Are Croatia/Slovenia Culturally More Like
Posted by AreevBetulPresident@reddit | AskBalkans | View on Reddit | 101 comments
I’ve seen many Croats and Slovenes Say they feel more culturally connected to Central Europeans or Italians. Many argue they feel closer to Austria than let’s say, Albania. What Do You Guys Think?
R9Dominator@reddit
Slovenia is at it's core more culturally akin to Slovakia and Czechia since that's where our people originate from. Since WW1 and WW2, it largely depends on region. No Slovene would say they are culturally similar to Italians, unless they leave near the border and have family history with them. Same with Hungary and people living at their border (Lendava and surrounding area). Migrations from other ex-Yugoslavia countries and it's overall influence have made so that most people living in Slovenia would to some degree consider themselves culturally releated to other Balkan countires.
chunek@reddit
Nah.. the connection that you mention, "our people originate", is 1500 years old. Meanwhile, the HRE and later Austria happened, which severed this connection a long time ago.
Our Balkan connection is purely from the times in Yugoslavia and the exyu people who moved here. Most people don't have family ties from Balkan.
If we ignore the yugo influence, overall we are culturally closest to southern Austria, Carinthia and Styria. Northern Croatia as well, but that is more regional, like with Friuli (Italy) or Hungary.
577564842@reddit
Hungary? have you heard them speak? You can't be culturally like someone you don't undesrtand a word - I mean you don't realize when the word begins or ends.
CasperGwamm@reddit
Istria and Dalmatia are more like Italy. North-western Croatia is more like Austria and Hungary. Eastern Croatia is closer to the Balkans.
Lukahh_0@reddit
This is the only right answer, you can't generalise and put everyone in the same group
Big-Tax1771@reddit
Well, except all the people from eastern Croatia. Those you can generalize.
PavelKringa55@reddit
That's a fair assessment. I'm from Zagreb and I don't see it as Balkans. But many people that moved to Zagreb from Bosnia or Slavonia are totally Balkans.
Brain32@reddit
This is the only truth.
Apart-Temperature329@reddit
I mean, there's a proper reason for the coasts of Istria and Dalmatia being more like Italy but I dare not to say that. /s
MMortein@reddit
But only a thin coastal strip of Dalmatia is more like Italia, as soon as you move a few km inland you're in the Balkans
tardoos@reddit
Most of that thin coastal strip has been overrun by those inland people and is now also proper Balkans
AdSignificant6748@reddit
It's more like a hybrid that's way worse, like the mutant trex in the Jurassic park movie. The worst of both worlds
DingoPingo07@reddit
Slovenia is closer to central Europe for the most part, but some parts are much closer to the rest of the Balkans
ieatplantsandmeat7@reddit
I can understand Slovenia feeling closer to Central Europe, but Croatia seems more proper Balkan
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
Have you ever been to Slovenia or Croatia?
Fruloops@reddit
Yes.
Mother-Astronaut8784@reddit
That's true. It's also funny seeing Croats fighting not to be included as the Balkans. Seen a few of those topics on their subs lately
Linaran@reddit
As a Croat, I agree it's funny when my fellow countryman lose their minds over this. Who the f cares, the balkan subreddit is so much cooler than the mid EU one 😛
Archaeopteryx111@reddit
Because the Balkans has way more cultural and geographic diversity than Central Europe…and our humor is much better too.
sendvic_sa_senfom@reddit
We’re not fighting — we’re simply pointing out that, both geographically and culturally, not all of Croatia belongs to the Balkan region.
It’s interesting how facts can sometimes come across as "funny".
ThreeFontStreet@reddit
Depends on the part of the country. Northern part is geographically above the Balkan line. Culturally, some parts are more Central, some more Southern like Italian, and other parts Balkan. Which is typically what I see Croats stating which seems fair from what I’ve seen.
mijenjam_slinu@reddit
As a Croat, 100% agreed.
Abject_Avocado_6410@reddit
As Croat, 0% agreed.
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
Nah what do you know, the Romanian Mexican above that's never been to either Slovenia or Croatia says you're Balkan
PavelKringa55@reddit
Nope.
BissmarkMC@reddit
Slovenia: like a mix of Austria & Croatia Croatia: like a mix of Slovenia & Serbia Serbia: like a mix of Croatia & Turkey Bosnia: like a mix of Serbia & Turkey
True-Blacksmith4235@reddit
You are wrong about Serbia though. It’s more of Hungary (even Austria) for Vojvodina and Bulgaria, and North Macedonia for the south.
Belgrade is all over the place
Archaeopteryx111@reddit
But Serbian music has a lot of Ottoman influences, which Croatia lacks.
True-Blacksmith4235@reddit
Ottoman influence, or whatever you wanna call it, is actually not popular anymore.
It’s mostly auto tuned, with some modern type production, even trash music.
Serbian similarities with both countries, especially Turkey are exaggerated.
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
Austria: like a mix of Germany and all of the above
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
Austria: like a mix of Germany and all of the above
Sakky93@reddit
Insert Zizek video explaining Balkan borders
NightZT@reddit
I really wouldn't say that Serbia is like Turkey, it's not even that similar to Greece imo
Lebor@reddit
As a Czech I felt in Slovenia really good, the rest of a Balkan was for me more rough and polished.
Archaeopteryx111@reddit
Where in the Balkans did you visit?
AptKid@reddit
"All of the above"
ObjectConsistent3297@reddit
where is the femboy option?
Legal_Lettuce6233@reddit
That's Slovenia
ObjectConsistent3297@reddit
Haven't we Granted Slovenia as the femboy nation to the mental decease called Central Europe? (shout out to all my dudes in Hungry)
CasperGwamm@reddit
Asking the real questions.
Far-Active-649@reddit
Bad question, Slovenia is definitively Austrian starting from culture. Croatia is too diverse.
KODO_666@reddit
i mean if we look real Slovenians and not imigrants from serbia and bosnia, we are more alike with austrians than serbia.
requiem_mn@reddit
In case of Croatia, that entirely depends on the region. Dalmatia more like Italy and Slavonia more like Hungary, Istria being its own thing, and Croatia proper probably more like Austria.
StunningComment6064@reddit
Not even close to Austria.
psica-presrana@reddit
Delusional i tell you. (Oni ne ti)
deviendrais@reddit
In terms of architecture? Yeah I can see it. But in terms of mentality and values...?
ThickCaterpillar9867@reddit
Those voting Austria are self hating Slovenes🤪😂😂
psica-presrana@reddit
How self hating? Anything souther you go bigger shit show it is. Literally the slovenes trying so hard to be one with the čefur is worse imo
Sudden-Ad-307@reddit
Slovenia is a lot closer to austria than balkans, croatia is not,
psica-presrana@reddit
This is why i dont get how OP grouped them in a survey. Sure do it for the femboys or čefurs not both
MIMADANMEI@reddit
Slovenia has so little austrian culture. If it shares a borders that doesnt mean having simmilar culture.
DifficultWill4@reddit
Your sure?
https://youtu.be/r7gFNaGYEs8?is=NvQVcIrIX3zc3Aqk
sjedinjenoStanje@reddit
I wouldn't put Croatia and Slovenia in the same category, unless you're talking Zagorje, Medjimurje, etc.
Pineloko@reddit
Croatia is very regionally divided
coastal regions Italy+Balkan, northern regions Hungary + Balkan
Slovenia is more central european with a small dash of Balkan
Fantastic-Reading-78@reddit
Coastal regions are pure Balkan, and if you go south more the more Balkan you get, when you came to Imotski it is center of Balkan. Only mix of balkan and cultural states I saw north of Zagreb, in Zagreb also but too much south so its fucked up I mean Balkan 😄
bakariurin@reddit
fuck this, i think that austria, hungary and italy are culturally like balkan
halodon@reddit
Croatia is pretty similar to Hungary as ive seen so far through my holidays there. And i would say Slovenia is closer to Austria.
PavelKringa55@reddit
You know what's really funny? In spite of centuries spent in one state, today Croatians know very little about Hungary.
MrDilbert@reddit
The relationship was somewhat soured during Hedervary's reign, after that Croatians had little desire to know more about Hungary...
PavelKringa55@reddit
My take on it is that majority of the population was rural and could not care less about politics, kings etc. Their lives revolved around livestock, agriculture, festivities and such lowly worries.
MrDilbert@reddit
To expand on my take:
The population of larger cities, including the ones that printed the newspapers, decided what will be taught in schools etc. very much did care. And after they were forcefully prohibited from using their mother tongue, which had just started to gain prominence publicly, they've decided to effectively "cancel" Hungary and Hungarian after the rulers that enforced it left the office.
PavelKringa55@reddit
And at that time "larger cities" were like 10% of the population, or less.
MrDilbert@reddit
And that 10% still influenced the other 90% through politics, newspapers and school curriculums. :shrug:
AreevBetulPresident@reddit (OP)
Understandable. They Are Also Both Roman Catholic Mostly and were under Austro Hungary.
Beautiful-Dish-6275@reddit
Croatia and Hungary go way back, we have been in a personal union with them from 1102 to 1918.
PavelKringa55@reddit
Right. In Austria-Hungary Croatia was a part of Hungary. Some bits of Croatia were a part of Austria (Dalmatia).
Alternative-Tie-4970@reddit
Out of the three nonsense options, only Italy is somewhat plausible
rkob@reddit
I'm from Slovenia cost we are bad copy of Italy
enilix@reddit
I'm from western Slavonia, near the border with Bosnia, and I definitely feel closer to Bosnia and Serbia than to Austria and Slovenia.
Abject_Avocado_6410@reddit
Same here. From Nova Gradiška, and i don t feel at all closeer to BiH and Serbia, than to Austria or Slovenia. 🤟
StunningComment6064@reddit
This question was asked like probably gazzilion times.
Odd_Bodybuilder_4772@reddit
Croatia has regional differences, I would say Istria is like northern Italy, dalmatia is like mix of southern Italy and balkan ( god save us), central part i would say Austria and Hungary, and Slavonia is like Hungary and Balkan.
Catman_192@reddit
Somewhere in between Austria and proper Balkans, but I feel like they are more proper balkaners, mainly because they are South Slavs after all. There is also hungarian influence in Baranja, Slavonia, and eastern part of Slovenia, and italian in coastal regions (Dalmatia, Istria), but it's less than Austria and Balkan.
FalsettoBalsamico@reddit
As a Croatian, we are nowhere near central europe. That's just wishful thinking lol
Kooky-Locksmith-1274@reddit
You're from Split, of course you aren't.
That’s like someone from Vienna saying Austria is nowhere near Switzerland
FalsettoBalsamico@reddit
I'm talking in terms of culture. And being croatian I know other croatians and what they're like.
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
You think someone from Cakovec is closer in culture to you than to someone 10 km away across the border in Slovenia who's speech they understand more than yours?
T550401@reddit
I have heard Croatia is culturally closer to Vučićistan, so I'd say it is a Balkan country. I have no opinion on Slovenia though.
sendvic_sa_senfom@reddit
Im from eastern croatia and i always feelt most conected with italians. Maybe because i have roots from dalmatia.
Whole coastline is more connected to italy, north is more connected to austria and east feels most connected with hungary. We eat all of their national food, they live among us, we have many activities together etc. etc.
As far serbia and bosnia. On east there are many mixed marriages and families so these connections exist but people from cities and rural areas close to cities feel more connected with hungary/germany/ western lifestyle in general.
IfICode@reddit
croatia feels like any Balkan country when I’m there
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
When you're not there it's like Austria
Linaran@reddit
As a Croat, I agree we usually clean shit up after u/IfICode leaves. It's a nationwide conspiracy.
IfICode@reddit
I laughed
EngineeringGrand5274@reddit
If you are on the really interested , check this video which explains the topic. Slavoj Žižek , where is Balkan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_5Slnkzekc
anitchypear@reddit
The answer is: yes
Magistar_Idrisi@reddit
Depends which part of Croatia.
WitherCro2@reddit
Croatia is all of the above depending on the region
Ujemegaz@reddit
I voted Hungary for shit and giggles.
NightZT@reddit
It's very regional imo, there are parts of Croatia that are almost indistinguishable form Austria and there are parts that are almost indistinguishable from Bosnia
Early-Show2886@reddit
Baranja and Slawonia in Croatia is of course not like the Balkans, its more like Hungary because part of Austro-Hungarian Empire, also century old settlement of the Svabski (Germans).
Baranja is divided, indeed the other part Baranya is in Hungary.
ddeads@reddit
As a Croatian/American I growing up in the States I connect more with my friends from Italian families than I do with Albanian ones. Not sure if that's helpful.
OrganizationSea4490@reddit
Dalmatia and Istria are very much like Italy. The Zagreb are and rijeka like Austria. East slavonia generally balkan and Hungarian.
Slovenia likely like Austria.
OctogenerianCoder@reddit
I think it depends a lot where in these countries you are. Istria and the Slovenian coastal regions are very similar to Trieste, while Northern regions like Maribor or Charintia are extremely simmilar to Austria. On the other hand, the more southeast you get, the more it feels like the Balkans. So there isn't one right answer, but as the poll suggests, it's a mix of everything
Beautiful-Dish-6275@reddit
Ah yes, the very balkan looking city of Dubrovnik.
Sand_Dan_Stockta@reddit
Slovenia is like ketchup on a pizza. It's ok I guess, but it just feels like it's wrong on there
Hour-Promotion-2496@reddit
There are parts that feel closest to Austria, some to Italy and Balkan parts.
Beautiful-Dish-6275@reddit
Idk, but i also dont think its really that relevant.
Weissenburg_21@reddit
Slovenia is midway between Central Europe and Balkans, Croatia is closer to Balkans
AreevBetulPresident@reddit (OP)
From What I’ve Seen, Both Lean more to Central Europe/Italy. But in General, I see them as more similar to Northern Italy and Austria.
Atsir@reddit
Slovenia and friuli are very similar
_Caligulean_@reddit
🎣