Country Macedonia Elevation 620 m | Population 14,558 | |
Kriva Palanka (Macedonian: ) is a town located in the northeastern part of the Republic of Macedonia. It has 14.558 inhabitants. The town of Kriva Palanka is the seat of Kriva Palanka Municipality which has almost 21.000 inhabitants.
Contents
Map of Kriva Palanka
The town lies near the Deve Bair national border crossing with Bulgaria, as such, there is constant heavy traffic passing through the main road which bisects the two sides of the town (Deve Bair is considered the main border crossing between Macedonia and Bulgaria because it links the capitals Skopje with Sofia).
Geography and climate
Kriva Palanka has a temperate continental climate with moderately cold winter, moderately warm summer, spring, fresh and relatively warm autumn, due to geographical and disposition of certain influences that enter the Aegean Sea via Kriva Reka. The high parts of Osogovo are affected by the mountainous climate. The average annual temperature is 10.2 C. During the year the warmest month is July with an average value of 20.0 C. Coldest month is January with an average of -0.3 C. The average annual temperature hesitation is 20.30 C. Compared to the surrounding areas, Kriva Palanka area gets significant rainfalls. This is due to the higher altitude which represents a natural water vapor condenser, which is carried by the western and southern winds. The average date of first snow cover in this area is November 30. The areas over 1700 meters above sea level have quite low mean annual temperatures, therefore the peaks of Ruen and Carev Vrv are under snow cover from October until early June. Ruen remains under snow even in July.
History
The town is one of the youngest in the country of Macedonia. It was settled by the Turks, by Bayram Pasha respectively and it had a function as a fort to strengthen that region. The formation of the town is noticed in the Turkish documents from 1633. This includes a stone plate with Arabic encryption on the entrance of the fortress. The plate was later moved to the mosque which was situated in the center of the town and now is kept in the Museum of Macedonia in Skopje.
Its favorable position enabled this small settlement to become a bigger town. There was a significant Christian influence in the town which took in its hands the development and revival of the town in Christian and orthodox manner. A class of rich and influential traders and artisans was formed who were travelling outside the Ottoman empire and were bringing new ideas of the 19th century to the city.
During this period, in Kriva Palanka acts one of the first Macedonian revivalists Joachim Krchovski, who by the help of the local traders in 1814-1819, in Budim prints their famous five books in lively folk speech. Joachim not only developed the need for literacy, but had a crucial role in the establishment of the church - cell school in 1817 which was placed in Engers house, in which vicinity later with great efforts by the city aristocrats and the donor David Jerej, in 1833 the church of St. Dimitrija will be built.
As a result of church-educational activity in Kriva Palanka, as early as 1833 functions the epitropic - church community, which in 1861 was transformed into a church - school community, and already the same year will be self-governed without renouncement of the Skopje Patriarchal mitropolitan.
From 1877 to 1912, Kriva Palanka was part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire.
After the First World War, in 1919-1920 when Kriva Palanka for the first time gets a status of municipality as part of the Vardar Banovina of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes it gets its first native president (mayor) and the physical appearance which was mostly maintained till today. In that time Kriva Palanka becomes richer with few significant facilities: The Municipal Building, The Officers House, primary school Partizan, the old Hospital and the first regulation of the riverbed of Kriva from Osichka Maala to Numulija, also started the construction of the first power plant in North-East Macedonia on the river Durachka, but the construction was stopped later.
From 1941 to 1944, during the Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, Kriva Palanka, as most of Vardar Macedonia, was annexed by the Kingdom of Bulgaria.
Economy
Economically, trade is most developed in Kriva Palanka due to the proximity to the Bulgarian border, and the rest are engaged in agriculture (mostly cultivated potato, to a lesser extent corn, wheat, barley, rye, oats, etc..), then mining is also important with the nearby mines Toranica(lead and zinc) and Bentomak. In the center of Kriva Palanka there are several traditional craft stores that are still actively working. There are also grocery stores, and on the hills near the town there are many sawmills and cutmills for firewood and furniture. In the city operate many kindergartens, three primary schools and a high school. Due to its location on the European Corridor G-8, since a long time ago is planned an extension of the railroad to Kriva Palanka and the Bulgarian border, which is currently built to the village of Beljakovce. In near future will begin the project for gasification of the town.