When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001

This article analyzes the politicization of identities in Dalmatia during the turbulent decade of the 1990s. It argues that during the Croatian War of Independence (or the Homeland War), several factors led to the politicized delegitimization of Dalmatian identity outside a Croatian nationalist cont...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Ashbrook John E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2025-03-01
Series:Comparative Southeast European Studies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2024-0045
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1839623082022535168
author Ashbrook John E.
author_facet Ashbrook John E.
author_sort Ashbrook John E.
collection DOAJ
description This article analyzes the politicization of identities in Dalmatia during the turbulent decade of the 1990s. It argues that during the Croatian War of Independence (or the Homeland War), several factors led to the politicized delegitimization of Dalmatian identity outside a Croatian nationalist context. These included the proximity of the Serbian Krajina rebellion, the flood of displaced persons from the Croatian hinterland to the coastal cities, the attacks of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ)-led government on the regionalist Dalmatian Action party and regionalism in general. The author also analyzes how many coastal Croats reacted to and described their hinterland cousins, mirroring the rural/urban divide that characterized descriptions of Serbs by nationalist Croats during the dissolution of Yugoslavia.
format Article
id doaj-art-aa1d4ef5d3894e09a911168c30d6b4aa
institution Matheson Library
issn 2701-8199
2701-8202
language English
publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher De Gruyter
record_format Article
series Comparative Southeast European Studies
spelling doaj-art-aa1d4ef5d3894e09a911168c30d6b4aa2025-07-21T06:55:22ZengDe GruyterComparative Southeast European Studies2701-81992701-82022025-03-01731598110.1515/soeu-2024-0045When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001Ashbrook John E.0Department of History, Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, TX, USAThis article analyzes the politicization of identities in Dalmatia during the turbulent decade of the 1990s. It argues that during the Croatian War of Independence (or the Homeland War), several factors led to the politicized delegitimization of Dalmatian identity outside a Croatian nationalist context. These included the proximity of the Serbian Krajina rebellion, the flood of displaced persons from the Croatian hinterland to the coastal cities, the attacks of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ)-led government on the regionalist Dalmatian Action party and regionalism in general. The author also analyzes how many coastal Croats reacted to and described their hinterland cousins, mirroring the rural/urban divide that characterized descriptions of Serbs by nationalist Croats during the dissolution of Yugoslavia.https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2024-0045dalmatiaregionalismnationalism1990syugoslav warsthe yugoslav wars and the year 1995
spellingShingle Ashbrook John E.
When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
Comparative Southeast European Studies
dalmatia
regionalism
nationalism
1990s
yugoslav wars
the yugoslav wars and the year 1995
title When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
title_full When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
title_fullStr When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
title_full_unstemmed When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
title_short When Drniš Came to the Sea: Croatian Nationalism, Dalmatian Regionalism, and the Politics of Identity, 1990–2001
title_sort when drnis came to the sea croatian nationalism dalmatian regionalism and the politics of identity 1990 2001
topic dalmatia
regionalism
nationalism
1990s
yugoslav wars
the yugoslav wars and the year 1995
url https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2024-0045
work_keys_str_mv AT ashbrookjohne whendrniscametotheseacroatiannationalismdalmatianregionalismandthepoliticsofidentity19902001