North Macedonia

Full name of country: Republic of North Macedonia

Region: Europe

Official language: Macedonian, Albanian

Population: 2,135,622 (2024 est.)

Nationality: Macedonian(s) (noun), Macedonian (adjective)

Land area: 25,433 sq km (9,820 sq miles)

Water area: 280 sq km (108 sq miles)

Capital: Skopje

National anthem: "Denes Nad Makedonija" (Today Over Macedonia), by Vlado Maleski/Todor Skalovski

National holiday: Independence Day, September 8(1991); also known as National Day

Population growth: 0.1% (2024 est.)

Time zone: UTC +1

Flag: The flag of North Macedonia features a yellow sun against a red background. The sun, known as “the new sun of liberty,” is located in the center of the flag, with eight stylized rays emitting from it.

Independence: September 8, 1991 (referendum by registered voters endorsed independence from Yugoslavia)

Government type: parliamentary republic

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts

Cradled in the Balkan Mountains between the countries of the Adriatic Sea and the Aegean, modern North Macedonia owes its existence to the volatile histories of its neighbors. Though North Macedonia did not emerge as a nation-state until 1991, Macedonians trace their history as far back as the ninth century BCE.

Since that era, the legend of Macedonia has survived primarily as a region absorbed, fought over, and divided up among neighboring empires and nations. Though the modern Republic of North Macedonia—the name was officially changed from Macedonia in February 2019—has finally established its political existence, its people confront a regional history of violence that is still known internationally as "the Macedonian Question."

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population: The Republic of North Macedonia is carved out of a region known for its diversity of cultures, ethnicities, and histories. Modern Macedonians generally claim a Slavic ancestry.

A little more than 58.4 percent of the population in the republic consider themselves to be Macedonian. About 24.3 percent of the population are ethnic Albanian. Other ethnic minorities include Turks, Serbs, and Roma (2021 estimates).

During the late 1990s, the federation of Slavic states known as Yugoslavia crumbled amid multiple outbreaks of civil and ethnic violence. North Macedonia peacefully withdrew from the Yugoslav Federation in 1991, but the massacre of Albanian citizens in neighboring Serbia created a wave of refugees into surrounding countries, including the newly independent North Macedonia.

With careful policy realignments and cooperation from the United Nations, North Macedonia managed to avoid the civil violence that plagued its neighbors for years. However, Albanian rebel groups in the long-contested region of Kosovo increasingly drew funds and support from emigrant communities within North Macedonia, and tensions between Macedonian Slavs and Albanians rose. In 2001 an insurgency of ethnic Albanians in the country's north and west broke out. After an intervention by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the conflict was officially settled by the Ohrid Agreement, in which ethnic Albanians in North Macedonia were granted greater autonomy in return for abandoning their separatist movement. However, ethnic tension continues within North Macedonia, complicated by political crises including allegations of corruption.

The rapid immigration into North Macedonia has also strained government infrastructure in the young republic. Infant mortality is high by European standards, at about 7 deaths per 1,000 live births (2024 estimate). Average life expectancy at birth is 77.3 years: 75.3 for men and 79.6 for women (2024 estimates).

The country's ethnic Macedonian population traditionally practices Macedonian Orthodox Christianity and speaks modern Macedonian. Unlike their Macedonian neighbors, ethnic Albanians trace their ancestry to a non-Slavic people in ancient Macedonia. The prevalence of Albanian citizens and refugees accounts for the fact that about 32.2 percent of people in North Macedonia are Muslim. Other minorities include Turks, Roma, and Serbs (2021 estimate).

Indigenous People: Archeologists trace civilization in North Macedonia back to the Paleolithic era, around 6000 BCE. However, the area has never been isolated. Operating as a crossroads between Western, Central, and Southern Europe, North Macedonia is characterized by the constant modification of its culture.

In the sixth and seventh century, tribes of Slavic peoples migrating from the Carpathian Mountains and the Danube River Basin invaded North Macedonia and other Balkan lands of the Byzantine Empire. As the invaders settled in the area, many integrated their Slavic identities with existing Macedonian culture. Combining Slavic traditions, language, alphabet, and religious structures with those of the Macedonians, the offspring of these invaders eventually recreated the culture of the Macedonian region while retaining the old Macedonian legends and history.

Modern ethnic Macedonians consider themselves to be the natural inheritors of the area's rich blend of traditions, but Albanians, Serbs, Bulgarians, and others also lay claim to the area.

Education: The Republic of North Macedonia requires all children to attend one year of preprimary school and enter primary school from the age of six. Upon completing eight years of elementary education Macedonian students obtain a certificate, after which they may enter a four-year secondary schooling program. Secondary education is capped by sitting for an exam.

Classes may be taught in Macedonian, Albanian, or Turkish according to the student population, but all students must take classes in Macedonian if it is not the primary language of instruction.

North Macedonia offers professional degrees, such as law, business, or teaching, in its institutions of higher education. State universities are the most common form of higher education. There is no tuition for Macedonian residents and the length of programs varies by institution and by program.

Health Care: North Macedonia provides free and accessible health care to every citizen. There are public medical centers, specialized hospitals, and hundreds of village medical units in operation throughout the country. There are many private health organizations in North Macedonia, and care is also provided at the University of Ss. Cyril and Methodius School of Medicine. In 2022, North Macedonia ranked seventy-eighth (based on 2021 data) on the United Nations Human Development Index.

Food: Macedonian food reflects the variety of the region's history. Traditional Slavic-based dishes might include different types of bread, soups, and stews. Aegean and Turkish influences are evident in lamb kebabs, moussaka, stuffed vegetables, and in the use of yogurt, feta cheese, and minced meat dishes such as kjebapchinja.

Pork, chicken, beef, lamb, and fish are all prevalent, with the exception of largely Muslim Albanian communities, where pork is not eaten. A form of rice pudding, called sutiljash, is a famous dessert in the region.

Arts & Entertainment: Traditional art in North Macedonia comes from the Slavic, Albanian, and other cultures that settled in the area centuries ago. Most of this tradition remains in the form of metalwork, literature, religious music, woodcarving, frescoes, and imagery that came out of North Macedonia's Byzantine culture during the medieval era.

Macedonians trace their language and literary tradition to the ninth-century saints Cyril and Methodius. According to medieval church records, these two religious men first developed the written Cyrillic alphabet used by modern Macedonians from their monastery in Ohrid.

Today, Macedonian nationalism relies heavily on its literary tradition. During a cultural rebirth in the 1940s, a modern Macedonian written tradition began based on a break from the work of older authors. Some the country's most famous writers include Blaze Koneski, Slavko Janevski, Aco Sopov, Gane Todorovski, Mateja Matevski, Ante Popovski, Jovan Koteski, Vlada Urosevic, Petre M. Andreevski, Zivko Cingo, Mihail Rendzov, Radovan Pavlovski, and Bogomil Guzel.

Macedonian folk music makes use of gajda (bagpipes), the tambura (a two-stringed lute), the kaval (flute), and the tapan (a huge cylindrical drum). North Macedonia's favorite traditional dance is the Teskoto ("The Hard One"). Starting slowly and becoming progressively faster, the dance is said to represent the awakening of Macedonian popular nationalism.

North Macedonia also has a strong motion picture tradition dating back to early twentieth century producers Milton and Janaki Manaki. In the 1940s local government sponsored a new program, FIDIMA, an institution for the production, distribution and presentation of films in North Macedonia. Major film producers and directors include Aleksandar Gjurchinov, Dimitrie Osmanii, and Academy Award winner Stole Popov.

Holidays: North Macedonia celebrates public holidays on New Year's Eve (January 1), Orthodox Christmas Eve and Christmas Day (January 6 and 7), Women's Day (March 8), Labor Day/May Day (May 1), St. Cyrilus and St. Methodius Day (May 24), and Independence Day (September 8). Llinden (also called St. Elijah's Day), in honor of the Macedonian uprising, is celebrated with a folk music festival held in August.

Environment and Geography

Topography: Modern day North Macedonia lies in the southern part of the Balkan Peninsula, bounded by Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo and Serbia to the north, Albania to the west, and Greece to the south. The country is covered with mountainous, rugged terrain with deep valleys and basins.

The River Vardar runs through the center of North Macedonia, coming from northern Albania and winding its way through Greece toward the Aegean. North Macedonia also has three lakes: Lake Ohrid, which it shares with Albania; Lake Prespa, shared with Albania and Greece; and Lake Dojran on the easternmost part of the border with Greece. North Macedonia's mountains soar to a maximum height of 2,764 meters (9,068 feet), at the peak of Mount Korab.

Natural Resources: Despite its mountainous terrain, about 16.4 percent of North Macedonia's land mass is arable (2018 estimate). Forested areas provide timber, and mining in the country yields low-grade iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, chromite, manganese, nickel, tungsten, gold, silver, asbestos, and gypsum.

Plants & Animals: North Macedonia's high elevations and deep basins support a wide variety of plant and animal life. Bear, deer, and boar roam the country's national parks. Shrubs and forest growth cover the mountainsides, with steppe meadows above 2,000 meters (6,562 feet).

The Mavrovo National Park in western North Macedonia is said to contain six life zones, sustaining twenty-two forest and sixteen grass ecosystems, with more than 1,300 plant species and 145 species of trees.

Climate: Despite its small size, North Macedonia experiences three different climates. Most of the country experiences a mild continental climate, characterized by cold winters and dry, hot summers. Temperatures reach their extremes in the country's basins and valleys, and precipitation can come in the form of rain, snow, or hail.

In the most mountainous areas of the country, as along the northern part of the Albanian border, North Macedonia has a mountainous climate characterized by high snowfall amounts in the winter and cooler temperatures year round.

Along the Vardar River south of Skopje and in the Gevgelija-Valandovo, Dojran, and Strumica-Radovis ravines, North Macedonia has a Mediterranean climate. Moderated by warm winds off the Aegean Sea, this southernmost part of North Macedonia has warmer temperatures and drier weather throughout the year.

During July, the area's hottest month, temperatures reach a daily average of 25° Celsius (77° Fahrenheit), although temperatures in the town of Demir Kapija can climb as high as 40° Celsius (104° Fahrenheit). Winter temperatures are relatively mild, with a January average of 3° Celsius (38° Fahrenheit).

Like the rest of the world, North Macedonia also experienced changes in temperatures and precipitation due to the ongoing warming of the planet.

Economy

Once the least developed of the former Yugoslav states, North Macedonia successfully built an industrial economy in the wake of the Yugoslavian breakup. However, a dispute with Greece over North Macedonia's former name—Macedonia—and national symbols, combined with heavy trade sanctions against North Macedonia's former Yugoslav trade partners, nearly crippled the growing economy until 1996. Since that time, North Macedonia's industries have been recovering at a quick pace, but instability in Serbia and Albania remain a constant threat to financial growth in the region. In 2023, North Macedonia's gross domestic product (GDP, purchasing power parity) was US$42.444 billion, or US$23,400 per capita.

Industry: Industry accounts for a relatively significant percentage of North Macedonia's GDP. North Macedonia mines, manufactures, and processes coal, metallic chromium, lead, zinc, ferronickel, textiles, tobacco, pharmaceutical products, and steel. The country also has developed food processing plants and chemical manufacturing plants.

Agriculture: North Macedonia's agriculture accounts for a smaller percentage of the country's GDP. Major crops include grapes, rice, tobacco, wheat, corn, millet, cotton, sesame, mulberry leaves, citrus, and vegetables. The agricultural sector also raises cattle, pigs, fowl, and lamb for food consumption.

Services: The services sector makes up the largest percentage of North Macedonia's GDP. Though regional violence and fears of political instability died down somewhat after 2002, North Macedonia long struggled to attract tourists. For those who do venture to North Macedonia, the 2,400-year-old town of Ohrid is one of the most popular attractions. Aside from the scenic beauty of Lake Ohrid, the town boasts an accumulation of ruins and archeological treasures from its thousands of years as a center of trade and of Eastern European Christianity. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has named Ohrid a World Heritage Site.

Government

North Macedonia declared its independence from Yugoslavia on September 8, 1991, under the name Macedonia. Prior to its inclusion in Yugoslavia (originally created as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes following the Treaty of Versailles), Macedonia had been under the sovereignty of Serbia. Prior to this, the entire region was ruled by the Ottoman Empire. Other portions of the original Macedonian region are still included within the boundaries of Greece and Bulgaria.

Largely because of competing claims to the territory once held by the ancient Macedon Empire, the term "Macedonia" provoked debate within the region. For this reason, Greece objected to United Nations, NATO, and European Union (EU) recognition of the new republic's name and national symbols. These international bodies therefore referred to Macedonia as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), until the matter was fully resolved with Greece. Both NATO and the EU decreed that Macedonia had to settle its naming dispute with Greece before membership could be obtained. In June 2018, Macedonia and Greece signed the Prespa Accord, which stated the Republic of Macedonia’s intention to change its name to the Republic of North Macedonia. The name change was made official following the ratification of the agreement in February 2019. The same month, North Macedonia signed an accession protocol to become a member of NATO.

The republic's present borders contain seventy municipalities and the city of Skopje.

North Macedonia's government is a parliamentary republic. There is universal suffrage with a voting age of eighteen. Elections determine which political parties will fill between 120 and 140 seats in the Sobranie (Assembly), North Macedonia's legislative body. Most seats are filled by direct elections within constituencies granted proportional representation, while three seats are reserved for election by simple majority vote among worldwide diaspora constituents. The Sobranie elects a prime minister.

The president is elected to a five-year term by popular vote. The judicial system is structured under the Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court, and the Judicial Council.

Interesting Facts

• Before the death of Alexander III (Alexander the Great), the ancient kingdom of Macedon stretched into India, Mesopotamia, and Egypt and across Asia Minor and the Levant.
• Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun who earned international recognition for her lifetime of charity work in India, was born in Skopje, North Macedonia.
• Lake Ohrid, on the Albanian border, is the seventh deepest lake in Europe and one of the oldest in the world.
• North Macedonia held its first Gay Pride march in June 2019.

Bibliography

Human Development Report 2021/2022. United Nations Development Programme, 2022, hdr.undp.org/system/files/documents/global-report-document/hdr2021-22pdf‗1.pdf. Accessed 13 Jan. 2025.

"North Macedonia." The World Bank 2024, data.worldbank.org/country/north-macedonia. Accessed 13 Jan. 2025.

"North Macedonia." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 2 Jan. 2025, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/north-macedonia/. Accessed 13 Jan. 2025.

"North Macedonia." World Health Organization, www.who.int/countries/mkd/en/. Accessed 14 Nov. 2023.

Smith, Helena. "Macedonia Officially Changes its Name to North Macedonia." The Guardian, 12 Feb. 2019, www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/12/nato-flag-raised-ahead-of-north-macedonias-prospective-accession. Accessed 25 Jul. 2019.