Language

Language

The language spoken in Bosnia and Herzegovina is officially called Bosnian/Serbian/Croatian (in accordance with the Dayton Peace Agreement). The official language(s) fall into a group of Slavic languages, and use both Latin and Cyrillic alphabet. The differences between the Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian are minimal. Although Bosnian employs more Turkish, Persian, and Arabic loanwords, it is very similar to both Serbian and Croatian in its written and spoken form.

According to several studies and GfK BH Center for Market Research (2008), approximately 60 % of people in Bosnia and Herzegovina speak at least one foreign language. 39% speak English, 30% German, and then other languages (primarily Russian, French, Spanish, Italian…). 25% of citizens speak two and more languages (age 15 to 24). In all major cities, English is widely spoken, especially by youth. English is also taught at schools starting from primary education.

More on local language and basic expressions you can find HERE.