Ferizaj Uroševac | |
|---|---|
City andmunicipality | |
 "Mulla Veseli" Mosque andSt. Uroš Cathedral  Ferizaj's Theater "Adriana"  "Anton Çetta" City Archive  Catholic Church "Engjëlli i Rojës"  "Sadik Tafarshiku" City Library | |
 Flag  Seal | |
| Nicknames: City of Murals | |
  Ferizaj  Ferizaj | |
| Coordinates:42°22′N21°10′E / 42.367°N 21.167°E /42.367; 21.167 | |
| Country | Kosovo |
| District | Ferizaj |
| Settled | 1873 |
| Named after | Feriz Shasivari |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–council |
| • Mayor | Agim Aliu (PDK) |
| • Council | Ferizaj Municipal Council |
| Area | |
• Municipality | 344.61 km2 (133.05 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 14th in Kosovo |
| Elevation | 580 m (1,900 ft) |
| Population (2024) | |
• Municipality | 109,345 |
| • Rank | 3rd in Kosovo |
| • Density | 320/km2 (820/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 52,392 |
| • Ethnicity | |
| Demonym(s) | Standard Albanian:Ferizajas (m) Ferizajase (f) Gheg dialect:Ferizajli (m) Ferizajlike (f) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Postal code | 70000 |
| Area code | +383 29 |
| Vehicle registration | 05 |
| Motorways |  |
| Website | kk.rks-gov.net/ferizaj |
Ferizaj orUroševac,[a] is acity and amunicipality inKosovo. It is the third largest city in Kosovo by population and also the seat of Ferizaj Municipality and theFerizaj District.[2] According to the last census of 2024, the municipality of Ferizaj has 109,255 inhabitants.
Ferizaj has been populated since the prehistoric era by theStarčevo,Vinča andBaden culture. During theOttoman period, Ferizaj served as a trading center on the route betweenBelgrade andThessaloniki. Ferizaj has always been considered as a city where tolerance and coexistence in terms of religion and culture has been part of the society in the last centuries. During and after theKosovo War in 1999, theUS Army baseCamp Bondsteel was established outside of the city, now being used by forces belonging toKFOR. It is the largest and the most expensive foreign military base built by the Americans in South Eastern Europe, since theVietnam War.[3]
Ferizaj is located in the south-eastern part of Kosovo, about halfway between the cities ofPristina andSkopje. It is some 230 kilometres north-east ofTirana, 55 kilometres north of Skopje, 300 kilometres west ofSofia, 35 kilometres south of Pristina and 300 kilometres east ofPodgorica. Ferizaj is also known for a geographic phenomenon known asriver bifurcation. TheNerodime river is divided into two branches and both flow into two different seas. This phenomenon is exclusively seen in nature in this example, and that of the river Casiquiare,Brazil.
Since 2016, the MuralFest festival has been organised annually by the organisation with the same name MuralFest Kosova by paintingmurals in public spaces, it eventually spread to other cities in Kosovo, the festival has been attracting the attention of international media since last year, it is attended by famous mural artists around the world.
Ferizaj was named after a former Ottoman governor, who had a station built on the Mitrovica-Skopje railway on his estate:Ferizaj inAlbanian andFerizović inSerbian. In 1914,Ferizović was later renamedUroševac, after the Serbian KingStefan Uroš II Milutin,[4][5] while the Albanian name remained unchanged.
The most ancient group of people that inhabited the territory ofKosovo, in the6th and5th millenniums BC was theStarčevo culture. Members of this group built homes near rivers and river terraces. They made their homes of willows and mud, while their main profession was plowing and farming.[6]
In the next archaeological period, theVinča culture developed in some parts of Kosovo. These population shifts were made around 4300 BC. The newcomers also built their habitats near rivers. These habitats were unfortified, with dense rows of willows and mud houses. Remnants of their material culture, mostly different forms of ceramic vessels and large numbers of baked clay figures, testify on a higher cultural level.[7]
Following the previously mentioned,Starčevo andVinča, the Bubanj-Hum culture arrived in Kosovo. This cultural group expanded from the east, from the territory of today'sBulgaria. When carriers of this ethno-cultural group reached the region before the end of the 6th millennium BC, they destroyedVinča habitats. Remnants of their material culture have not survived.[7]
After Bubanj-Hum, theBaden culture arrived from the Danube, representing its southernmost influence in Kosovo. Baden culture ended before the end of the 3rd millennium BC.[8]
Starting from the 8th century BC and then during the next centuries, until theRoman conquest, can transmit continuously development of a new culture in the region, theDardanian tribe.[8] The Dardanian burned their dead and bury their remnants intumuli tombs. In the city, two necropoleis have been found, one in the locality of Kuline near the railway station in Gërlicë, the other in region of Mollopolc, along the Ferizaj-Shtime road.[9]
Around 280 BC some episodes from the life of Dardania reaches historical records as a political community ruled by a king.[9]
Most of the information on the Dardanians is about their wars against theMacedons. The first contact between the Dardania and the Romans came in 200 BC when they offered military assistance in the fight against Macedonia. In 96 BC the Roman EmperorSulla subdued the Dardani.[9] NumerousRoman settlements were established across the valley, on the old lake terraces. These settlements also accompanied a road network; connecting cities such asUlpiana andSkopje, which was part of the important road connecting Macedonia toDalmatia, passing across Ferizaj and the gorge ofKaçanik. A part of the road was discovered on the river bed of theLepenac, one near the village of Doganaj, the other near the village of Reka.[9]
The town, was namedFerızovık when it was part of theOttoman Empire, was little more than a village until 1873, when theBelgrade-Thessaloniki railway was opened, passing through the town.
During theOttoman–Habsburg wars of the late 17th century and the first half of the 18th century, the major ethnic changes occurred and the rapid Islamization fromOttoman Empire began. According toTurkish sources until the construction of theMitrovica–Skopje railway was finished there was no evidence found of a city called Feriz-Bey. At the beginning it was called "Tasjon" by surrounding villagers; this came as a result of the French wordstation mispronounced by the local residents.
The rapid development of the town started with the construction of the railway station, and within a short period of time, the city became home to different inns, warehouses, and permanent markets. Traders of Kosovo fromPrizren toShkodër, which at that time was by caravan, were mainly diverted towardsThessaloniki. Exporting raw materials especially that of cereals went through Ferizaj and through aligned foreign goods turnover came from Thessaloniki and Skopje. This was the reason that Ferizaj for a period of thirty years became a city with about 400 houses and 200 shops. Most of the population worked in crafts and other activities related to trade. During this period, the opening of the colonial shops, craft workshops accelerated the development of the city.
When the settlement fell to Serbia during theFirst Balkan War, the local Albanian population offered determined resistance. According to certain reports, fighting lasted for three days.[10] The Serbian commander then ordered the population to surrender. When the survivors returned, 300–400 men were executed[10] and according to theCatholic Archbishop of Skopje,Lazër Mjeda, only three Muslim Albanians over the age of fifteen were left alive.[11][12] The destruction of Albanian-populated villages around Ferizovik followed.[13] Themassacre of the Albanian population following the entry of the Serbian army was described by Leo Freundlich who recorded contemporary reports inAlbania's Golgotha. According to the war correspondent from Rome'sIl Messaggero, the town was destroyed and most of its inhabitants were killed.[12] Freundlich estimated the total number of deaths to be 1,200.[12] Numerous reports from the Balkan Wars including the series of articles from then journalistLeon Trotsky recorded state-organized massacres in numerous locations including Ferizaj, Gjakova, Gjilan, Pristina and Prizren with the total number of deaths at around 25,000.[14]
TheTreaty of London in 1913 turned Ferizovik into a part of theKingdom of Serbia, and the name was changed to Uroševac, afterStefan Uroš V of Serbia.[15] This was part of theSerbianisation efforts of the early twentieth century in which inhabited places within Kosovo were named after heroes fromSerbian epic poetry.[16]
The beginning of theFirst World War partly began withSerbia andMontenegro, and because both were involved directly from the beginning of the war, Kosovo was plagued with fighting.[17][full citation needed] In October 1915,Bulgaria entered the war as an ally of theGerman empire, and conducted military operations in the Ferizaj area that were part of the main artery connectingKumanovo andSkopje withKosovo. The city had served as a stopping point during the Bulgarian penetration of theKaçanik Gorge. The Serbian resistance ended on 25 November 1915, when it was vanquished by the Bulgarian Army. This was facilitated by Albanians in hopes that the situation would change and the area would be freed.[17] On 1 April 1916, Ferizaj was left to Bulgaria as a station key, but the usage of the railway was also granted to theAustro–Hungarian Empire as the line: Prizren – Ferizaj – Albania.
The early months of theWorld War II had a positive impact on the residents of Ferizaj for not realizing theConvention of 1938, which was signed betweenYugoslavia and Turkey for the resettlement of Albanians inTurkey, and that included the massive resettlement of the residents of the District of Nerodime. Under this convention, this migration was to be imposed in the period of 1939 until 1944. The attack led byItaly toAlbania that it had not been realized.[18] Under the invasion of Albanian territory byItalians andGermans, the Italian troops were deployed in Ferizaj, due to an auxiliary army airport of theKingdom of Serbia being discovered, which served Italian militaryaircraft.[19]
In 1941, theCommunist Party's leading bodies of Ferizaj implored more residents to join theNational Liberation Movement. By the end of this year, previously established groups of illegal arms were conducting business in the city. With the capitulation of Italy, the country was occupied byGermany, and the behavior of the German occupation was more favorable to the Albanian population than that of theItalians.[20] On 11–12 September 1943, 60 Serbs were killed by Albanians in the area of Ferizaj.[21] After the German invasion, the National Liberation Movement was strengthened even further until 1943 when the arrest and deportation of all participants began.[22] This movement eventually resulted in the liberation of the city on 2 December 1944, and later, in the liberation of the country. After the liberation of Ferizaj, two tasks stood afront the National Liberation Movement: release and protect territory, and rebuild the economy of the country.[23]
Later, the city suffered some damages during the 1999Kosovo War, with some of its Albanian-populated neighborhoods being shelled and burned by theYugoslav Army. Following the war, the city has seen serious inter-communal unrest, which has resulted in almost all of theSerbians, and other non-Albanian inhabitants, either being expelled or forced to flee. The Serbian churches ofSt. Nicholas andSt. Stephen were destroyed in 1999 in an act of rebellion.
Camp Bondsteel, the main base of theUnited States Army detachment to theKFOR peacekeeping force in Kosovo, is located nearby. The camp was established immediately after the war. The camp is one of the largest in the area, being formed by 955 acres or 360,000 square meters. Bondsteel is located on hills and farmland near the city of Ferizaj.[24]
Ferizaj has ahumid subtropical climate (Cfa) as of theKöppen climate classification with an average annual temperature of 11.7 °C (53.1 °F).[25] The warmest month in Ferizaj is August with an average temperature of 23.2 °C (73.8 °F), while the coldest month is January with an average temperature of 0.1 °C (32.2 °F).[25]
Climate data for Ferizaj | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 4.1 (39.4) | 6.4 (43.5) | 11.4 (52.5) | 16.7 (62.1) | 21.2 (70.2) | 25.5 (77.9) | 28.2 (82.8) | 28.7 (83.7) | 23 (73) | 17.2 (63.0) | 11.1 (52.0) | 5.1 (41.2) | 16.5 (61.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −3.2 (26.2) | −1.7 (28.9) | 1.7 (35.1) | 6.2 (43.2) | 11 (52) | 15.1 (59.2) | 17.5 (63.5) | 17.8 (64.0) | 13.2 (55.8) | 8.1 (46.6) | 3.1 (37.6) | −1.5 (29.3) | 7.3 (45.1) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 56 (2.2) | 58 (2.3) | 76 (3.0) | 90 (3.5) | 103 (4.1) | 80 (3.1) | 64 (2.5) | 49 (1.9) | 57 (2.2) | 60 (2.4) | 65 (2.6) | 74 (2.9) | 832 (32.7) |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 79 | 75 | 71 | 67 | 68 | 64 | 57 | 55 | 64 | 73 | 78 | 80 | 69 |
| Source: Climate-Data[25] | |||||||||||||
| Population history of Ferizaj Municipality in selected periods | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1948 | 1961 | 1981 | 1994 | 1997 | 2011 | 2024 |
| Pop. | 30,596 | 41,881 | 83,945 | 121,300 | 127,900 | 108,610 | 109,345 |
| ±% p.a. | — | +2.44% | +3.54% | +2.87% | +1.78% | −1.16% | +0.05% |
| Source:[1] | |||||||
According to theOSCE census OF 2018, there were 108,610 residents in Ferizaj Municipality, constituting thesixth most populous municipality of Kosovo.[26] Its urban population amounted to about 42,500, while the rural population was around 65,900.[26] With a population density of 314.8 people per square kilometer, Ferizaj is among the most densely populated municipalities of Kosovo.[27] In the 1990s, the city of Ferizaj had a population of about 70,000 people but it has grown substantially due to Albanian migration from the countryside and from parts of southern Serbia.[15]
By ethnicity,Albanians form the largest ethnic group in Ferizaj Municipality at 104,152, followed byAshkalis (3,629 inhabitants) andRomanis (204 inhabitants).[28] Other ethnicities includeBosniaks, Egyptians,Gorani,Serbs andTurks.[28] By language, 107,926 spokeAlbanian as a first language. Other spoken languages wereBosnian,Serbian andTurkish.[28] By religion, there were 107,121Muslim, 413Roman Catholics, 45Orthodox, 64 of other religions and 41irreligious.[28]
The Big Mosque of Mulla Veseli, built in 1891, and theSt. Uroš Orthodox Cathedral[29] in the centre of Ferizaj are considered symbolic of religious tolerance between MuslimAlbanians and ChristianSerbs. Because the mosque and the church are next to one another, they are popular tourist destinations. The mosque was destroyed duringWorld War II, but then rebuilt after the war. During the Kosovo War in 1999, neither were destroyed, however, in March 2004 during a period ofunrest in Kosovo, the church was attacked.
The composerLorenc Antoni lived in Ferizaj in the early1940s, and the composer Venqenc Gjini from Ferizaj have also made notable contributions to culture and are respected throughoutKosovo, especially for their creative idioms inspired by the central fountain in front of the mosque.[30]
Ferizaj is also famous for its Ensemble of Song and Dance "Kastriotët", which was created in 1967.
It also yearly hosts MuralFest, a festival of murals hosted every June in Ferizaj, where artists from around the world who specialise in the art of murals, come and show their talent by transforming public spaces into lively areas of the city, thus earning the name city of murals over the years, the festival also does mural art in other cities in Kosovo too, likePristina,Gjilan,Gjakova,Vitia andKaçanik.
There are 39 primary schools in the municipality and 20,492 students.[31] Eight secondary schools include gymnasium and professional schools (technical, medical, music, agricultural and economics) with 6,127 students in total.[31] The school attendance of theAshkali,Roma andGorani children is lower than theKosovo Albanians. There is also one kindergarten with a total of 270 children registered. The Municipal Department of Education and Science has more than 1,680 professional and support staff, including 10 minority communities representatives.[32]
The city has one public university known asUniversity of Applied Sciences in Ferizaj and one public library, where students also have internet access. Membership prices apply.
Ferizaj is home toFC Ferizaj, KF Dinamo in football andKH Kastrioti in handball.
A church foundation was unearthed in theNikadin village, believed to date back to the 5th or 6th centuries. There are remnants of bricks and tiling from the Roman era, and, most notably, asarcophagus which was identified below the floor.[33]
ANeolithic site is located 2 km from Ferizaj, in the Varosh village. It includes ceramic fragments, the majority of which belonged to theStarčevo andVinča cultures. It is believed that the site was a settlement in the Roman era.[34] In 2008, another Neolithic site was discovered in the Zllatar village. There are indications it was used in theMesolithic age, as well as more recent periods. It displays flint, stone tools, and ceramics.[35]
Ruins of a Roman-era church were discovered atKomogllava. It is believed to have been built in the 1st century BC, then rebuilt in the Byzantine era. The locality includes remnants of ancient urbanized streets, sewage, and other infrastructure. Vases, ceramic pots, coins, jewellery, items of iron and other carbonaceous substances, but also characteristic stone, believed to have been moved from coastal areas to build the sarcophagus and other items.[33][36]
Ferizaj'ssister cities are:
Cedar Falls, Iowa (2023)
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Travel information from Wikivoyage| District of Ferizaj |  | |
|---|---|---|
| District of Gjakova | ||
| District of Gjilan | ||
| District of Mitrovica | ||
| District of Peja | ||
| District of Pristina | ||
| District of Prizren | ||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
