This is a survey of the

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...

s and postal history of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Austria-Hungary

The first issue in 1879 for Bosnia and Herzegovina, soon after its occupation by

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1878, is a stamp without any text, but representing the Austrian double-eagle coats of arms. Stamp Austria Bosnien-29

Stamps inscribed in German ''Bosnien Herzegowina'' were produced in 1906, featuring landscapes and monuments, including views of

Doboj Doboj ( sr-cyrl, Добој, ) is a city located in Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of Bosna river, in the northern region of the Republika Srpska. As of 2013, it has a population of 71,441 ...

and the Carshija business quarter of

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

. A number of military post stamps were produced in the 1910s, many of them depicting

Francis Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

. Newspaper stamps which included a depiction of a girl in a Bosnian costume (1913) and postage due stamps (1904 and 1916) were also produced. File:Stamp Bosnia 1912 3h.jpg, 1912 military post stamp depicting Francis Joseph I File:Stamp Bosnia 1917 30h.jpg, 1917 military post stamp File:1913 B-H Zeitung 2h Mi85.jpg, 1913 newspaper stamp

Kingdom in 1918

In 1918 Bosnia and Herzegovina was merged in the newly created Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenians. Bosnia and Herzegovina issued stamps in November 1918 by were overprinting Austrian-issued pictorial stamps of 1910, some in Latin characters reading "DRZAVA S.H.S. / 1918 1918 / Bosna i Hercegovina" ("

State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs The State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs ( sh, Država Slovenaca, Hrvata i Srba / ; sl, Država Slovencev, Hrvatov in Srbov) was a political entity that was constituted in October 1918, at the end of World War I, by Slovenes, Croats and Serbs ( ...

/ Bosnia and Herzegovina") and others in their Cyrillic equivalent.Classiques du monde 1840-1940, ,Yvert & Tellier, 2005 The first stamps for use throughout the kingdom were issued in January 1921. The name of the kingdom was changed to the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

in 1929, and later becoming the

Socialist Federal Republic of 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 Yu ...

after WWII. Bosnia and Herzegovina used Yugoslav stamps until becoming independent in 1992.

Independence

After the independence in 1992, the country has three postal authorities, corresponding with ethnic and administrative division of the country. The stamps are issued by: Bosnia and Herzegovina post (''

BH Pošta BH Pošta is one of three companies responsible for postal service in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The other two are Srpske Pošte and Hrvatska pošta Mostar. BH Pošta operates mainly in Bosniak-majority areas in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzego ...

'',

), Croatian Posts ('' HP Mostar'',

Mostar , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = Mostar (collage image).jpg , image_caption = From top, left to right: A panoramic view of the heritage town site and the Neretva river from Lučki Bridge, Koski Mehmed Pasha ...

), and Serbian posts ('' Srpske pošte'',

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city of Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is also the ''de facto'' capital of this entity. I ...

). In Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, stamps issued by BH pošta (the areas controlled by

Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Oružane snage Bosne i Hercegovine, OSBiH, Оружане снаге Босне и Херцеговине, ОСБИХ) is the official military force of Bosnia and Herz ...

in 1995) and HP Mostar (the areas controlled by

Croatian Defence Council The Croatian Defence Council ( hr, Hrvatsko vijeće obrane or HVO) was the official military formation of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, an unrecognized entity that existed in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1991 and 1996. The HVO wa ...

in 1995) are valid, while in

Republika Srpska Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, lit=Serb Republic, also known as Republic of Srpska, ) is one of the two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is locat ...

stamps issued by the Srpske pošte are valid.

Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

BH pošta issue stamps from 27 October 1993, first inscribed ''Republika Bosna i Hercegovina'', and from 1996 just ''Bosna i Hercegovina''. Until 1 October 1998, the currency is

Bosnia and Herzegovina dinar The Bosnia and Herzegovina dinar was the independent currency of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1998. History Bosnia and Herzegovina declared independence from Yugoslavia in March 1992. The first Bosnian dinar was issued in ...

, and after that Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark. HP Mostar issue stamps from 12 May 1993. Initially the stamps were inscribed by ''Bosna i Hercegovina / Hrvatska Republika Herceg-Bosna'', or abbreviated ''HR Herceg-Bosna''. From 1996, the stamps bear inscription ''Bosna i Hercegovina'', but with a different logo from BH pošta in Sarajevo. Initial currency was

Croatian kuna The kuna is the currency of Croatia, in use since 1994 (sign: kn; code: HRK). It is subdivided into 100 lipa. The kuna is issued by the Croatian National Bank and the coins are minted by the Croatian Mint. The plural form of the word kuna in Cr ...

, and from 1999 Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark. Both postal authorities from 2011 use double label ''Bosna i Hercegovina / Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine'' (sometimes abbreviated as FBiH), maintaining different logos, and areas of use.

Republika Srpska

Srpske pošte in Banja Luka started to issue stamps on 26 October 1992. The stamps first had label ''Republika Srpska'', and the currency was until 24 December

Yugoslav dinar The dinar (Cyrillic script: динар) was the currency of the three Yugoslav states: the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (formerly the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes), the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and the Federal Republic of Yu ...

. From 15th of July 2003, the stamps use double label ''Bosna i Hercegovina / Republika Srpska''. The stamps of Republika Srpska usually use the Cyrillic script, so the label reads Рeпублиҝa Српска.

References

External links

BH pošta, Sarajevo
(in Bosnian and English)
HP Mostar
(in Croatian and English)
Srpske pošte, Banja Luka
(in Serbian and English) Philately of Bosnia and Herzegovina {{Portal bar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe, Philately