Help with the Names of Fish in Restaurants in Croatia

Feb 19, 2011
Paul Bradbury

Understanding the Names of Fish in Croatia - Oreenuar

The choice of fish in Croatia is delightful, but understanding the names of fish on the menu is a challenge. Help is at hand with a glossary of fish names.

With its long coastline and 1185 islands, it is little wonder that fish features heavily on the Croatian menu, and while tourists delight in the excellent selection of fresh fish available, confusion often reigns over the names of fish in restaurants along the coast.

Croatian fish names bear little resemblance to their English counterparts, and with levels of English among the Croatian waiter community not always rising to the heights of fish name translation, ordering fish can sometimes be reduced to ordering blindly. Where fresh fish is on offer, the waiter will usually bring out a platter of the available catch, but understanding the names of fish is still a problem. Help is at hand!

Below if the first in a three part series of a glossary of terms of the most common fish names found in Croatia. It should be noted that Croatia is a country rich in dialects, and there may therefore be some variation at the local level on this comprehensive list, although if you are after a particular type of fish, the terms below are widely understood.

List of Fish Names in Croatia (A-F)

ANCUGA - ANCHOVY

BARBUN - STRIPED, RED MULLET

BLATAR - STRIPED, RED MULLET

BODEC CRVENI - GROUPER

BRADAVCICA - STRIPED, RED MULLET

BRANCIN - SEA-BASS, SEA-PERCH

BRBAVICA - WARTY VENUS

BRGLJICA - ANCHOVY

BUKVA - BOGUE

BUTURAC - TURBOT, BRETT, FLOUNDER

CIGANIN - JOHN DORY

CIP - STRIPED BREAM, MARMOR BRASSEN

CIPAL BALAVAC - THIN-LIPPED GREY MULLET

CIPAL BATAŠ - GREY MULLET

CIPAL ZLATAR - GOLDEN GREY MULLET

CRLJENAK - GROUPER

CRNOREP - SADDLED BREAM, BLACK-TAILED SEA-BREAM

CEŠALJ - SADDLED BREAM, BLACK-TAILED SEA-BREAM

DAGNJA - MUSSEL

DORINKA - GROUPER

FRATAR - TWO-BANDED BREAM

List of Fish Names in Croatia (G-J)

GAVICA - SPRAT

GIRA - PICAREL

GIRA ATLANTSKA - CURLED PICAREL, ATLANTIC PICAREL

GIRA OŠTRULJA - BLOTCHED PICAREL

GLAV - BOGUE

GLAVOC ZLATAC - GOLDEN GOBY

GLAVOC BLATAR - BLACK GOBY

GLAVOC PLOCAR - GIANT GOBY

GLIBAVAC - STRIPED, RED MULLET

GLISTAVAC - CONGER EEL

GOF - AMBERJACK, YELLOWTAIL

GRDOBINA MRKULJA - MONKFISH, ANGLERFISH, SEA DEVIL, ABBOTT

GRDOBINA ŽUTKA - FROGFISH, BLACK-BELLIED ANGLER

GRUG - CONGER EEL

INCUN - ANCHOVY

IGLUN - SWORDFISH

IVERAK - FLOUNDER, FLUKE

IVERAK ZLATOPJEG - PLAICE

JAKOVSKA KAPICA - SCALLOP

JANDORGA - FLOUNDER,FLUKE

JESETRA JADRANSKA - ADRIATIC STURGEON

There is an excellent authoritative work in Croatian on fish in the region, including translations into twenty different languages, as well as photographs. Sva Riba Jadranskog Mora (All the Fish of the Adriatic Sea) was written by Neven Milišic and published by Marjan Tisak in 2003, (ISBN 978-953-214-406-2), with a second part to this work was published in 2007, ISBN (978-953-214-408-6). With thanks to Vivian Grisogono.

Read on for Names of Fish in Croatian (K-P) and Fish Names in Croatia (R-Z)