Austro-Hungarian Empire: or the Habsburg Empire, existed in various forms from the 16th century until World War I. It occupied Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, and briefly (1718-1739) even Serbia. From 1440-1806 was the Western half of the Holy Roman Empire. See also Byzantine Empire.
Byzantine Empire: is the Eastern half of the Holy Roman Empire, based on Byzantium (later Constantinople and now Istanbul). Its major faith was Orthodox Christianity, now found in Serbia, Greece and Russia. It fell to invading forces in 1453. See also Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Dayton Peace Plan: An agreement reached at Dayton, Ohio in November 1995 between representatives of Serbia, Bosnia and Croatia. It included recognition of Bosnia by Serbia, and two territories within Bosnia; a Muslim-Croat Federation and Serb Republic (see map).
Enclave: An area or territory separate from the area surrounding it.
Exclave: An area or region culturally similar to but separated from a main territory.
Ethnic: a nation or people, or relating to races or large groups of people classed according to common traits and customs.
Ethnic Cleansing: is the term applied to the forcible expulsion, rape and murder of other ethnic groups. It has most often been practiced by the Serbs in Bosnia, although there is evidence that it is also practiced by Croats and Muslims. A classified report by the CIA leaked to the New York Times in March 1995 concluded that "over 90 percent" of ethnic cleansing was carried out by the Serbs.
Federation: an association or union of several provinces or states.
HDZ: Croat Democratic Union (Hrvatska Demokratska Zajednica), established Aug. 18, 1990. President: Bozo Rajic. The HDZ is the Bosnian branch of the ruling HDZ in Croatia and claims 115,000 members and "represents the rights and interests of the Croatian people" in Bosnia. Part of the Muslim-Croat Federation.
Irredentism: is the claim by a country over another territory or people it once occupied. See for example this map of irredentist claims by nationalists in Slovenia.
Muslim-Croat Federation (see Federation).
Nationalism: A sentiment based on common cultural, poltical and geographic characteristics, that binds people to a territorial state. In extreme forms it can lead to xenophobic behavior.
NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization established in 1949, whose members include the US, Canada and the UK and other European countries, for purposes of opposing Communism during the Cold War. At present it provides military support (eg., airstrikes) for the UN mission in Bosnia.
Ottoman Empire: is the former Turkish Empire occupying Europe, Asia and Africa. It lasted from the late 13th century until the end of World War I. Its major faith was Islam.
Refugees: are people forcibly expelled from their homeland who fear persecution for their political or religious beliefs.
Region: a group of like places or the functional union of places to form a spatial unit. For example, Europe is commonly divided into five regions: the British Isles, Northern, Western, Eastern, and Southern.
Safe Area: One of six UN protected enclaves in Bosnia; Bihac, Gorazde, Sarajevo, Srebenica, Tuzla, and Zepa established on May 6, 1993. Even though the United Nations guaranteed the safety of the citizens in these cities, Srebenica and Zepa fell into Serb hands in July 1995.
Scale: Relationship existing between a distance on a map, chart, or photograph and the corresponding distance on the Earth. When a unit of map distance represents 10,000,000 or more units of earth distance, it is a small scale map.
SDA: Party of Democratic Action (Stranka Demokratske Akcije), established May 26, 1990, registered 13 June, 1990. President: Alija Izetbegovic (Vice President is Ejup Ganic). The ruling party of the Croat-Muslim Federation, it controls most of the public media.
SDS: Serb Democratic Party (Srpska Demokratska Stranka), established July 12, 1990, Sarajevo (moved HQ to Pale in April 1992). President: Aleksa Buha (replaces Radovan Karadic who continues in the powerful Secretary General position). Self-defined as a right-wing, nationalist/patriotic party, with an estimated 80,000 members. Support independence for Republika Srpska and a union with Serbia.
United Nations: An international organization formed in 1945 to promote peace, international cooperation and security.
Vance-Owen Peace Plan: Unveiled at talks in Geneva, Switzerland in January 1993, the plan partitioned Bosnia into ten districts; three each for the Muslims, Serbs and Croats, and an ethnically mixed Sarajevo (see map). Critics pointed out that it was anti-pluralist and rewarded the Serbs with territory gained through military conquest and "ethnic cleansing". It was never implemented.
Sources: CIA, Balkan War Report, Misha Glenny's The Fall of Yugoslavia, various atlases and news reports.
