Bukovo
Encyclopedia
Bukovo is a village in the Bitola municipality
near the town of Bitola
in the Republic of Macedonia
. The village is famous for its very spicy paprika
.
. The discovery of the ruins of a church—attested in statistical documents—at the base of nearby mountains are usually cited as proof of this.
Similarly, it is widely claimed that the upper quarter of the village was settled by people from the now long abandoned village of "Magarevo" and the lower quarter by people from the abandoned village of "Selište". In both cases, the ruins of houses can be found in adjacent areas. Others, however, believe that the original settlers were the fleeing residents of the ancient city of Heraclea
following its devastating earthquake
.
During its most prosperous period, the village had approximately 5,000 residents and over 600 students enrolled in its grammar school
. As a municipality in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
, Bukovo was twice visited by King Alexander I
as the "most orderly" village in all of Yugoslavia.
Throughout the 20th century, many residents left for Australia
, the United States
, Canada
and areas of Western Europe
in search of work. There are approximately 2,000 natives of Bukovo in the ethnic Macedonian
diaspora
, more than 800 of whom live in Rochester
, New York, affectionately referred to as "Bukovo City" by Macedonians who live there. A large number of people from Bukovo have also settled in Richmond
, Australia
.
The Bukovo monastery was once an important cultural center where monks would translate and copy sacred texts into the local vernacular
. Time had deteriorated the monastery building leading residents to recently renovate it.
Christian
village with a school run by the Patriarchate of Constantinople
.
According to the 2002 census, the village had a total population of 3,494 people — 3,456 ethnic Macedonians
, 11 Albanians
, 14 Turks
, 1 Aromanian
, 6 Serbs
and 6 declared as "other".
Bitola municipality
Bitola is a municipality in southern Republic of Macedonia. Bitola is also the name of the city where the municipal seat is found. The municipality is located in the Pelagonia Statistical Region.-Geography:...
near the town of Bitola
Bitola
Bitola is a city in the southwestern part of the Republic of Macedonia. The city is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational centre. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba and Nidže mountains, 14 km north of the...
in the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. The village is famous for its very spicy paprika
Paprika
Paprika is a spice made from the grinding of dried fruits of Capsicum annuum . In many European languages, the word paprika refers to bell peppers themselves. The seasoning is used in many cuisines to add color and flavor to dishes. Paprika can range from mild to hot...
.
History
Local legend has it that the first families to settle in Bukovo had come from a much older village called "Neoljani" which was completed destroyed in a firestormFirestorm
A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires, forest fires, and wildfires...
. The discovery of the ruins of a church—attested in statistical documents—at the base of nearby mountains are usually cited as proof of this.
Similarly, it is widely claimed that the upper quarter of the village was settled by people from the now long abandoned village of "Magarevo" and the lower quarter by people from the abandoned village of "Selište". In both cases, the ruins of houses can be found in adjacent areas. Others, however, believe that the original settlers were the fleeing residents of the ancient city of Heraclea
Heraclea Lyncestis
Heraclea Lyncestis also spelled Herakleia Lynkestis was an ancient Greek city in the north-western region of the ancient kingdom of Macedon. It was founded by Philip II of Macedon in the middle of the 4th century BC in Lynkestis, after its conquest. The town was named in honor of the mythological...
following its devastating earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
.
During its most prosperous period, the village had approximately 5,000 residents and over 600 students enrolled in its grammar school
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
. As a municipality in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
, Bukovo was twice visited by King Alexander I
Alexander I of Yugoslavia
Alexander I , also known as Alexander the Unifier was the first king of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as well as the last king of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes .-Childhood:...
as the "most orderly" village in all of Yugoslavia.
Throughout the 20th century, many residents left for Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and areas of Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
in search of work. There are approximately 2,000 natives of Bukovo in the ethnic Macedonian
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
diaspora
Diaspora
A diaspora is "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland" or "people dispersed by whatever cause to more than one location", or "people settled far from their ancestral homelands".The word has come to refer to historical mass-dispersions of...
, more than 800 of whom live in Rochester
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, New York, affectionately referred to as "Bukovo City" by Macedonians who live there. A large number of people from Bukovo have also settled in Richmond
Richmond, New South Wales
Richmond is a town in New South Wales, north-west of Sydney, in the Local Government Area of the City of Hawkesbury. It is located at a latitude of 33° 35' 54" South and a longitude of 150°45' 04" east, 19 metres above sea level on the alluvial Hawkesbury River flats, at the foot of the Blue...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
The Bukovo monastery was once an important cultural center where monks would translate and copy sacred texts into the local vernacular
Prilep-Bitola dialect
The Prilep-Bitola dialect is a member of the central subgroup of the western group of dialects of the Macedonian language. This dialect is spoken in much of the Pelagonia region , as well as by the Macedonian-speaking minority population in and around Florina in neighbouring Greek Macedonia...
. Time had deteriorated the monastery building leading residents to recently renovate it.
Demographics
19th century geographers write that Bukovo was once a completely OrthodoxEastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
village with a school run by the Patriarchate of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
.
According to the 2002 census, the village had a total population of 3,494 people — 3,456 ethnic Macedonians
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
, 11 Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
, 14 Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
, 1 Aromanian
Aromanians
Aromanians are a Latin people native throughout the southern Balkans, especially in northern Greece, Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, and as an emigrant community in Serbia and Romania . An older term is Macedo-Romanians...
, 6 Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
and 6 declared as "other".