Bosniaks The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry ...

are an ethnic group in

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

, first introduced in the 2003 census. According to the last census from 2011, the total number of Bosniaks in Montenegro was 53,605 or 8.6% of the population. Bosniaks are the third largest ethnic group in the country, after

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordi ...

and

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

Demographics

Bosniak population in Serbia and Montenegro

Bosniaks primarily live in the

Sandžak Sandžak (; sh, / , ; sq, Sanxhaku; ota, سنجاق, Sancak), also known as Sanjak, is a historical geo-political region in Serbia and Montenegro. The name Sandžak derives from the Sanjak of Novi Pazar, a former Ottoman administrative dis ...

area of northern Montenegro, and form the majority of the population in four municipalities:

Rožaje Rožaje ( cnr, Рожаје, bs, Rožaje), ; sq, Rozhajë) is a town in northeastern Montenegro. As of 2011, the city has a population of 9,567 inhabitants. Surrounded by hills to its west and mountains to its east (notably Mount Hajla), the ...

(83.91%),

Petnjica Petnjica ( cnr, Петњица) is a town in northern Montenegro, and the center of Petnjica Municipality. Petnjica regained its municipality status on May 28, 2013, which it previously had from 1945 to 1957, when it was merged with the Berane Mu ...

(83.02%), Plav (56%) and

Gusinje Gusinje ( cyrl, Гусиње, ; sq, Gucia) is a small town in north-eastern Montenegro. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 1,673 and is the administrative center of Gusinje Municipality. Name Two alternative etymologies ...

(42.64%).

History

Two thirds of Sandžak

trace their ancestry to the regions of

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

proper, which they started departing first in 1687, after

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

lost

Boka Kotorska The Bay of Kotor ( Montenegrin and Serbian: , Italian: ), also known as the Boka, is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated around the bay. It is also the southernmost part of the hi ...

. The trend continued in Old Montenegro after 1711 with the extermination of converts to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

("istraga poturica", the latter word being a derogatory term). Another contributing factor that spurred migration to Sandžak from Old Montenegro was the fact that the old

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...

population of Sandžak moved towards

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

and

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

(

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( sr-Cyrl, Војводина}), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia. It lies within the Pannonian Basin, bordered to the south by the national capital ...

) in two waves, first after 1687, and then, after 1740, basically leaving Sandžak depopulated. The last segment of Sandžak

arrived from several other places. Some of

came from

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...

after 1687, when

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

lost all the lands north of

Sava The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. It flows through Slovenia, Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally th ...

in the Austro-Turkish war. Many more came from

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...

in the post-1876 period, after the Herzegovina Rebellion staged by the

against

Austro-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and their

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

subjects. Another wave followed immediately thereafter from both Bosnia and

, as the Treaty of Berlin placed the Vilayet of Bosnia under the effective control of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1878. The last wave from Bosnia followed in 1908, when

officially annexed Bosnia, thereby cutting off all direct ties of

Bosnian Muslims The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, cu ...

to the

Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( ota, باب عالی, Bāb-ı Ālī or ''Babıali'', from ar, باب, bāb, gate and , , ), was a synecdoche for the central government of the Ottoman Empire. History The nam ...

, their effective protector. Today, Bosniaks are a large minority in Montenegro, with over 50,000 Bosniaks living in Montenegro.

Politics

*The main political party of Bosniaks is the Bosniak Party (BS), led by

Rafet Husović '' Rafet Husović (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Рафет Хусовић; 2 April 19649 March 2021) was a Montenegrin politician, who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro. He was the founder and long-term president of the centre-right Bosn ...

. The party currently has three seats in

Parliament of Montenegro The Parliament of Montenegro ( cg, Скупштина Црне Горе, Skupština Crne Gore) is the unicameral legislature of Montenegro. The Parliament currently has 81 members, with each member elected to a four-year term. Following the 2006 ...

. *Another one is Justice and Reconciliation Party in Montenegro (SPP u Crnoj Gori), led by Hazbija Kalač. Majority of Bosniaks of Montenegro were in favor of Montenegrin independence during

independence referendum An independence referendum is a type of referendum in which the residents of a territory decide whether the territory should become an independent sovereign state. An independence referendum that results in a vote for independence does not alwa ...

in 2006.

Dialect

The Slavic dialect of Gusinje and Plav shows very high structural influence from Albanian. Its uniqueness in terms of language contact between Albanian and Slavic is explained by the fact that most Slavic-speakers there are of Albanian origin.

Religion

Today, the majority of Bosniaks are predominantly Sunni Muslim and adhere to the

Hanafi The Hanafi school ( ar, حَنَفِية, translit=Ḥanafiyah; also called Hanafite in English), Hanafism, or the Hanafi fiqh, is the oldest and one of the four traditional major Sunni schools ( maddhab) of Islamic Law (Fiqh). It is named a ...

school of thought, or law, the largest and oldest school of

Islamic law Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the ...

in jurisprudence within

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...

Notable people

* Danijel Alibabić, singer *

Selmo Cikotić Selmo Cikotić (born 25 January 1964) is a Bosnian politician serving as Minister of Security since 2020. He was also the Minister of Defence from 2007 to 2012. He is a member of the Party of Democratic Action. Cikotić's career in the army span ...

, Bosnian politician *

Mirsad Huseinovic Mirsad Huseinovic (born November 26, 1968) is a U.S. soccer player. He spent one season in the American Professional Soccer League and one game Major League Soccer. He also earned one cap with the U.S. national team. Youth and college Huseinovi ...

, former footballer in the U.S. * Senida Hajdarpašić, singer *

Majda Mehmedović Majda Mehmedović (born 25 May 1990) is a retired Montenegrin handball player and a former player of the Montenegrin national team. She won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics. International honours Club *EHF Champions League: **Winner ...

, handball player *

Fuad Muzurović Fuad Muzurović (born 3 November 1945) is a Bosnian retired professional football manager and former player. Playing career Although he did not have an international playing career, Muzurović is still remembered as a quality full-back playing ...

, former Bosnian footballer *

Dado Polumenta Damir "Dado" Polumenta (born 29 August 1982) is a Montenegrin and Serbian pop-folk recording artist. Life and career Polumenta was born into a Muslim family in Bijelo Polje, in northern Montenegro. His uncle Šako Polumenta is also a singer. I ...

, singer *

Šako Polumenta Sakib "Šako" Polumenta (born 27 March 1968) is a Montenegrin pop-folk singer popular throughout the former Yugoslav republics. Personal and early life Polumenta was born into a Bosniak family in Bijelo Polje, a municipality of northern Montene ...

, singer * Refik Šabanadžović, former footballer * Sead Šehović, basketball player * Suad Šehović, basketball player * Elsad Zverotić, footballer *

Damir Čakar Damir Čakar ( Cyrillic: Дамир Чакар; born 28 June 1973) is a Montenegrin former professional footballer who played as either a striker or an attacking midfielder. He is mostly known for his powerful shots and set pieces. Club career ...

, former footballer *

Šerbo Rastoder Prof. Šerbo Rastoder, PhD (; born 13 August 1956 in Radmanci, Berane, People's Republic of Montenegro, then a part of the SFR Yugoslavia) is a Montenegrin historian of Bosniak ethnicity. He is also an author, writing about the history of Montenegr ...

, historian *

Izudin Bajrović Izudin Bajrović (born 9 February 1963) is a Bosnian theater, film and television actor. He has appeared in more than forty films since 1986. Recent activity In 2017, Bajrović signed the Declaration on the Common Language of the Croats, Serbs, ...

, actor *

Fahrudin Radončić Fahrudin Radončić (; born 24 May 1957) is a Bosnian media magnate, entrepreneur, investor, and politician who served as the Minister of Security on two occasions. He is the founder of the ''Dnevni avaz,'' the best-selling newspaper in Bosnia an ...

, entrepreneur and politician *

Sead Kolašinac Sead Kolašinac (; born 20 June 1993) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Ligue 1 club Marseille and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Kolašinac started his professional career at Schalke 04, playing fir ...

, footballer *

Dženan Radončić Dženan Radončić ( Cyrillic: Џенан Радончић; born 2 August 1983) is a Montenegrin retired footballer who played as a striker. Club career In June 2003, Radončić was transferred from Rudar Pljevlja to Partizan on a four-year co ...

, former footballer * Ramo Kolenović, former kayaker * Sead Hakšabanović, footballer *

, political leader

References

External links

Sandžak informationCongress of North American Bosniaks
{{Bosniak diaspora

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

Ethnic groups in Montenegro Muslim communities in Europe

Demographics

History

Politics

Dialect

Religion

Notable people

See also

References

External links