Bosnia and Herzegovina
Name
| Official name | Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bosna i Hercegovina; no longer form |
|---|---|
| Short forms | Bosnia; BiH |
| Demonym | Bosnian, Herzegovinian; the three constituent peoples Bosniaks, Serbs and Croats |
| Meaning of the name | Bosnia for the river Bosna; Herzegovina for the herceg — the duke Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, who took the title in 1448 |
| The entities | The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (about 51% of the territory) and Republika Srpska (about 49%), with the Brčko District held in common |
Quick facts
| Capital | Sarajevo — the capital of the state and of the Federation; about 275,000 in the city, 420,000 in the canton; Banja Luka the capital of Republika Srpska |
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| Official languages | Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian — one language by most linguists' reckoning, in Latin and Cyrillic scripts |
| Currency | Convertible mark — ISO code BAM, KM; 1 mark = 100 fening; fixed at 1.95583 to the euro; issued by the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina under a currency board |
| Time zone | Central European Time, UTC+1; summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +387 |
| Internet domain | .ba |
| ISO 3166 codes | BA · BIH · 070 |
| Vehicle registration code | BIH |
| Driving side | Right |
| Electricity | 230 V, 50 Hz; plug types C and F |
| Independence | Referendum 29 February–1 March 1992; declared 3 March 1992; recognized 6 April 1992 |
| State holidays | 1 March, Independence Day; 25 November, Statehood Day — kept in the Federation and Brčko, not in Republika Srpska, which keeps 9 January |
| Constitution | Annex 4 of the Dayton Agreement, initialed 21 November 1995 and signed in Paris on 14 December 1995 |
| Population | 3,531,159 at the census of 2013 — the results disputed by Republika Srpska; estimates for 2025 from about 3.2 million (UN) to 3.65 million (CIA World Factbook) |
| Area | 51,197 km² (19,767 sq mi) by the Factbook; 51,209 km² by the national count — a little smaller than West Virginia |
Flag & national symbols
| National flag | A yellow right triangle on blue with a diagonal of white stars running off both edges — a triangle for the country's shape and its three peoples, stars for Europe without end, in Europe's colors; imposed by the High Representative on 4 February 1998 when the parliament could not agree, adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly in 2001.Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
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| Coat of arms | The flag's design on a shield — a yellow triangle in the upper corner and seven white stars in a diagonal row — adopted 18 May 1998 |
| National anthem | "Intermeco" ("Intermezzo") — by Dušan Šestić; adopted by the Law on the National Anthem of 25 June 1999; one of four national anthems in the world with no official lyrics |
| National colors | Blue, yellow and white |
| The lily | The golden lily of the Kotromanić kings (Lilium bosniacum) — on the flag of 1992–98; still the emblem of the Bosniaks and of the Federation's army veterans |
| The entities' symbols | Republika Srpska: a red-blue-white tricolor. The Federation: none since the Constitutional Court struck down its flag and arms in 2007 — it uses the state symbols |
| National dish | Ćevapi with somun and onion; burek and the pita family; Bosnian coffee — widely cited |
| Symbol status | The flag, arms and anthem are fixed by state laws of 1998–99; there is no designated animal, bird or flower |
Geography
| Location | The western Balkans — the Dinaric Alps between Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, with a finger of coast at Neum |
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| Coastline | 20 km (12 mi) at Neum — the shortest of any coastal state but Monaco |
| Land borders | 1,543 km (959 mi) with three countries |
| Border with Croatia | 956 km (594 mi) — the Sava and the Una, and the frontier that cuts Dubrovnik off from the rest of Croatia at Neum |
| Border with Serbia | 345 km (214 mi) — the Drina |
| Border with Montenegro | 242 km (150 mi) |
| Highest point | Maglić, 2,386 m (7,828 ft), on the Montenegrin border in the Sutjeska National Park |
| Lowest point | The Adriatic Sea at Neum, 0 m |
| Mean elevation | 500 m (1,640 ft) |
| Major rivers | The Sava along the north, to the Danube; the Bosna, the Drina, the Una and the Vrbas flowing to it; the Neretva to the Adriatic through Mostar |
| Terrain | Mountains and valleys — the Dinaric Alps across the whole country; the Pannonian plain along the Sava; the karst of Herzegovina |
| Forests | About 42% of the land; the primeval forest of Perućica in Sutjeska — a World Heritage site since 2021 |
| Climate | Continental in the interior — hot summers, cold winters — Mediterranean in Herzegovina and on the coast |
| Natural hazards | Earthquakes; the floods of May 2014 and October 2024; landmines from the war still in about 2% of the territory |
| Natural resources | Coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, salt, timber, hydropower |
| Land use | Agricultural land about 42%; forest about 42% |
| National parks | Sutjeska (1962), Kozara, Una, Drina |
| UNESCO World Heritage | 4 — the Old Bridge area of Mostar (2005); the Mehmed Paša Sokolović Bridge at Višegrad (2007); the Stećci medieval tombstones (2016, shared); the primeval beech forests, for Perućica and Janj (2021, shared) |
| Administrative divisions | Two entities and the Brčko District; the Federation in 10 cantons; Republika Srpska in 64 municipalities; some 143 municipalities in all |
People
| Population | 3,531,159 (census of 2013); about 3.2–3.65 million (2025 estimates) |
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| Population density | About 65–70 per km² (170–180 per sq mi) |
| Population growth | Negative — about −0.5% a year, from emigration and low births |
| Median age | About 46 years — among the ten highest in the world |
| Life expectancy | About 78 years |
| Fertility rate | About 1.3 births per woman |
| Urban population | About 50% |
| Adult literacy | About 98% |
| Ethnic groups | Bosniak 50.1%, Serb 30.8%, Croat 15.4%, others 2.7% (census of 2013) |
| Languages | Bosnian 52.9%, Serbian 30.8%, Croatian 14.6% (2013) — mutually intelligible standards of one Shtokavian language |
| Religion | Muslim 50.7%, Orthodox 30.7%, Roman Catholic 15.2% (2013) |
| Largest cities | Sarajevo, Banja Luka, Tuzla, Zenica, Mostar, Bijeljina, Brčko, Prijedor |
| Human Development Index | 0.804 (2023 data, 2025 report) — very high |
| Diaspora | About 2 million people of Bosnian origin abroad — in Germany, Austria, the United States, Croatia, Serbia, Sweden and Switzerland; remittances about a tenth of GDP |
Government
| Form of government | A federal parliamentary republic of two entities under Annex 4 of the Dayton Agreement — with an international High Representative holding powers to impose laws and remove officials |
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| Presidency | Three members — Denis Bećirović (Bosniak, SDP), Željka Cvijanović (Serb, SNSD) and Željko Komšić (Croat, DF) — elected 2 October 2022, in office since 16 November 2022; the chair rotates every eight months |
| Chair of the Presidency | Denis Bećirović, since 16 March 2026 |
| Chairwoman of the Council of Ministers | Borjana Krišto (HDZ BiH), since 25 January 2023 — the first woman in the office |
| The 2026 election | The tenth general election since Dayton is due on 4 October 2026 — the Presidency, the state House of Representatives, both entity parliaments, the President of Republika Srpska and the ten cantonal assemblies; 3,414,364 voters on the roll, 75 parties and 29 coalitions |
| High Representative | Christian Schmidt, since 1 August 2021 — the Office of the High Representative since 1995 |
| Parliament | The Parliamentary Assembly — the House of Representatives (42: 28 from the Federation, 14 from Republika Srpska) and the House of Peoples (15, five from each people) |
| Republika Srpska | President Siniša Karan (SNSD), since November 2025 — elected after Milorad Dodik was removed from office in August 2025 following his conviction for defying the High Representative; the entity's secession threats of 2025 the deepest crisis since Dayton |
| The Federation | President Lidija Bradara; Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić (SDP), since 2023; 10 cantons |
| Legal system | Civil law; the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina with three international judges; the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| European Union | Candidate since 15 December 2022; accession negotiations opened 21 March 2024 |
| NATO | Membership Action Plan since 2010; the Reform Programme in force; membership opposed by Republika Srpska |
| United Nations | Member since 22 May 1992 |
| Other memberships | The Council of Europe (2002), the OSCE, CEFTA, the Energy Community; an observer at the WTO |
Economy
| GDP (nominal) | About US$30 billion (2025, IMF) |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita | About US$9,000 (2025) — depending on which population is used |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | About US$22,000 (2025) |
| GDP growth | About 2–3% a year (2024–25) |
| Economy by sector | Services about 60%, industry about 30%, agriculture about 6% |
| Currency | Convertible mark (BAM), fixed to the euro |
| Exports | About US$9 billion a year — metals and machinery, furniture and timber, electricity, footwear and textiles, to Germany, Croatia, Serbia, Italy and Austria |
| Industry | The ArcelorMittal steelworks at Zenica; aluminum at Mostar; the Prevent group; the arms industry inherited from Yugoslavia |
| Energy | Hydropower and lignite — a net exporter of electricity |
| Remittances | About 10% of GDP from the diaspora |
| Unemployment | About 12% — youth unemployment far higher |
| Income classification | Upper-middle income (World Bank) |
Transport & infrastructure
| Main airport | Sarajevo International Airport at Butmir; Tuzla, Banja Luka and Mostar |
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| Railways | About 1,000 km (620 mi), run by two entity companies — ŽFBH and ŽRS |
| Roads | About 23,000 km (14,000 mi); the Corridor Vc motorway from the Sava to the Adriatic under construction, about a third open |
| Ports | Neum, a small coastal town; the country's trade moves through Ploče in Croatia; river ports on the Sava at Brčko |
| Sarajevo tram | One of the oldest electric tram systems in Europe — the test line for Vienna's, 1885 |
History in dates
| 1180s | Ban Kulin — the medieval Bosnian state under the Kotromanić dynasty from 1250 |
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| 1377 | Tvrtko I crowned the first King of Bosnia |
| 1463 | The Ottoman conquest; Herzegovina by 1482 |
| 1878 | Austria-Hungary occupies Bosnia at the Congress of Berlin; annexed 1908 |
| 1914 | The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, 28 June |
| 1918 | Part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes |
| 1943 | The wartime assembly at Mrkonjić Grad, 25 November — Statehood Day |
| 1984 | The Sarajevo Winter Olympics, 8–19 February |
| 1992 | Independence referendum, 1 March; the war begins in April; the siege of Sarajevo, 1,425 days |
| 1995 | The Srebrenica genocide, July; the Dayton Agreement, 21 November; signed in Paris, 14 December |
| 1998 | The convertible mark, the flag and the arms |
| 2004 | The Old Bridge of Mostar reopened, 23 July |
| 2016 | The application for EU membership, 15 February |
| 2022 | EU candidate status, 15 December |
| 2024 | Accession negotiations opened, 21 March |
| 2025 | Milorad Dodik convicted and removed; Siniša Karan elected President of Republika Srpska, November |
| 2026 | The general election due, 4 October |
Records & firsts
| The longest siege | Sarajevo, 1992–96 — 1,425 days, the longest of a capital in modern history |
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| The shortest coast of any coastal state but one | Neum, 20 km |
| A wordless anthem | "Intermeco" — one of four in the world without official lyrics |
| A flag with no symbol of one people | The triangle and the stars of 1998 |
| The Old Bridge | Stari Most at Mostar — built 1566, destroyed 1993, rebuilt 2004 |
| The Winter Olympics | Sarajevo 1984 — the first in a socialist country |
| Perućica | One of the last primeval forests in Europe |
| The Sarajevo tram | Europe's test line for the electric tram, 1885 |
| A High Representative | The only European state with an international official empowered to impose its laws |
| The Stećci | Some 60,000 medieval tombstones, a World Heritage site shared with three neighbors |
Frequently asked questions
What is the official name of Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bosna i Hercegovina — with no longer form; the country is often shortened to Bosnia or BiH. Bosnia is named for the river Bosna; Herzegovina, the southern region, for the herceg — duke — Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, who took the title in 1448.
What is the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Sarajevo, in the valley of the Miljacka — the capital of the state and of the Federation, with about 275,000 people in the city and some 420,000 in the canton, the host of the Winter Olympics of 1984 and the city besieged for 1,425 days in 1992–96. Banja Luka is the capital of Republika Srpska and the second city.
How big is Bosnia and Herzegovina, and how many people live there?
About 51,197 km² (19,767 sq mi) — a little smaller than West Virginia. The census of 2013, the first since 1991 and disputed by Republika Srpska, counted 3.53 million; estimates for 2025 run from about 3.2 million (the UN) to 3.65 million (the CIA World Factbook), the range reflecting emigration the country has not measured since. The median age, about 46, is among the highest in the world.
What are the highest and lowest points of Bosnia and Herzegovina?
Maglić, 2,386 m (7,828 ft), on the Montenegrin border above the Sutjeska gorge and the primeval forest of Perućica, is the highest point; the Adriatic at Neum — the country's 20 km (12 mi) of coast, its only outlet to the sea — is the lowest. The mean elevation is 500 m: a country of the Dinaric Alps, two-fifths forest.
What currency does Bosnia and Herzegovina use?
The convertible mark (ISO code BAM, KM), introduced in 1998 at par with the Deutsche Mark and fixed since 2002 at 1.95583 to the euro, the old mark's rate; 1 mark = 100 fening. Clocks keep Central European Time, UTC+1, with summer time.
Who governs Bosnia and Herzegovina?
A three-member Presidency — Denis Bećirović (Bosniak), Željka Cvijanović (Serb) and Željko Komšić (Croat), elected on 2 October 2022 and in office since 16 November, the chair rotating every eight months, Bećirović's since 16 March 2026 — and a Council of Ministers chaired by Borjana Krišto since January 2023. Christian Schmidt, the High Representative, holds the Dayton powers to impose laws. The tenth general election since Dayton is due on 4 October 2026, with 3.41 million voters on the roll.
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