Serbian (Latin) style guide¶
Use this page with the house guide and localization review. Its examples use Latin script and ekavian Serbian. Check actual labels, behavior and substituted values before adopting an example. See credits for source acknowledgments.
Voice and locale¶
Write standard Serbian that fits the task. Technical instructions need precise actions and conditions; introductions can be conversational. A shorter translation is useful only when it retains the information. Do not import a consumer-marketing tone into a warning merely because both appear in the same application.
Keep script and language variety distinct. These Latin examples use vreme, reč, sledeće, odeljak and nalevo. Latin script does not itself require ekavian: ekavian and ijekavian are both standard Serbian varieties. Keep the selected variety consistent and preserve exact quotations and protected labels. Related pages cover Cyrillic Serbian for Serbia and Cyrillic Serbian for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Use the formal plural in instructions: Otvorite datoteku. A command label can use the singular imperative: Otvori. Ordinary interface text uses lowercase vi, vam and vaš within a sentence. Agree on a convention for personal correspondence separately. Sačekajte. is sufficient when waiting is the intended action; an added polite preface rarely makes an error more helpful.
Use approved terminology with the actual object in mind. Program, aplikacija and usluga are not interchangeable descriptors. A drive is not necessarily a disk. Shortening tablet računar to tablet is useful when the noun remains clear; dropping a descriptor does not remove the need for grammatical inflection. Correct adresa, not the source typo adrsea.
Treat preference lists as contextual advice. Proveriti means checking a condition, which may differ from ensuring that it becomes true. Words such as takođe, zahtevati and moći are not intrinsically wrong. Avoid invented jargon and forced English constructions, but do not prohibit a valid Serbian expression simply because it resembles the English one.
Fragments, impersonal wording, passive constructions and conjunctions can all serve a purpose. For a completed save, use Datoteka je sačuvana. A casual Je l’ or Smaranje… can sound dismissive in a failure message. Adapt an idiom's intended meaning without adding a new benefit, joke or claim. Translation-memory matches still need review.
Preserve the task¶
Check the actor, action, object, scope, condition, timing and value after each rewrite. Several apparently fluent source examples change these details.
- Preserve the source's 15 GB limit, including its boundary: Najveća dozvoljena veličina datoteke je 15 GB. A demand for a file smaller than 15 GB would exclude the boundary. This is a translation example, not a FontLab limit.
- Saving a workspace is not reducing disk use. Čuvanje radnog prostora and ušteda prostora describe different benefits. Keep “if possible” when the source qualifies what can be recovered.
- The subscription example requires the correct date: Podesite tačan datum na računaru pre nego što nastavite. A generic instruction to adjust the clock loses that detail.
- Preserve case sensitivity without inventing a mixed-case requirement: Lozinka nije ispravna. Pokušajte ponovo. U lozinkama se razlikuju mala i velika slova.
- A failed key operation does not prove the key is invalid: Ključ proizvoda nije bilo moguće upotrebiti. Proverite ga i pokušajte ponovo. Follow the product's approved term for its key.
- If the verified Otkaži control returns to editing, keep all subsequent actions: Izaberite Otkaži, dovršite uređivanje i sačuvajte svoj rad. The button itself need not save anything.
Keep coordinated instructions grammatical: Odbacite izmene i uredite najnoviju verziju. Preserve the actual Discard label when referring to a control. In a failed licence-download message, retain the most recent attempt and the request to download now if those facts appear in the source.
A picture-password example protects the computer, not merely its touchscreen. Watching a replay and performing gestures are different actions: Pogledajte snimak i ponovite prikazane pokrete. Retain any specified number of gestures. A distinctive password is not a promise that nobody else knows it.
Permission to use data must remain permission. Keep the computer's name distinct from a person's name, and preserve the separate location, account-picture and domain-information categories. A restart warning must still cover other people using the computer, possible loss and unsaved work beyond documents.
Preserve both destinations when a document moves to a library and folder. Biblioteku i fasciklu does not mean biblioteku ili fasciklu. Retain the prerequisite about correcting invalid or missing properties. Row and column fields must not become row and table fields. For a focus change, use Pređite u drugi prozor dokumenta. Moving an object requires naming that object.
Do not turn a persistent problem into the reader's inability to solve it: Ako se problem nastavi, obratite se administratoru. Preserve a bootable drive's purpose, too-many-open-files cause and requirements affecting both participants. If adapting a mouse-settings example, keep the instruction and destination; an isolated, unmatched closing quote is not a usable translation.
Inclusive and accessible wording¶
Use known names and forms of address without guessing gender from a username. When gender is unknown, rewrite around the person or task. Pluralizing is unsuitable when exactly one person is intended, and replacing a possessive with “this” can change ownership.
Osoba sa odgovarajućim pravima može da postavi lozinke drugih korisnika. preserves the permission and affected accounts. Kada otvorite svoj dokument… retains ownership when direct address suits the passage. Do not claim that an occupational noun has no feminine counterpart without checking it.
In a calling procedure, preserve the sequence: choose the person's name, choose the call command, then choose the number. Neutral wording must not collapse the first and last steps. Likewise, a primary/secondary distinction does not always mean superior/subordinate. A neutral replacement for DMZ terminology must retain the network's role.
Mention disability when relevant and avoid implying pity or a contrast with “normal” people. Use descriptive links, useful headings and labels that do not depend solely on color or position. Izaberite can work across input methods; kliknite remains appropriate when a mouse action is what the procedure teaches. Keep essential gestures and test assistive output. A one-verb limit or blanket ban on symbols does not establish accessibility.
Grammar, possession and counts¶
Resolve the noun before choosing its adjective: novi dokument, nova datoteka, novo okno. Novo is a possible standalone command, not a universal substitute for missing context. Make a modifier's scope explicit: Otpremite ažuriranu fotografiju ili ažurirani video. Do not lose the second object's updated state.
A descriptor can preserve a protected name: u programu FontLab, podešavanja programa FontLab. Select it from the real object, not merely the presence of an installer. A service can have versions. A common word such as Call may be an action or a product name; the resource context must decide.
Serbian has no English-style articles. Izaberite opciju sa liste. need not acquire “this” to represent “the.” Use neku when the unspecified choice matters. Approved product names and localized name components retain their agreed wording; a “for” inside a protected name is not automatically translatable.
Noun sequences can become case relationships or prepositional phrases: Boja fonta naslova, Korisničko ime, Informacije o nalogu. Dokument programa FontLab is not wrong merely because English puts the product name first. Avoid tangled genitives without banning a natural descriptive phrase.
Use svoj for possession by the subject: Pregledajte svoja pisma. With a different subject, another possessive may be needed: Server je odbio vaše korisničko ime. The subject and object need not be identical. Omit possessives only when their removal leaves the same owner clear.
Respect inanimate-object forms in Pokrenite čarobnjak za uvoz. and Dodajte kontakt. A software wizard and contact entry do not automatically take the forms used for people. Collective nouns such as dugmad require their own agreement.
Coordinate verbs with their required complements: Uređujte fotografije i upravljajte njima. Copying one case across every verb can break the sentence. Podelite iznos brojem iz ovog polja. expresses division without an unnecessary borrowed preposition.
Aspect presents an action differently, rather than merely counting repetitions: čitati and pročitati, štampati and odštampati. Preserve the distinction between process and completion, as well as actual tense. Do not convert every failed operation into a present inability.
| Standalone count | Serbian example |
|---|---|
| One | 1 datoteka |
| Two, three or four | 2 datoteke; 3 datoteke; 4 datoteke |
| Zero or five | 0 datoteka; 5 datoteka |
| Eleven through fourteen | 11 datoteka; 12 datoteka; 14 datoteka |
| Twenty-one or twenty-two | 21 datoteka; 22 datoteke |
Use complete variants when agreement changes: Jedna datoteka je sačuvana. Dve datoteke su sačuvane. Sačuvano je pet datoteka. Identical spelling in some standalone forms does not make the grammatical roles identical.
Serbian cardinal selection uses one, few and other. Integer endings in 1 and 2–4 exclude 11 and 12–14 respectively; fractional digits also affect selection. Test 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 11, 12, 14, 21 and 22, plus supported decimals and visible trailing zeros. Selecting a plural variant does not supply the sentence's remaining grammar.
Interface wording and message states¶
Choose wording for the actual event and surface. A command, title and report of completion express different things.
| Purpose | Serbian example |
|---|---|
| Command | Sačuvaj datoteku |
| Instruction | Sačuvajte datoteku. |
| Activity title | Čuvanje datoteke |
| In progress | Datoteka se čuva. |
| Completed | Datoteka je sačuvana. |
| Attempt failed | Čuvanje datoteke nije uspelo. |
| Currently unavailable | Datoteku nije moguće sačuvati. |
For an unsuccessful attempt, use Nije bilo moguće otvoriti datoteku. For present inability, use Nije moguće otvoriti datoteku. Standardize genuinely equivalent messages without erasing timing. An error need not stop the entire application or require a restart.
State a known condition and offer a supported next step. For insufficient memory, use Nema dovoljno memorije. Insufficient disk space is a separate condition. Do not invent a cause or a promise that waiting will fix it. A title describing a field's layout should not silently become a command to display it.
Preserve placeholders and formatting syntax exactly. With a known filename substitution, Nije moguće otvoriti datoteku %s. supplies the noun. A string is not always a filename, and %c denotes a character rather than necessarily a letter. Preserve positional and precision forms such as %1!d! and %1!-.200s!. Review full substitutions, including long names, punctuation and grammatical roles.
Name the menu before its command when that matches the actual interface: U meniju Datoteka izaberite Sačuvaj. Checking, clearing, choosing, dragging and switching windows require distinct verbs. A confirmation question can use Želite li da nastavite?; preserve any additional condition, such as continuing without undo. Use consistent warning and note labels without changing severity.
Latin letters, punctuation and units¶
Preserve č, ć, đ, š, ž and Č, Ć, Đ, Š, Ž. Do not replace đ with dj merely to avoid a diacritic. The digraphs dž, lj and nj matter for language-aware ordering. Test words and names containing them; an ASCII sort is not Serbian alphabetical order. A document may use simple Latin list labels as a numbering convention, but that does not define the alphabet.
Use the locale's collation behavior instead of inferring order from code points. CLDR's Serbian Latin data includes the digraphs and accented letters; its standard collation imports Croatian ordering rules. That shared sorting data does not make Serbian and Croatian wording interchangeable. Keep protected strings and user-entered names unchanged when testing sort order.
Headings and labels use sentence case, with proper names retaining their capitals. Within a sentence, common forms include ponedeljak, srpski, internet and veb. Keep an existing control's literal label when citing it. Small capitals are a typographic feature, not lowercase: Mala slova does not identify a small-caps command merely because its English name contains “small.”
This page uses „{filename}“ for ordinary quotation. Preserve straight quotes in code and a consistent distinct treatment for nested quotations. Keep the exact punctuation of protected UI text. Titles and fragments normally need no final period; complete sentences do. Use … consistently for an ellipsis outside literal text.
Punctuate the relationship between clauses: Ako želite da nastavite, sačuvajte datoteku. has a comma after the initial condition. Sačuvajte datoteku da biste nastavili. needs no comma before that purpose clause. This pattern is not a rule for every subordinate clause. A colon can introduce a list, but should not mechanically split a verb from its complement. Keep punctuation in list items consistent with sentence structure.
Distinguish hyphens, range dashes and minus signs: 8-bitni, 11–23, −18 °C. In prose, prefer a colon or sentence break when that preserves the relationship. A nonbreaking space is not a degree symbol. Spell out an ampersand as i in ordinary prose when it means “and”; preserve names, syntax and meaningful mathematical symbols.
Use a decimal comma in ordinary numeric prose and the required syntax in code. 15,21% follows the locale's ordinary percentage pattern; apply a specified technical notation convention consistently where one is required. Numerals suit measurements and technical values. Spelled-out numbers can suit descriptive prose, but a caption does not always require them.
International unit symbols retain their specified spelling, case and upright form: 12,5 mm, 5 s, 2 min, 1 h. Keep a value and its unit together with a space, except for plane-angle marks such as 90°. Symbols do not inflect or acquire abbreviation periods, though sentence punctuation still applies. Unit names follow Serbian grammar. The international hour symbol is h, not č.
Keep decimal and binary prefixes distinct: kB is not KiB, and MB is not MiB. Bits and bytes are different units; kbit is an unambiguous kilobit symbol. Preserve the value and the product's literal display when quoting it; flag a misleading source rather than silently changing the magnitude.
Keep established abbreviation forms such as npr., itd. and i sl.. An initialism can take a conventional ending, as in u XML-u, or a descriptor, as in u formatu XML. DNS expands to Domain Name System. ISO is the short name of the International Organization for Standardization, not an acronym formed from that English name.
Protect filenames, paths, names, copyright identifiers and version tokens. Verzija 4.2 illustrates one version form; it does not require every version identifier to contain a period. Translate only the parts designated for localization.
Keyboard, narration and review¶
Distinguish access keys, key tips and command shortcuts. Their marker syntax and behavior depend on the platform. Test supported Serbian Latin keyboards, including accented letters where the implementation permits them. Do not inherit a blanket ban on extended characters, permit conflicting keys automatically or swap shortcuts from an old product table.
Alt+Esc means a held combination; Alt, F means separate presses in sequence. Preserve actual key labels and use consistent localized descriptions such as strelica nalevo and strelica nadole. Specify taster Del na numeričkoj tastaturi when the operation requires that key. Verify focus movement and a way to leave a control group; arrow-key behavior is not a universal language rule.
For speech, choose a consistent Serbian variety and verify names, abbreviations and numbers individually. Do not infer pronunciation from an old phonetic catalog or replace every English “th” with one Serbian sound. Written protected names retain their spelling. Read literal URLs and special characters clearly enough to recover them; do not automatically omit a meaningful protocol or path.
Try the demonstrated task, read the script aloud and align narration with captions and actions. Set pace and length for the material and audience. A fixed word rate, ten-second introduction or ban on recaps is not a Serbian language rule.
Ask a proficient Serbian reviewer to check terminology, case, counts, agreement and complete substitutions. Verify narrow layouts, copyable characters, keyboard access and assistive output separately. Similarity to another script or locale does not establish readiness.