Abstract
In this article, the author investigates the Croatian problem in Istria during the interwar period, focusing on the minority policy by the Italian government and the situation of the Croatian minority there.
The Slavic inhabitants in Istria, the Croats in particular, were not given a right as minority at all during the interwar period. They were exposed to the Italianization by the forced transformation of the Slavic place names and family names and by the prohibition of the Slavic language in school education and publication activity under the fascist rule.
While the Slavic cultural and political societies were forced to dissolve, the secret societies as the TIGR were organized. They developed resistance movement against the fascists, and they also contributed much to the preservation of the Slavic national identity through their activities.
About 100, 000 of the Slavic inhabitants in Istria emigrated during the interwar period because of the long-term economic difficulty and social discrimination including purge from public service or the land requisition. Most of them immigrated to Yugoslavia and advocated the annexation of Istria with Yugoslavia, but were not able to obtain satisfactory results.
The Croatian problem in Istria could be settled only within a broader framework of international relationship, as this problem had its origin in World War I. However, the significance of persistent resistance by the Istrian people should not be underestimated, especially for the improvement of their status during and after World War II.
