Galičnik ( mk, Галичник) is a mountain

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

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 Socialist Feder ...

and along with

Lazaropole Lazaropole ( mk, Лазарополе) is a village in the Municipality of Mavrovo and Rostuša, North Macedonia. Situated on a plateau at Mount Bistra and surrounded by beech and oak forest; at 1,350 m altitude, it is one of the highest settlem ...

is one of the two biggest and oldest Mijak villages in the region. Galičnik has well-preserved traditional

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

, including an amphitheater in the village square, and is famous for its surrounding countryside and nature reserve. People from Galičnik and northwestern North Macedonia appreciate the local yellow cheese kaškaval (''Kashkaval'') that is produced in the region as well as the local salt brine white cheese "belo

sirenje Sirene ( sq, djathë i bardhë; bg, сирене ; mk, сирење; sr, сир, italics=no/) also known as "white brine sirene" ( bg, бяло саламурено сирене, links=no) is a type of brined cheese made in the Balkans (So ...

" which is a homemade speciality for this region.

Location

It is located on the

slope In mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes both the ''direction'' and the ''steepness'' of the line. Slope is often denoted by the letter ''m''; there is no clear answer to the question why the letter ''m'' is use ...

s of the

Bistra Mountain The Bistra (, is a massif in North Macedonia. The massif has several summits higher than 2,000 metres, with the highest being Medenica at 2,163 metres above sea level. Limestone erosion on the mountain has created limestone fields. In the lime ...

, some 10 km from the artificial

Mavrovo Lake Mavrovo Lake ( mk, Мавровско Езеро, translit=Mavrovsko ezero) is situated in the Mavrovo region, in the Mavrovo and Rostuša municipality of the Republic of North Macedonia, less than 100 km from Skopje. It is an important to ...

and the ''Zare Lazarevski'' winter resort.

History

The village is located in the ethnographic region of "

Mijačija Mijaks ( mk, Мијаци, Mijaci) are an ethnographic group of Macedonians who live in the region which is also known as ''Mijačija'' ( mk, Мијачија), along the Radika river, in western North Macedonia, numbering 30,000-60,000 people. ...

", named after the

Mijaks Mijaks ( mk, Мијаци, Mijaci) are an ethnographic group of Macedonians who live in the region which is also known as ''Mijačija'' ( mk, Мијачија), along the Radika river, in western North Macedonia, numbering 30,000-60,000 people. ...

(Мијаци/Mijaci), the tribe historically inhabiting this mountainous region. This region has plentiful rich pastures for livestock grazing and this feature attracted

Vlachs "Vlach" ( or ), also "Wallachian" (and many other variants), is a historical term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate mainly Romanians but also Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians, Istro-Romanians and other Easter ...

, shepherds, who established settlements based on cattle-breeding and shepherding. In the past, the economy of Galičnik relied on livestock, especially

sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...

; producing cheese, meat and wool products. Many families with huge flocks made fortunes and became very rich; these people are known locally as "''chobans''" a term for shepherds. There was a strong tradition of ''pečalba'', seasonal work, where many of the men would leave the village to work in larger towns and cities as skilled labourers such as masons, carpenters and painters. They would be absent from Galičnik for months or even years at a time. By seasonal work, they earned enough to support their families and sometimes made a fortune.

Events

The most important event in the village is the Galička Svadba, a traditional wedding custom held annually in summer (in July), on the day of the village feast of the

Patron Saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

– ''Petrovden'' (

St. Peter ) (Simeon, Simon) , birth_date = , birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire , death_date = Between AD 64–68 , death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire , parents = John (or Jonah; Jona) , occupation ...

's day). During the wedding, local men will dance the "Teškoto" (the ''"hard"'' or ''"heavy"'') - a dance that is meant to symbolize the overcoming of difficulties in life. Another manifestation that takes place in Galičnik each year is the ''Galičnik Art Colony''.

Culture

The regional art, dress and music are rich in detail and original in character. While sharing characteristics of regional culture dating back centuries.

Traditional Costume

The traditional dress and costume adorned during ceremonial events is highly detailed and unique. Examples can be seen at museums.

Architecture

The village is built based on traditional housing standards used for centuries in the region. Stone wall construction, supported by wooden beams, compact earth insulation and using stone slate roofing. Galicnik 1908

Notable people from Galičnik

* Jakov Frchkovski * Makarij Frckovski * Kuzman Frchkovski *

Aleksandar Sarievski Aleksandar Sarievski ( mk, Александар Сариевски ; June 20, 1922 – December 19, 2002) was a Macedonian singer-songwriter whose career spanned almost six decades. He was one of the most recognizable figures in Macedonian ...

(1922–2002) *

Georgi Pulevski Georgi Pulevski, sometimes also Gjorgji, Gjorgjija Pulevski or Đorđe Puljevski ( mk, Ѓорѓи Пулевски or Ѓорѓија Пулевски, bg, Георги Пулевски, sr, Ђорђе Пуљевски; 1817–1895) was a Mija ...

(1817–1895) *

Partenij Zografski Parteniy Zografski or Parteniy Nishavski ( bg, Партений Зографски/Нишавски; mk, Партенија Зографски; 1818 – February 7, 1876) was a 19th-century Bulgarian cleric, philologist, and folklorist from Ga ...

(1818–1876) *

Dimitrije Bužarovski Dimitrije Bužarovski Ph.D. ( mk, Димитрије Бужаровски) (born 8 August 1952 in Skopje, SFR Yugoslavia) is a Macedonian composer, versatile artist and a scholar with interests in different fields: composition, musicology, comput ...

(b. 1952) *

Doksim Mihailović Doksim Mihailović ( sr, Доксим Михаиловић; 20 February 1883 – 24 October 1912) was a Macedonian Serb ''voivode'' (military commander), originally a teacher, who joined the Serbian Chetnik Organization to fight in Ottoman Macedon ...

(1883–1912) *

Slavko Brezoski Slavko Brezoski ( mk, Славко Брезоски; 10 June 1922 – 7 March 2017) was a Macedonian architect, urban planner, painter, writer and educator known for his works in the genre of modern architecture realised during the middle of the ...

(1921-2017) *

Lazar Ličenoski Lazar Ličenoski ( Macedonian: Лазар Личеноски; Galicnik, 26 March 1901 – Skopje, 10 April 1964) was one of the first Macedonian expressionist painters and one of the most authentic painters of landscape, in which he imported fo ...

Image:20090714_Galicnik_Debar_panoramic.jpg , Galičnik, Skudrinje and Debar lake. Image:Galichnik-St-Peter&Paul-Church.jpg, Church of St. Peter and Paul. Image:Galichnik-cheshma.jpg , Old postcard from Galičnik - 1903-1908. Image:Galičnik_04.jpg , Architecture in Galičnik. File:Molba za dozvola za kupuvanje, Galicnik, 1917.JPG, Request with a stamp from Kipro Mitrev, from village Sushica, Galichnik area, asking to get permission to buy sheep. (18 March 1917) File:Broj na ziteli po narodnost, Galicnik, 1917.JPG, Population by nationality in ten municipalities of the city's municipal government of the City Galichnik 1917.

References

External links

Official web site of GalichnikPenultimate Phase of Procedure for Entrance of Galicnik Wedding in UNESCO List - Custom with More than 30 RitesGalicnik Macedonia, Kinoteka na Makedonija 1939-40 from filmarchivesonlineImages from GaličnikPhotos from Galichnik Wedding

"Narodne pesme bugarske (iz Galečnika)"
folk songs from Galichnik, published in the Croatian magazine "Kolo; Članci za Literaturu, Umetnost; Narodni Život", knjiga IV/V, Zagreb, in 1847. {{DEFAULTSORT:Galicnik Villages in Mavrovo and Rostuša Municipality