Serbs vs Serbians

13:16 Aug 20, 2009 

I try to make a distinction between "Serb forces" and "Serbian forces" when translating historical documents, the latter being the legal military force of Serbia itself, the former being troops of Serb ethnicity not officially affiliated with the government of Serbia (whatever ties they may have behind the scenes). Euphony -- here at least -- is not a factor.

13:03 Aug 20, 2009 

bosnian serbian just does not sound right, and while an argument may be made along the lines of ethnicity, the term can be interchanged in general usage.

12:51 Aug 20, 2009 

Although they are *often* synonyms, they are not always so -- in other words, the two words are not interchangeable. <br>There is a simple proof for this: google "Bosnian Serbs", then google "Bosnian Serbians" -- at least in terms of usage, the world strongly tends to use "Serbs" when highlighting the ethnicity of the people involved, and "Serbians" when emphasizing their nationality.

(Or simply note the existence of the phrase "Serbian Serbs.")

08:21 Aug 20, 2009 

I would go along with Collins dico that they are synonyms. The choice of which to use where is just what sounds better in the particular sentence and deliberate variation to make it flow.

07:56 Aug 20, 2009 

Or, say, Bosnian Serbs? These can be synonyms, but the difference is one of emphasis: ethnicity vs. citizenship (but even this can be flexible, particularly with "Serbs", which can refer to both.)