Serbianspeaking

Serbianspeaking (often written as "Serbian-speaking") is a sociolinguistic descriptor used for people who use the Serbian language as their first or principal means of communication. It applies to speakers in Serbia and in regions with significant Serb communities, such as parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Croatia, as well as to members of the global diaspora who maintain Serbian as a home language. The term is not identical to ethnicity; while many Serbianspeaking people are ethnically Serbs, others—including Bosniaks, Croats, Montenegrins, and others—also speak Serbian.

Serbian is a South Slavic language in the Balkan sprachbund. It uses two scripts, Cyrillic and Latin, with Cyrillic often favored in official contexts in Serbia and Latin widely used in media and education. The standard form is based on the Shtokavian dialect and exists mainly in Ekavian and Ijekavian variants, reflecting different reflexes of the yat vowel. Ekavian is common in much of Serbia, while Ijekavian is also used, especially in neighboring states and among some Serbian communities. Dialectal variation occurs, including the Torlakian group in the southeast, but the standard form is understood across Serbianspeaking communities.

Serbianspeaking communities are concentrated in Serbia and in neighboring Balkan states with Serb populations, including Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and parts of Croatia and Kosovo. The Serbian language is mutually intelligible with Bosnian and Croatian to a high degree, though political and sociolinguistic factors have led to distinct standard varieties—Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin. Globally, Serbianspeaking speakers are present in European Union member states, North America, Australia, and elsewhere due to immigration and diaspora networks.