Sveti Nikole ( mk, Свети Николе ; meaning ''Saint Nicholas''; rup, San Nicole) is a town 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 Yugoslavia. It ...
. It is the seat of
Sveti Nikole Municipality and a center of a
plain
In geography, a plain is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and as plateaus or uplands ...
called
Ovče Pole (''Plain of sheep''), famous for
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 ...
farming,
lamb meat, and
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 ...
products of all kinds.
History
According to legend, the town was named after the church of
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...
(''Sveti Nikola''), built in the beginning of the 14th century. It is said to have been the biggest of all 42 churches in this area at its time.
The former settlement of ''Arbanaško'', itself derived from ''Arbanas'' (an old South Slavic ethonym for Albanians), is in present-day Sveti Nikole, suggesting either direct linguistic contact with Albanians or the former presence of an assimilated Albanian community.
Demographics
According to the 2002 census, the town had a total of 13,746 inhabitants.
[ Ethnic groups in the village include:][Macedonian Census (2002)]
''Book 5 - Total population according to the Ethnic Affiliation, Mother Tongue and Religion''
The State Statistical Office, Skopje, 2002, p. 173.
* Macedonians 13,367
*Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
80
*Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of ...
52
* Roma 72
*Aromanians
The Aromanians ( rup, Armãnji, Rrãmãnji) are an ethnic group native to the southern Balkans who speak Aromanian, an Eastern Romance language. They traditionally live in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, northern and c ...
149
* Others 25
Sports
Local football club FK Ovče Pole plays in the Macedonian Third League (Southeast Division).
Notable people from the town
* Lazar Koliševski (1914-2000) - Macedonian politician, prime minister and president
*Kiril Lazarov
Kiril Lazarov ( mk, Кирил Лазаров, born 10 May 1980) is a retired Macedonian handball player and current coach of the North Macedonia national handball team and RK Alkaloid.
Lazarov holds the record for most goals scored in a single ...
(b. 1980) - Team handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the ...
player
References
External links
Sveti Nikole
{{Authority control
Towns in North Macedonia
Sveti Nikole Municipality