 | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| In countries that record ethnicity in censuses: | |
| United States | 210,395 (2021) (Yugoslav Americans)[1] |
| Canada | 38,480 (2016) (Yugoslav Canadians)[2] |
| Serbia | 27,143 (2022) (Yugoslavs in Serbia)[3] |
| Australia | 26,883 (2011)[4] |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2,570 (2013)[5] |
| Montenegro | 1,632 (2023)[6] |
| Croatia | 942 (2021)[7] |
| Slovenia | 527 (2002)[8] |
| North Macedonia | 344 (2021)[9] |
| Russia | 60 (2021)[10] |
| Languages | |
| South Slavic languages, English | |
| Religion | |
| Predominantly: | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| South Slavs, otherSlavic peoples | |
Yugoslavs orYugoslavians (Serbo-Croatian:Jugoslaveni/Jugosloveni,Југославени/Југословени;[a]Slovene:Jugoslovani;Macedonian:Југословени,romanized: Jugosloveni) is an identity that was originally conceived to refer to a unitedSouth Slavic people. It has been used in two connotations: the first in a sense of common shared ethnic descent, i.e.panethnic orsupraethnic connotation for ethnic South Slavs,[b] and the second as a term for all citizens of formerYugoslavia regardless of ethnicity. Cultural and political advocates of Yugoslav identity have historically purported the identity to be applicable to all people of South Slav heritage, including those of modernBosnia and Herzegovina,Croatia,Montenegro,North Macedonia,Serbia, andSlovenia. AlthoughBulgarians are a South Slavic group as well, attempts at unitingBulgaria with Yugoslavia were unsuccessful, and therefore Bulgarians were not included in the panethnic identification. Since thedissolution of Yugoslavia and establishment of South Slavicnation states, the termethnic Yugoslavs has been used to refer to those who exclusively view themselves as Yugoslavs with no other ethnicself-identification, many of these being of mixed ancestry.[12]
In theformer Yugoslavia, the official designation for those who declared themselves simply asYugoslav was with quotation marks, "Yugoslavs" (introduced in census 1971). The quotation marks were originally meant to distinguish Yugoslav ethnicity from Yugoslav citizenship, which was written without quotation marks. The majority of those who had once identified as ethnic "Yugoslavs" reverted to or adopted traditional ethnic and national identities, sometimes due to social pressure, intimidation, detrimental consequences, or prevention to continue identifying as Yugoslav by new political authorities.[13][14] Some also decided to turn to sub-national regional identifications, especially in multi-ethnic historical regions likeIstria,Vojvodina, orBosnia (henceBosnians). The Yugoslav designation, however, continues to be used by many, especially in the United States, Canada, and Australia by the descendants of Yugoslav migrants who emigrated while the country still existed.
Since the late 18th century, when traditional European ethnic affiliations started to mature into modern ethnic identities, there have been numerous attempts to define a commonSouth Slavic ethnic identity. The wordYugoslav, meaning "South Slavic", was first used byJosip Juraj Strossmayer in 1849.[15] The first modern iteration of Yugoslavism was theIllyrian movement inHabsburg Croatia. It identified South Slavs with ancientIllyrians and sought to construct a common language based on theShtokavian dialect.[16] The movement was led byLjudevit Gaj, whoseLatin alphabet became one of two official scripts used for theSerbo-Croatian language.[16]
Among notable supporters of Yugoslavism and a Yugoslav identity active at the beginning of the 20th century were famous sculptorIvan Meštrović (1883–1962), who called Serbian folk heroPrince Marko "our Yugoslav people with its gigantic and noble heart" and wrote poetry speaking of a "Yugoslav race";[17]Jovan Cvijić, in his articleThe Bases of Yugoslav Civilization, developed the idea of a unified Yugoslav culture and stated that "New qualities that until now have been expressed but weakly will appear. An amalgamation of the most fertile qualities of our three tribes [Serbs, Croats, Slovenes] will come forth every more strongly, and thus will be constructed the type of single Yugoslav civilization-the final and most important goal of our country."[18] In late 19th and early 20th century, influential public intellectualsJovan Cvijić andVladimir Dvorniković advocated thatYugoslavs, as a supra-ethnic nation, had "many tribal ethnicities, such as Croats, Serbs, and others within it."[18]
On 28 June 1914,Gavrilo Princip shot and killedArchduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the Austrian throne, and his wife, in Sarajevo. Princip was a member ofYoung Bosnia, a group whose aims included the unification of the Yugoslavs and independence fromAustria-Hungary.[19] Theassassination in Sarajevo set into motion a series offast-moving events that eventually escalated intofull-scale war.[20] After his capture, during his trial, he stated "I am a Yugoslav nationalist, aiming for the unification of all Yugoslavs, and I do not care what form of state, but it must be free from Austria."[21]
In June–July 1917, theYugoslav Committee met with theSerbian Government inCorfu and on 20 July theCorfu Declaration that laid the foundation for the post-war state was issued. The preamble stated that the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes were "the same by blood, by language, by the feelings of their unity, by the continuity and integrity of the territory which they inhabit undivided, and by the common vital interests of their national survival and manifold development of their moral and material life." The state was created as theKingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, a constitutional monarchy under theKarađorđević dynasty. The term "Yugoslavs" was used to refer to all of its inhabitants, but particularly to those of South Slavic ethnicity. Some Croatian nationalists viewed the Serb plurality and Serbian royal family as hegemonic. Eventually, a conflict of interest sparked among the Yugoslav peoples. In 1929,King Alexander sought to resolve a deep political crisis brought on by ethnic tensions by assuming dictatorial powers in the6 January Dictatorship, renaming the country "Kingdom of Yugoslavia", and officially pronouncing that there is one single Yugoslav nation with three tribes. The Yugoslav ethnic designation was thus imposed for a period of time on all South Slavs in Yugoslavia. Changes in Yugoslav politics after King Alexander's death in 1934 brought an end to this policy, but the designation continued to be used by some people.[citation needed]
PhilosopherVladimir Dvorniković advocated the establishment of a Yugoslav ethnicity in his 1939 book entitled "TheCharacterology of the Yugoslavs". His views included eugenics and cultural blending to create one, strong Yugoslav nation.[18]
There had on three occasions been efforts to make Bulgaria a part of Yugoslavia or part of an even larger federation: throughAleksandar Stamboliyski during and afterWorld War I; throughZveno during theBulgarian coup d'état of 1934, and throughGeorgi Dimitrov during and afterWorld War II, but for various reasons, each attempt turned out to be unsuccessful.[22]
| Region | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Croatia | 0.4 | 1.9 | 8.2 |
| Central Serbia | 0.2 | 1.4 | 4.8 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 8.4 | 1.2 | 7.9 |
| Kosovo | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Macedonia | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.7 |
| Montenegro | 0.3 | 2.1 | 5.3 |
| Slovenia | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.4 |
| Vojvodina | 0.2 | 2.4 | 8.2 |
| Yugoslavia | 1.7 | 1.3 | 5.4 |
Unitary policies implemented by the authorities of the early 20th centuryKingdom of Yugoslavia aimed at creating a single Yugoslav ethnic identity that speaks oneSouth Slavic language were met with heavy resistance by majorities of the country's citizens. Those policies and attempts at concentration of power within the ruling Serbian royal dynasty, theKarađorđevićs, were interpreted by opponents of Yugoslav unitarism andSerbian nationalism as gradualSerbianization of Yugoslavia's non-Serb population.
After the country was liberated fromAxis occupiers in theWorld War II in Yugoslavia by theYugoslav Partisans, the newly establishedsocialist Yugoslavia was instead organized as a federation. The rulingLeague of Communists of Yugoslavia was ideologically opposed to ethnic unitarism that was promoted under former royal hegemony, instead recognizing and promoting ethnic diversity and socialYugoslavism within the notion of "brotherhood and unity" between nations and national minorities of Yugoslavia. Traditional ethnic identities again became the primary ethnic designations used by most inhabitants of Yugoslavia which remained the case until the country's dissolution in the early 1990s.
Josip Broz Tito expressed his desire for an undivided Yugoslav ethnicity to develop naturally when he stated, "I would like to live to see the day when Yugoslavia would become amalgamated into a firm community, when she would no longer be a formal community but a community of a single Yugoslav nation."[24]
Yugoslav censuses reflected Tito's ideal, with "Yugoslav" being an available identification for both ethnicity and nationality. In general, the Yugoslav identity was more common in the multiethnic regions of the country, i.e. the more multiethnic the constituent republic, the higher the percentage; therefore the highest were in Croatia, Montenegro, Central Serbia, Vojvodina, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, while the lowest were in Slovenia, Macedonia, and Kosovo. The 1971 census recorded 273,077 Yugoslavs, or 1.33% of the total population. The 1981 census, a year after the death of Tito, recorded a record number of 1,216,463 or 5.4% Yugoslavs.[23]
Just before and after thedissolution of Yugoslavia, most Yugoslavs reverted to their ethnic and regional identities.
| Country | Number (census year) |
|---|---|
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2,570 (2013)[5] |
| Croatia | 942 (2021)[7] |
| Kosovo | Unknown |
| Montenegro | 1,632 (2023)[6] |
| North Macedonia | 344 (2021)[9] |
| Serbia | 27,143 (2022)[3] |
| Slovenia | 527 (2002)[8] |
The number of people identifying as Yugoslav fell drastically in all successor states since the beginning of the 21st century and the conclusion of allYugoslav Wars and separation ofSerbia and Montenegro (until 2003 calledFR Yugoslavia). The country with the highest number of people and percentage of population identifying as Yugoslav is Serbia, while North Macedonia is the lowest on both. No official figures or reliable estimates are available for Kosovo.
As part of the research project "Strategies of Symbolic Nation-building in South Eastern Europe", a study was conducted from 2010 to 2014 on the entire former Yugoslav territory with the exception of Slovenia. Within the study, a poll was conducted on the topic of shared identity. Interviewees were asked whether they ever "felt Yugoslav", with three given options being tantamount to "yes, still do", "no, never did" and "not anymore". In all six examined states, majority of the interviewees expressed that they either never or no longer felt so, ranging from ~70–98%, with Serbia being on the lowest end and Kosovo on the highest. Croatia and Kosovo yielded the most clear-cut results with 95% stating either of aforementioned options and less than 3% stating that they still felt Yugoslav. In Kosovo in particular, over 92% stated that they never felt Yugoslav. In contrast, Montenegro and Serbia were the most split states, with ~28% and ~32% respectively stating that they still felt Yugoslav; the two were the only states where more interviewees stated feeling Yugoslav as opposed to never feeling so. Bosnia and Herzegovina had the highest percentage of interviewees stating that they no longer feel Yugoslav at ~48%, followed closely by Montenegro and Serbia. The following table provides more details:[26][27]
| Do you ever feel like a Yugoslav? | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Croatia | Kosovo | North Macedonia | Montenegro | Serbia |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes, I still feel that way | 19.2% | 2.8% | 2.0% | 14.9% | 28.1% | 31.8% |
| I used to feel, but not anymore | 48.1% | 29.1% | 5.8% | 38.2% | 46.4% | 42.9% |
| No, I never felt like a Yugoslav | 32.5% | 66.3% | 92.1% | 47.0% | 23.7% | 24.4% |
The Yugoslavs of Croatia have several organizations. The "Alliance of Yugoslavs" (Savez Jugoslavena), established in 2010 in Zagreb, is an association aiming to unite the Yugoslavs of Croatia, regardless of religion, sex,political or other views.[28] Its main goal is the official recognition of the Yugoslav nation in everyYugoslav successor state: Croatia,Slovenia, Serbia,North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina andMontenegro.[29]
Anotherpro-Yugoslav organization advocating the recognition of the Yugoslav nation is the "Our Yugoslavia" association (Udruženje "Naša Jugoslavija"), which is an officially registered organization in Croatia.[13] The seat of Our Yugoslavia is in theIstrian town ofPula,[30] where it was founded on 30 July 2009.[31] The association has most members in the towns ofRijeka,Zagreb and Pula.[32] Its main aim is the stabilisation of relations among the Yugoslav successor states. It is also active in Bosnia and Herzegovina, however, its official registration as an association was denied by the Bosnian state authorities.[13]
The probably best-known pro-Yugoslav organization in Montenegro is the "Consulate-general of the SFRY" with its headquarters in the coastal town ofTivat. Prior to the population census of 2011, Marko Perković, the president of this organization called on the Yugoslavs of Montenegro to freely declare their Yugoslav identity on the upcoming census.[33]
The best known example of self-declared Yugoslavs is MarshalJosip Broz Tito who organized resistance against Nazi Germany in Yugoslavia,[34][35] ended the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia with the help of the Red Army, co-founded theNon-Aligned Movement, and defiedJoseph Stalin's Soviet pressure on Yugoslavia. Other people that declared as "Yugoslavs" include intellectuals, entertainers, singers, and athletes, such as:
The probably most frequently used symbol of the Yugoslavs to express their identity and to which they are most often associated with is the blue-white-red tricolor flag with a yellow-bordered red star in the flag's center,[57] which also served as the nationalflag of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia between 1945 and 1991.[citation needed]
Prior to World War II, the symbol of Yugoslavism was a plain tricolor flag ofblue, white, and red, which was also the nationalflag of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, theYugoslav state in theinterwar period.[citation needed]
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Ipak, najdrastičniji „nestanak" Jugoslovena vidi se na primeru Hrvatske. Dok se 1991. njih 106.041 osećalo tako, na popisu 2001. bili su u nivou statističke greške – ukupno 176. Naredne decenije, broj se blago popeo na 331, da bi na poslednjem popisu, 2021. godine 942 ljudi navelo tu opciju, kažu iz hrvatskog Državnog zavoda za statistiku.[However, the most drastic "disappearance" of Yugoslavs can be seen in the example of Croatia. While 106,041 of them felt that way in 1991, in the 2001 census they were at the level of a statistical error – a total of 176. In the following decade, the number rose slightly to 331, and in the last census, in 2021, 942 people indicated this option, according to theCroatian Bureau of Statistics.]
The number of self-declared atheists was highest among Yugoslavs by nationality (45 percent), followed by the Serbs (42 percent), while only 12 percent of the interviewees of Croatian background said they were nonreligious.
Although the name was appropriated by the Milošević regime, during the 1990s, vestiges of the former Yugoslavia began to disappear. A million-strong group known not long ago as “Yugoslavs by nationality” has vanished. As early as 1992, American reporters from Balkan battlefields noticed the revival of the primordial ethnic identities at the expense of the Yugoslav identity. Some of the “Yugoslavs by nationality” were forced to change nationality and others became disillusioned and undetermined about who they are, while many discovered the traditional religious and ethnic identities and became neophytes.
| East Slavs | .svg) | |
|---|---|---|
| West Slavs | ||
| South Slavs | ||
