This is the 747th most frequent Croatian word.
lani
The Croatian word "lani" means "last year" in English.
In this sentence, 'lani' denotes the time frame of 'last year' and sets temporal context for the action.
Lani smo bili na odmoru u Hrvatskoj.
Last year we were on vacation in Croatia.
Here, 'lani' again means 'last year' and specifies the period in which the action of graduating occurred.
Ona je lani završila fakultet i odmah se zaposlila.
She graduated from college last year and immediately got a job.
'Lani' in this example refers to 'last year' to indicate when the specific event of the birds being there took place.