It is interesting to take a deeper look at what the words ‘naobrazba’ and ‘obrazovanje’ mean in Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian. Both words mean ‘education’, although the first word is more frequent in Croatia, while the second word is heard in BiH and Serbia. Both words, however, have the same roots that shed light on what ‘education’ might be supposed to mean in the three South Slavic cultures.

The terms contain the noun ‘obraz’ (a cheek), and having (a) good ‘naobrazba’ or ‘obrazovanje’, means to have your cheek upgraded. The first word contains the preposition ‘na’ (on) so that ‘naobrazba’ is, in fact, what we have added to our cheek. Here we get to another point which explains what ‘to have a cheek’ means in this cultural context.

When we say that someone has no cheek, we usually mean that this person has no dignity. Someone who has a cheek is a person of word. This person clearly articulates their opinions. Their deeds follow their thoughts and words. This point leads us to the adjective ‘bezobrazan/na’, which can be translated as ‘rude’.

In addition, ‘bezobrazna osoba’ (a person) is an individual who nobody wants to deal with. It’s a person (sometimes ethically weak) who lacks manners. We usually don’t know what to expect from this kind of individual. Very often, their cruelty is unpredictable in their actions.

The adjective ‘bezobrazan’ contains the noun ‘obraz’ as well. At the same time, the preposition ‘bez’ implies that someone who is ‘bezobrazan’ has no ‘obraz’. At this point, it has nothing to do with the ‘education’ but rather with a particular character.

This free explanation helps us understand that well-educated people are not those who gain prestigious degrees through formal education but rather those with high ethical values. It doesn’t mean that high(er) education is not desirable, but it is obviously not the main condition for someone to be well-educated or ‘(na)obrazovan’.

Maybe this is how we can understand the word ‘education’. Whether we can say that this is the exact and only meaning of the word ‘education’ in Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian or not, shall we keep in mind this concept when thinking of our past or future (formal, informal, non-formal, online) education?

NOTICE: This text is not peer-reviewed. It aims to inspire and motivate language learners of Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian to think about possible cultural patterns when learning this/these language(s).