19 Nov /13

Croatia

Croatia - Word of the day - EVS Translations
Croatia – Word of the day – EVS Translations

Today is a red letter day for Croatia. With their play-off against Iceland finely balanced at 0-0, the national football team will take to the field to fight for a place in the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil.

Should they win it would mark their fourth appearance in the finals, no mean achievement considering the national team of Croatia was only established in 1991. During this short period the country has appeared in 3 of the 4 World Cup tournaments, even finishing third in 1998 after memorably beating Germany in the quarter finals. In the semi-final Croatia took a dramatic lead against hosts and favourites France, but eventually lost 2-1. The tournament was a source of great national pride and a personal triumph for start striker Davor Sukar, who scored 6 goals in the finals and won the coveted Golden Boot.

Croatia declared independence in 1991 and was recognised by the EEC the following year, finally joining the EU on 1 July 2013. Croatian became the 24th official language of the European Union, and for most English speakers it remains a mystery.  Croatian surfaced in the British consciousness only in 1855, when then Encyclopaedia Britannica listed it as one of the Slavonic languages. Today it is spoken by some 6 million people and recognised as an official tongue in Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia.

Croatiab were first mentioned in Richard Eden’s 1555 translation Decades of the New World but only as part of a list of nationalities. Detailed English language references to the country and its people remained scarce for centuries. In The History of Four-Footed Beasts, a compendium of all animal life, both real and legendary, author Edward Topsell mentions a Croatian dog. Topsell’s 1607 description resembles the Croatian Sheepdog which is still popular today.

A more lasting impact on the language was made with an item of clothing. In the 17th and 18th centuries it was unusual for European soldiers to wear uniforms, but Croatian soldiers were easily identifiable by their distinctive neckties. These items were copied by the French and became known as cravats, eventually becoming better known as the fashion item still worn to this day.

When Croatia’s players take to the field tonight they will be aware of the important part sport has played in their brief modern history. Some of them may have been among the crowd of 100,000 who greeted tennis star Goran Ivanisevic on his return to Split after winning Wimbledon in July 2001. When Ivanisevic first played at Wimbledon as a teenager it was under the flag of Yugoslavia. As champion years later, he was a symbol of the hopes and struggles of a young country, and his success united them in a riot of noise and colour. Tonight, his compatriots have a lot to live up to.

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