Strumica (, ) is the largest city2002 census results
in English and Macedonian (PDF) in southeastern

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 ...

, near the

Novo Selo-Petrich Novo Selo-Petrich or Zlatarevo (Bulgarian language, Bulgarian and Macedonian language, Macedonian: Ново Село-Петрич, ''Novo Selo-Petrič'') is the southernmost of three international border crossings between North Macedonia and Bulga ...

border crossing with

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. About 54,676 people live in the region surrounding the city. It is named after the Strumica River which runs through it. The city of Strumica is the seat of Strumica Municipality.

Name

The town is first mentioned in the 2nd century BC with the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

name (''Astraîon'', "starry") by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; , ; ; – 160s/170s AD) was a Greco-Roman mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were important to later Byzantine science, Byzant ...

and Pliny. It was known as Tiberiopolis (

: Τιβεριούπολις) in

Roman times In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingd ...

, and received its present name from the

Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...

settlers of the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. In

Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...

the town is known as ''Ustrumca'', and in

modern Greek Modern Greek (, or , ), generally referred to by speakers simply as Greek (, ), refers collectively to the dialects of the Greek language spoken in the modern era, including the official standardized form of the language sometimes referred to ...

Στρώμνιτσα (''Strómnitsa''). In Bulgarian the name is Струмица.

History

Ancient period

According to archaeological findings, settlement of the area dates back to 6000–5000 BC: near the village of

Angelci Angelci () is a village in the municipality of Vasilevo, North Macedonia. Demographics According to the 2002 census, the village had a total of 913 inhabitants. Ethnic groups in the village include:Macedonian Census (2002) ''Book 5 - Total popul ...

there is a

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

settlement called ''Stranata''; traces of prehistoric culture dating from the beginning of the 4th to the middle of the 3rd millennium BC have been discovered at the site of ''Carevi Kuli'' (Tsar's Towers), on the hill above the city. The area was later inhabited by

Paionians Paeonians () were an ancient Indo-European people that dwelt in Paeonia. Paeonia was an old country whose location was to the north of Ancient Macedonia, to the south of Dardania, to the west of Thrace and to the east of Illyria, most of their ...

. The first mention of the city under the name ''Astraion'' is in the writings of the Roman historian

Titus Livius Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a 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 traditional founding i ...

in 181 BC regarding the execution of Demetrius, brother of the Ancient Macedonian king

Perseus In Greek mythology, Perseus (, ; Greek language, Greek: Περσεύς, Romanization of Greek, translit. Perseús) is the legendary founder of the Perseid dynasty. He was, alongside Cadmus and Bellerophon, the greatest Greek hero and slayer of ...

(179–168 BC), son of

Philip V of Macedon Philip V (; 238–179 BC) was king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon from 221 to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by the Social War (220–217 BC), Social War in Greece (220-217 BC) ...

(221–179 BC). The name Astraion came from the Paionian tribe called Astrai. In 148 BC the region became a

Roman province The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...

. In the Roman period the city changed its name to ''Tiberiopolis (

: Τιβεριούπολις)'' which is evidenced by a marble statue base dedicated to the patron Tiberius Claudius Menon, who lived between the late 2nd and early 3rd century AD. During the reign of the Roman emperor

Julian the Apostate Julian (; ; 331 – 26 June 363) was the Caesar of the West from 355 to 360 and Roman emperor from 361 to 363, as well as a notable philosopher and author in Greek. His rejection of Christianity, and his promotion of Neoplatonic Hellenism ...

(361–363 AD), the fifteen holy

hieromartyr In the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox tradition, a hieromartyr is a martyr (one who dies for his beliefs) who was a bishop or priest. Hieromartyrs do not constitute a special rank of saint and are commemorated at the Divine Liturgy toge ...

s of Tiberiopolis were killed. In 395, the Roman Empire split, and Macedonia fell under the Eastern Roman Empire (the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

). After that, Tiberiopolis became part of the province

Macedonia Salutaris Macedonia (; ) was a province of ancient Rome, encompassing the territory of the former Antigonid Kingdom of Macedonia, which had been conquered by the Roman Republic in 168 BC at the conclusion of the Third Macedonian War. The province was crea ...

or Macedonia Secunda in the late 4th century. The urban mansion Machuk dating from the late ancient period today stands witness for the existence of a city settlement from that time.

Middle Ages

In the 6th and 7th centuries, the Roman town became subject of Slavic migration . The

Strymonites Strymonites or Strymonian Slavs ( / Strymonitai) were a tribe of Sclaveni (Early Slavs) who settled in the region of the river Strymon ( Struma) in eastern parts of the historical region of Macedonia. They took part in the Slavic siege of the Byz ...

, a

Sclavene The ' (in Latin language, Latin) or ' (Sclaveni#Terminology, various forms in Greek language, Greek) were Early Slavs, early Slavic tribes that raided, invaded and settled in the Balkans in the Early Middle Ages and eventually became one of the p ...

tribe, adopted their name after the Strymon river (Struma). The Strymonites were independent until the 9th century, followed by a Byzantine reconquest. Later on, the Strumica region was conquered by Bulgarian Khan

Presian Presian may refer to: * Presian of Bulgaria, khan of Bulgaria in 836–852 *Presian (son of Ivan Vladislav) Presian, sometimes referred to as Presian II (; ) was probably the oldest son of the last tsar of the First Bulgarian Empire, Ivan Vladisl ...

(836–852). The Strumica region remained part of the Bulgarian state throughout a period of more than 150 years right up until 1014, when it was retaken by the Byzantines. In the 11th century, written sources begin to refer to the town with its Slavic name as ''Strumica''. In 1016, Byzantine commander

David Arianites David Areianites or Arianites () was a high-ranking Byzantine commander of the early 11th century. Origin The origin of the surname is uncertain and different theories have been proposed ranging from various anthroponomastic and toponymic derivat ...

captured the city from the Bulgarians. By the end of the 12th century, the Byzantine central power had weakened and, as a result, many local lords broke away and became independent. Initially, the leader of the

Vlachs Vlach ( ), also Wallachian and many other variants, is a term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate speakers of Eastern Romance languages living in Southeast Europe—south of the Danube (the Balkan peninsula ...

and Bulgarians in eastern Macedonia

Dobromir Chrysos Dobromir Chrysos (, , ) was a Vlach warlord in eastern Macedonia during the reign of the Byzantine emperor Alexios III Angelos.Florin Curta, Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500-1250, Cambridge University Press, 2006, , p. 363.Panos Sophou ...

(1185–1202) and later the Bulgarian ''

sebastokrator ''Sebastokrator'' (, ; ; ), was a senior court title in the late Byzantine Empire. It was also used by other rulers whose states bordered the Empire or were within its sphere of influence (Bulgarian Empire, Serbian Empire). The word is a compound ...

'' and a member of the

Asen dynasty The House of Asen, also Asen dynasty or the Asenids (, romanized: ''Asenevtsi''), founded and ruled a medieval Bulgarian state, called in modern historiography the Second Bulgarian Empire, between 1185 and 1280. The Asen dynasty rose as the le ...

in Veliko Tarnovo

Strez Strez ( Bulgarian and ; original spelling: Стрѣзъ; fl. 1207–1214) was a medieval, semi-independent Bulgarian ''sebastokrator''. He was a member of the Asen dynasty and a cousin or a brother of Boril of Bulgaria. A major contender for ...

(1208–1214) held the region, which became part of the Bulgarian kingdom in 1202. In the second half of the 13th century the city was recovered by the Byzantine Empire until the Serbian Kingdom conquered the region in the 14th century. Serbian magnate

Hrelja Hrelja may refer to: * Hrelja (protosebastos), 14th-century feudal lord from northeastern Macedonia and the Rila mountains * Silvano Hrelja (born 1958), Croatian politician * Adnan Hrelja (born 1993), Bosnian-Herzegovinian footballer See also * ...

ruled Strumica and the nearby region until 1334, when it was put under the direct rule of Serbian King

Stefan Dušan Stephen (honorific), Stefan Uroš IV Dušan ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош IV Душан), also known as Dušan the Mighty ( sr-Cyrl, Душан Силни; – 20 December 1355), was the King of Serbia from 8 September 1331 and Emperor of th ...

who continued his conquest to the south. During the

Fall of the Serbian Empire The fall of the Serbian Empire was a decades-long process in the late 14th century. Following the death of the childless Emperor of the Serbs, Emperor Stefan Uroš V in 1371, the Serbian Empire was left without an heir and the magnates, ''velika� ...

, the Strumica region was first ruled by Uglješa, the brother of magnate

Vukašin Vukašin () is an old Slavic name of Serbian origin. It is composed from two words: Vuk (wolf) and sin ( son), so it means sin vuka (son of wolf). In some places in Croatia and Bosnia it can be found as a surname. The name Vukašin can be foun ...

. Strumica itself was then governed by

Dabiživ Spandulj Dabiživ Spandulj () or Dabiživ Stanko (Дабижив Станко; fl. 1375–76) was a Serbian nobleman with the title of ''kefalija'' ("chief") that governed Strumica, serving the Dejanović brothers. He is mentioned in a document dating to ...

, who served the Dejanović brothers. 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 ...

finally conquered Strumica in 1383.

Ottoman period

Under Ottoman administration, the town was named Ustrumca. It initially belonged to the Sanjak of Kyustendil, and the ''

timarli Timariot (or ''tımar'' holder; ''tımarlı'' in Turkish) was the name given to a Sipahi cavalryman in the Ottoman army. In return for service, each timariot received a parcel of revenue called a timar, a fief, which were usually recently conqu ...

sipahi The ''sipahi'' ( , ) were professional cavalrymen deployed by the Seljuk Turks and later by the Ottoman Empire. ''Sipahi'' units included the land grant–holding ('' timar'') provincial ''timarli sipahi'', which constituted most of the arm ...

'' system was established. Nomads and livestock breeders of Turkic origin were settled, which altered the general look of the city making it more oriental. According to the census of 1519, Strumica had a population of 2,780, of which 1,450 were Christians and 1,330 were Muslims. These were times when conversion to Islam was at its peak in the region, which accounts for the increased number of Muslims (2,200) compared to Christians (1,230) according to the census of 1570. In the 17th century, it became seat of a ''

kadiluk A kadiluk (, ) was the jurisdiction of a kadi, an Islamic judge under the Ottoman Empire. They typically consisted of a major city and its surrounding villages, although some kadis occupied other positions within the imperial administration. ...

''. At about this time, Strumica was visited by the Ottoman travel writers

Haji Kalfa Hajji (; sometimes spelled Hajjeh, Hadji, Haji, Alhaji, Al-Hadj, Al-Haj or El-Hajj) is an honorific title which is given to a Muslim who has successfully completed the Hajj to Mecca. Etymology ''Hajji'' is derived from the Arabic ' (), which i ...

(1665) and

Evliya Çelebi Dervish Mehmed Zillî (25 March 1611 – 1682), known as Evliya Çelebi (), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman explorer who travelled through his home country during its cultural zenith as well as neighboring lands. He travelled for over 40 years, rec ...

(1670), who gave a description of the city and all its Islamic buildings. In the late 18th and early 19th century, Strumica was part of the

Sanjak of Salonica The Sanjak of Salonica, Selanik (, ), or Thessalonica (, ) was a sanjak of the Ottoman Empire. It was named for its capital Salonica, also known by its Turkish name Selanik and its latinized Greek name Thessalonica. It was also known under the ...

. During the 19th century the influence of the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople (, ; ; , "Roman Orthodox Patriarchate, Ecumenical Patriarchate of Istanbul") is one of the fifteen to seventeen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. It is headed ...

increased, and so did the number of pro-Greek citizens. Countering this, 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) ...

found support in the Slavic populace; the first Bulgarian school in the Strumica region was opened in Robovo in 1860, and its first teacher was Arseni Kostencev from Štip. This period coincided with the work of the great fresco masters from Strumica – Vasil Gjorgiev and Grigorij Petsanov. They did work in many churches built in the Strumica region at the time. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Strumica was part of the

Salonica Vilayet The Vilayet of Salonica () was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire from 1867 to 1913. In the late 19th century it reportedly had an area of .

Late-19th century

Following the

Berlin Congress At the Congress of Berlin (13 June – 13 July 1878), the major European powers revised the territorial and political terms imposed by the Russian Empire on the Ottoman Empire by the Treaty of San Stefano (March 1878), which had ended the Rus ...

of 1878, when the Ottoman Empire lost a sizable portion of its territory on the Balkans, a stream of refugees flowed into the area; some of them ending up in Strumica. These people were called " muhajirs". According to the Ottoman General Census of 1881/82-1893, the

kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

of Strumica had a total population of 33.024, consisting of 15.760 Muslims, 13.726

Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...

, 2.965

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, ...

and 573

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. The

Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO; ; ), was a secret revolutionary society founded in the Ottoman territories in Europe, that operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1893 in Salonica, it initia ...

for the Ograzden county was formed and operated in these parts. One of the most prominent leaders of the organization in Strumica was

Hristo Chernopeev Hristo Chernopeev () (c. 1868, Dermantsi – 6 November 1915, Krivolak) was a Bulgarian Army officer and member of the revolutionary movement in Macedonia (region), Macedonia. He was among the leaders of the Bulgarian People's Macedonian-Adrianopl ...

, who took part in the

Young Turk Revolution The Young Turk Revolution (July 1908; ) was a constitutionalist revolution in the Ottoman Empire. Revolutionaries belonging to the Internal Committee of Union and Progress, an organization of the Young Turks movement, forced Sultan Abdul Hamid II ...

(1908–09). The outcome of this effort did not bring freedom to the local people who still remained under Ottoman rule.

20th century

The

Kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

of Strumica in 1905 had a total Christian population of 22.860, consisting of 12.736 Exarchist Bulgarians, 8.992 Patriarchist

, 624 Protestant Bulgarians, 444

Roma people {{Infobox ethnic group , group = Romani people , image = , image_caption = , flag = Roma flag.svg , flag_caption = Romani flag created in 1933 and accepted at the 1971 World Romani Congress , ...

, 25

and 6

according to the

secretary Dimitri Mishev (D. M. Brancoff). In the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

of 1912 the Ottomans were defeated and driven out of

Macedonia (region) Macedonia ( ) is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time; however, it came to be defined as the modern geographical region by the mid-19th century. ...

by the joint effort of the

Balkan League The League of the Balkans was a quadruple alliance formed by a series of bilateral treaties concluded in 1912 between the Eastern Orthodox kingdoms of Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Montenegro, and directed against the Ottoman Empire, which still ...

(Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and Montenegro). Bulgaria annexed the town of Strumica. In the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict that broke out when Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia and Kingdom of Greece, Greece, on 1 ...

(1913), which was fought between the three of the Balkan allies against Bulgaria, the latter was defeated. However, according to the Bucharest treaty (28 July 1913) Strumica remained under Bulgarian rule. The Greek army stationed in Strumica disapproved of the decision for withdrawal and set the town on fire. It burned from the 8th to 15th of August 1913, when more than 1900 public buildings, private houses and other constructions were burnt. Strumica was made the center of a homonymous district in Bulgaria (largely corresponding to the present day

Blagoevgrad province Blagoevgrad Province (, ''oblast Blagoevgrad'' or Благоевградска област, ''Blagoevgradska oblast''), also known as Pirin Macedonia or Bulgarian Macedonia (), (''Pirinska Makedoniya or Bulgarska Makedoniya'') is a province ('' ...

)Chronicle of the formation of regions in Bulgaria
(DOC) and stayed under Bulgarian rule until 1919, when it was ceded to the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in 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" () has been its colloq ...

after the

Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine (; ) was a treaty between the victorious Allies of World War I on the one hand, and Bulgaria, one of the defeated Central Powers in World War I, on the other. The treaty required Bulgaria to cede various territor ...

. From 1929 to 1941, Strumica 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 ...

. On 6 April 1941, the first day of the

Axis invasion of Yugoslavia The invasion of Yugoslavia, also known as the April War or Operation 25, was a German-led attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II. The order for the invasion was put forward in "Fü ...

, Strumica was captured by the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

and, as Bulgaria was allied with Germany, Strumica was turned over under occupation of the Bulgarian armies on 18 April 1941. From 1941 to 1944, Strumica, as most of

Vardar Macedonia Vardar Macedonia (Macedonian language, Macedonian and ) is a historical term referring to the central part of the broader Macedonian region, roughly corresponding to present-day North Macedonia. The name derives from the Vardar, Vardar River and i ...

, was annexed by the

Kingdom of Bulgaria The Tsardom of Bulgaria (), also known as the Third Bulgarian Tsardom (), usually known in English as the Kingdom of Bulgaria, or simply Bulgaria, was a constitutional monarchy in Southeastern Europe, which was established on , when the Bulgaria ...

. On 11 September 1944 the Bulgarian army withdrew from Strumica and on 5 November 1944, the German army also left the town. After the war it became part of the

Socialist Republic of Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia (), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia, Yugoslav Macedonia or simply Macedonia, was one of the six constituent republics of the post-World War II Socialist Federal Republic of Y ...

, one of the republics of Federal Yugoslavia. With the referendum on 8 September 1991, amid the

breakup of Yugoslavia After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, the constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia split apart in the early 1990s. Unresolved issues from the breakup caused a series of inter-ethnic Yugoslav ...

, the country became independent under the constitutional name Republic of Macedonia.

Geography

Strumica is located in the southeastern part of the country, close to the borders with Greece (15 km) and Bulgaria. It is situated in the geographical region of the Strumica Field, where the field meets the highland elevating into the Plavuš (west) and Belasica (south) mountains. The Struma river flows north of the city, while several tributaries flow through the city area.

Climate

Strumica has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

: ''Cfa'').

Population

The population of the municipality of Strumica is 54,676.Државен завод за статистика
Попис на населението, домаќинствата и становите во Република Македонија, 2002: Дефинитивни податоци
(

PDF Portable document format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe Inc., Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, computer hardware, ...

) * Macedonians: 50,258 / 91.9% *

Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Turkey * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic lang ...

: 3,754 / 6.8% * Others: 1.3% As of 2021, the city of Strumica has 33.825 inhabitants and the ethnic composition was the following: * Macedonians – 26.185 *

– 2.703 *

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 ...

– 216 *

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 ...

- 91 * Aromanian - 10 *

Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...

- 6 *

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 ...

- 3 * others – 247 * Person without Data - 4.364

Notable people

Goran Pandev Goran Pandev (, ; born 27 July 1983) is a Macedonian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Known for his goal-scoring ability, consistency, and intelligence, he is regarded as one of the best Macedonian footballers of all time. ...

, footballer *

Boris Trajkovski Boris Trajkovski ( GCMG; , pronounced ; 25 June 1956 – 26 February 2004) was a Macedonian politician who served as the President of Macedonia from 1999 until his death in 2004 in a plane crash. Early life Trajkovski was born on 25 June 195 ...

, former Macedonian president *

Zoran Zaev Zoran Zaev (, ; born 8 October 1974) is a Macedonian economist and politician who served as prime minister of North Macedonia from May 2017 to January 2020, and again from August 2020 to January 2022. Prior to entering politics, he ran a privat ...

, former Prime Minister of North Macedonia *

Baba Vanga Vangeliya Pandeva Gushterova (; , ; 3 October 1911 – 11 August 1996), commonly known as Baba Vanga (), was a Bulgarian attributed Mysticism, mystic and healer who claimed to have foreseen the future. Blind since her teenhood, she spent most ...

, clairvoyant *

Zoran Madžirov Zoran Madzirov (born 14 January 1968, died 9 May 2017) was a Macedonian percussionist, composer and the inventor of the Bottle-phone. Biography Zoran Madzirov performed with and was honoured by stars such as Sting, Tito Puente, Tina Turner, ...

, musician *

Blagoj Mučeto Blagoj () is a Macedonian masculine given name. It may refer to: * Blagoj Jankov Mučeto, Macedonian partisan who was declared a People's Hero of Yugoslavia * Blagoj Nacoski (born 1979), Macedonian tenor opera singer * Blagoj Stračkovski (1920–1 ...

, partisan *

Kiro Stojanov Kiro Stojanov (; born 9 April 1959) is the Roman Catholic Bishop of Skopje and the Eparchial Bishop of the Macedonian Catholic Eparchy of the Blessed Virgin Mary Assumed in Strumica-Skopje of the Macedonian Greek Catholic Church. He currently ...

, Catholic bishop *

Goran Popov Goran Popov (; born 2 October 1984) is a Macedonian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football), defender. Popov started his career with local side FK Belasica, Belasica and moved to Gree ...

, footballer *

Veljko Paunović Veljko Paunović ( sr-Cyrl, Вељко Пауновић, ; born 21 August 1977) is a Serbian football manager and former player. He is the head coach of Spanish club Real Oviedo. A versatile attacking unit, he could operate as an attacking m ...

, footballer *

Vančo Stojanov Vančo "Vane" Stojanov (Macedonian: Ванчо "Ване" Стојанов; born 11 September 1977 in Strumica) is a Macedonian former middle-distance runner who specialised in the 800 metres. He represented his country at the 2000 and 2004 Summer ...

, athlete *

Igor Gjuzelov Igor Gjuzelov or Igor Đuzelov (; born 2 April 1976) is a retired Macedonian professional association football, football player. Gjuzelov is a Defender (association football)#Centre back, central defender. Club career Gjuzelov played for Belgia ...

, footballer *

Jani Atanasov Jani Atanasov (; born 31 October 1999) is a Macedonian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for I liga club Puszcza Niepołomice, on loan from Cracovia, and the North Macedonia national team. Club career On 5 June 2018, Atanasov ...

, footballer *

Goran Maznov Goran Maznov (; born 22 April 1981) is a Macedonian former football striker. Club career Internationally he last played for Kerkyra. Previously he changes several clubs in Russia. He also played for Republic of Macedonia. In March 2009 he was th ...

, footballer *

Vasil Garvanliev Vasil Garvanliev (; born 2 November 1984), known professionally as Vasil, is a Macedonian singer. He was due to represent North Macedonia with the song "You" in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam before the event was cancelled. Inste ...

, singer * Haralampos Boufidis, Chieftain of the Macedonian Struggle * Dimitrios Tsitsimis, revolutionary, soldier, and mayor of Kilkis * Evangelos Koukoudeas, revolutionary and army officer *

Dimitrios Semsis Dimitrios Semsis, also known as Dimitrios Salonikios (; 1883 – 13 January 1950), was a Greek violinist born Dimitrios Koukoudeas (Δημήτριος Κουκουδέας) in Strumica, in the Salonica Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire (present-day N ...

, violinist * Goran Trenchovski, director and writer *

Zekeriya Sertel Zekeriya Sertel, also known as Mehmet Zekeriya Sertel, (1890–1980) was a Turkish journalist. He is the first director of state press department and founder and editor of various periodicals. From 1950 to 1980 Sertel lived in exile. Early life ...

, journalist *

Dušan Džamonja Dušan Džamonja (, ; 31 January 1928 – 14 January 2009) was a Yugoslav sculptor of Serbian ancestry. Education and career Džamonja was born in 1928 in Strumica, Macedonia, former Vardar Banovina, Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In 1945, Džamonja be ...

, sculptor

Gallery

File:Strumica Town Hall.JPG, Strumica Town Hall File:The Monument Macedonia.jpg, Monument ''Macedonia'' dedicated to the second president of the

Republic of 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 ...

File:Strumica Clock Tower.jpg, Strumica Clock Tower File:Monument Goce Delcev Strumica.jpg, Goce Delčev statue File:Плоштад Гоце Делчев Струмица (3).jpg, World map fountain at Goce Delčev Square File:Strumica Lake, Aug 2012.jpg, The Strumica Lake File:Amphitheatre in Strumica.jpg, The Strumica

Amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

File:Assembly of Municipality Strumica.jpg, Strumica

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

References

External links

Official Strumica Government Website

Official Book from 2002 Census of population see page 35
{{Authority control Cities in North Macedonia