Ćuprija

Ćuprija (Serbian Cyrillic: Ћуприја, Romanian: Ciupria or Podu Nou, Greek: Κυπριαι, Kypriai, Bulgarian: Равън, Ravan, or Кюприя, Kyupriya) is a town and administrative district in Serbia, at 43.93° North, 21.38° East.

History

The Romans founded the town as a fort Horreum Margi (Horreum: Granary, Margi: Morava) on the road from Constantinople to Rome, where it crosses the river now known as Velika Morava. It served as a Roman military base, had a shield factory and gained the status of municipium before 224AD. In 505, the Romans were defeated by Goths and Huns under Mundo, a descendant of Attila the Hun.

Under Slavic rule, it became known as Ravno ("flat"), since it is in a flat river valley. Some local names (of the villages Paljane and Isakovo, of the river Mirosava) recall the major clash in autumn 1191 between the Serbs (under Stefan Nemanja) and the Byzantines (under Emperor Isaac II Angelo).

The name Ćuprija which derives from the word "köprü" of Turkish and means "bridge" was adopted when it came under the control of the Ottoman Empire.

The centre was heavily damaged by NATO bombing in 1999 and some buildings remain in ruins. In 2002 the population was 20,411.

Demographics

Ethnic groups in the Ćuprija district (2002 census):

• Serbs = 30,549
• Vlachs = 1,356
• others

All settlements in municipality have Serb ethnic majority except two villages,Bigrenica and Isakovo with Vlach ethnic majority.

Features

Ćuprija lies on international road and railway links 150 km south of Belgrade and 90 km north of Niš. The main source of income is the College of Nursing and Agriculture. Ravanica Monastery, built in 1381 by Lazar of Serbia, is 8 km to the east.

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Serbia

Twin towns — Sister cities

Ćuprija is twinned with:

• Celje, Slovenia
• Gradiška, Bosnia and Herzegovina

External links

Official web site of CUprija Municipality

• Ćuprija
• Ćuprija kao na Dlanu

See also

• List of places in Serbia