Time zone CET (UTC+1) | ||
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Region Pelagonia Statistical Region | ||
Velušina (Macedonian: Велушина) is a village in the Bitola Municipality of Macedonia. Velushina is located 15 kilometers south of Bitola (Битола) on route R2333 (about six kilometers north of the border with Greece) at the foot of Mount Baba in the Pelagonija (Пелагонија) Valley. The Velushka River (Велушка Река) flows through the village. [1]
Map of Velushina, Macedonia (FYROM)
Etymologically the name of the village originates from the local Slavic phrase Velika Elyeusa (велика Елеуса – Велеушина), referring to the church of the Merciful Theotokos (Богородица Елеуса, Bogoroditsa Elyeusa) which is situated in the village. It's a similar situation to Veljusa's (Вељуса), near Strumica, where the church of the Most-Holy Merciful Theotokos is located.
The church of the Merciful Theotokos in Velušina is dedicated to the Dormition of the Mother of God, it is a paleochristian basilica built on the 4th-5th century, during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Theodosius II. It is situated in the southeastern part Velušina near the ancient Via Egnatia and the old road from Kastoria to Irakleia. Today it is known by the local population as the "old church".
During the Ottoman period all of the Christian population was Greek under the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In 1905 Velušina had 880 inhabitants, all of them being Greeks Patriarchatists with a Greek school operating there.
The Greek teacher and Macedonian fighter, Petros Christou, was born in Velušina in 1887.