Montenegro’s Significant Others Role on Their National Identity

The way a person identifies with or feels a sense of belonging to one or more countries is known as national identity. Collective memories of a nation's history, language, culture, interests, celebrations, traditions, and customs are a few examples. When these factors differ from neighboring countries, they often alter their national identity. What do significant others mean in this situation, and how do they offer something distinct? A significant other is any group viewed as a danger to a country's borders or identity. Significant others present numerous chances for a country to develop throughout these battles. Significant others and "othering" can shape someone's or a country's national identity.

 "Others" can intimidate, threaten, and influence a country distinguished by Triandafyllidou. Influence and how a country is perceived are significant in national identity because it makes them stand out. When a country has influence, they are intimidating, posing a threat. a country does not have to be all three to be a "significant other." However, they need to know that it is perceived to pose a threat to the nation's existence(Triandafyllidou, 1998,p. 600)."othering" occurs when we overlook or disregard, essentially projecting elements of ourselves that we would instead not perceive when a country tries to erase history or change significant parts of its identity and push ideas or perceptions on another country.

Taking a deeper dive into the history of Montenegro and its significant others while becoming an independent sovereign republic from an independent kingdom. Until 2006, Montenegro was a part of  Yugoslavia, with Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Slovenia , Herzegovina, and Serbia. In 2003, the only two countries that did not go their separate ways were Serbia and Montenegro, becoming the federated union of Serbia and Montenegro. Three years later, in 2006, Montenegro became an independent nation. In 2007 the Montenegro language, Montenegrin, was established. They wanted to step away from their past by moving away from the Serbian language. However, more people speak Serbian in Montenegro than Montenegrin. They used the Latin script and added a few new letters to step further away from the Serbian language. Because of Montenegro's history of going from independence to independence, its significant others hold much of their culture and national identity.

Looking at Montenegro's significant others, the first characteristic,  influence, would be its relationship with Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia was the dominant nation in a multinational state from which the ingroup aspired to be free or stand out. Yugoslavia fostered the idea of cultural reconciliation between its diverse national cultures. Yugoslavia was the founding father that everyone wanted to run away from to grow and find themselves, which Montenegro did in 2006. although they have left, many of their identity characteristics stem from their past. Yugoslavia significantly impacted the relationship between Serbian and Montenegrin national identities.

Serbia is Montenegro's third and second category significant other. Montenegro and Serbia challenge each other by consistently trying to separate from each other and find their identities. Serbia is an influential nation for Montenegro. Ethnicity of the Montenegrins and Serbians is always a question on whether or not they are Serbs or Montenegrins, which leads back to them being so close in the Yugoslav Republic and after Yugoslavia.   Perception is everything, and If people from outside the region are unable to tell Montenegro from Serbia, then there is a problem with damaged identity. Since they split up, Serbia has been Montenegro's external significant other, threatening it from the outside without ever physically assaulting it. In 2007 when Montenegro declared its national language Montenegrin. When more people spoke Serbian, it was a way for Montenegro to try to separate themselves and create their own identity. "From the Serbian perspective, Montenegrins were and still are ethnic Serbs living in Montenegro, and their state is regarded as proof of the continuity of Serb presence in the region from medieval times to present" (Pavlović, 2003, p. 132). Serbia questions the uniqueness, legitimacy, and identity of Montenegro. They were an excellent illustration of significant others because even though they are not physically in danger of one another right away, they are viewed as a threat and, as a result, have influence over one another.

One of the only areas where the two nations continued to be tied was religion. Since the Church's founding in 1219, Montenegro has been viewed as a part of the Serbian Orthodox Church For more than 800 years. On September 5, 2021, the new metropolitan flew into the former royal capital, Cetinje, and was crowned with the Serbian Orthodox Church. This sparked violent demonstrations between people trying to stop the inauguration and those who believed they had the right to have their own Church. Both governments made statements that the other provoked the violence. This dispute is connected to national identity because Many Montenegrins view the national Church's continued affiliation with the Serbian Orthodox Church as a threat to their cultural and political freedom. Montenegro is its own independent state, so why does it matter if it has its own independent Church? Allowing Serbia to continue to exert both direct and indirect influence on Montenegro and viewed as a significant cultural barrier to their independence.

On the other hand, people who identify as Serbian believe Montenegro is using the problem to advance a divisive agenda for their own political objectives. The attempt to break up the Church is a move to sever the last connections between people whom many in Serbia and Montenegro still see as one state nation. To erase all the history, they have. To make people choose one side of their identity. The drive to form a separate church represents a political endeavor aimed at dissolving centuries-old historical and cultural links. This is an excellent example of "othering" because Montenegro is trying to push away its history on to someone else.

Due to all of this and its historic union with them, Montenegro has strong relations with the other nations in the South Balkans. After the union's final divorce in 2006, the nation’s still act as each other's "significant other" and impact one another's national identities by "othering" each other. There is no denying how these nations have influenced one another over time and how, as a result, some aspects of their cultures have come to overlap, leaving them to question their identities separate from each other. The development of Montenegrin and Serbian culture, the fall of Yugoslavia, and shared experiences are crucial for Montenegro as it finds itself and defines its national identity in the mix.