The uniqueness that pervades Serbian literature from its very beginning to the present day has enriched the sumptuous garden of the world literature itself.
žMany Serbian writers and poets have influenced not only to the formation and development of Serbian literacy, but also to its constant refinement by new content. Nine centuries have passed from the emergence of the oldest document written in Serbian language –“Miroslav’s Gospel”, to the contemporary Serbian literature and they have been marked by significant literary paths and styles, as well as the writers who left inerasable tales of language, writing, and the time in which they lived.
The first written Serbian literature occurs at the time of the Nemanja dynasty, which is marked by the hagiography of St. Sava in which he wrote about his father Stefan Nemanja and his brother Stefan the First Crowned. These are also the first important works of early Serbian literature. The creators of Serbian medieval literature, together with Saint Sava, were Constantine the Philosopher, Stefan Lazarevic, Theodosius Hilandarac, nun Jefimija, Stefan the First Crowned, Jelena Lazareva Balsic…
The development and progress of Serbian literature comes to a halt under the Turkish rule. The period up to the mid-18th century was marked by constant wars and fighting, and with two great migrations of Serbs, and literature was under the dominant influence of the church. Two greatest Serbian educators and reformists – Dositej Obradovic and Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic were the ones who made the breakthrough. At the same time, there were other significant Serbian writers like Jovan Rajic, Zaharije Orfelin, Lukujana Mušicki, Jovan Hadzic and Djordje Maletic.
This period also marked the beginning of true Serbian literature. One after the other, significant names appeared, like the famous Serbian playwright Jovan Sterija Popovic, Petar II Petrovic Njegos, Prota Mateja Nenadović, and poets Branko Radicevic, Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj, Djura Jaksic and many others. The writer of comedies Kosta Trifkovic, as well as the most famous Serbian realists Svetozar Markovic, Milovan Glisic, Jakov Ignjatovic, Laza Lazarevic and Janko Veselinovic, gave a great contribution to Serbian literature. Simo Matavulj and Stevan Sremac were also among the prominent story writers of this period.
The beginning of the twentieth century brings innovative generation of writers and poets with realistic idea sand new themes. Ivo Cipiko, Bora Stankovic, Radoje Domanovic, Vojislav Ilic and Branislav Nusic marked this era. The most famous poets of the first half of the twentieth century were Jovan Ducic, Milan Rakic, Aleksa Santic, Vladislav Petković Dis and Sima Pandurović, and the famous prose writer of the time was Isidora Sekulic.
Undoubtedly, the greatest writer of the twentieth century and the only Serbian Nobel laureate was Ivo Andric, and another giant of the Serbian literature – Mesa Selimovic, closely follows him. One of the most famous Serbian poet Desanka Maksimovic, together with Milos Crnjanski, also marked this era.
The pages of Serbian literature were also written, and still are, by contemporary writers such as Borislav Pekic, Danilo Kis, Momo Kapor, Brana Crncevic, Matija Beckovic and many others.
