A Concise History of Serbia

An accessible and engaging single-volume history of Serbia from the Early Middle Ages to the present day.

Dejan Djoki? (Author)

9781107630215, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 26 January 2023

542 pages
21.5 x 13.6 x 3.2 cm, 0.71 kg

'This book establishes Djoki? as the leading contemporary historian of Yugoslavia and especially Serbia, [it] demonstrates his enormous knowledge, a talent for identifying key [developments] … and an exquisite writing style … This is a seminal work … the best history of [Serbia] and its path to statehood written so far, a book that was needed. Djoki?'s modern and original approach, which emphasizes plurality of [Serbia's] society and contributions [to the making of Serbia] by members of minorities, marginalized groups and individuals who were never in power, sets an example of how to write great national histories.' Dejan Jovi?, Trails: A Journal for Serbian and Croatian Themes

This accessible and engaging book covers the full span of Serbia's history, from the sixth-century Slav migrations up to the present day. It traces key developments surrounding the medieval and modern polities associated with Serbs, revealing a fascinating history of entanglements and communication between southeastern and wider Europe, sometimes with global implications. This is a history of Serb states, institutions, and societies, which also gives voice to individual experiences in an attempt to understand how the events described impacted the people who lived through them. Although no real continuity between the pre-modern and modern periods exists, Dejan Djoki? draws out several common themes, including: migrations; the Serbs' relations with neighbouring empires and peoples; Serbia as a society formed in the imperial borderlands; and the polycentricity of Serbia. The volume also highlights the surprising vitality of Serb identity, and how it has survived in different incarnations over the centuries through reinvention.

Introduction
1. Migration (up to c1150)
2. Empire (c1170–1459)
3. Borderland (1450–1800)
4. Revolution (1788–1858)
5. Independence (1860–1914)
6. War and interwar (1914–1944)
7. Federation to fragmentation (1945–1991)
8. Ruin and recovery (after 1991)
Further reading
Index.

Subject Areas: European history [HBJD]