Historically - Bosnia is Serbian Land

It is well known fact that South Slavs settled in the Balkans in 7th century. The two largest tribes were Serbs and Croats. There was not much distinction between the two then and to this day the "two people" speak one and the same language. Till recently the language was known in world literature as Serbo-Croatian. The only outwardly difference between Serbs and Croats today is that the former are Orthodox while the later are Catholic Christians.

Geographical regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina were settled by the Serbs. There is no dispute about this in Western pre-1991 (pre-Bosnia-war) literature.

From: "Encyclopedia Britannica" Edition 1971, Volume 3, page 983, Entry: Bosnia, history

Serbian settlement in Bosnia-Herzegovina began in the seventh century A.D.

From: "Encyclopedia Britannica" Edition 1943, Vol 20, Page 341, Entry: Serbia, History

According to the emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, the emperor Heraclius (610-640) invited the Serbs to settle in the devastated north-western provinces of the Byzantine empire and to defend them against the incursions of the Avars.

Toward the end of 9th century the political centre of the Serbs was transferred to Zeta (or: Zenta: see Montenegro) and the Primorye (sea-coast)... [Serbian] Prince Voislav of Travuniya (today: Trebinje [Herzegovina]) ...united under his own rule Travuniya, Zahumlye (the modern Herzegovina) and Zeta. His son Michael Voislavich annexed the important Zhupania of Rashka (Rascia or Rassia) [Central Serbia], and in 1077 was addressed as king (rex) in a letter from Pope Gregory VII. His son Bodin enlarged the first Serb kingdom by annexing territories...

From: "Encyclopedia Britannica" Edition 1971, Vol 3, p 983, Entry: Bosnia-Herzegovina

[Serbian] King Bodin (1081-1101) united Bosnia with the other two Serbian principalities – Rashka [Central Serbia] and Zeta [Montenegro]...

From: "Encyclopedia Britannica" Edition 1990, Volume 29, Macropedia, page 1098, Entry: Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina

The emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (reigned 913-957) referred to Bosnia as part of “the land of the Serbs”.

From: "Yugoslavia, a Country Study"

Serbian groups settled the region of present-day Bosnia and Hercegovina during the seventh century... Bosnia or Bosna (from Bosna river) appears to have originated as a small principality in the mountainous region of the upper reaches of the Bosna and Vrbas rivers. The name Herzegovina originated in the fifteenth century when a powerful Bosnian noble, Stephen Vuksic, gained control of lands in the southern part of Bosnia and took the title of Herzog, the German equivalent of duke, from which came the name of the region.

Turkish conquest

That is it: Bosnia was Serbian only. There were no "Muslims" -- not even a single family -- for at least FIVE HUNDRED years! The Islamic onslaught on Europe started centuries later. For the Turks who wanted to conquer Europe for Allah, Balkans was the shortest route. Their immense armies were first stopped by heroic Serb resistance in a gigantic battle at Kosovo field in 1389. Some 70 years later the Turks recovered and took now defenceless Bosnia.

Centuries of peace the Serbs enjoyed in Bosnia were to be substituted with centuries long struggle to survive brutal tyranny by foreign oppressor.

In order to govern this, 100% Christian land, the Turks needed to find (in today's terms) local quislings. In those ancient times, when religion was one's alpha and omega of existence, the conquering Turks could not hope to convert Christians to Islam over night. Despite that, it turns out, Bosnia was somewhat fertile ground. The Turkish conquest left substantial portion of the population converted to Islam - more so than in other, vast Christian lands, governed by the Ottoman Empire.

There are few theories how it happened. The most prevalent theory present in Western literature claims that the Turks found an easy prey in Christian cult of Bogumilism. This is one of many theories, though. The opposing ones claim that Bogumilism, while quite present in Bosnia for some time, was extinct centuries before Turkish arrival.

As it was question of honour, not to abandon ones religion for the religion of the enemy, the process of conversion was a slow one. It took centuries. No-one disputes that. Also the process took many different forms, many of which were forms of forceful conversion. For sure those who converted to the religion of the oppressor immediately reaped benefits. Over night they would cease to be oppressed. They would not be hungry any more. The record of individual conversions for the last few centuries of the Ottoman rule was kept in the main archive in Sarajevo, which was in Muslim hands in the recent civil war. It burned to the ground with all the documents. The incident, as everything else, was blamed on the besieging Serbs even though it was in Muslim Serb, and certainly not in Christian Serb, interest for that to happen...

Date: 2015-12-17; view: 627