The Serbian

monarchs A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority an ...

and royalty have assumed several regnal titles and styles throughout history.

Middle Ages

Regnal titles

;Prince of Serbia / the Serbs :''Archon of Serbia''/''Archon of the Serbs'' (). ἄρχων (''

archon ''Archon'' (, plural: , ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem , meaning "to be first, to rule", derived from the same ...

'', plural , ''archontes'') was used by the Byzantines as a generic title for "prince", "ruler". It is the only royal title that is known to have been used by and for Serbian monarchs during the rule of the

Vlastimirović dynasty The House of Vlastimirović ( sr-Cyrl, Властимировић, Vlastimirovići / Властимировићи) was the first Serbian royal dynasty, named after Prince Vlastimir (ruled c. 831–851), who was recognized by the Byzantine Em ...

. The title in Serbian is rendered as ''knez''. ;Grand Prince of Serbia / the Serbs :The Serbian '' veliki župan'' (велики жупан) was the supreme chieftain in the multi-tribal society. The title signifies overlordship, as the leader of lesser chieftains titled ''

župan Župan is a noble and administrative title used in several states in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 21st century. It was (and in Croatia still is) the leader of the administrat ...

''. It was used by the Serb rulers in the 11th and 12th centuries. In Greek, it was known as ''archizoupanos'' (, "chief ''župan''") and ''megalos zoupanos'' or ''megazoupanos'' (μεγάλος ζουπάνος and μεγαζουπάνος, both meaning "grand ''župan''"). ;King of Serbia / the Serbs ;Great King of Serbia / the Serbs :The title was introduced in the 13th century.

Stefan the First-Crowned Stefan Nemanjić ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Немањић, ), known as Stefan the First-Crowned (, ; – 24 September 1228), was the Grand Prince of Serbia from 1196 and the King of Serbia from 1217 until his death in 1228. He was the first Se ...

, likely

Stefan Uroš I Stefan Uroš I ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош I; 1223 – 1 May 1277), known as Uroš the Great () was the King of Serbia from 1243 to 1276, succeeding his brother Stefan Vladislav. He was one of the most important rulers in Serbian history ...

Stefan Dečanski Stefan Uroš III, , known as Stefan of Dečani ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Дечански, Stefan Dečanski, ( – 11 November 1331), was King of Serbia from 6 January 1322 to 8 September 1331. Dečanski was the son of King Stefan Milutin (). He ...

and

Stefan Dušan Stephen (honorific), Stefan Uroš IV Dušan ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош IV Душан), also known as Dušan the Mighty ( sr-Cyrl, Душан Силни; – 20 December 1355), was the King of Serbia from 8 September 1331 and Emperor of th ...

had the title. ; Emperor of the Serbs (Цар Срба) :''Emperor of the Serbs and the Greeks'' ("Emperor and autocrat of Serbia and Rhomania", ) ;

Despot of Serbia The Serbian Despotate () was a medieval Serbian state in the first half of the 15th century. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is mistakenly considered the end of medieval Serbia, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravian ...

:The rulers of the

Serbian Despotate The Serbian Despotate () was a medieval Serbian state in the first half of the 15th century. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is mistakenly considered the end of medieval Serbia, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravi ...

were often mentioned as ''Lord of the Serbs, Despot''. Used after 1402. Initially Despot was a honorific title of Byzantine origin (δεσπότης, ''despotes''), used alongside that of the Lord of the Serbs, but eventually it became synonymous with the Serbian monarchy, as well as its claimants in exile.

Regnal styles of individual rulers

;'' Stefan'' :The

Nemanjić dynasty The House of Nemanjić ( sr-Cyrl, Немањић, Немањићи; Nemanjić, Nemanjići, ) was the most prominent Serbian dynasty of Serbia in the Middle Ages. This princely, royal and imperial house produced List of Serbian monarchs, twelv ...

ruled the Serb lands between ca. 1166 up to 1371. All Serbian rulers after Stephen the First-Crowned added the name '' Stefan'' before their birth names after ascending the throne as a manner of honoring the first ruler of their dynasty,

Stefan Nemanja Stefan Nemanja (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: , ; – 13 February 1199) was the Grand Prince (Grand Župan#Serbia, Veliki Župan) of the Grand Principality of Serbia, Serbian Grand Principality (also known as Raška (region), Raš ...

. The name Stefan is derived from Greek ''stephanos'', meaning ''crowned with wreath''. ;

Vukan Nemanjić Vukan Nemanjić ( sr-Cyrl, Вукан Немањић, ; before 1165 – after 1207) was the Grand Prince of the Grand Principality of Serbia from 1202 to 1204. He was the Grand Prince of Pomorje (titular King) from 1195 until his death. He was t ...

:In an inscription dating to 1202-1203, Vukan is titled as ''Grand Župan Vukan, Ruler of all Serbian lands,

Zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; , , classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived from the Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician letter zay ...

, maritime towns and land of

Nišava The Nišava or Nishava ( Bulgarian and sr-Cyrl, Нишава, ) is a river in Bulgaria and Serbia, a right tributary, and with a length of also the longest one, of the South Morava. Course Bulgaria The Nišava originates in western Bul ...

''. ;

Vukašin Mrnjavčević Vukašin () is an old Slavic name of Serbian origin. It is composed from two words: Vuk (wolf) and sin ( son), so it means sin vuka (son of wolf). In some places in Croatia and Bosnia it can be found as a surname. The name Vukašin can be foun ...

:''Lord of the Serbian Land, of the Greeks, and of the Western Provinces'' (). ;

Lazar Hrebeljanović Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Хребељановић; – 15 June 1389) was a medieval List of Serbian monarchs, Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empir ...

*''

Autokrator ''Autokrator'' or Autocrator (, from + ) is a Greek epithet applied to an individual who is unrestrained by superiors. It has been applied to military commanders-in-chief as well as Roman and Byzantine emperors as the translation of the Latin ...

of All Serbs'' () ''Autokrator'', "self-ruler" in Greek, was the title of the senior Byzantine emperor. The Nemanjić kings adopted it and applied it to themselves in its literal meaning to stress their independence from Byzantium, whose supreme suzerainty they nominally recognized.Mihaljčić 2001, pp. 78–115 *"Prince of the Kingdom of Rascia" (in Hungary).

Modern

*"Prince of Serbia" (see

Principality of Serbia The Principality of Serbia () was an autonomous, later sovereign state in the Balkans that came into existence as a result of the Serbian Revolution, which lasted between 1804 and 1817. Its creation was negotiated first through an unwritten agre ...

), in use 1817–82 *"King of Serbia" (see

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

), in use 1882–1918 *"King of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes" (see

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

), in use 1918–29 *"King of Yugoslavia" (see

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

), in use 1929–45

References

Sources