Folklore of Sarajevo
Encyclopedia
As an historic city, Sarajevo
has numerous myths and folklore
. The character Nasrudin Hodža is popular throughout the former lands of the Ottoman Empire
, and Sarajevo is no exception. Numerous stories about him dealing with the city have been written over the years. A famous piece of Sarajevo folklore is the story of the Orthodox Church. It was said that when a request came to build it, authorities required that it be no higher than the tallest minaret
in Sarajevo. A wise old man was then said to have advised that the church be built into the ground. Thus the building reached a proper height but met the restrictions.
Numerous other famous bits of Sarajevo folklore survive representing many different eras of Sarajevo's history. One of the earliest is the story of the Goat's Bridge. As the story goes, an old goat herder was tending his goats by the river Miljacka
when one of them started ferociously digging at a certain spot of the ground. Mystified, he walked over for a closer look only to find numerous sacks of gold. With the gold, he then built a great bridge
over the river that would for years be the main crossing for travelers on their way to Istanbul
.
Far more recent is the story of Sarajevo's Romeo and Juliet
. During the siege of Sarajevo the couple of a young Serb boy and Bosniak girl decided to flee the city. They got as far as the Sniper Alley
's "no man's land" before the boy was shot dead and the girl wounded. Rather than flee alone however, she turned to stay by her lover's side, where she too eventually died. This is not a myth; their names were Bosko Brkic and Admira Ismic, and they died on the Vrbanja bridge in May 1993.
Another popular story is that two con men 'sold' the town hall to American businessmen who did not suspect that the Bosnians did not own the building.
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
has numerous myths and folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
. The character Nasrudin Hodža is popular throughout the former lands of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and Sarajevo is no exception. Numerous stories about him dealing with the city have been written over the years. A famous piece of Sarajevo folklore is the story of the Orthodox Church. It was said that when a request came to build it, authorities required that it be no higher than the tallest minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....
in Sarajevo. A wise old man was then said to have advised that the church be built into the ground. Thus the building reached a proper height but met the restrictions.
Numerous other famous bits of Sarajevo folklore survive representing many different eras of Sarajevo's history. One of the earliest is the story of the Goat's Bridge. As the story goes, an old goat herder was tending his goats by the river Miljacka
Miljacka
The Miljacka is a river in Bosnia and Herzegovina that passes through Sarajevo and East Sarajevo. It is famous for being "Sarajevo's River", and it has come to be identified immediately with the city itself....
when one of them started ferociously digging at a certain spot of the ground. Mystified, he walked over for a closer look only to find numerous sacks of gold. With the gold, he then built a great bridge
Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span physical obstacles such as a body of water, valley, or road, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle...
over the river that would for years be the main crossing for travelers on their way to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
.
Far more recent is the story of Sarajevo's Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo
Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo was an international documentary about the deaths of Admira Ismić and Boško Brkić . The couple were natives of the former Yugoslavia, living in the city of Sarajevo...
. During the siege of Sarajevo the couple of a young Serb boy and Bosniak girl decided to flee the city. They got as far as the Sniper Alley
Sniper Alley
"Sniper Alley" was the informal name primarily for Ulica Zmaja od Bosne , the main boulevard in Sarajevo which during the Bosnian War was lined with snipers' posts, and became infamous as a dangerous place for civilians to traverse...
's "no man's land" before the boy was shot dead and the girl wounded. Rather than flee alone however, she turned to stay by her lover's side, where she too eventually died. This is not a myth; their names were Bosko Brkic and Admira Ismic, and they died on the Vrbanja bridge in May 1993.
Another popular story is that two con men 'sold' the town hall to American businessmen who did not suspect that the Bosnians did not own the building.