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North Macedonia ( / ˌmæsɪˈdoʊniə / MASS-ih-DOH-nee-ə ), [c] officially the Republic of North Macedonia, [d] is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo [e] to the northwest and Serbia to the north. [7]
- Overview
- Relief
- Drainage
- Climate
- Plant and animal life
North Macedonia, landlocked country of the south-central Balkans. It is bordered to the north by Kosovo and Serbia, to the east by Bulgaria, to the south by Greece, and to the west by Albania. The capital is Skopje.
The Republic of North Macedonia is located in the northern part of the area traditionally known as Macedonia, a geographical region bounded to the south by the Aegean Sea and the Aliákmon River; to the west by Lakes Prespa and Ohrid, the watershed west of the Crni Drim River, and the Šar Mountains; and to the north by the mountains of the Skopska Crna Gora and the watershed between the Morava and Vardar river basins. The Pirin Mountains mark its eastern edge. The Republic of North Macedonia occupies about two-fifths of the entire geographical region of Macedonia. The rest of the region belongs to Greece and Bulgaria. Most people with a Macedonian identity also refer to the region that constitutes North Macedonia as Vardar Macedonia, the Greek part of Macedonia as Aegean Macedonia, and the Bulgarian part of Macedonia as Pirin Macedonia. In this article, unless otherwise indicated, the name Macedonia refers to the present-day state of the Republic of North Macedonia when discussing geography and history since 1913 and to the larger region as described above when used in earlier historical contexts.
The region of Macedonia owes its importance neither to its size nor to its population but rather to its location at a major junction of communication routes—in particular, the great north-south route from the Danube River to the Aegean formed by the valleys of the Morava and Vardar rivers and the ancient east-west trade routes connecting the Black Sea and Istanbul with the Adriatic Sea. Although the majority of the republic’s inhabitants are of Slavic descent and heirs to the Eastern Orthodox tradition of Christianity, 500 years of incorporation into the Ottoman Empire left substantial numbers of other ethnic groups, including Albanians, Turks, Vlachs (Aromani), and Roma (Gypsies). Consequently, Macedonia forms a complex border zone between the major cultural traditions of Europe and Asia.
Ottoman control was brought to an end by the Balkan Wars (1912–13), after which Macedonia was divided among Greece, Bulgaria, and Serbia. Following World War I, the Serbian segment was incorporated into the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (renamed Yugoslavia in 1929). After World War II the Serbian part of Macedonia became a constituent republic within the Federal People’s Republic of Yugoslavia (later Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). The collapse of Yugoslavia led the Republic of Macedonia to declare its independence on September 17, 1991.
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Geologically, North Macedonia consists mainly of heavily folded ancient metamorphic rocks, which in the west have been eroded to reveal older granites. In the central region are found sedimentary deposits of more recent age. Traversing the country from north to south is a series of active fault lines, along which earthquakes frequently occur. The most severe of these in recent history occurred at Debar in 1967. Skopje was largely destroyed by an earthquake in 1963.
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The mobility of Earth’s crust has also created two tectonic lakes, Prespa and Ohrid, in the southwest and has resulted in the formation of several mineral springs and hot springs.
The greater part of North Macedonia (about nine-tenths of its area) drains southeastward into the Aegean Sea via the Vardar River and its tributaries. Smaller parts of this basin drain into Lake Doiran (Macedonian: Dojran) and into the Aegean via the Strumica and Struma rivers. The remainder of North Macedonia drains northward via the Crni Drim River toward the Adriatic Sea.
The convoluted and fractured geology of the area imposes upon many of these rivers erratic courses that frequently drive through narrow and sometimes spectacular gorges. Such formations facilitate the damming of rivers for electric power generation.
North Macedonia stands at the junction of two main climatic zones, the Mediterranean and the continental. Periodically, air breaks through mountain barriers to the north and south, bringing dramatically contrasting weather patterns; one example is the cold northerly wind known as the vardarec. Overall, there is a moderate continental climate: tempe...
The mountainous northwestern parts of North Macedonia support large areas of forest vegetation. On the lower slopes this is principally deciduous woodland, but conifers grow at elevations as high as 6,600 feet (2,000 metres). Some areas of forest have been cleared to provide rough summer pasture. The forests support a variety of wildlife, including...
North Macedonia is a country situated in southeastern Europe with geographic coordinates 41°50′N22°00′E / 41.833°N 22.000°E, bordering Kosovo and Serbia to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south and Albania to the west. The country is part of the wider region of Macedonia and makes up most of Vardar Macedonia.
May 22, 2024 · The Republic of North Macedonia, with its capital at Skopje, occupies the rest. The region of Macedonia ranges from the high plateaus and mountain peaks of Bulgaria and the North Macedonian republic to the wide, flat floodplains of the lower Axiós ( Vardar) and Strimón ( Struma) rivers in Greece. Since ancient times, Macedonia has served as a ...
North Macedonia Phone +389 (23) 129 291 Fax +389 (23) 165 448 E-mail ffm@ffm.com.mk. Venue Name Toše Proeski Arena City Skopje Capacity 32580. Video: Matches
May 17, 2024 · Macedonia, traditional region of Greece, comprising the north-central portion of the country. Greek Macedonia has an area of about 13,200 square miles (34,200 square km). It is bounded by Albania to the west, independent North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, the Greek region of Thrace (Thráki) to the east, the Aegean Sea to the southeast, and the Greek regions of Thessaly (Thessalía) and Epirus (Ípeiros) to the south and southw
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May 22, 2024 · In 2018, Macedonia and Greece signed the Prespa Agreement whereby Macedonia agreed to change its name to North Macedonia, and the agreement went in to force on 12 February 2019. North Macedonia joined NATO in 2020 after amending its constitution as agreed and opened EU accession talks in 2022 after a two-year veto by Bulgaria over identity, language, and historical disputes.
