ZAGREB, 19 August (Hina) – The Croatian Cultural Association of Bremen performed on Saturday at the “Summer Festival in Hastedt”, a summer music and dance festival whose aim is to promote understanding and connection between different cultures.

In the Bremen district of Hastedt, the members of the association appeared in Croatian costumes. The performance consisted of two groups: one of children and one of adults, who performed traditional Croatian songs and dances.

“The audience was enthusiastic and we were happy to finally dance and be seen by others,” said Ljiljana Vidović, the association’s president, in a statement to Hina.

For the club, it was the first appearance after the summer break and the second appearance overall at the Hastedt Festival.

The festival is designed as a gathering of cultures and generations in a relaxed and happy atmosphere. The aim is to enable mutual understanding, promote acceptance and offer the opportunity to learn from one another.

The event also brought together communities of Turks, Indians, Arabs, Bulgarians, Thais and other nationalities who also performed various modern dances.

The Croatian Cultural Association of Bremen, founded almost 26 years ago, has around 70 members.

There are an estimated 500,000 Croatians living in Germany. Immigration to the country dates back to the 19th century. Migrant associations are committed to ensuring that children do not forget their mother tongue and roots.

At the end of the summer holidays, about fifty people reunited in Bremen, a city in northern Germany, hugging and greeting each other warmly after being separated for six weeks.

“We always look forward to the performances because they give us the opportunity to show what we have been working on,” said the association’s president, Ljiljana Vidović, before the festival on Saturday. “It is an opportunity to show that we exist as Croatians in Bremen.”

The association, founded 26 years ago, is currently preparing for the event in eastern Bremen. The room, rented from a local Lutheran church, echoes with tamburica music. Children aged five to 13 sing Croatian children’s songs in Croatian.

“It’s so nice. We hang out and dance,” says ten-year-old Ivan, who lived first in Rome and then in Bremen. “I can’t wait to perform,” he says during a break.

The children are excited. In a few days they will be wearing traditional Croatian costumes. Vidović is also preparing choreographies for two other groups of older folk dance participants.

“We want them to learn dances from all regions where Croats live,” she explains, as the Dubrovnik Linđo dance plays in the background. They have already mastered the steps of the dances of ethnic Croats in Vojvodina (Bunjevački Croats), from Slavonia and Međimurje, and will soon learn those from Kreševo ​​​​in central Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“I want them to sing and pronounce the words. This way the children learn the Croatian language,” says Vidović, who was born in Zenica.

Language is the key

Preserving the language among immigrants is crucial, especially for the generations born in Germany.

“My children have always considered themselves Germans,” says 43-year-old Danijel Bradić, who was born in Bremen.

When he told them: “We are Croatians,” they answered in German: “No, we are Germans. We were born in Germany and have German citizenship.”

Luka (15), Julija (13) and Mateja (10) did not want to speak Croatian. In fact, they did not even want to hear it.

“Until they came here,” says Danijel.

Ljiljana teaches the children in Croatian and translates into German if someone doesn’t understand something.

Surrounded by other Croatian children, Luka, Julija and Mateja have changed their minds and now want to learn the language.

“We used to speak German at home, but now we mix,” the father notes.

This was the first summer when the children spoke Croatian during their holidays. On the island of Brač, they independently ordered food in restaurants and ice cream on the promenade.

Danijel admits that in 1996 he himself did not want to join the club. He was 15 years old and had no interest in folklore. But his neighbor, a Croatian and co-founder of the club, was adamant. He claimed that there were girls in the club. Danijel eventually changed his mind and met his future wife Jelena in the club.

“Clubs like this play a big role in the lives of Croatians,” says Danijel, whose grandparents came to Bremen in 1973.

Marriages and friendships

The Croatian Cultural Association of Bremen has around 70 members who meet every Friday from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Vidović, who works as a city employee, revived the association twelve years ago. Meetings had decreased due to the retirement and death of the older generation. The rest were working and unfamiliar with folklore.

“It was hard at first,” she remembers.

She advertised the association on Facebook and Instagram. She visited churches where Croatians gathered. “I told the parents that their children would lose themselves if they didn’t know who they were and what they were. That they would forget Croatia. That’s why they should come here and make contacts with each other,” she says.

Sisters Petra (15) and Nika (17) Zdravac, born in Otok near Vinkovci, moved to Bremen in 2019 because their parents found work there. Sisters Jana (14) and Divamaria (16) Poljan from Bjelovar arrived on the same day for the same reason. Adapting to a new environment, language and surroundings was not easy. But since they met at the club, they have been inseparable.

“We notice that more and more Croatians are coming,” they say.

When they joined the club two years ago, there were fewer people. The children were younger, but now older ones are joining too. “And when other people see how well we dance here, we really become a big community.”

Dinamo or Hajduk?

The club is on track to reach the record number of 105 members it had when it was founded. The youngest member is ten months old and the oldest is 59-year-old Novica Vidović.

Novica, like his wife Ljiljana, is involved in voluntary work. Without his old tamburica, decorated with a red, white and blue ribbon, none of this would be possible – especially not without the music that has accompanied him for decades.

“We don’t burden the children. We just want them to be happy,” he says.

During their stay, no one uses their mobile phone. Surprisingly, it doesn’t bother the young people. They dance and sing with enthusiasm and then chat.

“We welcome children who do not speak Croatian well. We try to teach them as much as possible,” say sisters Zdravac and Poljan. “We know what it was like for us when we came to Germany and could not communicate.”

Sisters Zdravac and Poljan danced folklore in Croatia and will one day teach it to the others.

Ljiljana, who recruited the two through Facebook and her parents, is happy that one day someone will be there for her.

The only obstacle to the club’s survival is finances. The interior design company ElbeWesser, owned by Snježana and Michael Nefzi, donated money for T-shirts. Bus trips to performances are financed by membership fees.

The club celebrates birthdays and organizes trips. The children grow up together without forgetting their origins. Two boys, dressed in football shirts of Marko Livaja and Luka Modrić, cannot agree on whether Hajduk or Dinamo will be champions this year.

“This place has a future,” says Petra Zdravac with a smile.