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Struga Струга (Macedonian) Strugë (Albanian)
Aerial view of Struga
Coat of arms
StrugaLocation within North Macedonia
Coordinates: 41°10′N 20°40′E / 41.167°N 20.667°E / 41.167; 20.667
Country	North Macedonia
Region	Southwestern
Municipality	Struga
Government
• Mayor	Ramiz Merko (DUI)
Area
• Total	483 km (186 sq mi)
Elevation	693 m (2,273 ft)
Population
• Total	16,559
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	6330
Area code	+389 46
Car plates
Climate	Cfb
Website	www.struga.gov.mk

Struga (Template:Lang-mk Template:IPA-mk, Template:Lang-sq) is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of North Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality.

Etymology

Struga represents a widely borrowed term from Pre-Albanian strunga 'sheep pen', having been borrowed into various Slavic languages such as Macedonian stra(n)ga and Serbo-Croation/Bulgarian struga. The linguistic morphology of the borrowing could suggest that Struga may be one of the earliest attested borrowings of Albanian into Slavic. The contemporary Albanian term, "Shtrunga", has also been borrowed into Vlach/Romanian languages as Strunga.

The ancient name of the city is Enchalon (Εγχαλών), the ancient Greek word for eel, which may be related to the Illyrian Enchele tribe that was known to live in the region. According to E. Hamp, a connection with Albanian ngjalë makes it possible that the name Enchele was derived from the Illyrian term for eels, which may have been anciently related to Greek and simply adjusted to the Greek pronunciation. In Polybius the word 'Enchele' is written with a voiceless aspirate kh, Enchelanes, while in Mnaseas it was replaced with a voiced ng, Engelanes, the latter being a typical feature of the Ancient Macedonian and northern Paleo-Balkan languages.

History

In ancient times, the Lake Ohrid region, including Enchalon (ancient name of modern Struga) was inhabited by the Illyrian Enchele and Dassareti tribes. The Via Egnatia ran through the Lake Ohrid region, and is believed to have passed west of Enchalon.

Etymologist Qemal Murati believes that the name Strugë-a was first used as the name of a village; this name was used in a document of Tsar Dusan in the 14th century in the form of Struga. Later, in the 16th-17th centuries, the Codex of Slepçan, the name 'Strugi' was used.

During the 16th century, Struga was located in the Sanjak of Ohrid of the Ottoman Empire. It was registered as a Christian village in the Nahiya of Ohrid with 184 Christian families, 20 unmarried men and 36 widows, as well as 8 Muslim families.

In the late 19th and early 20th century, Struga was part of the Manastir Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire.

Struga was the birthplace in 1865 Ibrahim Temo, who would go on to be a doctor and one of the founders of the Ottoman reform movement known as the Committee of Union and Progress.

From 1929 to 1941, Struga was part of the Vardar Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.

Geography

Struga is located in an open valley on Lake Ohrid. The Black Drin river (Crn Drim) starts at the lake and divides the city.

Demographics

As of the 2002 census, the city of Struga has 16,559 inhabitants and the ethnic composition was the following:

• Macedonians, 8,901 (53.7%)
• Albanians, 5,293 (32.0%)
• Turks, 907 (5.5%)
• Vlachs, 550 (3.3%)
• others, 908 (5.5%)

The mother tongues of the city's residents were the following:

• Macedonian, 9,665 (58.4%)
• Albanian, 5,615 (34.0%)
• Turkish, 823 (5.0%)
• Aromanian, 271 (1.6%)
• others, 185 (1.1%)

The religious composition of the city was the following:

• Orthodox Christians, 9,197 (55.5%)
• Muslims, 7,075 (42.7%)
• others, 287 (1.7%)

Until the last few decades of the 20th century Albanian Tosk, in particular the geographically central variety of the dialect dominated among speakers of Albanian in Struga. The local Romani population of Struga speaks and sings in the southern Tosk Albanian dialect, as does the local Turkish population. Aromanians in Struga also speak Tosk Albanian.

Culture

Struga is also a place of important cultural significance in North Macedonia, as it is the birthplace of the poets Konstantin and Dimitar Miladinov.

The main event of the cultural life in Struga is the world's largest poetry gathering, Struga Poetry Evenings, whose laureates have included several Nobel Prize for Literature winners such as

• Joseph Brodsky,
• Eugenio Montale,
• Pablo Neruda,
• Seamus Heaney,
• Fazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca

and many others since 1966.

There are several cultural monuments in Struga and in its vicinity such as

• the Monastery of Kališta, a few kilometers away from the town center, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. It is believed that it dates from the 16th century, with frescoes from the 14th and the 15th centuries.
• Another rock church is present in the neighbouring village of Radožda with frescoes from the 13th and 14th centuries.
• The Church of Sveta Bogorodica (St Mary) in Vraništa, is believed to be where Tsar Samuel was crowned.
• The church of St. George is also located in the town; built on top of Samuel's church, it has many icons from the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries.
• Near the village of Radolishta, a basilica from the 4th century was discovered, with a mosaic.

Struga's old architecture dates from the 18th and 19th centuries.

Sports

Local football clubs FC Struga and FK Karaorman have both played in the Macedonian First Football League. A third club Vllaznimi, currently plays in the Macedonian Third League (Southwest Division).

Economy

Tourism

Much of the town's income is through internal tourism. Struga's location on Lake Ohrid makes it a slightly quieter and more peaceful experience than the more bustling Ohrid.

When visiting this quiet town of North Macedonia, there are a few other places that show the beauty and culture, like the clay chamber pots at the house of the Miladinovci Brothers, the old bazaar, the century-old churches and mosques.

Before the evenings you can enjoy on 3 kinds of beaches called "Male beach" (maška plaža), "Female beach" (Ženska plaža) and Galeb ("Gull Beach"), located just before the estuary of the river Crn Drim (Black Drim) in its own flow, and between the two previous beaches.

Just in front of the "Male beach", at the estuary of the river Crn Drim it is located the biggest 5 star Hotel Drim in Struga.

Out of the town there is another tourist place near the lake called Biser (Pearl), also a hotel.

Every August the Struga Poetry Evenings (SPE) are held at the "Poetry Bridge" (Template:Lang-mk) and are attended by poets, writers and artists from across the world.

Churches

• St. George Church – from the 13th century;
• St. Nicholas Church
• Church of the Myrrhbearing Women

International relations

Twin towns – Sister cities

Struga is twinned with:

• Büyükçekmece, Turkey
• Mangalia, Romania
• Waterbury, Connecticut, United States

See also

• Struga Poetry Evenings
• List of people from Struga

References

1. Matthew C., Curtis (2012). Slavic-Albanian Language Contact, Convergence, and Coexistence. The Ohio State University. p. 140. One possible example of this path is the term widely borrowed from PreAlbanian (or a Balkan substrate) strunga 'sheep pen' which turns out with various nonfront vowels in Slavic such as Mk stra(n)ga, BCS, Bg struga (Hamp 1977).37 Given that the borrowing generally looses nasality in the Slavic languages that borrow it, and further, given the several parallel outcomes to the Slavic back nasal (Mk pat, zab, BCS put, zub; Bg pǔt, zǔb) this may be taken as further evidence of the early date of this borrowing in Slavic.
2. Matthew C., Curtis (2012). Slavic-Albanian Language Contact, Convergence, and Coexistence. The Ohio State University. p. 116. Likewise, another presumably old borrowing Slavic borrowing, Sr, Bg struga, (Mk straga) preserves the original /s/, as opposed to contemporary Albanian shtrunga (cf. Romanian strungă).22 These exceptions to the trend of phonological shapes indicate that, while there may have been some early borrowings from Albanian (or Pre-Albanian) communities, most came significantly later, certainly after the change of *s > sh.
3. Gashi, Skënder (2014). Emrat e shqiptarëve në shek. XIII-XV në dritën e burimeve kishtare serbe. Prishtinë: TENDA. p. 61.
4. Šašel Kos 1993, p. 119. sfn error: no target: CITEREFŠašel_Kos1993 (help)
5. Dervishi, Nebi (2005). Etnokultura e Fushëgropës së Ohrit. Tetovo: Çabej. p. 175. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
6. Wilkes 1992, pp. 98–99. sfn error: no target: CITEREFWilkes1992 (help)
7. Hammond 1982, p. 265. sfn error: no target: CITEREFHammond1982 (help)
8. Strabo, Geography (ed. H.C. Hamilton, Esq., W. Falconer, M.A.), book 7, chapter 7: "...had established their sway, and Enchelii, who are also called Sesarethii. Then come the Lyncestæ, the territory Deuriopus, Pelagonia-Tripolitis..."
9. Dervishi, Nebi (2005). Etnokultura e Fushëgropës së Ohrit. Tetovo: Çabej. p. 33. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
10. Dervishi, Nebi (2005). Etnokultura e Fushëgropës së Ohrit. Tetovo: Çabej. p. 24. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
11. Dervishi, Nebi (2005). Etnokultura e Fushëgropës së Ohrit. Tetovo: Çabej. p. 113. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
12. Temo, İbrahim (1987). İbrahim Temo'nun İttihad ve Terakki Anıları. İstanbul: Arba. p. 5.
13. Macedonian census, language and religion Censuses of population 1948 - 2002
14. Censuses of population 1948 – 2002 Archived 2013-10-14 at the Wayback Machine
15. ^ Murtishi, Kaim (2001). Ladorishti: Histori dhe Tradita. Asdreni. p. 21. "ndërsa për ruajtjen e identitetit të Strugës, flet fakti se në atë qytet, para disa dekadave, flitej vetëm dialekti toskë, sidomos toskërishtja qendrore, ndërmjet Jugut dhe Veriut të Shqiperisë... Këto fakte gjuhësore i vërteton edhe popullata rome, jevgjit e Strugës, flasin dhe këndojnë toskërisht, gjithashtu edhe popullata turke e këtij qyteti, flet dialektin toskë. Këtë dialekt e flasin vllehët e Strugës dhe të Belicës. Këtë dialekt e flet edhe popullata sllave që ka mësuar të flasë shqip."
16. Jелена Павловска, Наташа Ниќифоровиќ и Огнен Коцевски (2011). Валентина Божиновска. уред (на македонски). "Карта на верски објекти во Македонија". Менора – Скопје: Комисија за односи во верските заедници и религиозните групи. ISBN 978-608-65143-2-7
17. "Kardeş Şehirlerimiz". www.bcekmece.bel.tr. Retrieved 2021-09-13.
18. "Orase infratite Arhive". Mangalia (in Romanian). Retrieved 2021-09-13.
19. "Waterbury and Struga Agree To Become Sister Cities, O'Leary To Visit Macedonia Next Summer". The Waterbury Observer. Archived from the original on 2014-01-28. Retrieved 2014-01-23.

External links

• Struga Municipality
• Points of interest in Struga
• Struga travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Struga Tourism Portal

v t e Cities of North Macedonia by population
50,000+	Bitola Kumanovo Prilep Skopje Tetovo
10,000+	Debar Delčevo Gevgelija Gostivar Kavadarci Kičevo Kočani Kriva Palanka Negotino Ohrid Probištip Radoviš Struga Strumica Sveti Nikole Štip Veles Vinica
2,000+	Berovo Bogdanci Demir Hisar Demir Kapija Kratovo Kruševo Makedonska Kamenica Makedonski Brod Pehčevo Resen Valandovo

v t e Struga
Geography	Southwestern statistical region Black Drin Lake Ohrid Jablanica Mountain Kjafa San
Events	Struga Poetry Evenings
Language	Struga dialect Vevčani-Radožda dialect
Sports	FC Struga FK Karaorman FK Vlaznimi Gradska Plaža Stadium
Education	FON University Nikor Nestor High School Yahya Kemal College
Region	Struga municipality Struški Drimkol Struška Malesija Settlements
Transportation	St. Paul the Apostle Airport
People	List of people from Struga

v t e Inhabited places in Struga Municipality
Village(s)	Bezovo Bidževo Bogojci Boroec Brčevo Burinec Delogoždi Dobovjani Dolna Belica Dolno Tateši Draslajca Drenok Džepin Frangovo Globočica Gorna Belica Gorno Tateši Jablanica Kališta Korošišta Labuništa Lakaica Livada Lokov Ložani Lukovo Mali Vlaj Misleševo Mislodežda Modrič Moroišta Nerezi Novo Selo Oktisi Piskupština Podgorci Poum Prisovjani Radolišta Radožda Ržanovo Selci Šum Tašmaruništa Toska Velešta Višni Vranište Zagračani Zbaždi
Town(s)	Struga

41°10′39″N 20°40′44″E / 41.17750°N 20.67889°E / 41.17750; 20.67889

• Struga
• Towns in North Macedonia