Croatian (hrvatski) is the official language of Croatia, but visitors rarely need it to get by: English is widely spoken in hotels, restaurants and shops, especially by younger people, and German and Italian are common on the coast. A dozen words, from dobar dan to hvala, still go a long way, and the spelling is regular enough that you can read signs aloud after a few minutes.
How Croatian is written and pronounced
Croatian uses the Latin alphabet with 30 letters, including č, ć, dž, đ, lj, nj, š and ž. Each letter stands for one sound, and every letter is pronounced, so words sound as they are written.
| Letter | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| c | ts in "cats" | cijena (price) |
| č | ch in "church" | čaj (tea) |
| ć | a softer ch, close to "t" in British "tune" | kuća (house) |
| dž | j in "jam" | džep (pocket) |
| đ | a softer j | Đakovo (town) |
| j | y in "yes" | jutro (morning) |
| lj | lli in "million" | ljeto (summer) |
| nj | ny in "canyon" | konj (horse) |
| š | sh in "shop" | šuma (forest) |
| ž | s in "measure" | žena (woman) |
The r is rolled, and it can act as a vowel, which explains names like Krk, trg (square) and Hrvatska (Croatia). In standard Croatian the stress never falls on the last syllable of a longer word, so Zagreb is "ZA-greb" and Dubrovnik "DU-brov-nik".
Greetings and polite words
| Croatian | English |
|---|---|
| Dobro jutro | Good morning |
| Dobar dan | Good day (the standard daytime greeting) |
| Dobra večer | Good evening |
| Laku noć | Good night |
| Bok | Hi / bye (informal) |
| Doviđenja | Goodbye |
| Molim | Please; also "you're welcome" and "pardon?" |
| Hvala / Hvala lijepa | Thank you / Thank you very much |
| Nema na čemu | You're welcome |
| Oprostite | Excuse me / sorry |
| Izvolite | Here you are / go ahead / how can I help? |
| Da / Ne | Yes / No |
| Ne razumijem | I don't understand |
| Govorite li engleski? | Do you speak English? |
Croatian distinguishes between a formal "you" (Vi) and an informal one (ti). Use the formal forms, such as oprostite and izvolite, with people you don't know, older people and staff; bok and the informal ti are for friends and people your own age in relaxed settings. Croatians shake hands when introduced, and a simple dobar dan when entering a small shop or a lift is normal courtesy.
Numbers and money
Croatia has used the euro since 1 January 2023, so prices are in eura and centi. The word changes form with the number: jedan euro, dva eura, pet eura.
| Number | Croatian | Number | Croatian |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | jedan | 6 | šest |
| 2 | dva | 7 | sedam |
| 3 | tri | 8 | osam |
| 4 | četiri | 9 | devet |
| 5 | pet | 10 | deset |
| 20 | dvadeset | 100 | sto |
Koliko košta? means "How much does it cost?" Prices are usually written on menus, at markets and in shops; bargaining is not part of everyday shopping.
In cafés, restaurants and markets
- Jelovnik, molim – The menu, please
- Kavu, molim – A coffee, please (kava is coffee; the form changes when you ask for it)
- Pivo / vino / voda – Beer / wine / water
- Račun, molim – The bill, please
- Mogu li platiti karticom? – Can I pay by card?
- Dobar tek! – Enjoy your meal
- Živjeli! – Cheers
- Može – Sure / OK, heard constantly in conversation
Menus in tourist areas almost always have an English translation, but these words help in small konobe (taverns) and at market stalls. Ordering by pointing and saying ovo, molim ("this, please") works anywhere.
Getting around and emergencies
| Croatian | English |
|---|---|
| Gdje je...? | Where is...? |
| autobusni kolodvor | bus station |
| željeznički kolodvor | railway station |
| trajekt / luka | ferry / port |
| karta | ticket |
| Jednu kartu za Split, molim | One ticket to Split, please |
| lijevo / desno / ravno | left / right / straight on |
| ulaz / izlaz | entrance / exit |
| otvoreno / zatvoreno | open / closed |
| plaža | beach |
| WC / zahod | toilet |
Words seen on shopfronts and signs include ljekarna (pharmacy), pošta (post office), mjenjačnica (currency exchange), pekara (bakery), tržnica (market), trgovina (shop) and naplata cestarine (toll payment) on motorways. Zabranjeno means forbidden, and zabranjeno kupanje on a sign at the shore means no swimming.
For emergencies the number is 112. Useful phrases: Upomoć! (Help!), Zovite hitnu pomoć! (Call an ambulance!), Trebam liječnika (I need a doctor) and Zovite policiju! (Call the police!). Hitna pomoć is the ambulance service, and ljekarna is a pharmacy.
Regional speech and neighbouring languages
Standard Croatian is based on the Štokavian dialect, which is spoken across most of Dalmatia and Slavonia. Around Zagreb and in the north-west people speak Kajkavian, and in Istria, Kvarner and on many Dalmatian islands, Čakavian. The names come from each dialect's word for "what": što, kaj and ča. A visitor will hear these differences in local speech, but everyone also understands the standard language.
Croatian is closely related to Serbian, Bosnian and Montenegrin, and speakers understand each other, but the standard languages differ in vocabulary and spelling: Croatian says kruh (bread), vlak (train) and tisuća (thousand) where Serbian says hleb, voz and hiljada. Using Croatian words in Croatia is appreciated.
In parts of Istria, Italian has official status alongside Croatian, and street signs there are bilingual.
Learning before you go
- Croaticum, the Croatian-language centre at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Zagreb, runs courses for foreigners, including summer schools.
- Croatian grammar has seven cases, so word endings change, as with kava and kavu above. Visitors are not expected to master them, and a phrase with the wrong ending is still understood.
- A translation app with Croatian downloaded for offline use helps on islands and in mountains with patchy signal.
- Practising the ten letters in the table above, plus dobar dan, molim and hvala, covers most of what a short trip requires.
