Serbs ( sl, Srbi v Sloveniji, sr, Срби у Словенији, Srbi u Sloveniji) are, by large, first or second generation immigrants from other republics of

former Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Y ...

. In the 2002 census, 38,964 people of

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, a ...

declared

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of ...

ethnicity, corresponding to 2% of the total population, making them the largest ethnic minority in the country.

History

The vast majority of the Serbs in Slovenia are first or second generation settlers from other republics of

, mostly from

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 He ...

and

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hun ...

, but also from

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

and

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, many

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of ...

employed in the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska ar ...

were stationed in the

Socialist Republic of Slovenia The Socialist Republic of Slovenia ( sl, Socialistična republika Slovenija, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Slovenija, Социјалистичка Република Словенија), commonly referred to as Sociali ...

with their families. In the period of 1971-1981, many ethnic Serbs migrated from Bosnia and Herzegovina to pursue better careers and economic opportunities in Slovenia. Before 1991, many Serbs in Slovenia registered as

Yugoslavs Yugoslavs or Yugoslavians ( Bosnian and Croatian: ''Jugoslaveni'', Serbian and Macedonian ''Jugosloveni''/Југословени; sl, Jugoslovani) is an identity that was originally designed to refer to a united South Slavic people. It has b ...

, and many still prefer referring to their mother language as

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia a ...

, rather than Serbian. There also exists an indigenous community of Serbs in

White Carniola White Carniola ( sl, Bela krajina; german: Weißkrain or ''Weiße Mark'') is a traditional region in southeastern Slovenia on the border with Croatia. Due to its smallness, it is often considered a subunit of the broader Lower Carniola region, alt ...

from 16th century (see Serbs of White Carniola). In 2013, the combined community association of Serbs in Slovenia requested that Serbs be given the status of national minority.

Demographics

Most of Serbs in Slovenia are concentrated in larger urban areas, especially in

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the a ...

and

Jesenice Jesenice (, german: Aßling''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru'', vol. 6: Kranjsko. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 144.) is a Slovenian town and the seat of the Municipality of Jesenice on th ...

. The table shows the year and number and percentage of Serbs in Slovenia after World War II, according to the official censuses. It also has to be noted that in the last census in 2002, more than 10% of all Slovenian population decided not to answer the question regarding their ethnic affiliation. All these elements make the estimate of the overall number of Serbs in Slovenia difficult.

Culture

Yugonostalgia is strong among the older generation. The urban former Yugoslav immigrant community in Slovenia have developed a "Balkan culture" in the 1990s. The

Leskovac Leskovac ( Serbian Cyrillic: Лесковац, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Jablanica District in southern Serbia. According to the 2022 census, City of Leskovac has a 124,889 inhabitants. Etymology Leskovac was historical ...

-styled grilled meat, including '' ćevapčići'', have today become part of everyday-diet in Slovenia.

Language

Most Serbs in Slovenia use Slovene as their language of communication, since only 4,300 people in Slovenia declared that they use only Serbian language at home, while about 15,000 declared they use both languages at home. However more than 31,000 people declared their mother tongue as Serbian (and another 36,000 as Serbo-Croatian). A mixed Slovenian–Serbian slang, ''srboslovenščina'', became an "unofficial" language in football and construction building, among other traditional domains of post-war immigrants from former Yugoslavia.

Religion

Serbs in Slovenia are predominantly Eastern Orthodox by faith, adhering to the

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous ( ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the population ...

Notable people

* Ilija Arnautović, architect * Katarina Branković, Countess of Celje * Jovan Hadži, zoologist * Spomenka Hribar, sociologist, politician and public intellectual (Serbian father) * Zoran Janković, manager and politician, mayor of

, Serbian-born, Serbian father * Dušan Jovanović, theatre director * Irena Kazazić, painter and writer * Petar Matić, businessman * Robert Pešut, a.k.a. "Magnifico", musician and actor (Serbian father) * Radko Polič, actor * Božidar Rašica, architect, scenographer and painter * Simona Škrabec, Slovenian-Catalan author and translator (Serbian father) ;Sportspeople * Milenko Ačimovič, football player, Serbian parents * Siniša Anđelković, football player, Serbian parents * Dragan Gajić, handball player * Mladen Dabanovič, football player, Serbian parent * Luka Dončić, basketball player, father of Serbian origin * Saša Dončić, basketball coach and former player * Jan Oblak, football player (Serbian mother) * Sara Isakovič, swimmer (Serbian father) * Goran Janus, ski jumper and ski jumping coach * Darko Karapetrovič, football player * Marko Milič, basketball player, Serbian father * Rasho Nesterovič, basketball player * Aleksej Nikolić, basketball player * Mitja Nikolić, basketball player * Milivoje Novakovič, football player * Teja Oblak, basketball player (Serbian mother) * Damir Pekič, football player * Danilo Popivoda, football player * Miroslav Radulovič, football player * Aleksandar Rodić, football player, Serbian parents * Marija Šestak, athlete * Dalibor Stevanovič, football player * Petar Stojanović, football player * Slaviša Stojanovič, former football player and manager, Serbian-born * Dejan Vinčić, volleyball player *

Sasha Vujačić Aleksander "Sasha" Vujačić ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Саша Вујачић; sl, Aleksander Saša Vujačič; often rendered in English as without diacritics; born March 8, 1984) is a Slovenian former professional basketball player. He ...

, basketball player, Serbian father * Marko Vukićević, alpine skier * Zlatko Zahović, former football player (Bosnian descent)

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Serbs In Slovenia Serbian Orthodox Church in Slovenia Ethnic groups in Slovenia