The Balkans (often referred to as the Balkan Peninsula, although the two are not coterminous; Albanian: Gadishulli Ballkanik; Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian: Balkansko poluostrvo and Balkanski poluotok; Bulgarian and Macedonian: Балкански полуостров, transliterated: Balkanski poluostrov; Greek: Βαλκανική χερσόνησος, transliterated: Valkaniki hersonisos; Italian: Penisola balcanica; Romanian: Peninsula Balcanică; Slovene: Balkanski polotok; Turkish: Balkan Yarımadası) is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe.

The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains in Bulgaria and Serbia, while the name "Balkan" in Turkish means "a chain of wooded mountains", for which there is one of the theories for the name's origin. The region was established in the Antiquity when the peninsula became widely accepted with the Thracian name "Peninsula of Haemus"(the name for the region until the Late Middle Ages), which name also derives from the Balkan Mountains, with the name "Haemus Mountains" in the period. In its tens of countries the Balkan region has extensive natural features and diversity and further diverse history, starting from the Primeval Era and passing through the steps of most European civilizations and empires, as well as some Asian and African, still preserving various historical monuments. The Balkans are highly mountainous; mount Musala(2,925 metres (9,596 ft)) in the Rila mountain in Bulgaria is the highest. The Balkans are widely considered a poor region of Europe; most of its countries had recent periods of genocide - including Ottoman rule and terror, participation as a hotspot in the World Wars and communist governments, and now have underperforming economies, which has inspired a wave of emigration to Western countries. Problems reflected on the population also, it is currently not numerous but therefore it is easily urbanised. Many linguistic families meet in the region, which is also well known for fierce nationalism and ethnic disputes.