ABOUT SARAJEVO

A city or a living legend? Sarajevo is the capital and the largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of around 306,000 people living in the four municipalities that make up the city area, and around 423,000 people living in the wider area of the Sarajevo Canton (according to data from August 2009). It is also the capital of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Entity, as well as the administrative centre of the Sarajevo Canton. Sarajevo is located in the Sarajevo valley, surrounded by the Dinaric Alps, and situated around the Miljacka River. The city was famous for its traditional religious diversity, with believers of Islam, Orthodoxy, Catholicism, and Judaism living here for centuries.

Although the first settlements in the area date back to prehistoric times, the modern city developed as an Ottoman stronghold in the 15th century. Sarajevo has attracted international attention several times throughout its history: in 1914 it was the site of the assassination of the Austrian heir to the throne, the event that triggered the World War I, while seventy years later it became the host City of the 1984 Winter Olympics. More recently, Sarajevo went through the longest siege in the modern military history, during the Aggression on Bosnia and Herzegovina. Today, the city is recovering and adjusting to a post-aggression reality, as a major centre of culture and economic development in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Interestingly, Sarajevo was also the first city in Europe and the second city in the world to have a full-time operational electric tram network running through the city.

Did you know that Sarajevo: