Podgorica, Montenegro

Podgorica is the capital and largest city of Montenegro, a Balkan country in southeastern Europe. Podgorica was previously known as Titograd from 1944 through 1992, when the country was a republic incorporated in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). When the SFRY dissolved in 1992, the name was restored. A Serbian name, Podgorica means "under the little mountain," a reference to Gorica Hill, which overlooks the center of the capital.

Landscape

Podgorica is located in the southern part of Montenegro on the Zeta plain and surrounded by several important trade routes and waterways. The city lies at the convergence of the Ribnica and Morača Rivers, with the Zeta, Cijevna, and Sitnica Rivers in close proximity. In addition, Podgorica is situated near Lake Scudari (Skadar) and is just sixty-five kilometers (forty miles) north of the Adriatic Sea. To the north of the city is a series of hills, the largest of which is Gorica Hill at 107 meters (351 feet).

Podgorica occupies 1,441 square kilometers (556 square miles) and is divided into three municipalities: Podgorica City, Golubovci, and Tuzi. The three municipalities contain neighborhoods or local communities that have limited self-governance for municipal matters. Podgorica is also close to some of Montenegro's ski resorts in the north of the country.

Due to Podgorica’s proximity to the Adriatic, the city has a Mediterranean climate, which is fairly moderate, with warm summers and mild winters. Snowfall is rare, and the average annual rainfall measures 1,544 millimeters (61 inches). Podgorica’s average yearly temperature is 16 degrees Celsius (61 degrees Fahrenheit), with temperatures as high as 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in July and August.

People

The population of Podgorica was approximately 177,000 in 2018, according to the US Central Intelligence Agency. An official census in 2011 placed the population of the city itself at 151,000; government estimates as of 2016 measured the metropolitan region at 187,085 people. The city and surrounding areas account for nearly 30 percent of the country's population. Montenegrins are the largest ethnic group in Podgorica, followed by a large Serbian community. Other residents of the city include Bosniaks, Albanians, Croats, and Roma.

Orthodox Christianity is the predominant religion, followed by Sunni Islam and Roman Catholicism. The official language of Montenegro is the Montenegrin language, a dialect of Serbo-Croatian, though Serbian is also widely spoken. Other commonly spoken languages include Albanian and Bosnian.

Podgorica is home to several cultural and recreational events, including the annual International Podgorica Marathon held in October. An important alternative theater festival, the International Festival of Alternative Theater (FIAT), is also held every year, attracting numerous international theatrical companies. Two literary festivals, DEUS and the Book Fair, are held annually, as are several summer music festivals.

Economy

Podgorica is the main economic and administrative center of Montenegro, and the government and financial industry employ the bulk of the city's workforce. The city is home to the Montenegro Stock Exchange (MNSE) and the New Securities Exchange of Montenegro (NEX). Light industries in the city include the manufacture of textiles, vehicles, and aluminum and the processing of tobacco. Other industries in the city include telecommunications and construction, both of which experienced rapid growth in the early twenty-first century. Foreign investment in the capital has also increased since Montenegro declared itself an independent state in 2006. In 2017, net foreign direct investment in the country was $848 million, one of the highest per capita in Europe. That year Norway, Russia, Italy, Azerbaijan, and Hungary were Montenegro's largest international investors.

Landmarks

As Montenegro’s cultural hub, Podgorica is home to numerous museums and cultural institutions. Podgorica City Museum has a collection detailing the area's Roman heritage. The Museum of Marko Miljanov, a Montenegrin cultural figure, is in nearby Medun. The Natural History Museum contains information about wildlife and plant life in the Balkan region. There is also the Petrovic Palace, a gallery-museum that houses art from as early as the seventh century, and the Contemporary Gallery, which is an important center for Podgorica's contemporary art scene.

Greater Podgorica also contains numerous ancient and historical sites, particularly ruins. Within the city itself is the Nemanjica Grad, which is home to the ancient ruins of Ribnica, the medieval name for Podgorica. Just outside of the city are the ruins of Medun, a Illyrian town dating back to roughly the third century CE. The Duklja (Doclea) ruins also contain a rich legacy of the region's history. The site includes palaces, tombstones, and other ancient artifacts.

Other cultural institutions in Podgorica include Montenegro's National Theatre and the City Theatre of Podgorica. Podgorica's old city is home to two mosques and the Turkish clock tower, though the majority of this area was destroyed during World War II.

History

In its early history, Podgorica was a prime location for settlement, due to its proximity to five rivers as well as other bodies of water. The earliest record of the town dates back to the Roman era, when it was known as Birziminium. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Birziminium would eventually be renamed Ribnica for most of the medieval period.

The first record of the name Podgorica is from 1326. At that time, the city was part of an important trade route for the region. In 1474, the city was taken over by the Turks, the first of many invading forces to rule over the city. Turkish control over the city would last nearly four hundred years.

In 1878 the Turks withdrew from Podgorica, but the city was taken over by Austria-Hungary in 1916, less than fifty years later. In 1941, during World War II, the Italians took control of Podgorica. The Germans soon replaced their Italian allies in 1943 but were forced to withdraw in 1944 when the city was liberated. Podgorica suffered heavily during the war, and most of the old city was destroyed. What little surviving architecture that remained included the Turkish clock tower, dating back to the eighteenth century, a mosque, and a few private homes.

As part of the armistice at the end of World War II, Montenegro became part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY); prior to this Montenegro was part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. On July 13, 1946, Podgorica was renamed Titograd after Yugoslavian leader Josip Broz Tito, a leading figure of the Communist revolution in Yugoslavia. Tito officially broke with Russia in 1948 to lead Yugoslavia as a separate Communist entity.

However, despite breaking with Russia, the Communist regime fell in 1992, shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. As civil war began in Yugoslavia, the impact felt in Podgorica was largely economic. The numerous conflicts effectively stunted economic growth in the Balkan region. After the Balkan Wars, Montenegro merged with Serbia in 1992 to become the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (renamed Serbia and Montenegro in 2003), and Titograd was renamed Podgorica. In 2006, Montenegrins voted in favor of separating from Serbia to form their own country with Podgorica as its capital, and Montenegro declared its independence on June 3, 2006. It applied to join the EU in December 2008, and joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 2017.

Bibliography

Berglund, Sten, et al., eds. The Handbook of Political Change in Eastern Europe. Northampton: Elgar, 2013. Print.

Glenny, Misha. The Balkans: Nationalism, War, and the Great Powers, 1804–2011. New York: Penguin, 2012. Print.

"Montenegro." World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 20 Feb. 2024, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/montenegro/. Accessed 27 Feb. 2024.

"Montenegro Country Profile." BBC, 22 May 2023, www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17667132. Accessed 27 Feb. 2024.

"Population Census 2011." MONSTAT. Statistical Office of Montenegro, 2012. Web. 2 Apr. 2014.

Radeljic, Branislav. Europe and the Post-Yugoslav Space. Burlington: Ashgate, 2013. Print.