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Iza pekare je mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige.

Iza pekare je mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige.
Behind the bakery there is a small bookstore in which I look for new books.

Breakdown of Iza pekare je mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige.

biti
to be
mali
small
u
in
knjiga
book
nov
new
tražiti
to look for
koji
which
iza
behind
pekara
bakery
knjižara
bookstore
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Questions & Answers about Iza pekare je mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige.

Why is it pekare and not pekara after iza?

In Croatian, the preposition iza (behind) is followed by the genitive case.

  • pekara = bakery (nominative, the dictionary form)
  • pekare = of the bakery / from the bakery (genitive singular)

So after iza, you must use genitive:

  • iza pekare = behind the bakery
    not iza pekara.

This is a very common pattern: many prepositions fix the case of the noun that follows them. For example:

  • iza kuće (behind the house) – genitive
  • ispred pekare (in front of the bakery) – genitive
  • bez šećera (without sugar) – genitive
What does knjižara mean exactly? Is it “library” or “bookstore”?

knjižara means bookstore / bookshop – a place where you buy books.

A library (where you borrow books) is usually:

  • knjižnica (more common in Croatia)
  • or biblioteka (also used, sometimes for specific types of libraries)

So:

  • mala knjižara = a small bookstore
  • gradska knjižnica = the city library
Why is there a je in the sentence? Can I leave it out?

je is the 3rd person singular of biti (to be), and here it functions like English “there is”.

  • Iza pekare je mala knjižara.
    Literally: Behind the bakery is a small bookstore.

In normal English we say “There is a small bookstore behind the bakery.”, but Croatian keeps the word order more literal.

You cannot leave out je in this sentence. You need a verb:

  • ✅ Iza pekare je mala knjižara.
  • ❌ Iza pekare mala knjižara. (ungrammatical as a normal sentence)

You could replace je with a different verb, like:

  • Iza pekare nalazi se mala knjižara.
    = Behind the bakery there is a small bookstore.
    (literally: Behind the bakery a small bookstore is located.)
Why is it mala knjižara and not mali knjižara?

Adjectives in Croatian agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

  • knjižara is feminine singular (nominative).
  • The adjective mali (small) must match that:
    • masculine: mali (mali čovjek)
    • feminine: mala (mala knjižara)
    • neuter: malo (malo selo)

So:

  • mala knjižara = small bookstore (feminine)
    not mali knjižara (mismatch of gender).
What does u kojoj mean, and why not just koja?

u kojoj literally means “in which”.

  • koji / koja / koje is the relative pronoun “who/which/that”.
  • It has to agree with the noun it refers to in gender, number, and case.

Here it refers to knjižara:

  • knjižara – feminine, singular
  • The preposition u (when it means “in”) takes the locative case.
  • Feminine singular locative of koji is kojoj.

So you get:

  • u + kojoj → u kojoj = in which

You can’t just use koja here, because koja is nominative (subject form) and the preposition u needs the locative.

Compare:

  • knjižara, u kojoj tražim knjige
    = the bookstore in which I look for books
  • knjižara, koja prodaje knjige
    = the bookstore which sells books
    (here koja is the subject of prodaje → nominative)
Why kojoj and not some other form of koji?

The relative pronoun koji declines like an adjective. For feminine singular:

  • Nominative: koja (subject)
  • Genitive: koje
  • Dative: kojoj
  • Accusative: koju
  • Locative: kojoj
  • Instrumental: kojom

The preposition u (“in”) → locative, so we need the locative form:

  • feminine singular locative = kojoj
  • therefore: u kojoj.

So u kojoj is strictly required by the preposition u.

Could I say gdje tražim nove knjige instead of u kojoj tražim nove knjige?

Yes, you can say:

  • Iza pekare je mala knjižara gdje tražim nove knjige.

This is understandable and grammatically fine. gdje means “where”.

Differences:

  • u kojoj = literally “in which” – a bit more precise and slightly more formal / written style.
  • gdje = “where” – very common in everyday speech.

Both versions are good; textbooks often prefer u kojoj to show relative clauses and case usage.

What exactly does tražim mean here? Is it “ask” or “look for”?

tražim is the 1st person singular present of tražiti.

Its main meanings are:

  1. to look for / search for

    • Tražim nove knjige. = I look for new books / I’m searching for new books.

  2. to ask for / demand

    • Tražim pomoć. = I’m asking for help.
    • On traži povišicu. = He’s asking for a raise.

In your sentence it clearly means “I look for / I search for”.

Don’t confuse it with:

  • pitati = to ask (a question)
    • Pitam prodavača. = I ask the shop assistant (a question).
What case are nove knjige in, and why?

nove knjige is in the accusative plural.

  • The direct object of most verbs (like tražiti) is in the accusative.
  • knjiga (book) is feminine:
    • nominative singular: knjiga
    • nominative plural: knjige
    • accusative plural: knjige (same form as nominative plural)

The adjective nov (new) must agree with the noun:

  • feminine plural accusative: nove

So:

  • tražim nove knjige
    = I’m looking for new books (accusative plural: object of tražim).
Does nove knjige mean “newly published books” or “books that are new to me”?

It can mean either, depending on context, just like English “new books”:

  1. newly published:

    • You might be looking for the latest releases.

  2. new to me:

    • Books you don’t own yet or haven’t read yet.

If you specifically wanted to emphasize “recently published,” you might add something like:

  • nedavno objavljene knjige = recently published books
  • nove naslove = new titles (often implies newly published)
How flexible is the word order? Can I say it differently?

Word order in Croatian is more flexible than in English, though not completely free. All of these are possible, with slightly different emphasis:

  • Iza pekare je mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige.
    (Neutral; sets the location first.)

  • Mala knjižara u kojoj tražim nove knjige je iza pekare.
    (Emphasis on which bookstore; then you say where it is.)

  • Mala je knjižara iza pekare u kojoj tražim nove knjige.
    (Puts slight emphasis on mala.)

The form with je usually stays early in the clause (2nd position), but everyday speech is quite tolerant as long as the meaning is clear.

How do I know this means “a small bookstore” and not “the small bookstore,” since there is no article?

Croatian does not use articles (a / an / the). The form:

  • mala knjižara

can correspond to:

  • a small bookstore
    or
  • the small bookstore

Which one you choose in English depends on context, not on any explicit word in Croatian.

In a neutral, first-mention context (like your sentence, out of the blue), English would normally use “a small bookstore”. If both speakers already know which bookstore is being discussed, you would translate it as “the small bookstore.”

Is there anything special about the pronunciation of knjižara and knjige?

Two things are typical and may feel unusual to English speakers:

  1. The consonant cluster “knj”

    • knjižara = [kɲiʒara]
    • knjige = [kɲiɡe]
      The nj sound is like Spanish ñ in “niño” or Italian gn in “gnocchi”.

  2. The letter “ž”

    • Pronounced like the “s” in “measure” or the “g” in “genre”.
    • žara in knjižara sounds like “zhara”.

Stress patterns vary by dialect, but for now focusing on clear consonants and vowels is enough for being understood.