History glossary
Balkans
a region of southeastern Europe including countries such as Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, and others.
- Category
- Region
- Region
- Southeastern Europe
What it means
The Balkans is a regional label for southeastern Europe. Its borders vary by context, but it often includes former Yugoslav states, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, and nearby areas. It has been shaped by Ottoman, Habsburg, Byzantine, nationalist, and Cold War histories.
Related terms
Stories using this term
The Holocaust
From legal discrimination to genocide, the Holocaust traces twelve years of escalating persecution that killed six million Jews and millions of others across Nazi-occupied Europe.
The Celtic World Before Rome
Celtic tribes spanned Europe, shaping culture, conflict, and a lasting legacy.
Kievan Rus
The founding of the Rus’ state in the north.
The Rise and Fall of Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia fractured through crisis, nationalism, and war, collapsing violently in the 1990s.
The Soviets
From revolution to superpower, the Soviet Union rose, struggled internally, and collapsed in 1991.
The First World War
World War I reshaped empires, borders, and societies, setting the stage for World War II.
The Fall of Rome to Early Medieval Europe
From the arrival of Gothic peoples at the Danube to the crowning of Charlemagne, this story traces how the Western Roman Empire fragmented into successor kingdoms and how a new medieval world took shape.
The Rise of the Medieval Church
From the fall of the Western Roman Empire to the Avignon papacy, this story traces how the Christian Church built its authority through bishops, monasteries, missions, reform, and direct confrontation with Europe's rulers.
