Banjane () or Banjani () is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in the

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Čučer-Sandevo Čučer-Sandevo () is a village in Republic of North Macedonia. It is a seat of the Čučer-Sandevo Municipality. Geography The village is located in the northern part of the Skopje Valley, in the central part of the territory of the Municipality ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

. The village lies some 15 kilometers north of

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

, in the region of

Skopska Crna Gora Skopska Crna Gora or Karadak Mountains ( Macedonian and , ; ), often called simply Crna Gora (Macedonian and ; ), is a mountain range and ethnographic region in North Macedonia, Kosovo and Serbia. The highest peak is Ramno in Macedonia. The la ...

. Banjane is best known for its three churches, St. Nicetas and St. Elias from 14th century and

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

from 16th century.

Geography and location

The village is located in the northern part of the

Skopje Valley Skopje Basin () or Skopje Plain () is one of the largest depression (geology), basins in North Macedonia. It represents the second largest valley along the course of the Vardar river. The Skopje Valley is formed by the mountains of Žeden, Ivanje ...

, on the territory of the Municipality of Cucer-Sandevo, below the southwestern slope of

. The village is hilly, at an altitude of . The village is away from the city of

. The area is rich in

forests A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological functio ...

and

pastures Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Types of pasture Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, c ...

in the north, and in the south there is

arable land Arable land (from the , "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the purposes of a ...

. The Banjane River also passes through it. The locals were supplied with drinking water from wells, pumps and fountains. Surrounding villages are Gornjane and

from the west,

Kučevište Kučevište () is the largest village in the municipality of Čučer-Sandevo, North Macedonia. Demographics As of the 2021 census, Kučevište had 4,119 residents with the following ethnic composition: *Macedonians 2,404 *Serbs 1,323 *Persons fo ...

from the east and Gluvo/ Brazda from the south.

Economy

The area of the village is large and covers an area of . It is dominated by forests with an area of , fall to pastures, and to arable land. The village basically has a mixed agricultural function.Панов, Митко (1998). ''Енциклопедија на селата во Република Македонија'' p. 19

Demographics

According to the statistics of the Bulgarian ethnographer

Vasil Kanchov Vasil Kanchov (26 July 1862 – 6 February 1902) was a geographer, ethnographer and teacher who served as Minister of Education of Bulgaria. Early life and education Vasil Kanchov was born in Vratsa. Upon graduating from High school i ...

from 1900, 400 inhabitants lived in the village of Banjane, all

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

. According to the Secretary of the

Bulgarian Exarchate The Bulgarian Exarchate (; ) was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church before its autocephaly was recognized by the Ecumenical See in 1945 and the Bulgarian Patriarchate was restored in 1953. The Exarchate (a de facto autocephaly) ...

Dimitar Mišev Dimitar (, , ) is a South Slavic masculine given name. It is widely found in Bulgaria and North Macedonia. It's derived from one or more of the following: * Saint Demetrius (280–306) * Dimetor ''Διμήτωρ'' ("twice-born"), epithet of Dio ...

("La Macédoine et sa Population Chrétienne"), in 1905 there were 600

in Banjane, labelled by him as

Serbomans Serbomans (Serbo-Croatian and , ''srbomani''; ; ) is a Bulgarian pejorative term used by Bulgarian nationalists for inhabitants in the region of Macedonia that claimed Serbian ethnicity (declared as Serbs) and supported Serbian national ideals u ...

(''patriarchs''). In his 1927 map of

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

explorer

Leonhard Schultze-Jena Leonhard Sigmund Friedrich Kuno Klaus Schultze-Jena (May 28, 1872, in Jena – March 28, 1955, in Marburg) was a German explorer, zoologist, and anthropologist known for his explorations of German Southwest Africa and New Guinea, as well as for ...

shows Banjani as a

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

village. In 1961 the village had 687 inhabitants, of which 382 were Macedonians and 293

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

, while in 1994 it had 563 inhabitants, of which 324 were

, 221 Macedonians and 8

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnic groups * Romani people, or Roma, an ethnic group of Indo-Aryan origin ** Romani language, an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities ** Romanichal, Romani subgroup in the United Kingdom * Romanians (Romanian ...

. According to the 2002 census, the village had a total of 597 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. 192. *

288 * Macedonians 294 *

9 *Others 5 As of the 2021 census, Banjane had 527 residents with the following ethnic composition:Total resident population of the Republic of North Macedonia by ethnic affiliation, by settlement, Census 2021
/ref> *Macedonians 255 *Serbs 215 *Persons for whom data are taken from administrative sources 50 *Others 7

References

Villages in Čučer-Sandevo Municipality Serb communities in North Macedonia {{ČučerSandevo-geo-stub