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Gostivar ( mk, Гостивар ,
Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
and Turkish: ''Gostivar''), is a city in
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 ...
, located in the upper
Polog Polog ( mk, Полог, Polog; sq, Pollog), also known as the Polog Valley ( mk, links=no, Полошка Котлина, Pološka Kotlina; sq, links=no, Lugina e Pollogut), is located in the north-western part of the Republic of North Macedo ...
valley region. It is one of the largest municipalities in the country with a population of 81,042, and the town also covers . Gostivar has road and railway connections with the other cities in the region, such as
Tetovo Tetovo ( mk, Тетово, , sq, Tetovë/Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, w ...
,
Skopje Skopje ( , , ; mk, Скопје ; sq, Shkup) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre. The territory of Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC; r ...
, Kičevo,
Ohrid Ohrid ( mk, Охрид ) is a city in North Macedonia and is the seat of the Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the List of cities in North Macedonia, eighth-largest city in the country, with the municipality recording ...
, and
Debar Debar ( mk, Дебaр ; Albanian: ''Dibër''/''Dibra'' or ''Dibra e Madhe;'' ) is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, near the border with Albania, off the road from Struga to Gostivar. It is the seat of Debar Municipality. Debar has ...
. A freeway was built in 1995, from Gostivar to Tetovo, long. Gostivar is the seat of
Gostivar Municipality Gostivar ( mk, Гостивар ; sq, Komuna e Gostivarit) is a municipality in the western part of North Macedonia. * ''Gostivar'' is also the name of the town where the municipal seat is found. ** Gostivar Municipality is part of the Polog S ...
.


Etymology

The name Gostivar comes from the Slavic word gosti meaning "guests" and the Turkish word "dvar" meaning castle or fort.


Geography

Gostivar, at an elevation of 535 meters, is situated on the foothills of one of the Šar Mountains. Near to Gostivar is the village of
Vrutok Vrutok ( mk, Вруток, ) is a village in the municipality of Gostivar, North Macedonia. The village is situated on the slopes of Mount Bistra by the Korab mountains, near the town of Gostivar. Geography Its importance belongs to the water s ...
, where the
Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
river begins at an altitude of from the base of the Šar Mountains. Vardar River extends through Gostivar, cutting it in half, passes through the capital Skopje, goes through the country, enters Greece and finally reaches the
Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek language, Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish language, Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It ...
.


Demographics

According to the 2002 census, the city of Gostivar had a population of 35,847 inhabitants and the ethnic composition is the following:Macedonian Census (2002)
''Book 5 - Total population according to the Ethnic Affiliation, Mother Tongue and Religion''
The State Statistical Office, Skopje, 2002, p. 87, 224, 361.
*Albanians, 16,890 (47.1%) *Macedonians, 11,885 (33.2%) *Turks, 4,559 (12.7%) *Romas, 1,899 (5.3%) *others, 614 (1.7%) The most common mother tongues in the city were the following: *Albanian, 16,877 (47.1%) *Macedonian, 13,843 (38.6%) *Turkish, 4,423 (12.3%) *Romani, 301 (0.8%) *Serbian, 124 (0.3%) *others, 279 (0.7%) The religious composition of the city was the following: *Muslims, 23,686 (66.1%) *Orthodox Christians, 11,865 (33.1%) *others, 296 (0.8%)


History

It is known that there was a town called Draudacum, Draudàkon (Δραυδάκον in
Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
), built in 170BC, near or on the current place of Gostivar. Early mentions of the town was made by the
Roman 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 letter ...
historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...
Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Ancient Rome, Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditiona ...
. He records how during the
Third Macedonian War The Third Macedonian War (171–168 BC) was a war fought between the Roman Republic and King Perseus of Macedon. In 179 BC, King Philip V of Macedon died and was succeeded by his ambitious son Perseus. He was anti-Roman and stirred anti-Roman f ...
the King of
Macedon Macedonia (; grc-gre, Μακεδονία), also called Macedon (), was an ancient kingdom on the periphery of Archaic and Classical Greece, and later the dominant state of Hellenistic Greece. The kingdom was founded and initially ruled by ...
Perseus In Greek mythology, Perseus (Help:IPA/English, /ˈpɜːrsiəs, -sjuːs/; Greek language, Greek: Περσεύς, Romanization of Greek, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus ...
at the head of 10000 men, after taking Uskana (Kicevo), attacked Drau-Dak, today Gostivar.


Ottoman Period

In the late 14th century, Gostivar came under Ottoman rule along with the rest of Vardar Macedonia. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Gostivar was part of the Kosovo Vilayet of 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) ...
. During this period it became the centre of a ''
kaza A kaza (, , , plural: , , ; ota, قضا, script=Arab, (; meaning 'borough') * bg, околия (; meaning 'district'); also Кааза * el, υποδιοίκησις () or (, which means 'borough' or 'municipality'); also () * lad, kaza , ...
'' (municipality) and grew into one of the richer towns of Ottoman Vardar Macedonia. Gostivar remained under Ottoman rule for more than 500 years until 1912, when it was occupied by Serbian troops during the
First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...
.


Yugoslav Period

From 1929 to 1941, Gostivar was part of the
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 King ...
of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
, and then became part of Italian-occupied Albania.


Economy

Gostivar is a merchant city. From the second half of the 19th century, merchants started moving in and opening stores. There is also a market day, Tuesday. Merchants from
Kruševo Kruševo ( mk, Крушево ; rup, Crushuva "Crușuva") is a town in North Macedonia. In Macedonian the name means the 'place of pear trees'. It is the highest town in North Macedonia and one of the highest in the Balkans, situated at an alti ...
, Kičevo,
Tetovo Tetovo ( mk, Тетово, , sq, Tetovë/Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, w ...
and Veles were the founders of the Gostivar merchant centre at that time. Today they have become electricians, mechanics workers, and Gostivar is a modern city. There are 20,000
Expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...
citizens who are a key source of income in the municipality economy. It is calculated that each year between June and August, approximately 500,000
euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
s are brought into the city when they return. In May 2015, an automotive company announced that it would open a new plant in Gostivar in the summer of 2015.


Tourism

Leaving Gostivar on the way to Ohrid, the village Vrutok has the gorge of the biggest river in North Macedonia,
Vardar The Vardar (; mk, , , ) or Axios () is the longest river in North Macedonia and the second longest river in Greece, in which it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . Th ...
, which is long and flows into the Aegean Sea, at
Thessaloniki Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its Thessaloniki metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and the capi ...
. Gostivar is one of the biggest settlements in the Polog valley. The Polog valley can be observed from the high lands of Mavrovo and
Galičnik Galičnik ( mk, Галичник) is a mountain village in North Macedonia and along with Lazaropole is one of the two biggest and oldest Mijak villages in the region. Galičnik has well-preserved traditional architecture, including an amphithea ...
. Approximately from Gostivar is a ski resort, "Zare Lazarevski", in the
Mavrovo National Park The Mavrovo National Park ( mk, Национален парк Маврово) is the largest of the four national parks of North Macedonia. Located in the west of the country, it spreads over an area of about and is characterized by deep canyons ...
. Mavrovo attracts tourists during all seasons, but is more popular in winter when it is all covered with snow. The tourist resort has 1200 beds and over 1000 villas, with hotels, restaurants and shops. The Mavrovo region hosts ski tournaments and other sport recreations. The peaks on the northern part of the Bistra mountain: Rusino Brdo, Sultanica and Sandaktas, host winter sport activities. The Šar Mountain is one of the most important Alpine mountain ranges in North Macedonia together with neighbouring
Mount Korab Korab ( sq, Maja e Korabit or ''Mali i Korabit''; mk, Голем Кораб, lit=Great Korab) is the highest peak of the eponymous mountain range and the fourth-highest mountain located entirely in the Balkan Peninsula, standing at . Sited on ...
and Bistra mountains. The range is long and wide and is covered with snow from November till March or April every year. Its highest peak, Titov Vrv, is situated on
above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...
. Fauna of the area includes the
Šarplaninac The Šarplaninac ( sr-Cyrl, Шарпланинац; mk, Шарпланинец; sq, Qeni i Sharrit), formerly also known as Illyrian Shepherd Dog (Macedonian and Serbian: Илирски Овчар, Ilirski Ovčar; sq, Deltari Ilir), is a do ...
dog, which are used by the sheep-herders of Šar Mountain (''Šar Planina'' in Serbian and Macedonian), to guide and protect their
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 ...
herds.
Bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...
s, wild
boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The species is no ...
and
deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
exist also. The area has a variety of
vegetation Vegetation is an assemblage of plant species and the ground cover they provide. It is a general term, without specific reference to particular taxa, life forms, structure, spatial extent, or any other specific botanical or geographic character ...
and
wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...
, including medical herbs, and even
hunt Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/ hide, bone/tusks, horn/antler, e ...
activities can be arranged. Šar Mountain is among the largest compact area covered with
pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or swine ...
s on the
European Continent Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by ...
. This provides opportunities for
animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, selective breeding, and the raising of livestock. Husbandry has a long history, starti ...
.
Dairy A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...
products, mainly
cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
and
feta Feta ( el, φέτα, ) is a Greek brined white cheese made from sheep's milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat's milk. It is soft, with small or no holes, a compact touch, few cuts, and no skin. Crumbly with a slightly grainy texture, it is ...
cheese, are made in the many sheepfolds on Šar and the adjacent mountains. These include several kinds of feta cheese, like Shara and Galicnik. Located in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, Popova Shapka is another winter ski resort. It is situated on the Šar Mountain, above the sea level, just from the capital Skopje. Popova Shapka has hotel accommodation. Visitors not from the Republic of North Macedonia, and elsewhere other countries, use the facilities. Popova Shapka has been a host to both the European and
Balkan 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 ...
Ski Championships. Not far from the resort, there are a number of small
glacial lake A glacial lake is a body of water with origins from glacier activity. They are formed when a glacier erodes the land and then melts, filling the depression created by the glacier. Formation Near the end of the last glacial period, roughly 10,0 ...
s around on the mountain. There are two ways to get to Popova Shapka: by car, and by rope-railway with a starting location in Tetovo. The rope-railway is long and it takes about 36 minutes to reach the top.


Sports

Football club KF Gostivar has played in the
Macedonian First League The Macedonian First Football League ( mk, Прва македонска фудбалска лига, ''Prva Мakedonska Fudbalska Liga''), also called Macedonian First League, 1. MFL, and Prva Liga, is the highest professional football competiti ...
and stage their home games at the City Stadium Gostivar.


Sister cities

*
Akhisar Akhisar ( ota, آق حصار) is a town and a district in Manisa Province; in the Aegean Region of western Turkey. Akhisar is also the ancient city of Thyatira (also known as ''Thyateira''). With archaeological findings that are proving settle ...
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
*
Kőbánya Kőbánya (literally: Quarry, ) is the 10th district of Budapest () and one of the largest by territory. It is located in southeast Pest, easily accessible from the downtown by Metro 3, whose terminus is named '' Kőbánya-Kispest''. It ...
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...


Notable people


References


External links


Official web site of the Municipality of Gostivar



Gostivar Online


Gallery

File:Gostivar, razglednica 1921.jpg, Gostivar at 1921 File:Gostivar od 1929 godina.jpg, Gostivar at 1929 File:Gostivar, razglednica od 1930ti godini.jpg, Gostivar at 1930 File:Gostivar, razglednica, 1930-ti.jpg, Gostivar at 1930 File:Gostivar, razglednica 1935.jpg, Gostivar at 1935 {{Authority control Cities in North Macedonia Ski areas and resorts in North Macedonia