Every Day Is Special: Montenegro

Showing posts with label Montenegro. Show all posts

May 21 - Independence Day in Montenegro

Posted on May 21, 2022

This is an update of my post published on May 21, 2011:

Montenegro rebelled against the Ottoman Empire in the 17^th Century.

It suffered annexation by Mussolini's Italy in 1941.

It survived Socialist Yugoslavia for half a century.

It voted to be independent from the republic of Serbia and Montenegro on this day in 2006.

With a name meaning “black mountain,” this European nation has many mountains and a picturesque coast on the Adriatic Sea.

Slightly smaller than the small U.S. state of Connecticut, Montenegro has a lot of diversity: Montenegrins, Serbs, Bosniaks, Muslims, Albanians, and Croats. A large proportion of the population voted NOT to split from Serbia, and apparently there is confusion among many who consider themselves to be Serbians (ethnically) AND Montenegrins (nationally). Of course, many people in the U.S. and other “melting pot” nations share that confusion. For example, I have students who identify themselves as Korean some of the time, as American some of the time, and as Korean-American once in a while. (And they're all true.)

Is there a diversity of languages, as well? Yep. Montenegrin is the official language, and Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian, and Albanian are also commonly used. But...not SO much diversity—according to Wikipedia, all of these languages except Albanian are “mutually intelligible.” In other words, if you know Montenegrin, you can pretty much understand Serbian, Bosnian, and Croatian - and vice versa!

Montenegro—a hot spot for tourism.

This tourism video features a woman in a really long red gown swimming past snow-clad mountains. Dramatic, eh?

You might also enjoy exploring this tourism site.

Also on this date:

Fossilist Mary Anning's birthday

Artist Sister Maria Hummel's birthday

Strawberries and Cream Day

Physicist Gespard-Gustave de Coriolis's birthday

Anniversary of a Failed Prediction

National Waiters and Waitresses Day

Naval Glories Day in Chile

World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development

I Need a Patch for That Day

Checking out Cameroon

Plan ahead:

Check out my Pinterest boards for:

And here are my Pinterest boards for:

May 6 – Đurđevdan

Posted May 6, 2015

Đurđevdan translates to "George's Day"—as in St. George.

As in the guy on a horse killing a dragon!

St. George is considered the patron saint of England, and that is why his feast day is still celebrated there every April 23. That is the traditionally accepted anniversary of his death in 303 C.E. (or A.D.).

However, St. George's feast day was April 23 on the Julian calendar. That translates to May 6 on the Gregorian calendar (which is the one we use nowadays).

Even though the people of Southern Slavic nations use the Gregorian calendar for most purposes, Eastern Orthodox Christianity generally still uses the Julian calendar for feast days and other religious holidays. So nations like Serbia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo celebrate the feast day today. (I think. Honestly, I found all of this stuff about April 23 and May 6 quite confusing!)

A Southern Slavic version
of St. George killing a dragon.

Đurđevdan marks the beginning of spring, and some of the spring celebrations enjoyed in other nations on other days take place today in Southern Slavic nations. That includes having bonfires and decorating the home with flowers and blooming twigs, taking baths with flowers and washing with water from holy wells. Another slavic tradition is choosing girls to dress in leaves and play the part of Dodola goddesses by singing all through the village.

Even though this holiday has its basis in Christian traditions, with a Catholic saint and feast day, the connection with springtime celebrations, particularly the Dodola goddesses, comes from pagan traditions. In some areas, such as Bosnia and Kosovo, many Muslim people also celebrated Đurđevdan, at least in the past.

More about South Slavs...

In the past, just as in the present, people moved about trying to find resources and land; as they spread out and moved away from former neighbors, their languages and customs began to diverge as they evolved.

There are many nations that are settled by mostly “Slavic peoples,” largely defined by their Slavic languages. The South Slavs include the majority of people in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and a sizable minority in the Republic of Kosovo (a disputed nation).

Notice that the Southern Slavic nations, shown above in green, are cut off from the other Slavic nations by non-Slavic countries like Austria, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova.

Check out these flags and photos for each of the Southern Slavic nation:

Bosnia and Herzegovina:

Bulgaria:

Croatia:

Kosovo:

Macedonia:

Montenegro:

Serbia:

Slovenia:

Also on this date:

Anniversary of the Hindenburg explosion

Teacher Appreciation Week (May 4 - 8)

Great American Grump-Out

Be Kind to Animals Week (May 3-9)

National Nurses Day

Anniversary of the world's first postage stamp

Plan ahead:

Check out my Pinterest boards for:

And here are my Pinterest boards for:

July 13, 2012 - Statehood Day in Montenegro

Montenegro has an Independence Day (celebrating May 21, 2006, when a majority of Montenegrins voted to become an independent nation, separate from neighbors Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which with Montenegro made up Yugoslavia for several decades).

Montenegro is the orange splotch
in the lower third of the central
portion of the map. It is near
Greece and across the Adriatic
Sea from Italy.

Today isn't Montenegro's Independence Day. It doesn't celebrate statehood apart from the crumbling Yugoslavia. What Montenegrins celebrate today is the July 13, 1878, date when Montenegro was recognized as an independent country by the Berlin Congress, and (in my mind more important) the July 13, 1941, date when Montenegrins started a popular uprising against the Nazis and Mussolini's Fascist army, which had taken over the country during World War II.

Montenegro has rugged mountains, a coastline along the Adriatic Sea, and Karst landforms that include caves and sinkholes. Take a look at some of the gorgeous landscapes here and here.

Also on this date:

Obon, or Day of the Souls, in Japan

Rubik's Cube inventor Erno Rubik's birthday

May 21, 2011 - Independence Day – Montenegro

Montenegro rebelled against the Ottoman Empire in the 17^th Century.

It suffered annexation by Mussolini's Italy in 1941.

It survived Socialist Yugoslavia for half a century.

It voted to be independent from the republic of Serbia and Montenegro on this day in 2006.

With a name meaning “black mountain,” this European nation has many mountains and a picturesque coast on the Adriatic Sea. Slightly smaller than the small U.S. state of Connecticut, Montenegro has a lot of diversity: Montenegrins, Serbs, Bosniaks, Muslims, Albanians, and Croats. A large proportion of the population voted NOT to split from Serbia, and apparently there is confusion among many who consider themselves to be Serbians (ethnically) AND Montenegrins (nationally). Of course, many people in the U.S. and other “melting pot” nations share that confusion. For example, I have students who identify themselves as Korean some of the time, as American some of the time, and as Korean-American once in a while. (And they're all true.)

Is there a diversity of languages, as well? Yep. Montenegrin is the official language, and Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian, and Albanian are also commonly used. But...not SO much diversity—according to Wikipedia, all of these languages except Albanians are “virtually identical in common usage.”

Montenegro—a hot spot for tourism.

This tourism video features a woman in a really long red gown swimming past snow-clad mountains. Dramatic, eh?

You might also enjoy the short slide show offered at this tourism site. Click on the Montenegro Virtual Map at the top of the website page to see more videos and photos along with satellite maps.