Veles, North Macedonia
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Veles ( mk, Велес ) is a city in the central part of
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 ...
on the Vardar river. The city of Veles is the seat of
Veles Municipality Veles ( mk, Велес ) is a municipality in central part of North Macedonia. '' Veles'' is also the name of the city where the municipal seat is found. Veles Municipality is part of the Vardar Statistical Region. Geography The municipality bor ...
. Veles is the sixth largest Macedonian city with a total population of 43,716 (census 2002). The largest cities in the proximity of Veles are:
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 ...
- the capital and the largest city of
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 ...
- 54 km in the northwest direction,
Štip Štip ( mk, Штип ) is the largest urban agglomeration in the eastern part of North Macedonia, serving as the economic, industrial, entertainment and educational focal point for the surrounding municipalities. As of the 2002 census, the city ...
43 km to the east, Sveti Nikole 34 km to the northeast,
Prilep Prilep ( mk, Прилеп ) is the fourth-largest city in North Macedonia. It has a population of 66,246 and is known as "the city under Marko's Towers" because of its proximity to the towers of Prince Marko. Name The name of Prilep appear ...
79 km in the southwest direction, and Kavadarci and Negotino 43 km and 40 km respectively to the southeast. Veles is on the crossroad of important international road and rail lines. For all these reasons, Veles is considered to have a good geolocation within
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 ...
.


Names

Throughout the history Veles had many names, out of which three are most important.
Vilazora Bylazora or Vilazora ( grc, Βυλάζωρα) was a Paeonian city from the period of early classic antiquity. It is located near the village of Knezhje, which is part of the municipality of Sveti Nikole in North Macedonia. History Polybius te ...
was initially the Paeonian city Bylazora from the period of early Classical Antiquity. The city's name was Βελισσός ''Velissos'' 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 ...
. Later in the history, as part 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) ...
it became a township (''
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 , ...
'') called Köprülü in the Üsküp ''
sanjak Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ) * Armenian language, Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province") * Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: окръг (''okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region") * el, Διοίκησι ...
'' (one of the
administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire The administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire were administrative divisions of the state organisation of the Ottoman Empire. Outside this system were various types of vassal and tributary states. The Ottoman Empire was first subdivided ...
). After the Ottoman rule, from 1929 to 1941, Veles 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 ...
. 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 opposin ...
, the city was known as Titov Veles after Yugoslavian president
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...
, but the 'Titov' was removed in 1996. In Albanian it is known as ''Qyprill'', for the same reason as the Turkish variant. In Aromanian, the city is known as .


History

The area of present-day Veles has been inhabited for over a millennium. In antiquity, it was a
Paionia 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 ...
n city called
Bylazora Bylazora or Vilazora ( grc, Βυλάζωρα) was a Paeonian city from the period of early classic antiquity. It is located near the village of Knezhje, which is part of the municipality of Sveti Nikole in North Macedonia. History Polybius te ...
, and contained a substantial population of
Thracians The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European languages, Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. ...
and possibly
Illyrians The Illyrians ( grc, Ἰλλυριοί, ''Illyrioi''; la, Illyrii) were a group of Indo-European languages, Indo-European-speaking peoples who inhabited the western Balkan Peninsula in ancient times. They constituted one of the three main Paleo ...
. It was then part of the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
, and at times the
First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
Second Bulgarian Empire The Second Bulgarian Empire (; ) was a medieval Bulgarians, Bulgarian state that existed between 1185 and 1396. A successor to the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Tsars Kaloyan of Bulgaria, Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II ...
. It became part of the
Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Краљевина Србија, Kraljevina Srbija) was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Princi ...
at the end of the 13th century, while during the Serbian Empire (1345–71) it was an estate of
Jovan Oliver Jovan Oliver Grčinić ( sr, Јован Оливер Грчинић; ca. 1310-1356) was a magnate of the Serbian Emperor Dušan the Mighty (r. 1331-1355), holding the titles of ''sebastokrator'' and ''despotes'', and the rank of "great voivode", s ...
and subsequently the
Mrnjavčević family The House of Mrnjavčević ( sr-Cyrl, Мрњавчевић, Mrnjavčevići / Мрњавчевићи, ) was a medieval Serbian noble house during the Serbian Empire, its fall, and the subsequent years when it held a region of present-day Macedo ...
until Ottoman annexation after the Battle of Rovine (1395). Before the
Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...
, it was a township (
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 , ...
) with the name ''Köprülü'', part of the
Sanjak of Üsküp The Sanjak of Üsküp was one of the sanjaks in the Ottoman Empire, with Üsküb (modern-day Skopje) as its administrative centre. Origins Starting from the end of the 10th century Skopje experienced a period of wars and political troubles. It ...
.Rahmi Tekin, Osmanli Atlasi, Istanbul 2003 During the
Great Eastern Crisis The Great Eastern Crisis of 1875–78 began in the Ottoman Empire's territories on the Balkan peninsula in 1875, with the outbreak of several uprisings and wars that resulted in the intervention of international powers, and was ended with the T ...
, the local Bulgarian movement of the day was defeated when armed Bulgarian groups were repelled by the League of Prizren, an Albanian organisation opposing Bulgarian geopolitical aims in areas like Köprülü that contained an
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 ...
population. Some identify Veles with the Velitza of which Saint Clement of Ohrid was bishop. The ''
Annuario Pontificio The ''Annuario Pontificio'' (Italian for ''Pontifical Yearbook'') is the annual directory of the Holy See of the Catholic Church. It lists the popes in chronological order and all officials of the Holy See's departments. It also provides names ...
'' identifies Veles instead with the
Diocese of Bela Bela or Vela ( gr, Βελά) was a medieval fortress town and bishopric in Epirus, northwestern Greece. History Bela is located near the site of the modern Vella Monastery, some 2 km south of Kalpaki. The name is of Slavic origin. The for ...
, a
suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...
of the Metropolitan Latin Archdiocese of Achrida (Ohrid) in Bulgaria, and lists it, as no longer a residential diocese, among the Latin titular bishoprics. It is probably in
Bosnia and Hercegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and He ...
(modern Velika?). Veles made international news in 2016 when it was revealed that a group of teenagers in the city were controlling over 100 websites producing fake news articles in support of U.S. presidential candidate
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...
, which were heavily publicised on the social media site
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
.


Economy

Throughout North Macedonia Veles is known as an industrial center and recently, as a leader in the implementing of IT in the local administration in North Macedonia.


Geography

Veles is a municipality of 55,000 residents.veles.gov.mk
The geographic location of the city of Veles makes it suitable for hiking and camping, especially at the west side of the city. One such location is the tranquil village Bogomila. Nearby there is the man made lake Mladost, which is known as the city's recreational centre.


Climate


Media

Two TV stations operate in Veles - Channel 21 & Zdravkin - and many radio stations.


Sports

Veles has many sports teams, the most popular of which are : *
FK Borec FK or fk may refer to: In arts and entertainment: * Flyer Killer, fictional automated robots in the ''Terminator'' film franchise. * Fox Kids, a former American children's television programming block. * Funky Kong, a video game character. Place ...
,
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
* FK Gemidžii, football * FK Prevalec, football *
RK Borec RK Borec (HC Borec) ( mk, РК Борец) is a team handball club from Veles, North Macedonia. In the 1990s they had their biggest success winning the League and one Cup title. They compete in the Macedonian Handball Super League. Noted Macedon ...
, handball * BK Borec, wrestling *KK Unibasket, basketball


International relations


Twin towns – sister cities

Veles (city) is twinned with three other Balkanic towns : *
Samobor Samobor () is a city in Zagreb County, Croatia. It is part of the Zagreb metropolitan area. Administratively it is a part of Zagreb County. Geography Samobor is located west of Zagreb, between the eastern slopes of the Samobor hills ( hr, Samo ...
(Croatia) * Slobozia (Romania) * Užice (Serbia) * Sombor (Serbia) *
Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...
(Serbia) * Nowogard (Poland) * Ráckeve (Hungary) Other forms of partnership : *
Pula Pula (; also known as Pola, it, Pola , hu, Pòla, Venetian language, Venetian; ''Pola''; Istriot language, Istriot: ''Puola'', Slovene language, Slovene: ''Pulj'') is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, and the List of cities and town ...
(Croatia) (Document of friendship and cultural cooperation in 2002)


Notable locals

;History, royalty and politics * Gheorghe Ghica, Prince of Moldavia * Metodi Aleksiev, revolutionary *
Jovan Babunski Jovan Stojković ( sr-cyr, Јован Стојковић; 25 December 1878 – 17 February 1920), known as Jovan Babunski (Јован Бабунски), was a Serbian Chetnik commander ( sr, vojvoda, војвода) during the Macedonian ...
,
Chetnik The Chetniks ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Четници, Četnici, ; sl, Četniki), formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland and the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationa ...
vojvoda *
Panko Brashnarov Panko Brashnarov ( bg, Панко Брашнаров, mk, Панко Брашнар, ''Panko Brašnar;'' 27 July 1883 – 13 July 1951) was a revolutionary and member of the left wing of the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organiza ...
, revolutionary *
Ilija Dimovski Ilija Dimovski ( mk, Илија Димовски) (born August 10, 1980) is a former member of the Assembly of North Macedonia representing the city Veles from 2006 to 2020. Ilija Dimovski is a former spokesman of VMRO-DPMNE Internal Macedo ...
, former member of the Assembly of North Macedonia * Igor Janusev, general secretary of
VMRO-DPMNE Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity ( mk, Внатрешна македонска револуционерна организација – Демократска партија за ...
, member of the Assembly of North Macedonia * Vasil Glavinov, revolutionary * Ivan Naumov, revolutionary *
Kole Nedelkovski Kole Nedelkovski (Bulgarian and mk, Коле Неделковски) was a Macedonian revolutionary and poet,Kazım Özalp, Turkish military office * Faik Pasha, general of the Ottoman Army *
Jordan Popjordanov Yordan "Orce" Popyordanov ( bg, Йордан (Орце) Пoпйopдaнoв; mk, Јордан (Орце) Поп Јорданов; 1881 – April 17, 1903) was a Bulgarian revolutionary and anarchist in Ottoman Macedonia. Biography After gra ...
, revolutionary *
Mile Pop Yordanov Mile Popyordanov (Bulgarian language, Bulgarian: Миле Попйорданов Macedonian language, Macedonian: Миле Поп Јорданов) (1877-1901), born Milan Popyordanov, was a Bulgarians, Bulgarian revolutionary and member of the In ...
, revolutionary *
Lazar Petrović Lazar Petrović (10 March 1855 – 11 June 1903) was a Serbian general, adjutant of King Aleksandar Obrenović and professor at Belgrade Military Academy. Early life Petrović was born in Bašino Selo in Macedonia. Early in his life his fam ...
, Serbian general and adjutant of King Aleksandar Obrenović ;Culture *
Bobby Stojanov Varga Bobby Stojanov Varga (Macedonian: Боби Стојанов Варга) is a Macedonian painter. He was born 8 November 1972 in Veles. He holds a master's degree in painting at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje The Saints Cyril and ...
, painter *
Kočo Racin Kosta Apostolov Solev ( Macedonian, Serbo-Croatian and bg, Коста Апостолов Солев; 22 December 1908 – 13 June 1943), primarily known by his pen name Kočo Racin ( Macedonian, Bulgarian and sh, Кочо Рацин), was a ...
, writer * Rayko Zhinzifov, poet * Svetozar Ristovski, film director *
Yordan Hadzhikonstantinov-Dzhinot Yordan Hadzhikonstantinov, called Dzhinot (the Jinn) ( bg, Йордан Хаджиконстантинов - Джинот, mk, Jордан Хаџи Констандинов-Џинот; c. 1818 – 22 August 1882), was a Bulgarian teacher and autho ...
, teacher and publicist * Zivko Prendzov, art graphic ;Sports *
Ezgjan Alioski Ezgjan Alioski ( mk, Езѓан Алиоски; born 12 February 1992) is a Macedonian professional footballer who plays as a winger or wing-back for Turkish Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe on loan from Saudi club Al-Ahli and the North Macedonia ...
, footballer * Panče Kumbev, footballer *
Safer Sali Safer Sali ( al, Safer Sali, mk, Сафер Сали, Safer Sali; born 3 June 1946, in Veles (city), Veles, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia) is a former freestyle wrestler who competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics for Yugo ...
, Olympic wrestler


References


Sources and external links


Official website of Veles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Veles Town Cities in North Macedonia