The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The state was founded on 27 April 1992 as a federation comprising the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Montenegro. In February 2003, it was transformed from a federal republic to a political union until Montenegro seceded from the union in June 2006, leading to the full independence of both Serbia and Montenegro.
The flag of Serbia, also known as the Tricolour, is a tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal bands, red on the top, blue in the middle, and white on the bottom, with the lesser coat of arms left of center. The same tricolour, in altering variations, has been used since the 19th century as the flag of the state of Serbia and the Serb people. The current form of the flag was adopted in 2004 and slightly redesigned in 2010.
The pan-Slavic colors—blue, white and red—were defined by the Prague Slavic Congress, 1848, based on the symbolism of the colors of the flag of Russia, which was introduced in the late 17th century. Historically, however, many Slavic nations and states had already adopted flags and other national symbols that used some combination of those three colors. Slavic countries that use or have used the colors include Russia, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia, whereas Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland and Ukraine use different color schemes.
The national flag of Montenegro has a red field with gold border and the coat of arms of Montenegro in its center. It was officially adopted on 13 July 2004, when the then Republic of Montenegro was a constituent of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, and its precise specification was standardized on 16 September 2004. The flag was retained after Montenegrin independence from Serbia in 2006, and mandated by Article 4 of the Constitution of Montenegro adopted in 2007.
Republika Srpska is one of the two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the northern and eastern parts of the country and had a population of 1,228,423 according to the 2013 census. The largest city and administrative center is Banja Luka, situated on the Vrbas River.
The flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina contains a medium blue field with a yellow right triangle separating said field, and there are seven full five-pointed white stars and two half stars top and bottom along the hypotenuse of the triangle.
There is currently no official flag for the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The federation is part of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The federation adopted its own flag in 1996, but the flag and associated coat of arms were deemed unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2007 and now it is considered to be a "de facto" flag. The federation has not yet adopted a new flag, anthem or coat of arms; instead the symbols of the central state are used for official purposes as a provisional solution.
The Serbian cross, also known as the Firesteels, is one of national symbols of Serbia. It is present on the coat of arms and flag of Serbia. The cross is based on a tetragrammic cross emblem of the Palaiologos dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, with the difference in Serbian use being that the cross is usually white on a red background, rather than gold on a red background. Serbian cross was adopted from Roman empire eagle and Byzantine cross which represents east Roman empire in middle-age before Ottoman occupation.
There is currently no official coat of arms for the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The federation is part of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The flag of the abolished Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia (1992–96) consists of three equal size, horizontal stripes in the pan-Slavic colours arranged in Croat tricolour: red, white and blue. In the middle is the coat of arms of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia stylised with a triple wattle at the top. In 1997 and 1998 the Constitutional Court of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina ruled its usage as a canton flag unconstitutional, since the symbols of cantons and municipalities cannot represent just one ethnic group.
The University of Banja Luka is the second-oldest university in Bosnia and Herzegovina. A public university, it is the flagship institution of higher education in Republika Srpska, one of two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2018–19 school year, there are 11,186 enrolled students.
The flag of the Republic of Kosovo was adopted by the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo immediately following the unilateral declaration of independence of Kosovo on 17 February 2008. The flag design emerged from an international competition, organized by an informal group from the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government known as the Kosovo Unity Team, which attracted almost one thousand entries. The winning design was proposed by Muhamer Ibrahimi. It shows six white stars in an arc above a golden map of Kosovo, all on a blue field. The stars symbolize Kosovo's six major ethnic groups: Albanians, Serbs, Bosniaks, Turks, Romani, and Gorani.
The Seal of Republika Srpska with the description: the flag of Republika Srpska and the Cyrillic letters "РС" ("RS"), the red-blue-white tricolor are in the center of the seal, twisted with the golden Oak leaves, a traditional pre-Christian symbol sacred to most Slavs. On the edge of the seal there is an inscription Republika Srpska. The open crown of Kotromanić is shown in the bottom of the seal and the seal itself is topped with a heraldic royal crown.
The Serbian eagle is a double-headed heraldic eagle, also known as the White eagle, a common symbol in the history of Serbian heraldry and vexillology. The double-headed eagle and the Serbian cross are the main heraldic symbols which represent the national identity of the Serbian people across the centuries, originating from the medieval Nemanjić dynasty. The eagle, defaced with the cross, has been used in the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Serbia from 1882 to 1918 and in contemporary coat of arms of the Republic of Serbia since 2004.
The flag of Yugoslavia was the official flag of the Yugoslav state from 1918 to 1992. The flag's design and symbolism are derived from the Pan-Slavic movement, which ultimately led to the unification of the South Slavs and the creation of a united south-Slavic state in 1918.
The Republika Srpska football team is the official team of Republika Srpska, an entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is not affiliated with FIFA or UEFA.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Republika Srpska:
Day of Republika Srpska is a national holiday of the former Republika Srpska, which has been proclaimed unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The holiday is celebrated on 9 January, and its unofficial patron saint is Saint Archdeacon Stephen—historically being patron saint of medieval Kotromanić dynasty kings bearing their first name after him—which falls on the same day.
