Bosnian Jews declared a distinct national identity while pledging loyalty to Yugoslavia in 1918.

Evidence

We Jews of Bosnia-Hercegovina, who have always lived in brotherly communication with the people of this land and have shared with them all fates in joy and misfortune, following with best wishes the political aspirations of the Yugoslav peoples, feel it is our duty to make the following statement: As self conscious and nationalist Jews, who always value highly the great idea of self-determination of nations and democracy, we join the program of the National Council of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes contained in the proclamation of October 19, 1918, and as sons of this land we see guaranteed in this proclamation the free development of the Jews of Bosnia-Hercegovina. — James Renton, Ben Gidley (eds.), Antisemitism and Islamophobia in Europe, 1057

Categorization

• SHARE: A single primary-source document that would interest a historian of Balkan Jewish communities — the actual 1918 statement text declaring a Bosnian Jewish national identity.