Jugoslavia

Jugoslavia, a South Slavic state in Southeast Europe, refers to several related states that spanned much of the Balkans from 1918 to the early 21st century. The term means “Land of the South Slavs.” The first Yugoslavia was formed in 1918 as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, uniting territories of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire with the Kingdom of Serbia. It was renamed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929 and endured until invasion in 1941. After World War II, the socialist federal state known as the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) was established, comprising six republics (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia) and two autonomous provinces within Serbia (Vojvodina and Kosovo). Tito led the federation until his death in 1980, maintaining a non-aligned foreign policy and a degree of economic stability.

Following the breakup of communism, Yugoslavia dissolved in the early 1990s as republics declared independence: Slovenia and Croatia in 1991, followed by Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, established in 1992, united Serbia and Montenegro and persisted until 2003, when it was rebranded as Serbia and Montenegro. Montenegro left in 2006, leaving Serbia as the successor state. Kosovo declared independence in 2008, a status recognized by many states but not all.

Today the term Jugoslavia is primarily used in historical contexts to describe these states and the federation that existed at various times, rather than a current country.