Article

Dobra Dan – hello! My chosen society is Croatia (or Dalmatia as it was known in my grandparents day)

My inquiry has focused on 3 areas:
 * How the society was formed?
 * Special features of my society?
 * How Croatia has changed and adapted?

I really enjoyed looking into the Croatian society. As a ½ Kiwi Croatian (on my dad's side) there was so much I did not know about my heritage. I also have realized that my Dad did not learn the language as his parents were encouraged to speak English as part of being a Kiwi.

Croatia was really formed out of a lot of struggle and war between Serbians and Croatians, religion and land. The people today are now lucky as after 1991, Croatia became an independent state with a government and parliament like us. Also Croatia has joined the EU ( European Union) which will help the economy grow and bring new opportunities for the people of Croatia.

When I looked at the special features of Croatia I could see differences and similarities. Each region has its own language dialect, the food is different in the north and south and family life in the rural areas is different from the Croatians who live in the cities. When Croatians emigrated from Dalmatia to NZ, many bought their language, food, folk traditions and history. They also got to work in the areas they knew about like farming, forestry, gum digging and wine.

Finally, Croatia (Dalmatia) as a society has adapted to change. In fact this change has been huge. Living constantly under socialist rule and now an independent country with a democracy. People now have the freedom to vote like NZ. This is very new in their history. Education will give young people even more opportunity. By becoming a democracy the Croatian people have been able to return to their traditions and retain some of the special character of their country. Tourism is one of their biggest ways of bringing money into the economy and showing the outside world what makes them special.

Dovidenja ( pron doveejenea) which means see you!