· 3 min read
How to Pronounce 17 Croatian Places Foreigners Say Wrong
By Sarah & Ivan Ćosić, Royal Croatian Tours
I'm Sarah, a Canadian who has lived in Croatia for 13 years. With my Croatian husband Ivan, I run Royal Croatian Tours. On almost every call, a guest apologises for mispronouncing a Croatian place name. Honestly, nobody here minds, and you can say them any way you like! But if you'd like to say them the Croatian way, here's how.
Five rules that make it easy
- Stress the first syllable. Most Croatian words are stressed at the start: ZAH-greb, not za-GREB.
- J sounds like Y. So Opatija is oh-PAH-tee-yah.
- LJ and NJ are single letters, like the "ly" in million and the "ny" in canyon.
- C is "ts", Č and Ć are "ch", Š is "sh" and Ž is "zh" (like the s in pleasure).
- Roll your R if you can. And R can even act as a vowel, as in Krk.
1. Dubrovnik
Say it: DOO-brov-neek. Most people back home say du-BROV-nik, the way you'd read it in English. In Croatian the stress goes on the first syllable, and don't forget to roll the R.
2. Zagreb
Say it: ZAH-greb. Our home city. Again, the stress is at the beginning: ZAH-greb, not za-GREB.
3. Rovinj
Say it: ROH-veeny. Not "ro-VINJ" with a hard J! NJ is one letter, a soft "ny" sound like in canyon, and the stress is on the first syllable. One of the most romantic towns in Istria.
4. Brač
Say it: brahch. One short syllable. The č is a "ch" sound, so it's not "brack" but "brahch", with a rolled R.
5. Hvar
Say it: hvar. Most people say "ha-VAR", which is really close. Just blend the H and V together into one syllable.
6. Korčula
Say it: KOR-choo-lah. The č is "ch" again, and the stress is on the first syllable.
7. Mljet
Say it: mlyet. The hardest one, even for me after 13 years! LJ is one letter, so it's a single syllable: mlyet.
8. Šibenik
Say it: SHEE-beh-neek. Š is "sh" and I is "ee". Šibenik is the hometown of the basketball legend Dražen Petrović.
9. Zadar
Say it: ZAH-dar. Close to how you'd say it in English, just with the stress on the first syllable. Don't miss the Sea Organ!
10. Plitvice
Say it: PLEET-vee-tseh. Probably the most mispronounced of all. The C is "ts", so it's PLEET-vee-tseh. The lakes are Plitvička jezera, but "Plitvice Lakes" is perfectly fine.
11. Rijeka
Say it: ree-YEH-kah. The J is a Y sound. Starting a word with a rolled R is tricky, so take it slowly.
12. Pelješac
Say it: PEL-yeh-shahts. Lj is "ly", š is "sh" and c is "ts". A wonderful wine region between Split and Dubrovnik.
13. Grožnjan
Say it: grozh-NYAHN. Ž is "zh" and NJ is "ny". This one is unusual: the stress is at the end. A fairy-tale hilltop town in Istria.
14. Varaždin
Say it: VAH-razh-deen. That's how we say it in Zagreb, while locals put the stress in the middle (va-RAHZH-din). Your choice! A great day trip from Zagreb.
15. Osijek
Say it: OH-see-yek. The J is a Y sound: OH-see-yek. The main city of eastern Croatia.
16. Opatija
Say it: oh-PAH-tee-yah. Not "o-pa-TEE-ja": the J is a Y. Opatija was Croatia's very first tourist town.
17. Brijuni
Say it: bree-YOO-nee. The J is a Y sound again. A national park of islands off Istria, an easy day trip from Rovinj or Pula.
Learn a few more words
Ready for more? Our 65 essential Croatian travel phrases come with a pronunciation guide too, and hvala (thank you) will always win you a smile. Want to visit these places? Tell us about your trip and we'll plan it for you.
About the authors
As a Canadian in Croatia, Sarah shares her favourite things to see and do, in hopes of helping others enjoy and explore this beautiful country.
Ivan is always searching for unique places and experiences to offer his guests, and shares some of his findings through the blog.
