(; / , / ; ), meaning ''Bosnians'', is the name originating from the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, used for the inhabitants of Bosnia. The name is used and can be found in Bosnian written monuments from that period, appearing in Venetian sources as earliest as 12th century, according to investigation of the relations between Bosnia and Venetia by historian Marko Šunjić, and other documents until at least early 16th century and the Ottoman conquest and power stabilization. The ethnonym good Bosniak (''dobri Bošnjanin'') was not a geographical reference for the inhabitants along the Bosna river, but it was referred to the population of the entire

medieval Bosnia This is the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Middle Ages, between the ancient and Roman period and the Ottoman period. Early Middle Ages The western Balkans had been reconquered from "barbarians" by Byzantine Emperor Justinian (r. 52 ...

, regardless of religion, which can be seen in various charters of the 14th and 15th centuries during the reign of ban Stjepan II Kotromanić, ban Tvrtko I Kotromanić, King Stjepan Ostoja, etc. In these charters, Bosnian rulers mention good Bosniaks as witnesses.

History

The demonym Bošnjani appears in medieval state documents (''charters'') of foreign and/or Bosnian provenience, written in

Bosnian Cyrillic Bosnian Cyrillic, widely known as Bosančica is a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet that originated in medieval Bosnia. The term was coined at the end of the 19th century by Ćiro Truhelka. It was widely used in modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

, since the 12th century, and is used in reference to Bosnian nobility of

, their subjects, to the witnesses in disputes, testaments, provisions, to their relatives and kin, and so on. Most notably it was used in charters by Bosnian magnates and royalties, and among the last to use it in his being Bosnian king Stjepan Tomašević, prior to the Ottoman conquest of Bosnia.When Ethnicity Did Not Matter in the Balkans: A Study of Identity in Pre-Nationalist Croatia, Dalmatia, and Slavonia in the Medieval and Early-Modern Periods Appearing in a number of documents from the period, it was often coupled with the word Good (''"Dobri"''). For example, a 1417 document by

Stjepan Ostoja Stephen OstojaHis name in Bosnian is rendered Stjepan Ostoja (), while in Croatian it's Stjepan Ostoja. In Serbian, he is called Stefan Ostoja (). ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Stjepan Ostoja, Стјепан Остоја; died September 1418) ...

mentions ''i nostri boni Bosnensi'', and the same term is used in a 1419 document by Stjepan Ostojić. Ćošković dates the term to Stjepan II Kotromanić (1322–53). The syntagm of "Dobri Bošnjani" ( en, the "Good Bosnians") which appear in historical documents (charters) as a social and ethical category, historian Srečko Džaja relates to similar syntagm of "

boni homines The name Boni Homines ('Good men' in Latin) or Bonshommes (the same in French) was popularly given to at least three religious orders in the Catholic Church: Grandmontines The Order of Grandmont, were an austere order founded by St. Stephen of ...

".Srećko M. Džaja, 2008, “Dobri Bošnjani” i “boni homines” https://vdocuments.mx/srecko-dzaja-dobri-bosnjani-i-boni-homines.html #page=125

Assessment

Bosnian historian

Pejo Ćošković Pejo Ćošković, born on 12 April 1952 in Domaljevac near Bosanski Šamac, is Bosnian medievalist and lecturer at the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Sarajevo, Department of History, in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Education ...

, citing

Ferdo Šišić Ferdo Šišić (9 March 1869 – 21 January 1940) was a Croatian historian, the founding figure of the Croatian historiography of the 20th century. He made his most important contributions in the area of the Croatian early Middle Ages. Life Ši� ...

and Dominik Mandić, describes the use of the term in royal documents as membership in Bosnian nobility, with no indication of the subject's religion. and as a political term to distinguish people from Bosnia proper from people from other lands acquired in the hidays of Kingdom of Bosnia and included into royal titulage.

Revival

During the Austro-Hungarian era the term Bošnjak was also preferred until the beginning of the 20th century, and is encountered in Bosnian Franciscan writings, such as prominent members of the order, historians and writers, Ivan Frano Jukić and Antun Knežević, who were first to relate the name to ethnic and national context. The situation changed again in the 20th century, as '' Bosanac'' (see also: Bosnian and Bosnians) came to be the preferred term. Following the independence of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

in the early 1990s, Bosniaks reinvigorated the (by then) archaic term ''Bošnjaci'' - Bosniaks - for their national name, based on the word's historical ethno-geographic connotations.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bosnjani Bosniak history Medieval Bosnia and Herzegovina Ethnonyms Slavic ethnic groups

History

Assessment

Revival

See also

References