Ban was the title of local rulers or office holders, similar to viceroy, used in several states in Central and Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 20th century. The most common examples have been found in medieval Croatia and medieval regions ruled and influence by the Kingdom of Hungary. They often ruled as the king's governmental representatives, supreme military commanders and judges, and in 18th century Croatia, even as chief government officials. In the Banate of Bosnia they were always de facto supreme rulers.

The Banate of Bosnia, or Bosnian Banate, was a medieval state based in what is today Bosnia and Herzegovina. Although Hungarian kings viewed Bosnia as part of Hungarian Crown Lands, the Banate of Bosnia was a de facto independent state for most of its existence. It was founded in the mid-12th century and existed until 1377 with interruptions under the Šubić family between 1299 and 1324. In 1377, it was elevated to a kingdom. The greater part of its history was marked by a religiopolitical controversy revolving around the native Christian Bosnian Church condemned as heretical by the dominant Chalcedonian Christian churches, namely the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, with the Catholic Church being particularly antagonistic and persecuting its members through the Hungarians.