No Yugoslavia

I need a refresher course in geography. I’m aware that many Eastern European countries have changed over the years. Most no longer exist and have broken up into new countries. Bulgaria is the oldest country in Europe and the only one that has not changed its name since its establishment.

It recently became evident that I’m behind the times in my knowledge of Eastern European geography when I was talking to a young man about the change I was giving him for a purchase. I asked if he’d accept a Canadian nickel and he was OK with that. Then, I said, “I guess as long as I don’t give you a Yugoslavian coin, we’re OK. It was illegal for us to use them when we lived in West Germany.” He looked at me like I had two heads because he had no idea what I was talking about. It was obvious to me that he’d never heard of Yugoslavia.

After some brief research, I discovered the official name of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which lasted from 1992 to 2002, was reconstituted and renamed as a State Union of Serbia and Montenegro in 2003. I’m over 20 years behind.