Kosovo (English)
Where does "Kosovo" come from?
The name Kosovo originates from the Serbo-Croatian phrase 'Kosovo polje', which translates literally to 'field of blackbirds'. It is derived from the word 'kos', meaning blackbird, combined with 'polje', meaning field. Over time, the name was shortened to its current form to identify the region.
Full etymology tree
- Kosovo (English), 'A partly-recognized country on the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe. Official name: Republic of Kosovo. Capital and largest city: Pristina. Considered by the Republic of Serbia to be one of its two autonomous provinces.'
- clipping Косово поље (Kosovo polje) (Serbo-Croatian)
- compound косово (kosovo) (Serbo-Croatian)
- derived кос (kos) (Serbo-Croatian), 'slant, inclined, skew'
- inherited *kosъ (Proto-Slavic), 'blackbird'
- derived кос (kos) (Serbo-Croatian), 'slant, inclined, skew'
- compound поље (polje) (Serbo-Croatian), 'field'
- inherited *poľe (Proto-Slavic), 'field'
- compound косово (kosovo) (Serbo-Croatian)
- clipping Косово поље (Kosovo polje) (Serbo-Croatian)
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris