Serbian language in the context of "Kosovo Maiden"

The Serbian Empire (Serbian: Српско царство / Srpsko carstvo, pronounced [sr̩̂pskoː tsâːrstʋo]) was a medieval Serbian state that emerged from the Kingdom of Serbia. It was established in 1346 by Dušan the Mighty, who significantly expanded the state.

During Dušan's rule, Serbia was one of the most powerful European states and the most powerful in Southeast Europe. It was an Eastern Orthodox multi-ethnic and multi-lingual empire that stretched from the Danube in the north to the Gulf of Corinth in the south, with its capital in Skopje. Dušan also promoted the Serbian Archbishopric to the Serbian Patriarchate. In the Serbian Empire, the region of Kosovo was the most prosperous and densely populated area, serving as a key political, religious, and cultural center.

The House of Karađorđević or Karađorđević dynasty (Serbian: Династија Карађорђевић, Dinastija Karađorđević, IPA: [karadʑǒːrdʑevitɕ]; pl. Карађорђевићи, Karađorđevići) is the former ruling Serbian and deposed Yugoslav royal family.

The family was founded by Karađorđe Petrović (1768–1817), the Veliki Vožd (Serbian Cyrillic: Велики Вожд, lit. 'Grand Leader') of Serbia during the First Serbian uprising of 1804–1813. In the course of the 19th century the relatively short-lived dynasty was supported by the Russian Empire and was opposed to the Austrian-supported House of Obrenović. The two houses subsequently vied for the throne for several generations.

Principality of Serbia (Modern Serbian: Кнежевина Србија / Kneževina Srbija; also known as Principality of Serbs, (Modern Serbian: Кнежевина Срба / Kneževina Srba; Latin: Principatum Serborum; Modern Greek: Πριγκιπάτο της Σερβίας) was one of the early medieval states of the Serbs, located in the western regions of Southeastern Europe. It existed from the 8th century up to c. 969–971 and was ruled by the Vlastimirović dynasty. Its first ruler known by name was Višeslav, who started ruling around 780, while by that time (starting from the years 680–681), the Bulgarian state had taken the lands to the east. Vlastimir resisted and defeated the Bulgarian army in a three-year-war (839–842), and the two powers lived in peace for some decades. Vlastimir's three sons succeeded in ruling Serbia together, although for a limited time; Serbia became a key part in the power struggle between the Byzantines and Bulgarians, predominantly allied with the Byzantines, which also resulted in major dynastic wars for a period of three decades. The principality was annexed in 924 by Simeon I and subjected to Bulgarian rule until 933 when Serbian prince Časlav was established as ruler of the Serbian land, becoming the most powerful ruler of the Vlastimirović dynasty.

An important process during this period was the Christianization of the Serbs, completed by the establishment of Christianity as state-religion in the second half of the 9th century. The principality was annexed by the Byzantines in c. 969–971 and ruled as the Catepanate of Ras. The main information of the history of the principality and Vlastimirović dynasty are recorded in the contemporary historical work De Administrando Imperio (written c. 948–949).

The Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro (Serbian: Митрополство Црногорско, romanized: Mitropolstvo Crnogorsko, lit. 'Metropolitanate of the Black Mountain') was a Serbian Orthodox ecclesiastical principality that existed from 1516 until 1852. The principality was located around modern-day Montenegro. It emerged from the Eparchy of Cetinje, later known as the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral, whose bishops defied the Ottoman Empire overlordship and transformed the parish of Cetinje into a de facto theocracy, ruling it as Metropolitans (Vladike, also known as prince-bishops).

The first prince-bishop was Vavila. The system was transformed into a hereditary one by Danilo Šćepčević, a bishop of Cetinje who united the several tribes of Montenegro into fighting the Ottoman Empire that had occupied all of Montenegro (as the Sanjak of Montenegro and Montenegro Vilayet) and most of southeastern Europe at the time. Danilo was the first in the House of Petrović-Njegoš to occupy the position as the Metropolitan of Cetinje in 1851, when Montenegro became a secular state (principality) under Danilo I Petrović-Njegoš. The Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro also briefly became a monarchy when it was temporarily abolished in 1767–1773: this happened when the impostor Little Stephen posed as the Russian Emperor and crowned himself the Tsar of Montenegro.

The Principality of Montenegro (Serbian: Књажевина Црна Горa, romanized: Knjaževina Crna Gora) was a principality in Southeastern Europe that existed from 13 March 1852 to 28 August 1910. It was then proclaimed a kingdom by Nikola I, who then became King of Montenegro.

The capital was Cetinje and the Montenegrin perper was used as the state currency from 1906. The territory corresponded to the central area of modern-day Montenegro. It officially was a constitutional monarchy.

The Republic of Montenegro (Serbian: Република Црна Гора, romanized: Republika Crna Gora) was a constituent federated state of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and then Serbia and Montenegro between 1992 and 2006. The declaration of independence of Montenegro in 2006 ended the ex-Yugoslav state. After the collapse of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY), the remaining republics of Montenegro and Serbia agreed to the formation of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) which officially abandoned communism and endorsed democratic institutions. Montenegro was a constituent republic of the FRY and its successor state until June 2006 when Montenegro declared independence from Serbia and Montenegro following the 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum.

Ulpiana was an ancient Roman city located in what is today Kosovo. It was also named Justiniana Secunda (Latin: Iustiniana Secunda, Serbian: Justinijana Sekunda, Albanian: Justiniana Sekunda). Ulpiana is located in the municipality of Gračanica, 12 km southeast of Pristina. The Municipium Ulpiana or Iustiniana Secunda was proclaimed an archaeological park under the permanent protection of Kosovo by the Kosova Council for Cultural Heritage in 2016. The archaeological park has an area of 161.10 hectares and a surrounding protection zone of 96.23 hectares. Ulpiana was among the largest settlements in the Balkans in late antiquity.

Serbian Patriarchate of Peć (Serbian: Српска патријаршија у Пећи, Srpska patrijaršija u Peći), or simply Peć Patriarchate (Serbian: Пећка патријаршија, Pećka patrijaršija), was an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Patriarchate that existed from 1346 to 1463, and then again from 1557 to 1766 with its seat in the Patriarchal Monastery of Peć. It had ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Eastern Orthodox Christians in Serbian Lands and other western regions of Southeastern Europe. Primates of the Patriarchate were styled Archbishop of Peć and Serbian Patriarch.

Serbo-Croatian, also known as Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS), is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is a pluricentric language with four mutually intelligible standard varieties, namely Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, and Montenegrin.

South Slavic languages historically formed a dialect continuum. The region's turbulent history, particularly due to the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, led to a complex dialectal and religious mosaic. Due to population migrations, Shtokavian became the most widespread supradialect in the western Balkans, encroaching westward into the area previously dominated by Chakavian and Kajkavian. Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs differ in religion and were historically often part of different cultural spheres, although large portions of these populations lived side by side under foreign rule. During that period, the language was referred to by various names, such as "Slavic" in general, or "Serbian", "Croatian" or "Bosnian" in particular. In a classicizing manner, it was also referred to as "Illyrian".

Gjeravica (Albanian indefinite form: Gjeravicë; Serbian: Ђеравица / Đeravica) is a mountain peak in Kosovo. It also is the second-highest mountain peak in the Accursed Mountains range and the Dinaric Alps range, after Jezercë. It has an elevation of 2,656 m (8,714 ft) above sea level. Gjeravica is in the western part of Kosovo, in the municipality of Junik.

The Šar Mountains (Macedonian: Шар Планина, romanized: Šar Planina; Serbian: Шар-планина / Šar-planina; colloquially also Šara, Cyrillic: Шара) or Sharr Mountains (Albanian: Malet e Sharrit) is a mountain range in Southeast Europe, extending into several countries from southern Kosovo, to northwestern North Macedonia, to northeastern Albania. The sections in Kosovo (Sharr Mountains National Park) and North Macedonia (Šar Planina National Park) are national parks. Rugged and barren, the mountains are among the highest in the Balkans, with 30 peaks higher than 2,500 m (8,202 ft).

The Drin (/driːn/; Albanian pronunciation: [dɾin], Albanian definite form: Drini, pronounced [ˈdɾini]) or Drim (Serbian and Macedonian: Дрим, pronounced [drim]), is a river in Southeastern Europe with two major tributaries – the White Drin and the Black Drin and two distributaries – one discharging into the Adriatic Sea, in the Gulf of Drin and the other into the Buna River. Its catchment area extends across Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and North Macedonia and is home to more than 1.6 million people. The river and its tributaries form the Gulf of Drin, an ocean basin that encompasses the northern Albanian Adriatic Sea Coast.

At 285 kilometres (177 miles) long, the Drin is the longest river of Albania and its tributaries cross through both Kosovo and North Macedonia. Its northern tributary, the White Drin starts from the foothills of Žljeb, at White Drin Waterfall in west Kosovo, and flows generally south, whereas its southern tributary, the Black Drin originates from Ohrid lake in the town of Struga, North Macedonia and flows north. Both tributaries' confluence occurs near Kukës in northeast Albania and Drin then flows westwards through the Albanian Alps and Dukagjin Highlands, where three successive dams were erected between 1960s and late 1980s, forming 3 large artificial lakes. The Drin then passes Vau i Dejës and drains into the Adriatic Sea through its two distributaries in Buna river and west of Lezhë.

The Kingdom of Serbia (Serbian: Краљевина Србија / Kraljevina Srbija, or the Serbian Kingdom (Serbian: Српско краљевство / Srpsko kraljevstvo), also known as Kingdom of Serbs (Serbian: Краљевина Срба / Kraljevina Srba); Latin: Regnum Serbiæ; Greek: Βασίλειο της Σερβίας, also known by historical exonym Rascia (Serbian: Рашка / Raška), was a medieval Serbian kingdom in Southern Europe comprising most of what is today Serbia (excluding Vojvodina), Kosovo, and Montenegro, as well as southeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, parts of coastal Croatia south of the Neretva river (excluding Dubrovnik), Albania north of the Drin River, North Macedonia, and a small part of western Bulgaria. The medieval Kingdom of Serbia existed from 1217 to 1346 and was ruled by the Nemanjić dynasty. The Grand Principality of Serbia was elevated with the regal coronation of Stefan Nemanjić as king, after the reunification of Serbian lands. In 1219, the Serbian Orthodox Church was reorganized as an autocephalous archbishopric, headed by Saint Sava. The kingdom was proclaimed an empire in 1346, but kingship was not abolished as an institution, since the title of a king was used as an official designation for a co-ruler of the emperor.

Central Serbia (Serbian: централна Србија, romanized: centralna Srbija), also referred to as Serbia proper (Serbian: ужа Србија, romanized: uža Srbija), is the region of Serbia lying outside the autonomous province of Vojvodina to the north and the disputed Kosovo region to the south. Central Serbia is a term of convenience, not an administrative division of Serbia as such, and does not have any form of separate administration.

Broadly speaking, Central Serbia is the historical core of modern Serbia, which emerged from the Serbian Revolution and subsequent wars against the Ottoman Empire. In the following period, Serbia gradually expanded south, acquiring Southern Serbia, Kosovo, Sandžak, and Vardar Macedonia, and in 1918 – following the unification and annexation of Montenegro and unification of Austro-Hungarian areas left of the Danube and Sava (Vojvodina) – it merged with other South Slavic territories into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The current borders of Central Serbia were defined after World War II, when Serbia became a republic within the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, with Kosovo and Vojvodina as its autonomous provinces.

Vojvodina (Serbian: Војводина, IPA: [vǒjvodina], VOY-və-DEE-nə), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (Serbian: Аутономна Покрајина Војводина, romanized: Autonomna Pokrajina Vojvodina), is an autonomous province in northern Serbia. It encompasses the historical and geographical regions of Bačka, Banat, Syrmia, and northernmost part of Mačva, lying to the north of the national capital Belgrade and the Sava and Danube rivers. Vojvodina has 1.7 million inhabitants, about a quarter of the country's population, and its administrative centre, Novi Sad, is the second largest city in Serbia.

The Serbian Revolution (Serbian: Српска револуција, romanized: Srpska revolucija) was a national uprising and constitutional change in Serbia that took place between 1804 and 1835, during which this territory evolved from an Ottoman province into a rebel territory, a constitutional monarchy, and modern Serbia.

In 1804, the Ottoman Janissary decided to execute all prominent nobles throughout Central Serbia, a move known as the Slaughter of the Knezes. The heads of the murdered Serbian nobles were put on public display in the central square to serve as an example to those who might plot against Ottoman rule. The event triggered the start of the Serbian Revolution aimed at putting an end to the 370 years of Ottoman occupation. The first part of the period, from 1804 to 1817, was marked by a violent struggle for independence from the Ottoman Empire with two armed uprisings taking place, ending with a ceasefire. The later period (1817–1835) witnessed a peaceful consolidation of political power of the increasingly autonomous Serbia, culminating in the recognition of the right to hereditary rule by Serbian princes in 1830 and 1833 and the territorial expansion of the young monarchy.

The Principality of Serbia (Serbian: Књажество Србија, romanized: Knjažestvo Srbija) was an autonomous, later sovereign state in the Balkans that came into existence as a result of the Serbian Revolution, which lasted between 1804 and 1817. Its creation was negotiated first through an unwritten agreement between Miloš Obrenović, leader of the Second Serbian Uprising, and Ottoman official Marashli Pasha. It was followed by the series of legal documents published by the Sublime Porte in 1828, 1829 and finally, 1830—the Hatt-i Sharif. Its de facto independence ensued in 1867, following the evacuation of the remaining Ottoman troops from the Belgrade Fortress and the country; its independence was recognized internationally in 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin. In 1882 the country was elevated to the status of kingdom.

The Serbs (Serbian Cyrillic: Срби, romanized: Srbi, pronounced [sr̩̂bi]) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and Kosovo, with smaller communities in neighboring North Macedonia, Hungary, and Romania. They also constitute a significant diaspora with several communities across Europe, the Americas and Oceania.

The Serbs share many cultural traits with the rest of the peoples of Southeast Europe. They are predominantly Eastern Orthodox Christians by religion. The Serbian language (a standardized version of Serbo-Croatian) is official in Serbia, co-official in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, and is spoken by the plurality in Montenegro.