Very important cultural society of Croats in BiH is Napredak (meaning “progress”; not to be confused with Progress, which is the name of the cultural society of Serbs in BiH). Napredak was founded in 1902 and existed continuously until 1949, when the communist Yugoslav rule dissolved the society and its numerous offices and branches, and confiscated the entire movable and immovable property (buildings, libraries, books, cars, schools, bookshops, stationer’s, bookbinderies, etc). The official 1949 document mentions even confiscation of “eventual organizations of Napredak not mentioned in the document”. And Napredak was also the proprietor of cultural and historical collections, choirs, brass orchestras, student dormitories, etc.

The following list of offices and branches that have been dissolved by communist ex-Yugoslavia in 1949 shows clearly the power of Napredak, see [Maric, Pregled…, pp 357-359]:

• central head office in Sarajevo,
• county offices in BiH: Bosanski Samac, Gradacac, Ljubusko, Posusje, Sanski Most, Siroki Brijeg, Teslic, Tuzla, Vares, Zenica Zpece, Bosanski Brod,
• branches of Napredak: Banja Luka, Brcko, Breza, Bugojno, Busovaca, Doboj, Dreznica, Fojnica, Gradacac, Konjic, Ljubuski, Mostar, Posusje, Novo Sarajevo, Stolac, Bosanski Samac, Siroki Brijeg, Travnik, Tuzla, Visoko, Zavidovici, Zenica, Zepce, Vares Majdan, Zagreb, Bosanski Novi, Teslic, Sanski Most, Novi Seher, Olovo, Jasenice, Lug, Dubrave, Selo, Zavidovici, Livno, Derventa Capljina, Vares, Kiseljak, Jajce, Bijelo Polje, Gnojice, Cim, Buna, Lukavac, Zivinice, Pasci, Japnica, Pogrioci, Dokanj, Breske, Husinci, Orasje, Kolovrat, Krizavne, Bukinje, Crnac, Jare, Duvno, Uzarici, Prijedor, Ledenice Hrvatske, Hrgovi, Turic, Spionica Hrvatska, Drinovci, Polje, Ljepunice, Vijaka, Pogari, Mamici, Vinica, Krcevine, Ocevlje, Vir, Borovica, Cerin, Grabova Draga, Klobuk, Humac, Grab, Komusina, Baric, Vrucica, Gradnici, Blizanci, Ravno, Pocjane, Zarudje, Turbe, Bosanska Gradiska, Dubrocica, Sasina, Stara Rijeka, Poljak, Vionica, Odzak, Potoci, Raspotocje, Dolac, Voljevici, Gradisce, Janjici, Crkvice, Cajdras, Gornja Zenica, Crveni Grm, Podbrezje, Susanj, Trebinje, Ulatice, Budzak, Bijeljina, Blazevac.

Croatian national costumes from Kraljeva Sutjeska,
Photos from [Beljkasic-Hadzidedic]

Croatian woman with grand-daughters exiled from Kraljeva Sutjeska, living in Udbina, Lika

We mention that in 1936 Napredak had as many as 151 branches with over 20,000 members. Among outstanding members and collaborators of Napredak were:

Josip Andric, Ivo Andric, Vladimir Bazala (philosopher), Enver Colakovic (poet and writer), Drago Cepulic (professor), Mak Dizdar (poet), Dragutin Domjanic (poet), Krunoslav Draganovic (historian), Milovan Gavazzi (famous ethnologist), Petar Grgec (writer and leader of the prestigeous literary society of St. Jerome in Zagreb), Stjepan Gunjaca (historian), Muhamed Hadzijahic (writer), Rudolf Horvat (historian), Stefa Jurkic (writer), Mile Budak (writer), Kristian Krekovic (painter, stipendist of Napredak during the secondory school), Gabrijel Jurkic (painter, stipendist of Napredak), Aleksandar Kokic (writer from Backa), Sida Kosutic (writer), S.S. Kranjcevic (poet and writer), Hamdija Kresevljakovic (outstanding Muslim-Croatian intellectual), Husein Muradbegovic (poet), Alija Nametak (writer), Vinko Nikolic (poet and writer), Stijepo Obad (historian), Marko Perojevic (historian), Leon Petrovic (historian), Josip Poljak (medicine specialist and mountaineer), Vladimir Prelog, Tin Ujevic (poet), Nikola Zic (historian), and many others.

Napredak calendar book from 1907, note Croatian Coat of Arms

One of the greatest Croatian kajkavian poets is Dragutin Domjanic, whose roots are according to the family tradition from Bosnia. The poem below has been published in 1928 on the occasion of the assassination of Stjepan Radic, Croatian politician, in the Yugoslav parliament in Belgrade.

Herceg-Bosni Dragutin Domjanic Povrh hridi orao tvoj kruzi Guste sume spustaju se k ravni, Staze hite niz tvoj cilim travni K tihom domu, sevdahu i ruzi. Tvrda ruka tvrdu zemlju pluzi, Al tvoj kamen cuva spomen davni Sv’jetlih ljeta i junastva slavnih Roda, koji i ginuc, ne tuzi. K tebi lete nasih zelja jata, Nasa radost tvojoj se veseli, Nasa tuga tvojoj pomoc zeli. Herceg-Bosno, – kol’jevko Hrvata, Bog te cuvo, ponosni nas kraju, Ti starinom – i moj zavicaju! Tradicije je u obitelji Domjanic, da starinom potjecu iz Bosne.

The building of Napredak in Sarajevo; note Croatian Coat of Arms; photo taken in 2008.

Dr. fra Leon Petrovic, assasinated by Yugoslav communist partisans in 1945 without trial.

The anthem of Napredak was written by a Croatian lexicographer Bratoljub Klaic, and composed by a famous Croatian cellist Rudolf Matz:

Napretkova himna Silni, slavni, snazni bili su Hrvati, kad Tomislav i Tvrdko rasprsise tmine. Njive pune cvijeca plodova i vlati, zlatilo je sunce s nebeske visine. U to ropstvo tesko stegnu lance krute, Narod pade nas u gorka iskusenja. Al Napredak dobro javi nove pute i nadvi nad Bosnom baklju prosvjetljenja. Planu nova zora snagom dosad skritom. Sunce stade opet starim zarom sjati. Sarajevo, Zagreb, Mostar s Bijelim Splitom, viju jedno kolo slozno svi Hrvati.

Among 6,300 stipendists of Napredak were two young BiH Croats:

• Ivo Andric, Nobel prize laureate for literature in 1961,
• Vladimir Prelog, Nobel prize laureate for chemistry in 1975.

Another stipendist of Napredak was academician Ivo Padovan, president of Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Zagreb. It is important to mention that the Napredak schools (and not only schools) were open also to Muslims, Serbs and Jews. Napredak was revived in 1990 with the advent of democratic changes in ex-Yugoslavia.

The society Hrvatska Zena – Croatian Woman (dealing with education, humanitarian and social aid); both photos are from the town of Banja Luka, the second one is from 1938, when a branch of this society was opened (see [Maric, Orlovic]).

Hunger among Bosnian children, 1918 (see [Maric, Orlovic])

Playing harmonica in Banja Luka, 1920s or 30s (see [Maric, Orlovic])

Gabrijel Jurkic (1868-1974) was outstanding Croatian painter in Bosnia and Herzegovina. See his biography (in Croatian).

Kristian Krekovic: Portrait of Gabrijel Jurkic from 1938.

Tamburitza orchestra in the Croatian reading room in 1908 in Bugojno, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Source [Antun Lucic ed.].

Tamburitza orchestra in Bugojno, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the first half of 20th century, directed by a nun. Note that there are many girls. Source [Antun Lucic ed.]

Mixed tamburitza orchestra from the Franciscan Convent of Kresevo, 1908.

Dolac kraj Travnika, BiH, cc 1900. Photo by the courtesy of Franjo Marić.

Bosnian Croats, with unaviodable “uncles” – Bosnian Franciscans.

Tamburaški zbor travničkih vanjskih đaka, Travnik, BiH 1907. Photo by the courtesy of Franjo Marić.
Hrvatsko pjevačko i tamburaško društvo ZVEČAJ u Zenici (Croatian singing and tamburitza society Zvečaj in Zenica).
Zenica, BiH 1905. Photo by the courtesy of Franjo Marić.

Croatian women in Bosnia and Herzegovina play tamburtiza instruments as well.