History UsefulNotes / Macedonia

Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Македонија, Makedonija''), officially known as the Republic of Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Република Македонија, Republika Makedonija'') and also known as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''поранешна Југословенска Република Македонија, Poranešna Jugoslovenska Republika Makedonija''), is a tiny Slavic Southern European nation nestled in the middle of the Balkan Peninsula. The national language, Macedonian, is very closely related to Bulgarian, to the point where they are mutually intelligible and is sometimes considered the same language (most certainly not in Macedonia, however). The capital is Skopje.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased and refused to even acknowledge the dispute. Greece has even argued that the nation's name implies a desire to annex the northern Greek region, which in Macedonia is seen as InsaneTrollLogic. The ancient Kingdom of Macedon from which the name is drawn had borders which encompassed the entirety of ''both'' the modern republic and the modern Greek region. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO and the European Union, as joining either group requires unanimous approval of the current members. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia"[[note]]And yes, "former" is deliberately not capitalized.[[/note]] (as well as the UsefulNotes/OlympicGames, where the full name is used in the alphabetical order it is marching in[[note]]For example, "F" in English, "E" in French (Ex-République Yougoslave de Macédoine) and "Π"/Pi in Greek (Πρώην Γιουγκοσλαβική Δημοκρατία της Μακεδονίας / Prōin Yiougoslavikí Dimokratía tis Makedonías)[[/note]]) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

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<<|UsefulNotes/{{Europe}}|>>

Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Македонија, Makedonija''), officially known as the Republic of Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Република Македонија, Republika Makedonija'') and also known as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''поранешна Југословенска Република Македонија, Poranešna Jugoslovenska Republika Makedonija''), is a tiny Slavic nation nestled in the middle of the Balkan Peninsula. The national language, Macedonian, is very closely related to Bulgarian, to the point where they are mutually intelligible and is sometimes considered the same language (most certainly not in Macedonia, however). The capital is Skopje.

"Macedonia", the ethnic homeland of Macedonians, was historically a much larger region which was divided up in 1913 among nations who'd taken advantage of the weakness of the Ottoman Empire: the southern part went to Greece, the northeastern part went to Bulgaria, and the northwestern part -- the part that makes up the present-day Republic of Macedonia -- became the southern half of Serbia. This Serbian region later became the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, as a constituent republic of UsefulNotes/{{Yugoslavia}}. When Yugoslavia broke up, this constituent republic became the independent Republic of Macedonia.

->Red and gold originate from the country's past coats-of-arms. At the center is an eight-rayed sun, symbolizing liberty. Originally the sun was in the form of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vergina_Sun Vergina Sun]], a symbol found on the tomb of King Philip II of Macedon, father of AlexanderTheGreat. This move caused controversy with Greece, as it claims the Slavs are misappropriating Grecian symbols.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased and refused to even acknowledge the dispute. Greece has even argued that the nation's name implies a desire to annex the northern Greek region, which in Macedonia is seen as InsaneTrollLogic. The ancient Kingdom of Macedon from which the name is drawn had borders which encompassed the entirety of ''both'' the modern republic and the modern Greek region. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO and the European Union, as joining either group requires unanimous approval of the current members. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia"[[note]]And yes, "former" is deliberately not capitalized.[[/note]] (as well as the UsefulNotes/OlympicGames, where it marches in with the "F" entries) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th century B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world; the inhabitants of the territory generally spoke a form of Greek, but it was a dialect most other Greeks regarded as rather savage and rough, and although the Slavic language currently spoken by most citizens of the country we're talking about here didn't move in until no earlier than the 5th or 6th century AD, the fact is that the modern culture of Macedonia--on either side of the border--is a hybrid of both Greek and Slavic influences (with Greek ones predominating no matter what language you speak), and that the people on both sides of the border are probably a mix of both Greek and Slavic ancestry.[[note]]This is a legacy of UsefulNotes/TheByzantineEmpire, particularly the era around the reign of the Empress Irene of Athens, who made the reintegration of Thrace and Macedon into the Empire a top priority, encouraging the by-then-mostly-Christian Slavs in the countryside and the Christian-for-centuries Greeks in the cities to get along and form a hybrid culture and turn any aggression they had against the at-the-time-still-Turkic-and-pagan Bulgars to the north. Historians who do not have any vested interests in this dispute are generally agreed that the closer you got to Thessaloniki and Adrianople you got, the more likely it was that the local Slavs had learned Greek and become increasingly Hellenized, while the further away from those cities, the more likely it was that the local Greeks had learned Slavic and become increasingly Slavicized. Neither group regarded this as a particular problem, because [[ValuesDissonance the important thing was that they were all]] UsefulNotes/{{Orthodox Christian|ity}}s.[[/note]] As for the debate about Alexander, he was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th century B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world; the inhabitants of the territory generally spoke a form of Greek, but it was a dialect most other Greeks regarded as rather savage and rough, and although the Slavic language currently spoken by most citizens of the country we're talking about here didn't move in until no earlier than the 5th or 6th century AD, the fact is that the modern culture of Macedonia--on either side of the border--is a hybrid of both Greek and Slavic influences (with Greek ones predominating no matter what language you speak), and that the people on both sides of the border are probably a mix of both Greek and Slavic ancestry.[[note]]This is a legacy of UsefulNotes/TheByzantineEmpire, particularly the era around the reign of the Empress Irene of Athens, who made the reintegration of Thrace and Macedon into the Empire a top priority, encouraging the by-then-mostly-Christian Slavs in the countryside and the Christian-for-centuries Greeks in the cities to get along and form a hybrid culture and turn any aggression they had against the at-the-time-still-Turkic-and-pagan Bulgars to the north. Historians who do not have any vested interests in this dispute are generally agreed that the closer you got to Thessaloniki and Adrianople you got, the more likely it was that the local Slavs had learned Greek and become increasingly Hellenized, while the further away from those cities, the more likely it was that the local Greeks had learned Slavic and become increasingly Slavicized. Neither group regarded this as a particular problem, because [[ValuesDissonance the important thing was that they were all]] UsefuNotes/{{Orthodox Christian|ity}}s.[[/note]] As for the debate about Alexander, he was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th century B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world; the inhabitants of the territory generally spoke a form of Greek, but it was a dialect most other Greeks regarded as rather savage and rough, and although the Slavic language currently spoken by most citizens of the country we're talking about here didn't move in until no earlier than the 5th or 6th century AD, the fact is that the modern culture of Macedonia--on either side of the border--is a hybrid of both Greek and Slavic influences (with Greek ones predominating no matter what language you speak), and that the people on both sides of the border are probably a mix of both Greek and Slavic ancestry.[[note]]This is a legacy of UsefulNotes/TheByzantineEmpire, particularly the era around the reign of the Empress Irene of Athens, who made the reintegration of Thrace and Macedon into the Empire a top priority, encouraging the by-then-mostly-Christian Slavs in the countryside and the Christian-for-centuries Greeks in the cities to get along and form a hybrid culture and turn any aggression they had against the at-the-time-still-Turkic-and-pagan Bulgars to the north. Historians who do not have any vested interests in this dispute are generally agreed that the closer you got to Thessaloniki and Adrianople you got, the more likely it was that the local Slavs had learned Greek and become increasingly Hellenized, while the further away from those cities, the more likely it was that the local Greeks had learned Slavic and become increasingly Slavicized. Neither group regarded this as a particular problem, because [[ValuesDissonance the important thing was that they were all]] {{Orthodox Christian|ity}}s.[[/note]] As for the debate about Alexander, he was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th century B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world; the inhabitants of the territory generally spoke a form of Greek, but it was a dialect most other Greeks regarded as rather savage and rough, and although the Slavic language currently spoken by most citizens of the country we're talking about here didn't move in until no earlier than the 5th or 6th century AD, the fact is that the modern culture of Macedonia--on either side of the border--is a hybrid of both Greek and Slavic influences (with Greek ones predominating no matter what language you speak), and that the people on both sides of the border are probably a mix of both Greek and Slavic ancestry. (This is a legacy of UsefulNotes/TheByzantineEmpire, particularly the era around the reign of the Empress Irene of Athens, who made the reintegration of Thrace and Macedon into the Empire a top priority, encouraging the by-then-mostly-Christian Slavs in the countryside and the Christian-for-centuries Greeks in the cities to get along and form a hybrid culture and turn any aggression they had against the at-the-time-still-Turkic-and-pagan Bulgars to the north.) As for the debate about Alexander, he was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th millennium B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world. Alexander was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased and refused to even acknowledge the dispute. Greece has even argued that the nation's name implies a desire to annex the northern Greek region, which in Macedonia is seen as InsaneTrollLogic. The ancient Kingdom of Macedon from which the name is drawn had borders which encompassed the entirety of ''both'' the modern republic and the modern Greek region. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO and the European Union, as joining either group requires unanimous approval of the current members. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (as well as the UsefulNotes/OlympicGames, where it marches in with the "F" entries) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased and refused to even acknowledge the dispute. Greece has even argued that the nation's name implies a desire to annex the northern Greek region, which in Macedonia is seen as InsaneTrollLogic. The ancient Kingdom of Macedon from which the name is drawn had borders which encompassed the entirety of ''both'' the modern republic and the modern Greek region. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO and the European Union, as joining either group requires unanimous approval of the current members. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (as well as the OlympicGames, where it marches in with the "F" entries) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased and refused to even acknowledge the dispute. The ancient Kingdom of Macedon from which the name is drawn had borders which encompassed the entirety of ''both'' the modern republic and the modern Greek region. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO and the European Union, as joining either group requires unanimous approval of the current members. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (as well as the OlympicGames, where it marches in with the "F" entries) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th millennium B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world - or at least it was ''after'' they conquered the Greeks; before then they were considered to be barbarians. Alexander was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. {{Creator/Aristotle}} was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

"Macedonia", the ethnic homeland of Macedonians, was historically a much larger region which was divided up in 1913 among nations who'd taken advantage of the weakness of the Ottoman Empire: the southern part went to Greece, the northeastern part went to Bulgaria, and the northwestern part -- the part that makes up the present-day Republic of Macedonia -- became the southern half of Serbia. This Serbian region later became the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, as a constituent republic of Yugoslavia. When Yugoslavia broke up, this constituent republic became the independent Republic of Macedonia.

Notably, the country avoided any bloodshed during the [[YugoslavWars breakup of Yugoslavia]], the only one of the republics to do so. There was, however, a series of skirmishes between the Macedonian police and armed forces vs. local Albanian separatists in 2001. The conflict left some 100-300 dead and ended with a compromise that promised to improve the rights of local Albanians.

Historically, their greatest claim to fame is UsefulNotes/AlexanderTheGreat, who conquered much of the known world in the 4th millennium B.C.; his father, Phillip II, had conquered most of Greece. To this day, Macedonians and Greeks have a bit of a rivalry over who can ''properly'' lay claim to Alexander the Great. Macedon was at the time considered to be part of the Greek world - or at least it was ''after'' they conquered the Greeks; before then they were considered to be barbarians. Alexander was also born in a town which is ''today'' part of Greece and not Macedonia but wasn't at the time, which complicates issues. It's nothing too serious, but it's worth knowing. Creator/Aristotle was also born in the Kingdom of Macedon, but few people call him anything but a Greek.

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (as well as the OlympicGames, where it marches in with the "F" entries) and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/macedonia_map_4726.gif

However, the newly independent Macedonia found itself at odds with Greece, due to Greece's northern region (the territory annexed in 1913) having the same name. Greece felt that, due to its cultural and historic importance, the name should be considered exclusively Greek. Macedonia, on the other hand, felt that it was within its rights to call itself whatever it pleased. As a result, the neighbors have had a rocky relationship, which has led to incidents such as the rejection of Macedonia from joining NATO. Because of Greece's pressure, Macedonia is a member of the United Nations under the name "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" and Greece itself only recognises Macedonia under that name or the name "Macedonia-Skopje", just to make the point.

[[AC: the macedonian flag]]
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/125px-Flag_of_Macedonia_svg1_9223.png

Notably, the country avoided any bloodshed during the [[YugoslavWars breakup of Yugoslavia]], the only one of the republics to do so.

Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Македонија, Makedonija''), officially known as the Republic of Macedonia ('''Macedonian:''' ''Република Македонија, Republika Makedonija''), is a tiny Slavic nation nestled in the middle of the Balkan Peninsula. The national language, Macedonian, is very closely related to Bulgarian, to the point where they are mutually intelligible and is sometimes considered the same language (most certainly not in Macedonia, however). The capital is Skopje.

Macedonia is a tiny Slavic nation nestled in the middle of the Balkan Peninsula. The national language, Macedonian, is very closely related to Bulgarian, to the point where they are mutually intelligible and is sometimes considered the same language (most certainly not in Macedonia, however). The capital is Skopje.

Notably, the country avoided any bloodshed during the breakup of Yugoslavia, the only one of the republics to do so.

"Macedonia", the ethnic homeland of Macedonians, was historically a much larger region which was divided up in 1913 among nations who'd taken advantage of the weakness of the Ottoman Empire: the southern part went to Greece, the northeastern part went to Bulgaria, and the northwestern part -- the part that makes up the present-day Republic of Macedonia -- became the southern half of Serbia. This Serbian region later became the Socialist Republic of Macedonia, as a constituent republic of Yugoslavia. When Yugoslavia broke up, this constituent republic became the independent Republic of Macedonia.

Macedonia is a tiny Slavic nation nestled in the middle of the Balkan Peninsula. The national language, Macedonian, is very closely related to Bulgarian, to the point where they are mutually intelligible. The capital is Skopje.