I thought long and hard about that word and almost made up the nonceword "Southslavia" to replace it. What I wanted was a word for the southern Slavic _region_

I thought long and hard about that word and almost made up the nonceword "Southslavia" to replace it. What I wanted was a word for the southern Slavic _region_, encompassing former Yugoslavia as well as Bulgaria and other territories in adjacent countries. But I couln't find a word for it, and it was getting late.