skrb

Skrb is a noun used in several South Slavic languages, notably Croatian, Bosnian, and Serbian, meaning care, concern, or responsibility. It functions as a general term for the act of looking after someone or something and appears in various compound forms. The related verb is skrbiti, meaning to care for or look after, and the nouns skrbnik and skrbništvo refer to a guardian and guardianship, respectively.

In everyday language, skrb conveys personal responsibility or concern for another person, such as family members or dependents. In legal and administrative contexts, the term is embedded in specific constructs: skrbništvo denotes guardianship over a minor or an adult who cannot manage their own affairs, and the guardian is called a skrbnik. The guardian’s duties typically include safeguarding the ward’s welfare and, where applicable, managing the ward’s assets. Guardianship can be established by law or by formal decision, depending on the jurisdiction.

Beyond personal use, skrb can be found in discussions of social policy or fiduciary responsibility, where it is used metaphorically to describe custodianship or protective duties over assets, communities, or institutions. While the concept has formal legal implications in some contexts, in everyday speech it remains a general expression of care and responsibility.

See also: guardianship, conservatorship, fiduciary duty. The term’s exact legal meaning and procedures vary by country, so local legal definitions should be consulted for jurisdiction-specific usage.