[kroh-ey-shuh, -shee-uh] 
| a republic in SE Europe: includes the historical regions of Dalmatia, Istria, and Slavonia; formerly a part of Yugoslavia. 5,026,995, 21,835 sq. mi. (56,555 sq. km) Capital: Zagreb. |
Cro·a·tia (krō-ā'shə, -shē-ə)  (click for larger image in new window) A country of southern Europe along the northeast Adriatic coast. It was settled by Croats in the 7th century, became a kingdom in the 10th century, and reached the height of its power in the 11th century before being conquered by Hungary in 1091. After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918, Croatia became a part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which later became Yugoslavia. Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Zagreb is the capital and the largest city. Population: 4,490,000. |
Republic in southeastern Europe in the upper western corner of the Balkan Peninsula, bordered to the northwest by Slovenia, to the north by Hungary, to the east by Yugoslavia, to the south and southeast by Bosnia and Herzegovina, and to the west by the Adriatic Sea. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb.
Note: When Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, fighting broke out between Croats and Croatia's large Serbian minority, who were aided by the Serb-dominated Yugoslavian government. In 1995, Croatian, Serbian, and Bosnian leaders met in the United States and settled on a peace accord. Hostility between Croats and Serbs has a long history; during World War II they fought on opposite sides of a civil war in Yugoslavia.
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