Bosnian is one of the three official languages of Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with Croatian and Serbian, and these three languages are mutually intelligible to such a degree that one translator, as a rule, commands all three. However, in the administrative system of Bosnia and Herzegovina linguistic affiliation is formally important: a document that goes to a Bosnian-language authority must be written in the Bosnian norm, in the Latin alphabet, while for an authority of Republika Srpska often in the Serbian norm and in Cyrillic. We translate from Bosnian into Georgian and from Georgian into Bosnian, notarise the translation, attach the apostille and, what is especially important for this language, know the complex administrative structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in which the same document may be issued under three different sets of rules.
Why the need for Bosnian translation arises in Georgia
Relations between Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina are small in volume but varied: tourism in both directions, from the historic centres of Sarajevo and Mostar to Svaneti; Bosnian students at Georgian medical and technical universities; Georgian students at the universities of Sarajevo and Tuzla; Bosnian construction, wood processing and food companies studying the Georgian market; Georgian wine on the Bosnian market; Georgian-Bosnian families; sports and cultural exchange. Each of these ties creates a flow of documents: birth and marriage certificates, diplomas, medical documents, company registration papers, contracts, court decisions.
The specificity of Bosnian translation is that Bosnia and Herzegovina is one state with three administrative spaces: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina with ten cantons, Republika Srpska and the Brčko District. Each has its own authorities, its own linguistic practice and its own form of documents, and the translator must know this structure to assess a document's origin and purpose correctly.
Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian: one linguistic space, three norms
Linguistically these three standards are variants of the same South Slavic linguistic system, and a Bosnian, a Croat and a Serb understand each other without an interpreter. But in an official document the choice of norm matters: the Bosnian standard implies the ijekavian pronunciation (mlijeko, lijep), the Latin alphabet, keeping the "h" in words where Serbian loses it (kahva, lahko), and a wider use of vocabulary of Turkish origin (turcizmi); the Serbian standard in Republika Srpska implies ekavian or ijekavian pronunciation, Cyrillic and its own administrative terminology; the Croatian standard in the Croat cantons of Herzegovina implies its own lexical norm.
When translating from Georgian into Bosnian we choose the norm that corresponds to the receiving authority: Bosnian for the authorities of Sarajevo, Tuzla, Zenica, Serbian for Banja Luka, Croatian for the Croat part of Mostar. When translating from Bosnian into Georgian the document's norm is visible from its origin, and in the translation we note in which linguistic variant and alphabet the original is written. Our translators command all three norms, both Latin and Cyrillic.
Who the "court interpreters" are and what this means for a Georgian client
In Bosnia and Herzegovina an official translation is done by a court interpreter (sudski tumač), appointed by the Federation Ministry of Justice, the cantonal ministries, the Ministry of Justice of Republika Srpska or the Judicial Commission of Brčko, for a specific language. A Bosnian authority, as a rule, requires the translation of a foreign document precisely from such an interpreter. For the Georgian language a court interpreter practically does not exist in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and this has two practical consequences for a Georgian client.
First: a Bosnian translation notarised in Georgia with an apostille is often the only realistic route for Bosnian authorities, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a party to the Apostille Convention, recognises a foreign public document. Second: some Bosnian authorities nevertheless require the version of a local court interpreter, and in such a case a two-stage scheme through an English-Bosnian court interpreter is used: the Georgian original with an apostille, our notarised English translation, and in Bosnia a court translation from English into Bosnian. We discuss these options in advance when ordering.
The apostille: from the courts and from the Public Service Hall
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention by legal succession from Yugoslavia, and the apostille on a Bosnian document is issued by the courts: in the Federation by the municipal courts (općinski sud), in Republika Srpska by the basic courts (osnovni sud), in Brčko by the Basic Court of the District. This means that a Bosnian apostille always comes from a specific court, and in the translation its name, number and date are reflected exactly. The apostille on a Georgian document is attached by the Public Service Hall, and this stage is completed within the order. Bosnian authorities most often require the apostille attached to the original, after which the apostille too is translated; some procedures require both, on the original and on the notarised translation.
Which documents come in Bosnian
- Civil status extracts (izvod iz matične knjige rođenih, vjenčanih, umrlih) from the registers of the Federation, Republika Srpska or Brčko
- Certificate of citizenship (uvjerenje o državljanstvu), a document characteristic of the Bosnian system and foreign to the Georgian one
- Certificate of no criminal record (uvjerenje o nekažnjavanju) from a court or the police
- Registration of residence (CIPS prijava) and the personal number (JMBG)
- University diplomas and transcripts: from the universities of Sarajevo, Tuzla, Zenica, the two universities of Mostar, the universities of Banja Luka
- Hospital discharge letter (otpusno pismo) and medical conclusions from the clinical centres
- Notarial deeds (notarski obrađena isprava) and court decisions (presuda, rješenje)
- Company registration extract from the court register and articles of association
Which Georgian documents are translated into Bosnian
The real cases of translation from Georgian into Bosnian relate to residence, study, marriage, business and diploma recognition in Bosnia and Herzegovina: a criminal record certificate and civil status records for a residence permit; a school certificate and diploma for enrolment at the University of Sarajevo or Tuzla or for recognition at the Centre for Information and Recognition of Qualifications in Higher Education (CIP); a certificate of marital status for marriage registration; an extract from the register of entrepreneurs and articles of association for a contract with a Bosnian partner or for registering a company in Bosnia; certificates for wine and food products for a Bosnian importer. Added to this is marketing and tourism translation for a Bosnian audience.
The anatomy of Bosnian documents: what we take into account
A Bosnian official document contains several elements unusual for a Georgian reader. The certificate of citizenship is a separate document that does not exist in the Georgian system and is compulsory for many procedures in Bosnia; in the translation we explain its purpose. The personal number (JMBG) has 13 digits and contains the date of birth and the region, which allows cross-checking with the other dates of the document in the translation. Civil status extracts often come with handwritten entries, several seals and marginal notes (napomena), which record a change of name, marriage or divorce; every such note is reflected in full in the translation. The document's heading is often in all three languages, in Latin and Cyrillic, and in the translation this bilingualism is noted.
Transliteration: Bosnian names in the Georgian system
Bosnian names are written in the Latin alphabet with diacritics (č, ć, đ, š, ž), and the Georgian transcription must follow Bosnian pronunciation: Đorđe is Djordje, Ćamil is Chamil, Šemsudin is Shemsudin, Željko is Zheljko. In the case of a document written in Cyrillic we establish the Latin form according to the passport. The Bosnian naming system often combines names of the Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox traditions, and the transcription once chosen remains unchanged in all documents of this person. In the opposite direction a Georgian name in a Bosnian translation is written by the Latin entry of the passport, because the Bosnian employee compares the document precisely with it; using Bosnian diacritics for a Georgian name is a mistake.
Educational documents: recognition in both directions
In Bosnia and Herzegovina recognition of foreign higher education is coordinated by the Centre for Information and Recognition of Qualifications in Higher Education (CIP), while the recognition itself is carried out by universities and the cantonal or entity ministries of education, which makes the procedure different by region. A Georgian diploma for recognition in Bosnia is translated into Bosnian, with a description of the curriculum. In the opposite direction a Bosnian diploma for recognition in Georgia requires an explanation of the grading system: Bosnian universities use a scale from 5 to 10, where 6 is the minimum pass and 10 the highest, which differs from the Georgian system and needs an explanatory note. The names of Bosnian degrees (diplomirani, magistar, doktor nauka, and also the post-Bologna bachelor and master) call for comparison with the Georgian system.
Business with Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Bosnian economy is export-oriented in the sectors of wood processing, metal, automotive components, energy and the food industry, and Bosnian companies looking for markets outside the Balkans increasingly consider Georgia as the gateway to the Caucasus and Central Asia. In the opposite direction Georgian wine, mineral water and hazelnuts enter the Bosnian market. The Bosnian corporate system is built on court registers: a company is registered at a municipal or basic court, and the registration extract is issued by the court, which needs explanation for a Georgian recipient who expects a register of entrepreneurs. The Bosnian company forms (d.o.o., d.d.) are the functional analogues of the Georgian LLC and JSC, while the identification number (JIB) and the tax number (PDV broj) are separate fields that remain unchanged in the translation. The Sarajevo Business Forum, Bosnia's largest investment event, is the place of first contact with Bosnian business for Georgian participants.
Medical documents from Bosnian clinical centres
The health system of Bosnia and Herzegovina is organised by entities and cantons, and medical documents come from the University Clinical Centre of Sarajevo, the university clinical centres of Tuzla and Banja Luka or the cantonal hospitals. A Bosnian discharge letter (otpusno pismo), findings and opinion (nalaz i mišljenje), referral (uputnica) structurally resemble a Georgian discharge summary, and the medical terminology is built on Latin roots, which is often transparent to a Georgian doctor. Bosnian patients rarely come to Georgian clinics, but the medical documents of Bosnian students, the cases of Georgian-Bosnian families and insurance reimbursement create a regular flow of medical translation. The trade names of drugs are those of the Balkan market and are often unknown in Georgia; in the translation we keep the brand and add the international non-proprietary name in brackets.
Typical mistakes in Bosnian translation
Experience on the Bosnian direction shows several recurring defects that we find in other providers' translations: mixing the Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian norms in one document, which is immediately noticeable to a Bosnian recipient; wrong Latinisation of names from a document written in Cyrillic without comparing with the passport; the absence of an explanation of the purpose of the certificate of citizenship or the CIPS registration; omitting the marginal notes (napomena) in civil status extracts; wrongly indicating the court that issued the apostille; the absence of an explanation of the grading system in a transcript; writing the place of birth by its modern name when the document carries the name of the Yugoslav period. Every one of these points is on our checklist.
Documents of the Yugoslav period
The old documents of Bosnian citizens, birth certificates, diplomas and work booklets issued before 1992, are on the forms of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, in the Serbo-Croatian language, often in Cyrillic and with the seals of the authorities of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the translation of such a document we carry the historical names over unchanged and add the modern equivalent in brackets, so that the Georgian employee understands the document's origin and its present legal status. Documents of the war period sometimes need special confirmation, because some registers were destroyed or relocated; in such a case we advise the client to obtain a new extract in Bosnia, which is often a faster route than legalising the old document.
The European path: shared challenges, shared documents
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a candidate country of the European Union, as is Georgia, and this parallel process creates a new flow of documents: EU-funded regional projects where Bosnian and Georgian institutions are partners, experience-sharing programmes, civil society cooperation, academic exchange. The internal documents of Bosnian institutions, extracts from Bosnian legislation and Bosnian-language research are translated directly from Bosnian, with the terminology of European integration, which both countries take from the official vocabulary of the EU, while an explanation of the Bosnian entity system for a Georgian partner is especially often needed in such projects.
What sets our Bosnian translation apart
- Command of all three norms, Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian, and of both alphabets, according to the target authority
- Knowledge of the three-level administrative structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina: the Federation, Republika Srpska, Brčko
- Notarisation by a translator registered in the Bosnian-Georgian pair and an apostille at the Public Service Hall
- Honest advice on when the version of a Bosnian court interpreter is needed and how to arrange the two-stage scheme
- A standard personal document in 1 working day, express in 1-2 hours, the process fully online
Frequently asked questions
Are Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian translation the same thing?
Linguistically they are variants of one system, but in an official document the norm and the alphabet matter. For an authority in Sarajevo Bosnian in Latin, for Banja Luka Serbian in Cyrillic, for the Croat part of Mostar Croatian. We choose according to the recipient.
Does a court interpreter for the Georgian language exist in Bosnia?
Practically not. That is why a translation notarised in Georgia with an apostille is often the only route; if an authority requires a local court interpreter, we arrange the two-stage scheme through English.
What is a Bosnian certificate of citizenship and why is it required?
It is a separate document characteristic of the Bosnian system, which is compulsory for many procedures. It has no analogue in the Georgian system, so we attach an explanation to the translation.
A document from Republika Srpska is in Cyrillic. Will a Bosnian translator cope?
Yes, our translators command both alphabets and all three norms. In the translation we note that the original is in the Serbian norm and in Cyrillic.
The Bosnian apostille came from a court, not from a ministry. Is this correct?
Yes, in Bosnia the apostille is issued by the courts, municipal in the Federation, basic in Republika Srpska. It is a fully valid apostille and is accepted in Georgia.
Does the 10-point scale of a Bosnian diploma resemble the Georgian one?
Formally it does, but the minimum pass is 6 and the categories differ. We attach an explanatory note to the translation so that the Georgian authority reads the assessment correctly.
How is a Bosnian name written in Georgian?
With Bosnian pronunciation, taking the diacritics into account: Djordje, Chamil, Zheljko. We keep the chosen form in all documents of this person, and the Latin entry according to the passport.
I have a birth certificate from the Yugoslav period. Will a Georgian authority accept it?
Translation is possible, with an explanation of the historical names, but legalisation of an old document is difficult. Obtaining a new extract in Bosnia and apostilling it is almost always a faster and more reliable route.
A Bosnian company's extract came from a court. Is this a registration document?
Yes, in Bosnia companies are registered in the court register and the extract is issued by the court. We attach an explanation to the translation so that the Georgian recipient treats the document as the equivalent of an extract from the register of entrepreneurs.
How long does a Bosnian translation take?
A personal document in 1 working day, express in 1-2 hours. The apostille time depends on the schedule of the Public Service Hall, corporate and medical packages have an individual deadline.