Historically and geographically, the region known as Bosnia (natively Bosna/Босна) comprises the northern part of the present-day country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies mainly in the Dinaric Alps, ranging to the southern borders of the Pannonian plain, with the rivers Sava and Drina marking its northern and eastern borders. The southern, Mediterranean, region of the country is Herzegovina.

The area of Bosnia comprises approximately 41,000 km², and makes up about 80% of the territory of the present-day state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. There are no true borders between the regions in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and, unofficially, Herzegovina is south of Ivan-planina.

The two regions have formed a geopolitical entity since medieval times, and the name "Bosnia" commonly occurs in historical and geopolitical senses as generally referring to both regions (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The official use of the name including both regions started in the Austro-Hungarian times.

History

From the 1320s the Bosnian kingdom included the territories of Bosnia and of what would later become Herzegovina. As part of the Ottoman Empire for four centuries (1463 - 1878), Bosnia comprised a state (sanjak) that included Herzegovina until the middle of the 19th century. The area acquired the name of "Bosnia and Herzegovina" in 1853 as a result of a twist in political events.

Gallery

Geography of Bosnia and Herzegovina | Geography of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina | Geography of Republika Srpska | Regions

Босна (област) | Bosna | Bosnien | Bosnio | Bosnie (région) | 보스니아 | Bosna | Bosnija | Bosnië | Bosna (razločitev) | Bosnia