• Croatia gets 2,715 hours of sunshine a year which is more than Australia.
• June 25 is Statehood Day in Croatia.
• Croatia has 1246 islands, isles, and inlets
• The city, Dubrovnik, is used when filming King’s Landing scenes from the TV show Game of Thrones!
• Croatian money is named Kuna because trappers used to trade the furs of an animal we call a marten (think ferret), but is called a kuna in Croatian.
• Croatia invented the necktie.
• 10% of Croatia is made up of 11 nature parks, eight national parks, and two nature reserves.
• The last specimen of the Mediterranean seal lives in the Croatian aquarium
• Hum is a small town in Croatia and it is the smallest town in the world!
• UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Plitvice Lakes, Dubrovnik, Split, and Euphrasian Basilica
• According to legend, the Croatian King Stjepan Držislav was once held captive in a Venetian dungeon, after losing a war against the Venetian ruler Peter II. Orseolo. Peter offered the Croatian ruler a deal – a game of chess and if Stjepan Držislav could beat him three times in a row, he’d be released and free to return to Croatia. The king accepted the challenge and won three times. He then created the Croatian coat of arms (pictured) using the red and white chessboard in order to remember the event.
• The outline of Croatia is shaped like a flying dragon.

• Dalmatia was the northern part of Illyria in the 4th century BC until the Illyrian Wars when the Roman Republic gained possession of the area.
• The Kingdom of Croatia began in 925; Tomislav was the first ruler of Croatia. Tomislav defeated Hungarian and Bulgarian invasions, spreading the influence of Croatia kings.
• In the 11th century, the Croatian kingdom fell after Stjepan II died, and Ladislaus I of Hungary claimed the crown. This led to a war and then union of Croatia and Hungary.
• The Habsburgs began to rule Croatia and Hungary in the mid-1500s; however, Croatia was still vulnerable to the Ottomans. By the 18th century, the Ottoman Empire was finally driven out of Hungary, resulting in Croatia gaining some freedom.
• After WWI, in 1918, Croatia became a part of Yugoslavia and merged with Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Slovenia.
• During WWII (1941-1945), Yugoslavia was occupied by the Axis Powers, allowing the Croatia radical right Ustase to come into power which formed the Independent State of Croatia. However, they were defeated at the end of the war, leaving them to become a part of the Socialist Yugoslavia until 1991.
• Croatia became independent in 1991 and was involved in the Bosnian Wars following the breakup of Yugoslavia. The Bosnian wars lasted four years (1991-1995).

• Mountain ranges: dinaric alps, velebit, biokovo, uĉka, svilaja, mosor, veilka akapela, slavonian mountains
• Rivers: zrmanja, sava, kupa, danube, drava, cetina, mrežnica, korana, krka, gacka (and many more)
• Lakes: kozjak, wrana, dubrava, prokljan, vrana (and many more)
• The highest point of croatia is dinara peak and is 6,007 ft. (1,831 m).
• Dalmatia is the narrow belt of the east shore of the adriatic sea. 79 islands run parallel to the coast.
• Forests make up 36% of the surface area of croatia.
• Croatian rivers belong to the drainage basins of the black sea (62%) and adriatic sea (38%).
• Croatia is roughly the size of West Virginia.

Croatia is home to numerous animal and plant species even though the country itself is relatively small.

Some mammals include:

• eurasian lynx
• grey wolf
• european pine marten
• ural owl
• european otter
• european hare
• eurasian brown bear

Croatia has almost 400 species of birds. For comparison, North America has roughly 900 different species! there are only three venomous snakes in all of Croatia: nose-horned viper, common adder, and karst meadow viper.

Zagreb, Croatia

• Pronounced “Zah-greb” – is the capital city of Croatia, and also the country’s largest city, with a population of approximately 1 million people (around ¼ of Croatia’s total population). Although the city has a medieval past and is over 1000 years old, it has become quite modernized and urban over the past century. Pittsburgh, PA is Zagreb’s sister city!

Plitvice Lakes National Park

• Pronounced: Plit-vits-uh – this UNESCO World Heritage Site covers almost 73,000 acres in central Croatia. Its most famous attractions are the 90 waterfalls and 16 lakes that are scattered throughout the national park, as well as many caves and forested areas. There are 12 Upper Lakes and 4 Lower Lakes, all interconnected by small above ground and subterranean rivers. The limestone and dolomite rock in the area, known as a “karst area,” form sinkholes and caverns that create underground rivers. The lakes are most well known for their unique colors, which are constantly changing based on the mineral content of the water. The highest waterfall is the “Large Waterfall,” at the end of the Lower Lakes. There are 1,267 species of plants in Plitvice Lakes National Park, as well as over 321 species of butterflies!

Paklencia National Park

• Pronounced: Pahk-len-itsa, Paklenica National Park, located in Central Croatia along the Dalmatian Coast, was declared a national park in 1949. The park covers approximately 95 square km of protected area, and the mountain Vaganski vrh is the highest peak in the park at 5,764 ft. The park is named after Black Pine Rosin, also called “Paklina,” that was used for folk medicine and coating boats in shipbuilding.
• The park contains numerous canyons, caverns, and valleys, and the sheer cliffs forming the canyons are ideal for rock climbing. Paklenica is one of the most popular climbing destinations in all of Europe, and the nearby town of Starigrad is an outdoor sports hub. The park contains a number of mountain huts and refuges for hikers and mountaineers exploring the area.

Zrmanja River

• Pronounced: Zer-man-yah, The Zrmanja River is located in the southern region of Lika and the northern region of Dalmatia. The river is 43 miles (69 kilometers) long. Its basin covers an area of 350 square miles (907 square kilometers). The water is a perfectly clear blue-green color and incredibly beautiful. The river is also full of rapids and waterfalls.

The Dalmatian Coast

• The Dalmatian Coast is one of Croatia’s most well-known attractions, and for good reason! This beautiful stretch of coastline stretches down the Adriatic Sea from Split to Dubrovnik and is littered with islands both large and small to explore. It is a very popular area for sailing and sea kayaking. Croatia is the home of the dog breed Dalmatians, who were named after this region.

The Elaphiti Islands

• The Elaphiti Islands are an archipelago, stretching up the coast of Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast near Dubrovnik. The main islands are Koločep, Lopud, and Sipan. The name “Elaphiti” came from Pliny the Elder in the 1st century, after the Greek word “elaphos,” meaning deer. These rocky islands are covered by forest, with several exclusive beaches and tourist resorts. Only 850 people live on the islands full time.

Dubrovnik, Croatia

• Pronounced: Doo-brahv-nik, the walled old-town of Dubrovnik is one of the most iconic images in all of Croatia, if not all medieval Europe. Located at the far south of Croatia’s Dalmatian coastline, Dubrovnik looks out over the Adriatic from behind its impressive fortress-like walls that surround the city. in the 16th century, this coastal city was one of the largest centers for naval trade in the area, full of sailors, merchants, and diplomats.
• Today, it is a bustling tourist destination with beautiful beaches. It is also the filming location for much of the popular HBO series, Game of Thrones! Visitors can walk the medieval walls that surround Dubrovnik’s old-town and look out to the Adriatic Sea and the several small islands just off of the coast that are reachable by kayak or ferry from Dubrovnik.

Did you know: Croatia is experiencing increased aridity?

Aridity refers to the state or quality of being extremely dry. In some cases, aridity leads to prolonged droughts that widely disrupt a community–both ecologically and socially. As precipitation patterns in Croatia become less consistent and more abnormal, the country’s water quality and availability both decrease, creating widespread systematic problems for both ecosystems and society alike.

The data-backed trend of global warming explains why these conditions are occurring in Croatia. For example, in the 1920s Croatia’s mean temperature averaged 50.9 degrees Fahrenheit. Shy of a century later, from 2010-2019, the mean temperature for the country rose to 54.1 degrees Fahrenheit. A difference greater than 3 degrees between the averages of these two decades is astronomical. For perspective, consider the impact on your body when your internal temperature rises a couple of degrees when you’re sick with a fever. The earth is no different! A temperature change of only one or two degrees has serious and detrimental repercussions, as we’ve observed with Croatia’s changing climate.