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Pelagonia
Pelagonia
The heart of the rebellion

The Pelagonia Statistical Regions got its name from the plain of the same name. Located in the southwest of the country, Pelagonia borders Albania and Greece, and is an important bond between Europe and the Aegean Sea.

  

The Industrial, agricultural, educational, commercial and cultural center of the region is Bitola. It was founded in the 4th century BC by Philip II of Macedon, at the foot of Baba Mountain. Some of the main sights are Sirok Sokak, the Clock Tower, Church of Saint Demetrius, Heraclea Lyncestis, and the covered bazaar.

 

 Near the village of Porodin, two important prehistoric settlements are found - Veluska Tumba and Bara Tumba.

 

Krusevo is the highest town of the region, country and the whole Balkans. It is situated at an altitude of 1350m. During the Ottoman rule, Krusevo was proclaimed a Republic. Although independence was short term, it brought massive destruction on the city. The Meckin Kamen monument commemorates the uprising. 

Population

Regional stories

Macedonian Migrant Crisis in Numbers
08/26/2015
By Sanja Stamenkovic, Jefferson Institute

When the European Migrant crisis arose in Spring 2015, only a few could have foreseen declaring a state of emergency in Macedonia, on 20th August. Macedonia closed its' 45 km long border to Greece, and left a thousands of refugees stranded on the no man's land. Police turned violent and used tear gas and stun grenades on migrants. Several people were injured.

Macedonia became a major stop on the so-called Black Route leading across the Turkey, Greece, Macedonia and Serbia to the European Union countries. Although Greece is a part of the EU, migrants rarely choose to stay there because of the ongoing economic crisis. Most of the refugees are hoping for a final stop in Germany, Nederland or Sweden.  

The massive influx of refugees fleeing from...

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A Brief Guide to Macedonian Wine
08/18/2015
By Sanja Stamenkovic, Jefferson Institute

Macedonia has been producing wine since the early Roman times. Today, with it's a little over 2 million residents, Macedonia accounts for 3-4% of world's wine production. 

State Statistical Office of Macedonia published data according to which nearly 200 000 tonnes were produced in 2014. Around 86 million vines produced an average of 2 kg per vine. 48 000 agricultural holdings grow grapes on more than 22 000 hectares. It is estimated that nearly 19 millions liters of wine were produced in 2014 across the country, of which around 80% red wine.

Some of the red varieties are...

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Key Migration Trends in Macedonia
03/13/2015
By Sanja Stamenkovic, Jefferson Institute

 

The State Statistical Office of the Republic of Macedonia defines migration as one of the main trends affecting the natural growth of the country's population, because it significantly changes the demographics of age and sex. According to the European statistic agency (Eurostat), around 230,000 people left Macedonia to live abroad legally in the period between 1998 and 2011. In these 14 years, more than 10 percent of the country's population has been drained by emigration. The real number of emigrated citizens is probably much higher when counting Macedonians who fled the country illegally.

        Macedonian emigration can be roughly classified into two groups: permanent family emigration, followed by ”brain-drain" and temporary economic emigration. In addition to...

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