Makedonski Brod ( ; meaning "Macedonian Boat") is a small town in the central part of North Macedonia, on the south-eastern part of Suva Gora, western Karadžica and south-western Dautica mountains. The town is the seat of

Makedonski Brod Municipality Makedonski Brod ( ) is a municipality in western North Macedonia, named after the town of Makedonski Brod, where the municipal seat is located. Makedonski Brod Municipality is part of the Southwestern Statistical Region. Geography The municipal ...

Geography

Makedonski Brod is one of the smallest towns in North Macedonia. It is located in the region of Poreče and is the centre of the region. The town lies on the banks of the upper region of the river Treska.

History

In the location of the present-day town, there was a bridge that connected the towns of

Prilep Prilep ( ) is the List of cities in North Macedonia, fourth-largest city in North Macedonia. According to 2021 census, it had a population of 63,308. Name The name of Prilep appeared first as ''Πρίλαπος'' in Greek (''Prilapos'') in 1 ...

and

Kičevo Kičevo ( ; , sq-definite, Kërçova) is a city in the western part of North Macedonia, located in a valley in the south-eastern slopes of Mount Bistra, between the cities of Ohrid and Gostivar. The capital Skopje is 112 km away. The city ...

, which gave the name of the town. According to a tomb inscription found in the village of Krapa, it was determined that the area was populated by the Romans. Later, with the arrival of Slavs to the Balkan Peninsula, the Slavic tribe Berziti (Brsjaci) settled here. The

League of Lezhë The League of Lezhë (), also commonly referred to as the Albanian League (), was a military and diplomatic alliance of the Albanian aristocracy, created in the city of Lezhë on 2 March 1444. The League of Lezhë is considered the first unif ...

, under Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg, won a victory over the Ottomans nearby in the

Battle of Mokra The Battle of Mokra took place on 1 September 1939 near the village of Mokra, Silesian Voivodeship, Mokra, 5 km north of Kłobuck and 23 km north-west of Częstochowa, Poland. It was one of the first battles of the Invasion of Poland ...

in 1445. The village is attested in the 1467/68 Ottoman tax registry (defter) for the Nahiyah of Kırçova. The village had a total of 15 houses, excluding bachelors (''mucerred''). In the vicinity of Makedonski Brod, near the village of Devič, there are visible remnants of buildings that confirm that in this region, in the Middle Ages, there was a town/settlement which functioned as a centre for the entire area. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Makedonski Brod was part of the

Manastir Vilayet The Vilayet of Manastir () was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire, created in 1874, dissolved in 1877 and re-established in 1879. The vilayet was occupied during the First Balkan War in 1912 and divided between t ...

of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. The then village of Brod was considered by Serbian authorities to be a "haven for evildoers of Kičevo". It is possible that Haki Efendi of Teqe, a contemporary Albanian political leader, was from the village, which at the time had a Bektashi tekke. ''Bukri'' is a former village which was located in the outskirts of modern Brod. Its etymological formation stems from Albanian ''bukur''. From 1929 to 1941, Makedonski Brod was part of the

Vardar Banovina The Vardar Banovina, or Vardar Banate ( Macedonian and ; ), was a province ( banate) of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1941. History It was located in the southernmost part of the country, encompassing the whole of today's North Mace ...

of the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

Demographics

As of the 2021 census, Makedonski Brod had 3,643 residents with the following ethnic composition: *Macedonians 3,511 *Persons for whom data are taken from administrative sources 93 *Albanians 16 *Roma 9 *Serbs 7 *Others 7 According to the 2002 census, the town had a total of 3,740 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. 138. * Macedonians 3,725 *

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 ...

9 * Romani 3 *

Bosniaks The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

1 *Others 2

Monuments of culture

Also to be seen is the Devina Tower, built in the vicinity of the cave Pešna, here also may be found remnants of the town's walls which were, according to legend, built by the young girl Pešna, sister of the hero Krale (King) Marko. In the town and its vicinity a large number of churches were built, among which are the town's church St. Mary, St. Dimitrius in the village of Trebino, St. Nicholas in the village of Plasnica, etc.

Sports

Local football club FK Proleter have played in the Macedonian Second League.

References

External links

Official Website of Makedonski Brod
– Website with detailed information and history of Makedonski Brod {{Authority control Towns in North Macedonia Makedonski Brod Municipality