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| 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% |
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| Population - Total (2003) - Density |
Ranked 119th 4,422,248 83/km² |
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| Independence | 1991 | ||||
| Currency | kuna | ||||
| Time zone | UTC +1 | ||||
| National anthem | Lijepa naša domovino | ||||
| Internet TLD | .hr | ||||
| Calling Code | 385 | ||||
| Table of contents |
|
2 Politics 3 Counties 4 Geography 5 Economy 6 Tourism 7 Demographics 8 Culture 9 Miscellaneous topics 10 External links |
The Croats are believed to be a Slavic people who migrated from areas of what is today's Galicia and settled in present-day Croatia during the 7th century. After a period of self-rule, in 1102 Croatians agreed 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 proved 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 Axis defeat, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state under the strong hand of Josip Broz Tito.
Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN
supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to
Croatia in 1998.
Since 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 propose the Prime minister who is appointed by the consent of 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.History
Main article: History of CroatiaPolitics
Main article: Politics of Croatia
|
1. Zagrebačka 2. Krapinsko-zagorska 3. Sisačko-moslavačka 4. Karlovačka 5. Varaždinska 6. Koprivničko-križevačka 7. Bjelovarsko-bilogorska 8. Primorsko-goranska 9. Ličko-senjska 10. Virovitičko-podravska |
11. Požeško-slavonska 12. Brodsko-posavska 13. Zadarska 14. Osječko-baranjska 15. Šibensko-kninska 16. Vukovarsko-srijemska 17. Splitsko-dalmatinska 18. Istarska 19. Dubrovačko-neretvanska 20. Međimurska 21. Grad Zagreb* |
See also: List of cities in Croatia
Croatia is situated between central and eastern Europe and peculiarly shaped. Its terrain is diverse, containing:
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.
As long as 1991 Croatia was one of the main tourist destination. With very long coast, numerous islands like Hvar, Korčula, Vis, Krk and mostly tiny, in culture and history reach towns Dubrovnik, Poreč, Pula, Split, Šibenik were attractive enough to satisfy needs of many Europeans.
Unlike the 1990s tourism is again starting to be considerable source of
income. The infrastructure might not be up to date but Adriatic Sea is still the cleanest, the food and sun are the best, and the Dalmatian karst is still here.
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.
Croat culture is based on thirteen century long history during which many monumental buildings and even monumental cities such as Dubrovnik or Split have been built and are now tourist attractions. Croatia includes six World Heritage sites and eight national parks.
Interestingly enough, Croatia also has an place in the history of neckwear as the origin of the necktie (cravat).
The country prides itself in artists the likes of Ivan Meštrović, physicists like Ruđer Bošković and Nikola Tesla, Nobel prize winning chemists Lavoslav Ružička and Vladimir Prelog, inventors such as Eduard Slavoljub Penkala and its endured Parliament with champions like Stjepan Radić.
See also:
Geography
Main article: Geography of Croatia
Croatia has a mixture of climates. In the north it is continental, Mediterranean along the coast and a semi-highland and highland climate in the south-central region.Economy
Main article: Economy of CroatiaTourism
main article: Tourism of CroatiaDemographics
Main article: Demographics of CroatiaCulture
Main article: Culture of Croatia
| Date | English Name | Local Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year's Day | Nova Godina | |
| January 6 | Epiphany | Bogojavljenje | |
| ... | Easter Sunday and Monday | Uskrs i Uskršnji ponedjeljak | variable date |
| May 1 | May Day | Međunarodni praznik rada | |
| 60 days post Easter | Corpus Christi | Tjelovo | variable date |
| June 22 | Anti-fascist resistance day | Dan antifašističke borbe | |
| June 25 | Statehood day | Dan državnosti | |
| August 5 | Victory day and Homeland gratitude day | Dan pobjede i Dan domovinske zahvalnosti | |
| August 15 | Our Lady's assumption into Heaven | Velika Gospa | |
| October 8 | Independence day | Dan nezavisnosti | |
| November 1 | All Saints day | Dan svih svetih | |
| December 25 | Christmas | Božić | |
| December 26 | Saint Stephen | Sveti Stjepan |
Note: Citizens of the Republic of Croatia that celebrate different religious holidays have the right not to work on those dates. This includes Christians that celebrate Christmas on January 7th per Julian calendar, Muslims on the days of Ramadan Bayram and Kurban Bayram, and Jews on the days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Miscellaneous topics
External links
General
Culture-related