats, a people of Slavic descent, arrived in the Balkan Peninsula between the sixth and seventh centuries. They brought with them their own unique South Slavic language.
The earliest written examples of Serbo-Croatian date back to the ninth century. These were written using the Glagolitic alphabet, an early Slavic script, and were technically in Old Church Slavonic, a language used by the Eastern Orthodox Church.
1100ish – 1800ish
The language evolved over centuries, absorbing influences from Latin, Greek, and a host of other tongues, much like a sponge soaks up spilled juice.
This period marked a golden age for the Croatian language, particularly in the bustling Republic of Dubrovnik, a maritime power of considerable influence. Dubrovnik’s literary and poetic works significantly shaped the evolving standards of Croatian literature and the Latin alphabet gradually supplanted the older Glagolitic script. Over time, three distinct dialects emerged, each with its own charming peculiarities.
1800ish – Modern Times
A group of rather determined individuals, perhaps a bit too enthusiastic about language, decided to embark on a grand scheme to create a single, unified language for all of the South Slavic lands. And during the era of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, a single language, called Serbo-Croatian, was spoken across the lands of Serbs, Croats, Bosnians, and Montenegrins.
However, as the tapestry of Yugoslavia began to unravel in the 1990s, so too did the linguistic unity. Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin emerged as distinct standards, though their speakers still understand one another with remarkable ease.
Helpful Croatian Phrases to Know
Here are a few phrases that may prove useful when venturing into a Croatian or Serbo-Croatian-speaking region, such as Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, or Montenegro.
- Hello | Bok
- Goodbye | Zbogom
- I don’t understand | Ne razumijem
- Yes | Da
- No | Ne
- Do you speak English | Govorite li engleski?
- Please | Molim
- Thank you | Hvala
- The menu | Jelovnik
- Coffee | Kava
- Cheers! | Živeli!
- Bon appetit! | Dobar tek!
- The check, please | Račun, molim
More Tips
Most people you encounter as a visitor will also speak enough English to communicate with you as long as you speak plainly and don’t try to impress them with your vast English language vocabulary.
You will also find English language menus at most restaurants that you visit in tourist areas.
If all else fails, Google Translate is an excellent tool. For best results, download the app and the English and Croatian languages before you travel.
- Download Google Translate from Google Play on your Android device.
- Download Google Translate from the App Store on your iPhone or iPad.
- Here’s how to download languages in Google Translate.
- Here’s how to translate text in images with Google Translate, for example if you’re trying to read a menu written in Croatian.
- Here’s how to translate written words, which is helpful if you want to look up a single word or short phrase, such as a menu item or product label.
- Here’s how to translate by speech, which can be helpful if you want help translating a short phrase or set of phrases to have a brief conversation.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this Croatian language guide. If you want more, here’s everything else I’ve written about Croatia.
Leave a Reply