Municipality of Bujanovac in District Pcinja en

Bujanovac ( sr-cyr, Бујановац, ; sq, Bujanoc) is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

located in the

Pčinja District The Pčinja District ( sr, Пчињски округ, Pčinjski okrug, ) is one of nine administrative districts of Southern and Eastern Serbia. It covers the southern part of Serbia, bordering the disputed territory of Kosovo, along with Bulgaria ...

of southern

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

. Situated in the

South Morava The South Morava (Macedonian and Serbian: Јужна Морава, ''Južna Morava'', ; sq, Lumi Morava) is a river in eastern Kosovo and in southern Serbia, which represents the shorter headwater of Great Morava. Today, it is 295 km long, ...

basin, it is located in the geographical area known as

Preševo Valley The Preševo Valley ( sr-cyrl, Прешевска долина, Preševska dolina, al, Lugina e Preshevës) is a geopolitical region in southern Serbia, along the border with Kosovo. The valley geographically includes municipalities of Bujanovac ...

. It is also known for its source of mineral water and spa town ''Bujanovačka.'' ''Albanians'' are the largest ethnic group in the town, also the largest ethnic group in the municipality are Albanians.

History

Ancient history

Kale-Krševica Kale-Krševica is an archaeological site in Serbia, dating back mainly to the late classical and early Hellenistic periods. It holds the remains of the northernmost Ancient Macedonian city so far discovered. Location and size The site is locate ...

, located south of Ristovac, is an archaeological site of a 5th-century BC Ancient city of

Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an Classical antiquity, ancient monarchy, kingdom on the periphery of Archaic Greece, Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. Th ...

, thought to be

Damastion Damastion ( grc, Δαμάστιον) was an ancient city in the area of central Balkans, known for its silver coins dating back to the 4th century BC. It is attested only in Strabo who says that the city had silver-mines and locates it in Illyria. T ...

. The

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

Triballi The Triballi ( grc, Τριβαλλοί, Triballoí, lat, Triballi) were an ancient people who lived in northern Bulgaria in the region of Roman Oescus up to southeastern Serbia, possibly near the territory of the Morava Valley in the late Iron A ...

and

Paeonian In antiquity, Paeonia or Paionia ( grc, Παιονία, Paionía) was the land and kingdom of the Paeonians or Paionians ( grc, Παίονες, Paíones). The exact original boundaries of Paeonia, like the early history of its inhabitants, a ...

Agrianes The Agrianes (Ancient Greek: Ἀγρίανες, ''Agrianes'' or Ἀγρίαι ''Agriai'') or Agrianians, were a tribe whose country was centered at Upper Strymon, in present-day central Western Bulgaria as well as southeasternmost Serbia, at the ...

dwelled in the region, with the

Scordisci The Scordisci ( el, Σκορδίσκοι) were a Celtic Iron Age cultural group centered in the territory of present-day Serbia, at the confluence of the Savus (Sava), Dravus (Drava), Margus (Morava) and Danube rivers. They were historically n ...

settling here after the Gallic invasion of the Balkans in 279 BC. The region was conquered by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

after 75 BC. It became part of the Roman propraetorial province Moesia in 29 BC (imperial from 27 BC). In 87 AD the region was re-organized into the Moesia Superior, which was a province of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

Medieval Serbian era

Medieval Serbian state like the Kingdom of Serbia or the

Serbian Empire The Serbian Empire ( sr, / , ) was a medieval Serbian state that emerged from the Kingdom of Serbia. It was established in 1346 by Dušan the Mighty, who significantly expanded the state. Under Dušan's rule, Serbia was the major power in the ...

included part of this region in the 12th century and most of it until the 14th century. Since the 15th century, the region was under Ottoman administration.

Ottoman era

It became part of Rumelia, as a historical term describing the area now referred to as the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

or the Balkan Peninsula when it was administrated by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. After the Berlin agreement, signed in 1878, there were some administrative changes in the

. Bujanovac – then ''Buyanofça'' – and its surroundings became part of the "Preševo area" of the Priština District and in 1905–1912 Bujanovac belonged to the 2nd category of borough covering 28 villages. After the Balkan Wars, the area belonged to Kumanovo District of the Kingdom of Serbia.

Yugoslavia (1918–92)

After the establishment of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenians The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

, in 1918, Bujanovac became part of Vranje Oblast, which was formed in 1921 after the

Vidovdan Constitution The Vidovdan Constitution was the first constitution of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. It was approved by the Constitutional Assembly on 28 June 1921 despite the opposition boycotting the vote. The Constitution is named after the feast ...

. With administrative changes in 1929, it became part of

Vardar Banovina The Vardar Banovina, or Vardar Banate ( mk, Вардарска бановина, Vardarska banovina; sr, Вардарска бановина, translit=Vardarska Banovina; al, Banovina e Vardarit, italics=no), was a province ( banate) of the Kin ...

, with the town of

Skopje Skopje ( , , ; mk, Скопје ; sq, Shkup) is the capital and List of cities in North Macedonia by population, largest city of North Macedonia. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. The territory of Sk ...

as capital. With the forming of

Democratic Federal Yugoslavia Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, also known as Democratic Federative Yugoslavia (DF Yugoslavia or DFY), was a provisional state established during World War II on 29 November 1943 through the Second Session of the Anti-Fascist Council for the Nation ...

, it was part of Socialist Republic of Serbia from 1943 to 1992. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, in 1947, Bujanovac was established as one of 117 municipalities of Central Serbia, under its own name. From 1945 until 1992 Bujanovac was part of Socialist Republic of Serbia, within SFR Yugoslavia.

Breakup of Yugoslavia (1991–99)

In 1992, the Albanians in the area organized a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

in which they voted that Bujanovac, Preševo and

Medveđa Medveđa ( sr-cyr, Медвеђа, ; sq, Medvegja, ) is a town and municipality located in the Jablanica District of southern Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 2,848 inhabitants, while the municipality has 7,438 ...

should join the self-declared assembly of the Republic of Kosova. However, no major events happened until the end of the 1990s. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, and nearby

Kosovo War The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the wa ...

which lasted until 1999, between 1999 and 2001, an ethnic Albanian paramilitary separatist organization, the UÇPMB, raised an armed

insurgency in the Preševo Valley The Insurgency in the Preševo Valley was a year-long armed conflict between the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the ethnic Albanian separatists of the Liberation Army of Preševo, Medveđa and Bujanovac (UÇPMB). There were instances dur ...

, in the region mostly inhabited by Albanians, with a goal to occupy these three municipalities from Serbia and join them to the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosova. Unlike in the case of Kosovo, western countries condemned the attacks and described it as the "extremism" and use of "illegal terrorist actions" by the group. Following the

overthrow of Slobodan Milošević The overthrow of Slobodan Milošević in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, began after the presidential election on 24 September and culminated in the downfall of Slobodan Milošević's government on 5 October 2000. It is sometimes referred to as the 5 Oct ...

, the new Yugoslav government suppressed the violence by 2001 and defeated the separatists.

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

troops also helped the Yugoslav government by ensuring that the rebels do not import the conflicts back into Kosovo. Thereafter, the situation has stabilized even though large number of forces exist in this small municipality. In 2009, Serbia opened a military base

Cepotina Military Base Cepotina ( sr-cyr, Војна База Цепотина; after a nearby hill) or Military Base South ( sr, Војна База Југ) is a Serbian Army military base located 5 kilometres south of Bujanovac. It is the largest and the ...

five kilometers south of Bujanovac, to further stabilize the area.

Modern

Today, Bujanovac is located in the

of southern Serbia. On 7 March 2017, the

President of Albania The president of Albania ( sq, Presidenti i Shqipërisë), officially styled the President of the Republic of Albania ( sq, Presidenti i Republikës së Shqipërisë), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the military and the representa ...

Bujar Nishani Bujar Nishani (; 29 September 1966 – 28 May 2022) was an Albanian politician. He served as President of Albania from 24 July 2012 to 24 July 2017. Nishani was the youngest person to have been chosen as president of Albania, taking office at ...

made a historical visit to the municipalities of Bujanovac and Preševo, in which Albanians form the ethnic majority.

Settlements

Aside from the town of Bujanovac, the municipality includes the following settlements: * Baraljevac *

Biljača Biljača ( sr-cyrl, Биљача) is a village in the municipality of Bratunac, Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bo ...

* Bogdanovac * Božinjevac * Borovac * Bratoselce * Breznica * Brnjare * Buštranje * Čar * Dobrosin * Donje Novo Selo * Drežnica * Đorđevac * Gramada * Gornje Novo Selo * Jablanica *

Jastrebac Jastrebac (Serbian Cyrillic: Јастребац) is a mountain in central Serbia, between cities of Niš, Kruševac and Prokuplje. It consists of two massifs, Great (''Veliki'') and Small (''Mali'') Jastrebac. Its highest peak ''Velika Đulica'' ...

* Karadnik * Klenike * Klinovac *

Končulj Končulj ( sr-cyr, Кончуљ; sq, Konçul) is a village located in the municipality of Bujanovac, Serbia. According to the 2002 census, the village has a population of 1,306 people, entirely composed of ethnic Albanians.Popis stanovništva, dom ...

* Košarno * Krševica * Kuštica * Letovica * Levosoje * Lopardince * Lučane * Lukarce * Ljiljance * Mali Trnovac * Muhovac * Negovac * Nesalce * Oslare * Pretina * Pribovce * Rakovac * Ravno Bučje * Rusce * Samoljica * Sebrat * Sejace * Spančevac * Srpska Kuća * Sveta Petka * Starac * Suharno * Trejak * Turija * Uzovo * Veliki Trnovac * Vogance * Vrban * Zarbince * Žbevac * Žuželjica

Demographics

According to the 2002 census, the municipality of Bujanovac had a population of 43,302 people. Most of the municipality population live in rural areas, with only 27.74% living in the urban parts. The municipality of Bujanovac has 59 inhabited places. The preliminary results of the 2022 census showed a total population of 54,529 inhabitants, 11,227 more than in 2002. From the preliminary analysis of ~44,300 inhabitants, 36,712 are estimated to be Albanians and 7,632 Serbs.

Ethnic groups

The majority of the municipality population according to the 2002 census are Albanians, encompassing 54.69% of the total population. During the 2011 census, undercounting of the census units, owing to the boycott by most of the members of the Albanian ethnic community in the municipality of Bujanovac, was reported. The ethnic composition of the municipality is as follows:

Culture and society

Sports

Bujanovac has a number of football teams, the most notable being BSK Bujanovac, Kf Tërnoci and KF Besa.

Economy

The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):

Gallery

File:Gimnazi Sezai Suroi Bujanovc - panoramio.jpg, ''Bujanovac Grammar's School'' File:Bujanovc Qendra - panoramio.jpg, ''Town Center Building'' File:Bujanovac.JPG, ''Bujanovac Bus Station'' File:Ljiljance-mahala Rešinci.jpg, '' Ljiljance village panorama''

International cooperation

* Lillehammer,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

* Valbonë,

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Notable people

Nexhat Daci Nexhat Daci (pronounced ; born June 26, 1944 in Veliki Trnovac, Bujanovac, Serbia) is a Kosovan politician. He was elected as the speaker of Assembly of Kosovo in 2001 as a member of President Ibrahim Rugova's Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) ...

, Kosovan politician * Gjelbrim Taipi, Albanian footballer * Berat Djimsiti, Albanian footballer * Shaip Kamberi, Politician * Lumir Abdixhiku, Kosovan politician * Arbnor Fejzullahu, Albanian footballer *

Ajet Sopi Bllata Ajet Sopi Bllata (1861–1938) was an Albanian rebel from the village of Jabllanica, in present-day Bujanovac municipality, then part of the Ottoman Empire. From the age of 17 to that of 53, he fought as a kachak against Serbian interests in t ...

, Albanian rebel

References

Notes

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Populated places in Pčinja District Municipalities and cities of Southern and Eastern Serbia Albanian communities in Serbia