Proti is a small village in the Florina peripheral unit of Macedonia

Macedonia (Greece)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...

, northern Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, located approximately 5 kilometres northwest from the city of Florina

Florina

Florina is a town and municipality in mountainous northwestern Macedonia, Greece. Its motto is, 'Where Greece begins'. It is also the Metropolitan seat for the region. It lies in the central part of Florina peripheral unit, of which it is the capital. Florina belongs to the periphery of West...

, to which it belongs administratively.

The village first appears in two chysobulls

Golden Bull

A Golden Bull or chrysobull was a golden ornament representing a seal , attached to a decree issued by Byzantine Emperors and later by monarchs in Europe during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The term was originally coined for the golden seal itself but came to be applied to the entire decree...

 of the Serbian Tsar

Serbian Empire

The Serbian Empire was a short-lived medieval empire in the Balkans that emerged from the Serbian Kingdom. Stephen Uroš IV Dušan was crowned Emperor of Serbs and Greeks on 16 April, 1346, a title signifying a successorship to the Eastern Roman Empire...

 Stefan Dušan

Stefan Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia

Stephen Uroš IV Dušan the Mighty , was the King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks until his death on 20 December 1355. Dušan managed to conquer a large part of Southeast Europe, becoming one of the most powerful monarchs in his time...

 preserved in the archives of Treskavec monastery

Treskavec monastery

The Monastery of Treskavec , or St. Bogorodica, is a monastery situated on the rocky Mount Zlatovrv, 8 km north of Prilep, in the Republic of Macedonia. Built in the 12th century, it is known for being very inaccessible and has only one monk....

 near Prilep

Prilep

Prilep is the fourth largest city in the Republic of Macedonia. It has a population of 66,246 citizens. Prilep is known as "the city under Marko's Towers" because of its proximity to the towers of Prince Marko.-Name:...

. The documents, dated to 1343-44 and 1344-45, mention the village under its Aromanian

Aromanian language

Aromanian , also known as Macedo-Romanian, Arumanian or Vlach is an Eastern Romance language spoken in Southeastern Europe...

 name Klbasnicu in connection with a transhumant

Transhumance

Transhumance is the seasonal movement of people with their livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and to lower valleys in winter. Herders have a permanent home, typically in valleys. Only the herds travel, with...

 "route of the Vlachs

Vlachs

Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...

," a toponym (vlaški pat) preserved today for a footpath following the crest of a hill to the west of the village. An Ottoman

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

 defter

Defter

A Defter was a type of tax register in the Ottoman Empire. The information collected could vary, but tahrir defterleri typically included details of villages, dwellings, household heads , ethnicity/religion , and land use.The defter-i hakâni was a land registry, also used for tax...

 of 1481 records eighty households in the village.

At one time a flourishing community of 500 people whose primary occupation was wheat farming, Proti today is an agricultural hamlet of more than 200.

There are a number of public buildings in the hamlet. The school, though unused, is in good condition. The church is impeccably maintained. In the rear of the church is the graveyard with many stones that are centuries old.

Proti was ravaged during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. Many residents left in 1950s and 1960s in search of a better life and went to the U.S., Canada, and Australia.

Demographics

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Year	Population
1913	637
1920	617
1928	802
1940	743
1951	303
1961	143
1971	137