Beautiful Bosnia Trivia Quiz

Answer: Balkan peninsula

Located in the southeastern part of Europe, the Balkan peninsula has had an unsettled political history, with a number of different people living in the region. In Neolithic times (roughly 10,000-2,000 BCE) the first permanent settlements appeared, representing a number of different cultures including the Butmir, Kakanj, and Vucedol people. They were followed by some Illyrian and Celtic civilisations, and the South Slavic groups that populate the area today arrived during the 6th through the 9th century CE. Later, the area became part of the Ottoman Empire, then of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Each of these waves has left an impact on the culture of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The country currently called Bosnia and Herzegovina is located south of Croatia, west of Serbia, and northwest of Montenegro (all former parts of the country of Yugoslavia, which existed between 18918 and 1992). Croatian territory extends south along the western side of Bosnia and Herzegovina, so it has a very short (20 km / 12 mi) coastline on the Adriatic Sea. It is actually composed of three different political entities: The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (which occupies most of the territory), the Republika Srpska (established in the northeast during the breakup of Yugoslavia to be the land of the Serbs) and the self-governing Brcko District (officially a condominium of the other two regions, in recognition of that city's multicultural demographic).

The northern part of the federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is Bosnia, which is over three-quarters of the region, with Herzegovina in the south. The two have been a geopolitical entity for several hundred years, previously only called Bosnia. The double-barrelled name came into use in the second half of the 19th century, while the region was part of the Ottoman Empire.

Answer: three points represent the three main ethnic groups

When the new flag was being designed following the dissolution of Yugoslavia, there was bitter dispute about the development of national symbols. The Serbs wanted an eagle, the Croats a chequerboard pattern, and the Bosniaks a fleur-de-lys. When the Bosnian Parliament couldn't reach a decision, Carlos Westerndorp, the International High Representative for Bosnia (responsible for implementing the 1995 Dayton Peace Accord), stepped in with a design that was imposed on the country so as to get something in place.

Westerndorp's design incorporated a number of symbolic elements: the shape of the triangle approximates the shape of the country, and its three corners highlight the presence of three distinct peoples in the nation. The colours are traditional Bosnian colours, and the band of white stars (with the half star on each end intended to suggest that they go on forever) represent Europe, emphasising that this country is a part of Europe. The original blue (the blue of the UN flag) was lighter than the current one, which is the blue of the European Union.

Answer: Cyrillic

To be more precise, it is a variant known as the Bosnian Cyrillic alphabet, which developed in Bosnia as a modification to the Cyrillic alphabet which developed in the 890s for use in translating Christian documents into the Slavic language, replacing the earlier Glagolitic alphabet used for that purpose. The codex, written in 1404 by Hval, a member of the schismatic Bosnian church, actually appears to be a rewriting of an earlier manuscript written in Glagolitic script, as the introduction and a few parts of the manuscript are in Glagolitic.

Hrvoje Vukcic Hrvatinic, Duke of Donji Krajevi and Split was responsible for having the codex written. Its 353 pages include Bible passages, hymns, and theological treatises. The illumination includes some iconography which reflect aspects of the Bosnian church's beliefs that were not in accord with those of either Catholic or Eastern Orthodox teachings. The Bosnian church was active from the early 13th century until the middle of the 15th century.

Answer: Ottoman

The eyalet was an administrative division of the Ottoman empire, with boundaries changing as different rulers came into power in the regions. Bosnia became an eyalet in 1580, having previously (for about a century) been part of a larger administrative division.

It is conjectured that this move was a recognition of Bosnia's strategic location on the border between The Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian empires. The conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Ottomans had been a gradual process, starting in 1386, and culminating in the capture of Bihac in 1592, although all but the western parts had been subdued by 1482.

Answer: Sarajevo

The 19th century had seen a rise in nationalist movements in the Balkans, the resulting conflicts leading to the Congress of Berlin in 1878, at which the Austro-Hungarian Empire was given control of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Hapsburgs faced a difficult situation as they tried to suppress nationalism in the region and incorporate it into their empire, which was accomplished in 1908 over the objections of Serbia and Russia. The Austro-Hungarian government made a systematic effort to eliminate Serbian nationalists, recruiting (mostly, although not exclusively) Croats and Bosniaks into paramilitary groups called Schutzkorps, who were essentially given free range to kill Serbs in the Herzegovina region.

But the nationalist movements persisted, and in 1914 Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb, assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, the heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, then occupied by his uncle Emperor Franz Joseph 1 of Austria. Austria-Hungary's consequent declaration of war against Serbia brought into play a complex set of treaties and alliances, and World War 1 was underway.

The incorrect options are the capitals of Bosnia and Herzegovina's neighbours.

Answer: Nobel Prize for Literature

Ivo Andric was born in Travnik, then part of Austria-Hungary, in 1892, and grew up as a South Slav nationalist. One of his closest friends was Gavrilo Princip, and Andric spent about a year in prison under suspicion of sedition. The case was dropped due to a lack of evidence, but he remained a person of suspected intent, and his movements were curtailed until an amnesty was declared in 1917. Although Andric's parents were Croats, he identified strongly with Serbs, especially after moving to Belgrade to study, and used the Serbian Ekavian dialect for most of his writing. This includes his best-known novel, 'Na Drini cuprija', published in 1945 and translated into English as 'The Bridge on the Drina', an historical novel covering four centuries of life in the vicinity of the Mehmed Pasa Sokolovic Bridge near which he grew up, culminating in its partial destruction during World War 1.

The citation for the award of the 1960 Nobel Prize in Literature stated that it was awarded to Ivo Andric "for the epic force with which he has traced themes and depicted human destinies drawn from the history of his country". Following the dissolution of Yugoslavia, some scholars have noted more strongly the anti-Muslim nature of his depiction of Bosniaks. Nevertheless, his manuscript for 'The Bridge on the Drina', which his will donated to the city of Sarajevo, is considered one of the most valued items in the Museum of Literature of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Answer: chain dance

Many cultures have similar chain dances, some with similar names, such as the Bulgarian horo, the Montenegran oro, and even the Israeli hora. A circle dance needs at least three people so that a circle can be formed (although the kolo is sometimes danced in lines rather than in circles), but is often danced by as large a group as can fit into the available space. The dancers hold hands, link arms, or place their arms around each other's waists as they perform the dance, which focuses on the foot movements. Every region has its own traditional set of steps, often for multiple types of kolo performed for different occasions. The music is generally fast-paced and energetic.

The kolo was listed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2017.

Answer: True

Radimlja is one of the most famous sites where you can see these carved tombs, but there are thousands of them around the countryside of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as some neighbouring countries. They were once thought to be associated with the Bosnian Church, a schismatic medieval church associated with Bogomilism, but are now believed to have been constructed by people of many different faiths, with the commonality being their culture rather than their religion. This, however, is still a matter of debate, as is the ascription of the origin to any specific ethnic group.

According to the 2011 UNESCO tentative listing of the stecci (or stecaks) as being of universal cultural value, Bosnia and Herzegovina has "[a]bout 40,000 chests, 13,000 slabs, 5,500 gabled tombstones, 2,500 pillars/obelisks, 300 cruciform tombstones and about 300 tombstones of indeterminate shape." The earliest stecci appeared near the end of the 12th century, developing in complexity and size through the 15th century, when their construction gradually started to decrease. The Radimlja necropolis dates from the late 14th century.

Answer: Marian apparitions

Marian apparitions are supernatural visions of Mary, the mother of Christ, as have been reported at numerous sites such as Lourdes in 1858 and Fatima in 1917. The appearances of Our Lady of Medjugorge began in 1981, and have been reported on a continuing basis ever since, making this small town a focal point for Christian pilgrimages, although travel was difficult while the region was part of Yugoslavia.

The six children who experienced their first visions on 24 June 1981 ranged in age from ten to 16. They have continued (individually and collectively) to report visions, with varying and sometimes contradictory, messages that Mary instructed them to deliver. The local priest at first refused to believe them, then accepted the veracity of their vision, and reported it to the Vatican. Acceptance of the apparitions has been at best partial, with Pope Francis decreeing in 2017 that the original vision warranted further investigation, but that subsequent visions were not valid. Nevertheless, around a million people a year go to Medjugorge, and report seeing marvelous sights and experiencing miraculous healings.

Answer: newspaper headquarters

While its business may be pragmatic (housing the offices of Dvevni avaz, a national newspaper), the tower is not! The restaurant at its top offers a spectacular view of the city, making it widely listed as a must-see spot for tourists. The tower was built between 2006 and 2008, becoming the tallest building in the country, although at 142 m it only ranks #35 on the list of the world's tallest twisting towers (as of 2017). The tower has a twist of 90 degrees between the first and 40th floors, roughly 2.8 degrees of twist for each floor.