Serbiaball



Serbiaball is country ball located in the Balkans. He is well known for his expertise in removing kebab and his passionate defense of clay and resources.

His Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/Serbiaremoverofkebab?fref=ts and https://www.facebook.com/Serbiaball?fref=ts.

Early History
The Neolithic Starčevo and Vinča cultures existed in or near Belgrade and dominated the Balkans (as well as parts of Central Europe and Asia Minor) 8,500 years ago.Lepenski Vir and Vinča-Belo Brdo are two important sites of these cultures, located at the banks of the Danube. Around 1000 BC, the Paleo-Balkan peoples known as Thracians, Dacians, Illyrians developed in the Balkans. Ancient Greeks expanded into the south of modern Serbia in the 4th century BC, the northwesternmost point of Alexander the Great's empire being the town of Kale-Krševica.The Celtic tribe of Scordisci settled throughout the lands that eventually became Serbia in the 3rd century BC and built several fortifications, including those at Singidunum (present-day Belgrade) and Naissos (present-day Niš). The Scordisci formed their own tribal state in this area and the capital of that state was Singidunum.

The Romans conquered parts of modern-day Serbia in the 2nd century BC; in 167 BC when conquering the west, establishing the province of Illyricum, and the rest of the central part of present-day Serbia in 75 BC, establishing the province of Moesia Superior. The modern-day Srem region was conquered in 9 BC and Bačka and Banat in 106 AD after the Dacian wars. Despite its small size, contemporary Serbia extends fully or partially over several Roman provinces such as Moesia, Pannonia, Praevalitana, Dalmatia, Dacia and Macedonia. The chief towns of Upper Moesia (and wider) were: Singidunum,Viminacium, Remesiana, Naissus and especially, Sirmium which served as a Roman capital during the Tetrarchy. Seventeen Roman Emperors were born in the area of modern-day Serbia, second only to contemporary Italy.The most famous of these was Constantine the Great, the first Christian Emperor, who issued an edict ordering religious tolerance throughout the Empire. When the Roman Empire was divided in 395, the region remained under the eastern Byzantine Empire. After the 520s, Slavs appeared in the Byzantine Empire in great numbers.[



Middle ages
The Serbs, as Slavs in the Byzantine world, lived in the so-called Slav lands, territories initially out of Byzantine control and independent.[21]  In the 8th century, the Vlastimirović dynasty established the Serbian Principality. In 822, Serbia "stretched over the greater part of Dalmatia",[22]  and Christianity was adopted as state religion in ca 870.[23]  In the mid-10th century the state had emerged into a tribal confederation that stretched to the shores of the Adriatic Sea by the Neretva, the Sava, the Morava, and Skadar.[24]  The state disintegrated after the death of the last known Vlastimirid ruler; the Byzantines annexed the region and held it for a century, until 1040 when the Serbs under the leadership of what would become the Vojislavljević dynasty revolted in Duklja, a maritime region.[25]  In 1091, the Vukanović dynasty established the Serbian Grand Principality, based in Rascia.The two-halves were reunited in 1142.[26]

In 1166, Stefan Nemanja assumed the throne, marking the beginning of a prospering Serbia, henceforth under the rule of the Nemanjić dynasty.Nemanja's son Rastko (posth. Saint Sava), gained autocephaly for the Serbian Church in 1217 and authored the oldest known constitution, and at the same time Stefan the First-Crowned established the Serbian Kingdom.[28]  Medieval Serbia reached its peak during the reign of Dušan the Mighty, who took advantage of the Byzantine civil war and doubled the size of the state by conquering territories to the south and east at the expense of Byzantium, reaching as far as the Peloponnese, also being crowned Emperor of Serbs and Greeks along the way. The Battle of Kosovo in 1389 marks a turning point and is considered as a beginning of the fall of the medieval Serbian state. The magnate families Lazarević and Branković ruled the suzerain Serbian Despotate afterwards (in the 15th and 16th centuries).

After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453 and the Siege of Belgrade, the Serbian Despotate fell in 1459 following the siege of the provisional capital of Smederevo. The Smederevo Fortress is the largest medieval lowland type of fortresses in Europe. By 1455, central Serbia was completely conquered by the Ottoman Empire.After repelling Ottoman attacks for over 70 years, Belgrade finally fell in 1521, opening the way for Ottoman expansion into Central Europe. Vojvodina, as a part ofHabsburg Empire, resisted Ottoman rule until well into the 16th century



Ottoman and Hasburg rule ==After the loss of independence to the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, Serbia briefly regained sovereignty under Jovan Nenad in the 16th century. Three Habsburg invasions and numerous rebellions constantly challenged Ottoman rule. One famous incident was the Banat Uprising in 1595, which was part of the Long War between the Ottomans and the Habsburgs.[30]  The area of modern Vojvodina endured a century-long Ottoman occupation before being ceded to the Habsburg Empire at the end of the 17th century under the Treaty of Karlowitz.==

SERBIAN REVOLUTION

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Serbian Revolution for independence from the Ottoman Empire lasted eleven years, from 1804 until 1815. The revolution comprised two separate uprisings which gained autonomy from the Ottoman Empire that eventually evolved towards full independence (1835–1867).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[35] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-nytimes_36-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[36]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">During the First Serbian Uprising, led by Duke Karađorđe Petrović, Serbia was independent for almost a decade before the Ottoman army was able to reoccupy the country. Shortly after this, the Second Serbian Uprising began. Led by Miloš Obrenović, it ended in 1815 with a compromise between Serbian revolutionaries and Ottoman authorities.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-37" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[37]  Likewise, Serbia was one of the first nations in the Balkans to abolishfeudalism.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-38" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[38]  The Convention of Ackerman in 1826, the Treaty of Adrianople in 1829 and finally, the Hatt-i Sharif, recognized the suzerainty of Serbia. The first Serbian Constitution was adopted on 15 February 1835.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-39" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[39] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-40" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[40]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Following the clashes between the Ottoman army and Serbs in Belgrade in 1862, and under pressure from the Great Powers, by 1867 the last Turkish soldiers left the Principality. By enacting a new constitution without consulting the Porte, Serbian diplomats confirmed the de facto independence of the country. In 1876, Serbia declared war on the Ottoman Empire, proclaiming its unification with Bosnia. The formal independence of the country was internationally recognized at the Congress of Berlin in 1878, which formally ended the Russo-Turkish War; this treaty, however, prohibited Serbia from uniting with Bosnia by placing it under Austro-Hungarian occupation, alongside the occupation of Raška (Sandžak).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-41" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[41]  From 1815 to 1903, the Principality of Serbia was ruled by the House of Obrenović, except from 1842 to 1858, when it was led by Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević. In 1882, Serbia became a Kingdom, ruled by King Milan I. In 1903, following the May Overthrow, the House of Karađorđević, descendants of the revolutionary leader Karađorđe Petrović, assumed power. The 1848 revolution in Austria lead to the establishment of the autonomous territory of Serbian Vojvodina. By 1849, the region was transformed into the Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar.

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<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">BALKAN WARS,WORLD WAR I,FIRST YUGOSLAVIA

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">In the course of the First Balkan War in 1912, the Balkan League defeated the Ottoman Empire and conquered its European territories, which enabled territorial expansion into Raška and Kosovo. The Second Balkan War soon ensued when Bulgaria turned on its former allies, but was defeated, resulting Treaty of Bucharest. In two years, Serbia enlarged its territory by 80% and its population by 50%;<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-42" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[42]  it also suffered high casualties on the eve of World War I, with around 20,000 dead.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-43" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[43]

Serbian soldiers on the island of Corfuduring World War I, 1916–1918<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">On 28 June 1914, the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Young Bosnia organization, led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-44" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[44]  In defense of its ally Serbia, Russiamobilized its troops, which resulted in Austria-Hungary's ally Germany declaring war on Russia. The retaliation by Austria-Hungary against Serbia activated a series of military alliances that set off a chain reaction of war declarations across the continent, leading to the outbreak of World War I within a month.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-The_Balkan_Wars_and_World_War_I_45-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[45]  Serbia won the first major battles of World War I, including the Battle of Cer and Battle of Kolubara – marking the first Allied victories against the Central Powers in World War I.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-46" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[46] Despite initial success, it was eventually overpowered by the Central Powers in 1915. Most of its army and some people went into exile to Greece and Corfu, where they recovered, regrouped and returned to the Macedonian front to lead a final breakthrough through enemy lines on 15 September 1918, liberating Serbia and defeating the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-47" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[47]  Serbia, with its campaign, was a major Balkan Entente Power<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-48" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[48]  which contributed significantly to the Allied victory in the Balkans in November 1918, especially by helping France force Bulgaria's capitulation.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-49" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[49]  Serbia was classified as a minor Entente power.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-firstworldwar.com_50-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[50]  Serbia's casualties accounted for 8% of the total Entente military deaths; 58% (243,600) soldiers of the Serbian army perished in the war.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-51" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[51]  The total number of casualties is placed around 700,000,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-52" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[52]  more than 16% of Serbia's prewar size,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-The_Balkan_Wars_and_World_War_I_45-1" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[45]  and a majority (57%) of its overall male population.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-53" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[53] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-54" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[54] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-55" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[55]

White Palace, royal residence<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">As the Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed, the territory of Syrmia united with Serbia on 24 November 1918, followed by Banat, Bačka and Baranja a day later, thereby bringing the entire Vojvodina into the Serb Kingdom. On 26 November 1918, the Podgorica Assembly deposed the House of Petrović-Njegoš, and uniting Montenegro with Serbia. On 1 December 1918, Serbian Prince Regent Alexander of Serbia proclaimed the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes under King Peter I of Serbia.

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World War II and the Second Yugoslavia
Main articles: Invasion of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav Front, and Socialist Federal Republic of YugoslaviaSee also: Axis occupation of Serbia and World War II persecution of SerbsDamage caused by Nazi bombing in Belgrade, 1941<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">In 1941, in spite of Yugoslav attempts to remain neutral in the war, the Axis powers invaded Yugoslavia. The territory of modern Serbia was divided between Hungary, Bulgaria, Independent Croatia and Italy (greater Albania and Montenegro), while the remaining part of Serbia was placed under German Military administration, with a Serbian puppet governments led by Milan Aćimović and Milan Nedić. The occupied territory was the scene of a civil war between royalist Chetniks commanded byDraža Mihailović and communist partisans commanded by Josip Broz Tito. Against these forces were arrayed Axis auxiliary units of the Serbian Volunteer Corps and the Serbian State Guard. Draginac and Loznica massacre of 2,950 villagers in Western Serbia in 1941 was the first large execution of civilians in occupied Serbia by Nazis, with Kragujevac massacre and Novi Sad Raid of Jews and Serbs by Hungarian fascists being the most notorious, with over 3,000 victims in each case.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-57" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[57] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-58" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[58] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-59" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[59]  After one year of occupation, around 16,000 Serbian Jews were murdered in the area, or around 90% of its pre-war Jewish population. Many concentration camps were established across the area. Banjica concentration camp was the largest concentration camp, with primary victims being Serbian Jews, Roma, and Serb political prisoners.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-JewishHeritage_60-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[60]

Kragujevac massacrememorial<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Axis puppet state of the Independent State of Croatia committed large-scale persecution and genocide of Serbs, Jews, and Roma.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-61" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[61]  The estimate of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum indicates that between 320,000 and 340,000 ethnic Serb residents of Croatia, Bosnia and northern Serbia were murdered during the Ustaše genocide campaign;<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-62" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[62]  same figures are supported by the Jewish Virtual Library.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-63" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[63]  Official Yugoslav sources used to estimate more than 700,000 victims, mostly Serbs.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-64" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[64]  The Jasenovac memorial so far lists 82,085 names killed at the this concentration camp alone,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-65" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[65]  out of around 100,000 estimated victims (75% of whom were of Serbian origin).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-66" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[66]  Out of roughly 1 million casualties in all of Yugoslavia up until 1944,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-67" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[67] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-68" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[68]  around 250,000 were citizens of Serbia of different ethnicities.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-69" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[69]  TheRepublic of Užice was a short-lived liberated territory established by the Partisans and the first liberated territory in World War II Europe, organized as a military mini-state that existed in the autumn of 1941 in the west of occupied Serbia. By late 1944, the Belgrade Offensive swung in favour of the partisans in the civil war; the partisans subsequently gained control of Yugoslavia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-70" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[70]  Following the Belgrade Offensive, the Syrmian Front was the last sequence of the World War Two in Serbia. Between 60,000 and 70,000 people were killed in Serbia during the communist takeover.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-71" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[71]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The victory of the Communist Partisans resulted in the abolition of the monarchy and a subsequent orchestrated constitutional referendum. A single-party state was soon established in Yugoslavia by the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. All opposition was repressed and people deemed to be promoting opposition to socialism or promoting separatism were imprisoned or executed for sedition. Serbia became a constituent republic within the SFRY known as the Socialist Republic of Serbia, and had a republic-branch of the federal communist party, the League of Communists of Serbia. Serbia's most powerful and influential politician in Tito-era Yugoslavia was Aleksandar Ranković, one of the "big four" Yugoslav leaders, alongside Tito, Edvard Kardelj, andMilovan Đilas.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated1945_72-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[72]  Ranković was later removed from the office because of the disagreements regarding Kosovo’s nomenklatura and the unity of Serbia.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated1945_72-1" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[72]  Ranković's dismissal was highly unpopular amongst Serbs.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_73-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[73]  Pro-decentralization reformers in Yugoslavia succeeded in the late 1960s in attaining substantial decentralization of powers, creating substantial autonomy in Kosovo and Vojvodina, and recognizing a Yugoslav Muslim nationality.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_73-1" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[73]  As a result of these reforms, there was a massive overhaul of Kosovo's nomenklatura and police, that shifted from being Serb-dominated to ethnic Albanian-dominated through firing Serbs in large scale.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_73-2" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[73]  Further concessions were made to the ethnic Albanians of Kosovo in response to unrest, including the creation of the University of Pristina as an Albanian language institution.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-autogenerated3_73-3" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[73]  These changes created widespread fear amongst Serbs of being treated as second-class citizens.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-74" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[74]

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Breakup of Yugoslavia and political transition
Main articles: Breakup of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav Wars, Kosovo War, and Republic of Serbia (1992–2006)<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">In 1989, Slobodan Milošević rose to power in Serbia. Milošević promised reduction of powers for the autonomous provinces of Kosovo and Vojvodina, where his allies subsequently overtook the power, during the Anti-bureaucratic revolution.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-75" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[75]  This ignited tensions with the communist leadership of the other republics, and awoke nationalism across the country, that eventually resulted in the Breakup of Yugoslavia, with Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia declaring independence.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-76" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[76]  Serbia and Montenegro remained together as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY).

Slobodan Milošević, President of Serbia from 1989–1997, President of FR Yugoslavia, 1997–2000.<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Fueled by ethnic tensions, the Yugoslav Wars erupted, with the most severe conflicts taking place in Croatia and Bosnia, where ethnic Serb populations opposed independence from Yugoslavia. The FRY remained outside the conflicts, but provided logistic, military and financial support to Serb forces in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. In response, the UN imposed sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in May 1992,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-77" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[77]  which led to political isolation and the collapse of the economy. Multiparty democracy was introduced in Serbia in 1990, officially dismantling the single-party system. Critics of Milošević claimed that the government continued to be authoritarian despite constitutional changes, as Milošević maintained strong political influence over the state media and security apparatus.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-78" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[78] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-79" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[79]  When the ruling SPS refused to accept its defeat in municipal elections in 1996, Serbians engaged in large protests against the government. Between 1998 and 1999, peace was broken again, when the situation in Kosovo worsened with continued clashes between Yugoslav security forces and the KLA. The confrontations led to the Kosovo War.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-80" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[80]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">In September 2000, opposition parties accused Milošević of electoral fraud. A campaign of civil resistance followed, led by the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS), a broad coalition of anti-Milošević parties. This culminated on 5 October when half a million people from all over the country congregated in Belgrade, compelling Milošević to concede defeat.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-81" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[81]  The fall of Milošević ended Yugoslavia's international isolation. Milošević was sent to the ICTY. The DOS announced that FR Yugoslavia would seek to join the European Union. In 2003, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was renamed Serbia and Montenegro; the EU opened negotiations with the country for the Stabilization and Association Agreement. Serbia's political climate has remained tense and in 2003, the prime minister Zoran Đinđić was assassinated as result of a plot originating from circles of organized crime and former security officials.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">On 21 May 2006, Montenegro held a referendum to determine whether to end its union with Serbia. The results showed 55.4% of voters in favor of independence, which was just above the 55% required by the referendum. On 5 June 2006, the National Assembly of Serbia declared Serbia to be the legal successor to the former state union.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-82" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[82]  The province of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia on 17 February 2008. Serbia immediately condemned the declaration and continues to deny any statehood to Kosovo. The declaration has sparked varied responses from the international community, some welcoming it, while others condemn the unilateral move.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-New_York_Sun_83-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[83]  Status neutral talks between Serbia and Kosovo-Albanian authorities are held inBrussels, mediated by the EU.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">In April 2008 Serbia was invited to join the Intensified Dialogue programme with NATO despite the diplomatic rift with the alliance over Kosovo.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-84" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[84]  Serbia officially applied for membership in the European Union on 22 December 2009,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-85" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[85]  and received candidate status on 1 March 2012<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-bbc_7-1" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[7] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-86" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[86]  while the EU accession negotiations are expected to commence in January 2014.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-87" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[

RELIGION
Serbian religion is orthodox 86.7%

Sports
Main article: Sport in Serbia<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Sports play an important role in Serbian society, and the country has a strong sporting history. The most popular sports in Serbia are football, basketball, tennis, volleyball, and water polo.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Professional sports in Serbia are organized by sporting federations and leagues (in case of team sports). One of particularities of Serbian professional sports is existence of many multi-sports clubs (called "sports societies"), biggest and most successful of which are Red Star, Partizan, andBeograd in Belgrade, Vojvodina in Novi Sad, Radnički in Kragujevac, Spartak in Subotica.

Novak Đoković, tennis player, six-time Grand Slam championNemanja Vidić, football player, two-timePremier League Player of the SeasonPredrag "Peja" Stojaković, basketball player, three-time NBA All-Star<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Football is the most popular sport in Serbia, and the Football Association of Serbia with 146,845 registered players, is the largest sporting association in the country.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-280" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[280]  Over the years country gave many internationally renowned players such as Dragan Džajić(officially recognized as "the best Serbian player of all times" by Football Association of Serbia; 1968 European Footballer of the Year third place) and more recent likes of Nemanja Vidić (Premier League Player of the Season and member of FIFPro World XI, both awards for 2008–09 and 2010–11 seasons respectively), Dejan Stanković (Serbia's most capped player with 103 appearances for national team), and Branislav Ivanović. Serbia has developed a reputation as one of the world's biggest exporters of expat footballers.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-281" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[281]  The Serbia national football team lacks relative success although it had qualified for three of the last five FIFA World Cups, with last appearance in 2010 FIFA World Cup. The two main football clubs in Serbia are Red Star and Partizan, both from Belgrade. Red Star is one of only two non-Western European clubs (other being Romania's Steaua Bucarest) that has won an elite UEFA competition, winning the 1991 European Cup. The same year, the club won the Intercontinental Cup. Partizan was the first non-Western European club which played in a European Cup final, in 1966. The rivalry between the two clubs is known as the "Eternal Derby", and is often cited as one of the most exciting sports rivalries in the world.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-282" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[282] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-283" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[283]  The Serbian SuperLiga attracts the highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the country with 823,122 spectators or 3,430 per game for 2012–13 season.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-284" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[284]  The current champion is Partizan, for the fifth consecutive year and 25th in total, thus tying with Red Star for number of championship titles.

The Serbian national football team withtifo in the Serbian tricolor being displayed at the Belgrade's Marakana stadium<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Country is one of the traditional powerhouses of world basketball, as Serbia men's national basketball team have won two World Championships (in 1998 and 2002), three European Championships (1995, 1997, and 2001, respectively) and silver medal at 1996 Olympics as well. Total of 22 Serbian players played in the NBA in last two decades, including Predrag "Peja" Stojaković (three-time NBA All-Star), Vlade Divac (2001 NBA All-Star and FIBA Hall of Famer), Predrag Danilović, Vladimir Radmanović, Nenad Krstić, Marko Jarić, and Željko Rebrača. Serbian players that have not played in the NBA but nevertheless made a great impact on the game in Europe include four members of FIBA Hall of Fame from the 1960s and 1970s – Dragan Kićanović, Dražen Dalipagić, Radivoj Korać, and Zoran Slavnić – as well as recent stars of European basketball such as Dejan Bodiroga (2002 All-Europe Player of the Year) and currently active Miloš Teodosić (2009–2010 Euroleague MVP). Renowned "Serbian coaching school" produced many of the most successful European basketball coaches of all times, such as Željko Obradović (won record eight Euroleague titles with four different clubs), Božidar Maljković (four Euroleague titles with three different clubs), Dušan Ivković (two Euroleague titles), and Svetislav Pešić. The Basketball League of Serbia is the highest professional basketball league in Serbia. For the twelfth consecutive year, Partizan is the reigning champion of the league, followed by rivals Red Star. Partizan was the European champion in 1992.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Recent success of Serbian tennis players has led to an immense popularisation of tennis in Serbia. Novak Đoković, six-time Grand Slam champion and 2011 Laureus Sportsman of the Year, finished in 2011 and 2012 as No. 1 in the world and is currently No. 2 in the ATP Rankings.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-285" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[285]  Ana Ivanović (champion of 2008 French Open) and Jelena Janković were both ranked No. 1 in the WTA Rankings. There were two No. 1 ranked-tennis double players as well: Nenad Zimonjić (three-time men's double and four-time mixed double Grand Slam champion) and Slobodan Živojinović. The Serbia men's tennis national team won the 2010 Davis Cup while Serbia women's tennis national team reached the final at 2012 Fed Cup.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-286" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[286]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia is one of the leading volleyball countries in the world. Serbia men's national volleyball team won the gold medal at 2000 Olympics, and twice won European Championship in 2001 and 2011. Serbian volleyball players include likes of Nikola Grbić, Vladimir Grbić, Ivan Miljković, and Goran Vujević. Also, Serbia women's national volleyball team won European Championship in 2011.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Serbia men's national water polo team is, after Hungary, the most successful national team having won two World Championships (2005 and 2009), and four European Championships in 2001, 2003, 2006, and 2012 respectively.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-287" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[287]  With seven European champion titles, Partizan is the best European club in waterpolo history along with Croatian HAVK Mladost and Italian Pro Recco. Notable Serbian water polo players are Igor Milanović, Vladimir Vujasinović, Aleksandar Šapić, Aleksandar Šoštar and Vanja Udovičić.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Other noted Serbian athletes include: swimmers Milorad Čavić (2009 World champion on 50 meters butterfly and silver medalist on 100 meters butterfly as well as 2008 Olympic silver medalist on 100 meters butterfly in historic race with American swimmer Michael Phelps) and Nađa Higl (2009 World champion in 200 meters breaststroke – the first Serbian woman to become a world champion in swimming); track and field athletes Emir Bekrić (hurdler; bronze medalist at the 2013 World Championships) and Ivana Španović(long-jumper; bronze medalist at the 2013 World Championships); shooter Jasna Šekarić (1988 Olympic gold medalist) and taekwondoist Milica Mandić (2012 Olympic gold medalist).

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia hosted several major sport competitions in last decade, including the 2005 Men's European Basketball Championship, 2005 Men's European Volleyball Championship, 2006 Men's European Water Polo Championship, 2009 Summer Universiade, 2012 European Men's Handball Championship, and 2013 World Women's Handball Championship. The most important annual sporting events held in the country are Belgrade Marathon and Tour de Serbie cycling race.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">For centuries straddling the boundaries between East and West, Serbia had been divided among the Eastern and Western halves of the Roman Empire; then between the Kingdom of Hungary, Frankish Kingdomand Byzantium; and then between the Ottoman Empire and the Habsburg Empire, as well as Venice in the south. These overlapping influences have resulted in cultural varieties throughout Serbia; its north leans to the profile of Central Europe, while the south is characteristic of the wider Balkans and even the Mediterranean. The Byzantine influence on Serbia was profound, firstly through the introduction of Eastern Christianity (Orthodoxy) in the Early Middle Ages. The Serbian Orthodox Church has had an enduring status in Serbia, with the many Serbian monasteries constituting the most valuable cultural monuments left from Serbia in the Middle Ages.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia has four cultural monuments inscribed in the list of UNESCO World Heritage: the early medieval capital Stari Ras and the 13th-century monastery Sopoćani; the 12th-century Studenica monastery; the Roman complex of Gamzigrad–Felix Romuliana; and finally the endangered Medieval Monuments in Kosovo (comprising the monasteries of Visoki Dečani, Our Lady of Ljeviš, Gračanica and Patriarchate of Peć). There are two literary monuments on UNESCO's Memory of the World Programme: the 12th-century Miroslav Gospel, and scientist Nikola Tesla's valuable archive.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Ministry of Culture and Information is tasked with preserving the nation's cultural heritage and overseeing its development. Further activities supporting development of culture are undertaken at local government level.

Art
Main article: Serbian artThe National Museum (top) and Museum of Contemporary Art (bottom), house national collections of classical and contemporary artKosovo Maiden (1919) by Uroš Predić, based on Serbian epic poetry, which was praised by many famous persons such asJohann Wolfgang von Goethe, Jacob Grimm,Hans Christian Andersen and Carl Spitteler.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-233" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[233] <p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Traces of Roman and early Byzantine Empire architectural heritage are found in many royal cities and palaces in Serbia, like Sirmium, Gamzigrad-Felix Romuliana and Justiniana Prima.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbian monasteries, with their fresco and icon paintings, are pinnacle of Serbian medieval art. At the beginning, they were under the influence of Byzantine Art which was particularly felt after the fall of Constantinople in 1204, when many Byzantine artists fled to Serbia. The most noted of these monasteries is Studenica (built around 1190). It was a model for later monasteries, like the Mileševa, Sopoćani, Žiča, Gračanica andVisoki Dečani. The most famous Serbian medieval fresco is the Mironosnice na Grobu (or the "White Angel") from the Mileševa monastery.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Art_in_the_middle_ages_234-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[234]  In the end of 14th and the 15th centuries, autochotonous architectural style known as Morava style evolved in area around Morava Valley. A characteristic of this style was the wealthy decoration of the frontal church walls. Examples of this include Manasija, Ravanica and Kalenićmonasteries. Country is dotted with many well-preserved medieval fortifications and castles such as Smederevo Fortress (largest lowland fortress in Europe), Golubac, Maglič, and Ram.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">During the time of Turkish occupation, Serbian art was virtually non-existent, with the exception of several Serbian artists who lived in the lands ruled by the Habsburg Monarchy. Traditional Serbian art showed someBaroque influences at the end of the 18th century as shown in the works of Nikola Nešković, Teodor Kračun, Zaharije Orfelin and Jakov Orfelin.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-235" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[235]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbian painting showed the influence of Biedermeier, Neoclassicism and Romanticism during the 19th century. The most important Serbian painters of the first half of 20th century were Paja Jovanović and Uroš Predić of Realism, Cubist Sava Šumanović, Milena Pavlović-Barili and Nadežda Petrović of Impressionism, Expressionist Milan Konjović. Noted painters of the second half of 20th century include Marko Čelebonović,Petar Lubarda, Milo Milunović, and Vladimir Veličković.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-236" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[236]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">There are around 100 art museums in Serbia, of which the most prominent is the National Museum, founded in 1844; it houses one of the largest art collections in the Balkans with more than 400,000 exhibits, over 5,600 paintings and 8,400 drawings and prints, including many foreign masterpiece collections. Other art museums of note are Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade and Museum of Vojvodina in Novi Sad.

Literature
Main article: Serbian literatureMiroslav Gospels, one of the oldest surviving documents written in Serbian Church Slavonic, 1186<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The beginning of Serbian literacy dates back to the activity of the brothers Cyril and Methodius in the Balkans. Monuments of Serbian literacy from the early 11th century can be found, written in Glagolitic. Starting in the 12th century, books were written in Cyrillic. From this epoch, the oldest Serbian Cyrillic book editorial are the Miroslav Gospels. The Miroslav Gospels are considered to be the oldest book of Serbian medieval history.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Notable medieval authors include Saint Sava, Nun Jefimija, Stefan Lazarević, Constantine of Kostenets and others.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-237" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[237]  Baroque trends in Serbian literature emerged in the late 17th century. Notable Baroque-influenced authors were Gavril Stefanović Venclović, Jovan Rajić, Zaharije Orfelin, Andrija Zmajević and others.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-238" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[238]  Dositej Obradović was the most prominent figure of the Age of Enlightenment, while the most notable Classicist writer was Jovan Sterija Popović, although his works also contained elements of Romanticism.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-239" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[239]  In the era of national revival, in the first half of the 19th century, Vuk Stefanović Karadžić collected Serbian folk literature, and reformed the Serbian language and spelling.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-240" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[240]  The first half of the 19th century was dominated by Romanticism, with Đura Jakšić, Jovan Jovanović Zmaj, Laza Kostić, and Branko Radičević being the most notable representatives, while the second half of the century was marked by Realist writers such as Milovan Glišić, Laza Lazarević, Simo Matavulj,Stevan Sremac, Branislav Nušić, Radoje Domanović and Borisav Stanković. The 20th century was dominated by the prose writers Ivo Andrić (the 1961 winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature), Miloš Crnjanski, Meša Selimović, Borislav Pekić, Danilo Kiš,Dobrica Ćosić, Isidora Sekulić, Branko Ćopić and Aleksandar Tišma.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-241" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[241] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-242" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[242]  There were also many valuable poetic achievements, as seen by the writings of Milan Rakić, Jovan Dučić, Desanka Maksimović, Vladislav Petković Dis, Branko Miljković, Vasko Popa, Oskar Davičo, and others.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-243" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[243]  Milorad Pavić stands out as being the most critically acclaimed contemporary Serbian writer, with his novel Dictionary of the Khazars that brought him international recognition. Other currently popular authors includeDavid Albahari, Goran Petrović, Svetlana Velmar-Janković, Svetislav Basara and Zoran Živković.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">There are 551 public libraries in Serbia (excluding Kosovo), biggest of which are two national libraries: National Library of Serbia in Belgrade with funds of about 5 million volumes, and Matica Srpska (oldest Serbian cultural institution, founded in 1826) in Novi Sad with nearly 3.5 million volumes.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-244" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[244] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-245" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[245]  In 2010, there were 10,989 books and brochures published.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-pod2.stat.gov.rs_98-9" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[98]  The book publishing market is dominated by several major publishers such as Laguna and Vulkan (both of which operate their own bookstore chains) and the industry's centerpiece event, annual Belgrade Book Fair, is the most visited cultural event in Serbia with 158,128 visitors in 2013.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-246" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[246]  Highlight of the literary scene is awarding of NIN Prize, most prestigious literary award given every January since 1954 for the best newly published novel in Serbian language (during times of Yugoslavia, in Serbo-Croatian language).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-247" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[247]

Music
Main article: Music of Serbia<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Composer and musicologist Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac is considered founder of modern Serbian music.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-248" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[248] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-249" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[249]  The Serbian composers of the first generation Petar Konjović, Stevan Hristić, and Miloje Milojević maintained the national expression and modernized the romanticism into the direction of impressionism. Other famous classical Serbian composers include Isidor Bajić, Stanislav Binički and Josif Marinković.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-250" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[250]  There are three opera houses in Serbia: Opera of the National Theatre and Madlenianum Opera, both in Belgrade, and Opera of the Serbian National Theatrein Novi Sad. Four symphonic orchestra operate in the country: Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, Niš Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Orchestra of Radio Television of Serbia, and Novi Sad Philharmonic Orchestra. The Choir of Radio Television of Serbia is a leading vocal ensemble in the country.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-251" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[251]  The BEMUS is one of the most prominent classical music festivals in the South East Europe.

Stevan Stojanović Mokranjac<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Traditional Serbian music includes various kinds of bagpipes, flutes, horns, trumpets, lutes, psalteries, drums and cymbals. The kolo is the traditional collective folk dance, which has a number of varieties throughout the regions. The most popular are those from Užice and Morava region. Sung epic poetry has been an integral part of Serbian and Balkan music for centuries. In the highlands of Serbia these long poems are typically accompanied on a one-string fiddle called the gusle, and concern themselves with themes from history and mythology. There are records of gusle being played at the court of the 13th-century King Stefan Nemanjić.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-252" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[252]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Serbian rock which was during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s part of former Yugoslav rock scene, used to be well developed, featuring various rock genres, and was well covered in the media, which included numerous magazines, radio and TV shows. During the 1990s and 2000s popularity of rock music declined in Serbia, and although several major mainstream acts managed to sustain their popularity, an underground and independent music scene developed. The most notable Serbian rock acts includeEkatarina Velika, Riblja Čorba, Bajaga i Instruktori, Disciplina Kičme, Električni Orgazam, Partibrejkers, Smak, Van Gogh, and others.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Pop music has mainstream popularity. Željko Joksimović won second place at the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest and Marija Šerifović managed to win the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest with the song "Molitva", and Serbia was the host of the 2008 edition of the contest. Most popular pop singers include likes of Zdravko Čolić, Đorđe Balašević, Vlado Georgiev, Nataša Bekvalac among others.

Serbia won the Eurovision Song Contest 2007.<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Turbo-folk music is sub-genre that has developed in Serbia in late 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s and has since enjoyed an immense popularity. It is a blend of folk music with pop and/or dance elements and can be seen as a result of the urbanization of folk music. In recent period turbo-folk featured even more pop music elements, and some of the performers were labeled as pop-folk. The most popular turbo-folk singers include Ceca, Aca Lukas, Jelena Karleuša and Seka Aleksić.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Balkan Brass, or truba ("trumpet") is a popular genre, especially in Central and Southern Serbia where Balkan Brass originated. The music has its tradition from the First Serbian Uprising. The trumpet was used as a military instrument to wake and gather soldiers and announce battles, the trumpet took on the role of entertainment during downtime, as soldiers used it to transpose popular folk songs. When the war ended and the soldiers returned to the rural life, the music entered civilian life and eventually became a music style, accompanying births, baptisms, weddings, and funerals. There are two main varietes of this genre, one from Western Serbia and the other from Southern Serbia. The best known Serbian Brass musician isBoban Marković, also one of the biggest names in the world of modern brass band bandleaders.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Most popular music festival are Guča Trumpet Festival with over 300,000 annual visitors and EXIT in Novi Sad ("The best European festival" in 2007 by UK Festival Awards and Yourope – the European Association of the 40 largest festivals in Europe) with 200,000 visitors in 2013.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-253" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[253] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-254" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[254]  Other festivals include Nišville Jazz Festival in Niš and Gitarijada rock festival in Zaječar.

Theatre and cinema
Main article: Cinema of SerbiaThe Serbian National Theatre in Novi SadSerbian film director Emir Kusturica who twice won thePalme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia has a well-established theatrical tradition with Joakim Vujić considered the founder of modern Serbian theater.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Joakim_255-0" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[255]  Serbia has 38 professional theatres, the most important of which are National Theatre in Belgrade, Serbian National Theatre in Novi Sad, National Theatre in Subotica, National Theatre in Niš and Knjaževsko-srpski teatar in Kragujevac (the oldest theatre in Serbia, established in 1835). The Belgrade International Theatre Festival – BITEF, founded in 1967, is one of the oldest theater festivals in the world, and it has become one of the five biggest European festivals.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-256" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[256]  Sterijino pozorje is, on the other hand, festival showcasing national drama plays. The most important Serbian playwrighters were Jovan Sterija Popović and Branislav Nušić, while today renowned names are Dušan Kovačević and Biljana Srbljanović.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-257" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[257]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">The Serbian cinema is one of the most dynamic smaller European cinematographies. Serbia's film industry is heavily subsidised by the government, mainly through grants approved by the Film Centre of Serbia. In 2011, there were 17 domestic feature films produced.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-258" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[258]  There are 20 operating cinemas in the country, of which 10 are multiplexes, with total attendance exceeding 2.6 million and comparatively high percentage of 32.3% of total sold tickets for domestic films.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-259" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[259] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-260" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[260]  Modern PFI Studios located in Šimanovci is nowadays Serbia's only film studio complex; it consists of 9 state-of-the-art sound stages and attracts mainly international productions, primarily American and West European.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-261" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[261]  The Yugoslav Film Archive used to be former Yugoslavia's and now is Serbia national film archive – with over 95 thousand film prints, it is among five largest film archives in the world.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-262" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[262]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbian cinema dates back to 1896 with the release of the oldest movie in the Balkans, The Life and Deeds of the Immortal Vožd Karađorđe, a biography about Serbian revolutionary leader, Karađorđe.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-263" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[263] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-264" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[264]  The most famous Serbian filmmaker is Emir Kusturica who won two Golden Palms for Best Feature Film at the Cannes Film Festival, for When Father Was Away on Business in 1985 and then again for Underground in 1995.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-265" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[265]  Other renowned directors include Goran Paskaljević, Dušan Makavejev, Goran Marković, Srđan Dragojević and Srdan Golubović among others.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Steve Tesich, Serbian-American screenwriter, won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1979 for the movie Breaking Away.

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">According to 2011 census, literacy in Serbia stands at 98% of population while computer literacy is at 49% (complete computer literacy is at 34.2%).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-217" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[217]  Same census showed the following levels of education: 16.2% of inhabitants have higher education (10.6% have bachelors or masters degrees, 5.6% have an associates degree), 49% have a secondary education, 20.7% have an elementary education, and 13.7% have not completed elementary education.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-218" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[218]

<p style="margin-top:0.4em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Education in Serbia is regulated by the Ministry of Education and Science. Education starts in either preschools or elementary schools. Children enroll in elementary schools at the age of seven. Compulsory education consists of eight grades of elementary school. Students have the opportunity to attend gymnasiums and vocational schools for another four years, or to enroll in vocational training for 2 to 3 years. Following the completion of gymnasiums or vocational schools, students have the opportunity to attend university.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-219" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[219]  Elementary and secondary education are also available in languages of recognised minorities in Serbia, where classes are held in Hungarian, Slovak, Albanian, Romanian, Rusyn, Bulgarian as well as Bosnian and Croatian languages.

Dositej Obradović, the founder of the University of Belgrade and Serbia's first Minister of Education<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-220" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[220] <p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">There are 17 universities in Serbia (eight public universities with a total number of 85 faculties and nine private universities with 51 faculties).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-221" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[221]  In 2010/2011 academic year, 181,362 students attended 17 universities (148,248 at public universities and some 33,114 at private universities) while 47,169 attended 81 "higher schools".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-pod2.stat.gov.rs_98-8" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[98]  Public universities in Serbia are: the University of Belgrade (oldest, founded in 1808, and largest university with 89,827 undergraduates and graduates<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-222" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[222] ), University of Novi Sad (founded in 1960 and with student body of 47,826<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-223" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[223] ), University of Niš (founded in 1965; 27,000 students), University of Kragujevac (founded in 1976; 14,000 students), [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Univerzitet_u_Pri%C5%A1tini University of Pristina – Kos. Mitrovica], Public University of Novi Pazar as well as two specialist universities – University of Arts and University of Defence. Largest private universities include Megatrend University and Singidunum University, both in Belgrade, and Educons University in Novi Sad. Public universities tend to be of a better quality and therefore more renowned than private ones. Thе University of Belgrade (placed in 301–400 bracket on 2013 Shanghai Ranking of World Universities, being best-placed university in Southeast Europe after those in Athens and Thessaloniki) and University of Novi Sad are generally considered as the best institutions of higher learning in the country.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-224" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[224]

Nikola Tesla sits in front of the spiral coil of his high-frequency transformer<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia spent 0.64% of GDP on scientific research in 2012, which is one of the lowest R&D budgets in Europe.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-225" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[225]  Serbia has a long history of excellence in maths and computer sciences which has created a strong pool of engineering talent, although economic sanctions during the 1990s and chronic underinvestment in research forced many scientific professionals to leave the country.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-226" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[226]  Nevertheless, there are several areas in which Serbia still excels such as growing information technology sector, which includes software development as well as outsourcing. It generated $200 million in exports in 2011, both from international investors and a significant number of dynamic homegrown enterprises.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-227" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[227]  In 2005 the global technology giant, Microsoft, founded the Microsoft Development Center, only its fourth such centre in the world. Among the scientific institutes operating in Serbia, the largest are the Mihajlo Pupin Institute and Vinča Nuclear Institute, both in Belgrade. The Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts is a learned society promoting science and arts from its inception in 1841.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-228" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[228] Country has a rich tradition of contributing to the field of science and technology with many renowned scientists.


 * Nikola Tesla, electrical engineer and inventor, best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system including the AC induction motor.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-229" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[229]  The tesla is the SI derived unit of magnetic flux density and was named after Tesla.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-230" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[230]
 * Mihajlo Pupin discovered a means of greatly extending the range of long-distance telephone communication by placing loading coils of wire (known as Pupin coils) at predetermined intervals along the transmitting wire (known as "pupinization").<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-231" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[231]
 * Milutin Milanković is known for his theory of ice ages, suggesting a relationship between the Earth's long-term climate changes and periodic changes in its orbit, now known as Milankovitch cycles.
 * Mihailo Petrović is known for having contributed significantly to differential equations and phenomenology, as well as inventing one of the first prototypes of an analog computer.
 * Miodrag Radulovacki is best known for postulating the Adenosine Sleep Theory in 1984.

Tourism
Main article: Tourism in Serbia<p style="line-height:19.1875px;font-family:sans-serif;font-size:13px;">Serbia is not a mass-tourism destination but nevertheless has diverse range of touristic products.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-209" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[209]  In 2012, total of 2,079,643 tourists were recorded in accommodations, of which 809,967 were foreign, while the average length of a tourist stay was 3.6 days (2.3 days for foreign tourists).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-210" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[210] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-211" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[211]  Foreign exchange earnings for the same year were estimated at around $1 billion.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-212" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[212]  Tourism is mainly focused on the mountains and spas of the country, which are mostly visited by domestic tourists, as well as Belgrade which is preferred choice of foreign tourists.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-213" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[213]  The most famous mountain resorts are Kopaonik, Stara Planina, and Zlatibor. There are also many spas in Serbia, the biggest of which is Vrnjačka Banja, Soko Banja, and Banja Koviljača. City-break and conference tourism is developed in Belgrade (which was visited by 460,424 foreign tourists in 2012, more than a half of all international visits to the country) and to a lesser degree Novi Sad. Other touristic products that Serbia offer are natural wonders like Đavolja varoš,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-214" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[214]  Christian pilgrimage to the manyOrthodox monasteries across the country<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-215" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[215]  and the river cruising along the Danube. There are several internationally popular music festivals held in Serbia, such as EXIT (with 25–30,000 foreign visitors coming from 60 different countries) and the Guča trumpet festival.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-216" style="line-height:1em;unicode-bidi:-webkit-isolate;">[216]


 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">Kopaonik winter resort
 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">Vrnjačka Banja spa resort


 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">Đavolja Varoš natural wonder


 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">Zlatibor


 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">Golubac Fortress


 * <p style="line-height:1.5em;">EXIT festival

Demographics
83.3% Serbs 3.5% Hungarian 2.0% Roma 2.0% Bosniak 0.8% Croat 0.7% Slovak 5.3% Other 2.2% Unspecified

Friends
Serbiaball is friends with Armeniaball because they both wish to remove Kebab, and both hate Turkey.