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People & Language
A reflection of Croatia’s disparate past is the list of languages spoken in the country. The predominant language is, obviously, Croatian, and it’s also the language of much of the country’s literature. However, various communities within the country use other European languages too. Predominant among these are Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German. English isn’t in common usage, and is in fact only used to some extent in the tourism trade.
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Religion
Although religion had been pretty much stifled during Croatia’s communist regime, the newly gained independence of the country has brought about a resurgence of the religious fervour that had characterised Croatia in pre-communist days. The country’s monasteries and churches rank as some of the most historic monuments of the land, and are once again in use by Croatia’s huge Christian population. Of the Christians in the country, the majority of about 76.5% are Roman Catholics; those of the Orthodox Church account for 11%, and Protestants form 0.4%. In addition, there are small minorities of Muslims, Jews and other communities.
The majority of Croatia’s population is, as an ethnic group, Croat. Other then these, there are a number of ethnic groups, including Serbs, Hungarians, Slavonians, Czechs, Albanians, Montenegrins and others. The wandering Roma gypsies also constitute around 0.2% of the population. Of these, the Serbs constitute the largest single ethnic group, and in the recent past mainly because of the country’s conflict with Serbian troops along the border, there have been racial tensions between Serbs and Croats within the country.
Croatian society is, on the whole, pretty liberal, and as long as you’re polite and mind your manners, you shouldn’t cause offence to most people. Tourists- and that too from Western Europe- are a familiar sight almost all over Croatia, and people have, on the whole, learned to adapt themselves to the ways of the foreign tourist. One thing worth remembering, though, is that the two main attractions in Croatia- the beaches and the churches- merit differing considerations on your part. Some beaches are nudist, and even otherwise, scanty clothing is fine with most people; but if you’re visiting churches, it’s the done thing to be decently clad, and to behave discreetly.
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Food
Beside the standard European cuisine present in all restaurants and hotels specialties from the grill and the roasting-spit (lamb, pork, poultry) are very popular. Croatia’s food has been influenced by many different cuisines. Some gastronomes claim that the country’s cuisine has its roots in the cuisine of ancient Rome, and many areas do have food pretty similar to Italian cuisine. Food styles, however, vary considerably; the Sibenik area is characterised by the predominance of seafood and fish, cooked with herbs and olive oil, and often heavily seasoned. In contrast, meat- pork and pork products, veal and rich foods based on flour, dairy products and potatoes are the dominant the food of continental Croatia.
Some of Croatia’s popular dishes are turkey with mlinci (flour dumplings), zagorska zlevka (cornflour cake), squash rolls, walnut rolls and visovacka begavica, lamb cooked with sour ewe’s milk. Other specialties include the Gavrilovic salami, the Dalmatian smoked ham, salty pilchards, sheep cheese, peppered Slavonian sausages, paprika-flavoured salami, etc. Fish fricassees and rich cakes are specialties of Slavonia. The country also has some good wines - red as well as white, and unusual brandies, including plum brandy and walnut brandy but king of all wines is Dingac (15-16% of alcohol), a thick red wine from the peninsula of Peljesac.
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Culture & Crafts
Thanks to the distinctly different ethnic backgrounds of the Croatian people, there’s also great variety in the culture and traditions of the people. Cultural traditions in the country are extremely rich, with delightfully vivacious folk dances, rich costumes and local music. Perhaps the most enduring aspect of Croatia’s culture is its excellent architecture- best seen in the cities of Split and Dubrovnik, both of which have been classified by the UNESCO as world cultural heritage cities. The castles, palaces, churches and public buildings of these cities, many of them a few centuries old, are among the best surviving examples of medieval architecture in Europe. Much of Croatia’s culture has its roots in medieval times, and has been heavily influenced by religion- Christianity has been the guiding force behind much of the country’s architecture, art, literature, and music.
The passage of time, civil unrest and strife have taken a toll on many of the traditional arts and crafts of Croatia, but some of them have managed to survive, and are fairly typical of East European art. Much of this art- encompassing everything from music and art to architecture and local handicrafts- dates back to the Renaissance, and in the country’s art you’ll find some fine examples of medieval art at its best. Best known amongst these are the wonderful murals, icons, and churches of yesteryear's; but there are also more commonly produced local crafts. These include lace from the island of Pag, which produces the best lace in Croatia; porcelain, pottery, leather goods and crystal especially Samobor crystal.
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