The population of Nižepole was made up of older inhabitants ofAromanians (Vlachs) and later Arvanito-Vlachs who formed a large part of the village population.[1] A small number of Muslim Albanians over time settled in Nižepole originating from theKorçë region.[1] During the first World War, Nižepole fell on the Allied side of theMacedonian front and its Aromanian villagers first fled toFlorina and then most went toKaterini, Greece.[1] After the war, most Nižepole Aromanians preferred to remain in Katerini after a few returnees came back telling of the destruction of the village.[1] Only in 1923 with thePopulation exchange between Greece and Turkey and arrival ofGreek refugees after theGreco-Turkish War (1919–1922) did some Nižepole inhabitants return to the village.[1]
A large population of the village would later migrate toMelbourne, Victoria, Australia from the late 1950's until the early 1990's, settling mainly in the northern suburbs ofPascoe Vale andCoburg. A smaller but still significant portion of the population would also migrate to the city ofRochester, New York, USA. These migrations coincided with the general rise of urban living in Macedonia, which saw the majority of remaining residents relocating to Bitola. As a result, a primarily ageing population is left as permanent residents of the village. In recent years, the village has become a holiday hot-spot, with a ski station attracting tourists from all over the country, as well as holiday homes orVikendici being developed throughout the whole village.
Nižepole, Greek language primary school and Orthodox church, early 20th century
Nižepole is attested in the Ottomandefter of 1467/68 as a village in thevilayet of Manastir. The inhabitants attested largely bore mixedSlavic-Albaniananthroponyms, such asGerg son ofBoris,Leko, orGin son ofLavre.[2]
In statistics gathered byVasil Kanchov in 1900, the village of Nižepole was inhabited by 1590 Aromanians, 250 Orthodox Albanians and 190 Orthodox Bulgarians.[3] According to the statistics of Bulgarian Exarchate secretary Dimitri Mishev (D. M. Brancoff), the town had a total Christian population of 940 in 1905, consisting of 780Vlachs and 160PatriarchistBulgarians.[4]
According to the 2002 census, the village had a total of 186 inhabitants.[5] Ethnic groups in the village include:[5]
Sveta Petka (Saint Paraskeva) - the main church of the village, built in the mid-19th century
Stã Viniri (Saint Paraskeva) - a small chapel located near the Grguli spring, built in 1838 in honour of the same saint as the main church, but differentiated by locals by using the Aromanian name for the saint
Sveti Atanas (Saint Athanasius) - a church located under the Pelister peak and dating back to the 19th century
Sveti Jovan Zlatoust (Saint John Chrystostom) - a church built in 2003 byJovan Vraniškovski under the renegadeOrthodox Ohrid Archbishopric, a former autonomous archbishopric of theSerbian Orthodox Church. The site was broken into by armed and masked men, who harassed and threatened nuns with machine guns, cut their hair and set the monastery on fire, in February 2004,[6] and the church was demolished by state authorities in October 2004[7]
Dr Trifun Panovski Primary School - a school built in the courtyard of theSveta Petka church in the late 19th century, using funds donated by a wealthy resident Konstantin Bebi on behalf of the Greek Patriarchate Church to teach the Greek language to locals, later named after the first doctor in theMacedonian Partisan movement
Old French Road - a road built in World War I by French troops, leading to theGolemo Ezero (Big Lake), one of two lakes making up thePelister Eyes
Risto Pulevski, Aromanian singer and songwriter who wrote the famous Macedonian songs'Tuginata pusta da ostane' and'Da li znaeš mila majko' among many others, the latter of which lead to a global lawsuit when formerGenesis frontmanPeter Gabriel sampled the song in his track'While the Earth Sleeps' and refused to acknowledge the original songwriter[8]
Kosta Colakovski-Stanko, Aromanian participant of theMacedonian Partisan movement,[9] bearer of a street in Bitola in his namesake
Vasil Canoski, participant of the Macedonian Partisan movement
Gjorgji Zisovski, Aromanian participant of the Macedonian Partisan movement
Vasko Taskovski, surrealist painter of wide renown throughout the Balkans
Gena Nakovska, Aromanian poet
Josif Petrovski, participant of the Macedonian Partisan movement
Dimche Milevski Dobri, participant of the Macedonian Partisan movement, bearer of a partisan monument
^abcdeKoukoudis, Asterios (2003).The Vlachs: Metropolis and Diaspora. Thessaloniki: Zitros Publications.ISBN9789607760869. p. 299. "One of the most noteworthy cases was quite a large group which settled among the older Vlach residents of Nižepole, close to Magarevo, making the Arvanitovlachs a significant part of the population of the village."; p. 352. "A small group of Moslem Albanians from the Korçë area gradually settled in Trnovo and Nižepole."; pp. 468-469. "The inhabitants of Nižepole, the only Vlach village behind Allied lines fled to Florina and, mainly to Katerini."; p. 470. "Most of the inhabitants of Nižepole opted to remain in Katerini when the first people to return brought home the news of the utter devastation of their village. It was not until 1923 and the arrival of the refugees from the Asia Minor disaster that some of them went back to Nižepole."
^Murati, Qemal (2022). "EMRA VETJAKË TË PROVENIENCËS SHQIPTARE NË VILAJETIN E MANASTIRIT NË DRITËN E DEFTERËVE OSMANË TË SHEK. XV".Studime Albanologjike. ITSH: 35.NIZHO POLE Gerg, i biri i Boris-it. Leko; Gin, i biri i Lavre-s; Dimitri, i biri i Millosh-it; Dedie Millosh. Dede, i biri i Rajo-s; Molla (Mulla), e vejë
North Macedonia
Pelagonia
Bitola