Fact of the Day: Bosnian-style

The Charter of Ban Kulin.
(Source: Wikimedia.org)

Many people consider the birth of Bosnia as dating back to August 29, 1189; as it is on this day in which the Charter of Ban Kulin was signed. 

The Ban Kulin Charter - written in Bosnian Cyrillic - was a trade agreement between the Kingdom of Bosnia and the Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik), and is one of the oldest written state documents in the Balkans. As a result, the charter is very significant to the national pride and historical heritage of Bosnia. 

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A translation of the Ban Kulin Charter below, thanks to W. Browne:

"In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. I, Kulin, ban of Bosnia, swear to be a true friend to you, o prince Kr'vash, and to all Dubrovnik citizens from now on and forever, and to keep true peace with you, and true faith, as long as I am alive. All Dubrovnik people who go through my domain trading, wherever anyone wants to move or wherever anyone passes, I will in true faith and with a true heart keep without any damage, unless someone of his own will gives me a gift, and let there be no violence against them by my officers, and as long as they are in my lands I will give them advice and help as I would to myself, as much as I am able, without any evil intention, so help me God and this holy Gospel. I Radoje the ban's clerk wrote this document by the command of the ban, one thousand and one hundred and eighty and nine years from the birth of Christ, the month of August, the twenty-ninth day, [the day of] the beheading of John the Baptist."