Belasica ( Macedonian and Bulgarian: , also translit. ''Belasitsa'' or ''Belasitza'',

Ottoman Turkish Ottoman Turkish ( ota, لِسانِ عُثمانى, Lisân-ı Osmânî, ; tr, Osmanlı Türkçesi) was the standardized register of the Turkish language used by the citizens of the Ottoman Empire (14th to 20th centuries CE). It borrowed ext ...

: بلش Turkish: ''Beleş''), Belles ( el, Μπέλλες, ''Bélles'') or Kerkini (, ''Kerkíni'';), is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

in the

region of Macedonia Macedonia () is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time; however, it came to be defined as the modern geographical region by the mid 19th century. To ...

Southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia ...

, shared by northeastern

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

(about 45%), southeastern

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

(35%) and southwestern

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

(20%).

Geography

The mountain range is

fault-block mountain Fault blocks are very large blocks of rock, sometimes hundreds of kilometres in extent, created by tectonic and localized stresses in Earth's crust. Large areas of bedrock are broken up into blocks by faults. Blocks are characterized by rela ...

about long and wide and is situated just northeast of

Dojran Lake Doiran Lake (, ''Dojransko Ezero''; , ''Límni Dhoïráni''), also spelled Dojran Lake is a lake with an area of shared between North Macedonia () and Greece (). To the west is the city of Nov Dojran (Нов Дојран), to the east the vill ...

. The highest point is Radomir (Kalabaka) at 2,031 m, with elevation otherwise ranging between 300 and 1900 m above sea level. The borders of all three countries meet at Tumba Peak. The climate in the area shows strong

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

influence. The area of Belasica became a

euroregion In European politics, the term Euroregion usually refers to a transnational co-operation structure between two (or more) contiguous territories located in different European countries. Euroregions represent a specific type of cross-border region ...

in 2003. Two football teams are named after the mountain range, PFC Belasitsa from the nearby Bulgarian town of

Petrich Petrich ( bg, Петрич ) is a town in Blagoevgrad Province in southwestern Bulgaria, located in Sandanski–Petrich Valley at the foot of the Belasica Mountains in the Strumeshnitsa Valley. According to the 2021 census, the town has 26,7 ...

and FC Belasica from

Strumica Strumica ( mk, Струмица, ) is the largest city2002 census results
in English and Macedon ...

in North Macedonia.

History

Since ancient times Greeks refer to the range as Ὄρβηλος (Modern Greek: , Ancient Greek: ). According to the ancient authors it was a mountain range in the border area between Thrace and Macedonia. It is generally equated today with the modern Belasica. The name ''Órbēlos'' is probably derived from the ancient Thracian/Paionian toponym of the mountain, which means "shining mountain", from ''belos'' – "blazing" or "shining", and ''or'' – "mountain". It was known for its

Dionysos In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

cult. T. Spiridonov, Istoričeskata geografija na trakijskite plemena, 1983, 24 f., 118. The area is also particularly famous for the

Battle of Kleidion The Battle of Kleidion ( grc-gre, Κλειδίον; or Clidium, after the medieval name of the village of Klyuch, "(the) key"; also known as the Battle of Belasitsa) took place on July 29, 1014, between the Byzantine Empire and the Bulgarian Em ...

of 1014, which proved crucial for the fall of the

First Bulgarian Empire The First Bulgarian Empire ( cu, блъгарьско цѣсарьствиѥ, blagarysko tsesarystviye; bg, Първо българско царство) was a medieval Bulgar- Slavic and later Bulgarian state that existed in Southeastern Eur ...

Honour

Kongur Glacier on Smith Island,

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 195 ...

is named after the peak and

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

of Kongur on Belasitsa Mountain.

Photo gallery

File:View along the main ridge of the Belasitsa range.jpg, Looking along the main ridge File:Watchtower close to the Belasitsa ridge.jpg, One of many ruined watchtowers on the Bulgarian side of the ridge Image:Smolarski vodopad 19.JPG, Smolare Falls on Belasica in

File:View of Belasica mountain range from Lake Kerkini.JPG, View of Belasica mountain range from Lake Kerkini File:Χιονισμένο όρος Μπέλες.jpg, View of Belasica from the Greek side during the winter

References

* Belasitsa. Tourist map, Sofia, 2006. * Благоевъ, Т. А. Бѣласица. София, 1925. * Динчев, Евг., Атанасов, П. Високите планини на Република Македония. Пътеводител, София, 1998, стр. 214–224. * "Енциклопедия Пирински край". Том 1, Благоевград, 1995, стр. 78.

References

External links

Belasitsa.com (regional portal)

Image Gallery From Belasica
{{North Macedonia topics Rhodope mountain range Mountain ranges of Greece Mountain ranges of North Macedonia Mountain ranges of Bulgaria Landforms of Blagoevgrad Province Geography of Macedonia (region) Bulgaria–Greece border Bulgaria–North Macedonia border Greece–North Macedonia border International mountains of Europe Landforms of Kilkis (regional unit) Landforms of Serres (regional unit) Landforms of Central Macedonia

Geography

History

Honour

Photo gallery

See also

References

References

External links