Pec
Encyclopedia
Peć or Pejë (ˈpɛjə) is a city and municipality
Municipalities of Kosovo
A Municipality is the basic administrative division in Kosovo.-List of Municipalities:The first name is Serbian and the second one is Albanian:* Dečani / Deçan* Dragaš / Dragash* Đakovica / Gjakovë* Glogovac / Gllogovc * Gnjilane / Gjilan...

 in north-western Kosovo and Metohija - Serbia, and the administrative centre of the homonymous district. Governor of city is Ali Berisha.

The Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....

 name of the city is Peć (Пећ); the Albanian
Albanian language
Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...

 name's definite form is Peja and the indefinite one Pejë. Other names of the city include the Latin Pescium and Siparantum, the Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

 Episkion (Επισκιον), the Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Turkish language
The Ottoman Turkish language or Ottoman language is the variety of the Turkish language that was used for administrative and literary purposes in the Ottoman Empire. It borrows extensively from Arabic and Persian, and was written in a variant of the Perso-Arabic script...

 ايپك (İpek), the Slavonic Petcha, and the formerly used form Pentza.
In Serbian language Peć means furnace or cave and its name is probably connected with nearby caves in Rugova Canyon
Rugova Canyon
The Rugova Canyon is a long canyon in Kosovo. It is located in the Prokletije close to the border with Montenegro. The city of Peć is located at the entrance of the canyon. Rugova Canyon is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kosovo.-Notes:...

 which served as hermit cells for orthodox monks. In mediaeval Ragusan documents, the Serbian name of the city (Peć, lit. "furnace") is sometimes translated as Forno, meaning furnace in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...

 (also furuna in Serbian).

The municipality covers an area of 602 km² (232 sq mi), including the city of Peć and 95 villages; it is divided into 28 territorial communities. As of 2011, the whole municipality has a population of approximately 95,723, of which ca. 60,000 live in the city of Peć.

History

The city is located in a strategic position on the Pećka Bistrica
Pecka Bistrica
The Pećka Bistrica is a river in Kosovo . This 62 km-long right tributary to the White Drin river flows entirely within the south-western part of Kosovo ....

 river, a tributary of the White Drin to the east of the Prokletije
Prokletije
Prokletije or Albanian Alps is a mountain range in the Balkans that extends from northern Albania, to southwestern Serbia and eastern Montenegro. Its highest point, Jezercë in Albania at , is the tallest peak in the entire Dinaric Alps...

. The city was known as Pescium during the Roman
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....

 era; or as reported by Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...

 in his Geography
Geographia (Ptolemy)
The Geography is Ptolemy's main work besides the Almagest...

, Siparantum.

Between 1180 and 1190. Serbian Great Zupan Stefan Nemanja
Stefan Nemanja
Stefan Nemanja was the Grand Prince of the Grand Principality of Serbia from 1166 to 1196, a heir of the Vukanović dynasty that marked the beginning of a greater Serbian realm .He is remembered for his contributions to Serbian culture and...

 conquered Peć with its surrounding župa
Župa
A Župa is a Slavic term, used historically among the Southern and Western branches of the Slavs, originally denoting various territorial and other sub-units, usually a small administrative division, especially a gathering of several villages...

 ( district ) of Hvosno
Hvosno
Hvosno was a medieval Serbian župa located in the northern part of the Metohija region, in Kosovo. It roughly encompassed the areas of the modern Istok and Peć municipalities...

 from Byzantine empire, thus establishing Serbian rule over the city of Peć for next 300 years. In 1220. Serbian king Stefan Nemanjić donated Peć and several surrounding villages to his newly founded monastery of Žiča
Žica
Žiča is an early 13th century Serb Orthodox monastery near Kraljevo, Serbia. The monastery, together with the Church of the Holy Dormition, was built by the first King of Serbia, Stefan the First-Crowned and the first Head of the Serbian Church, Saint Sava....

. As Žiča was seat of Serbian archbishop Peć came under direct rule of Serbian archbishops and latter patriarchs who built their residences and numerous churches in the city starting with the church of Holy Apostles built by archbishop Saint Arsenije I Sremac
Saint Arsenije I Sremac
Arsenije Sremac or Arsenius was the second archbishop of the Serbian Orthodox Church and a disciple of Saint Sava of Serbia.- Early life :...

. After the Žiča monastery was burned by the Cumans
Cumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...

 (between 1276 and 1292) the seat of Serbian archbishop was transferred to more secure location in Peć where it remained until abolition of Serbian patriarchate in 1766.

The city became a major religious center of medieval Serbia
History of Medieval Serbia
Тhe medieval history of Serbia begins in the 5th century AD with the Slavic invasion of the Balkans, and lasts until the Ottoman occupation of 1540.- Slavic invasion :...

 under the Serbian Tsar Stefan Dušan, who made it the seat of the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...

 in 1346. It retained this status until 1766, when the Patriarchate of Peć
Patriarchate of Pec
The Patriarchate of Peć is a Serbian Orthodox monastery located near Peć. The complex of churches is the spiritual seat and mausoleum of the Serbian archbishops and patriarchs....

 was abolished. Today, Peć holds the Patriarchate of Serbia. The city and its surrounding area are still revered by adherents of Serbian Orthodoxy; the city is the site of the patriarchal monastery, which stands above the city and consists of four fresco-decorated churches, a library, and a treasury. The 14th century Visoki Dečani monastery
Visoki Decani monastery
Visoki Dečani is a major Serbian Orthodox Christian monastery located in Kosovo, south of the town of Peć. The monastic katholikon is the largest medieval church in the Balkans containing the most extensive preserved fresco decoration.- History :The monastery was established in a chestnut grove...

, a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

 World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...

, lies about 19 km (12 mi) south, in nearby Dečani
Decani
Decani is the side of a church choir occupied by the Dean. In English churches this is typically the choir stalls on the south side of the chancel, although there are some notable exceptions, such as Durham Cathedral and Southwell Minster...

.

Peć was captured by the Ottomans
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...

 in 1455, and underwent major changes under their rule, including a change of name to Ipek. The city was settled by a large number of Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

, many of whose descendants still live in the area, and took on a distinctly oriental character with narrow streets and old-style Turkish houses. It also gained an Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

ic character with the construction of a number of mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...

s, many of which still remain. One of these is the Bajrakli Mosque, built by the Ottomans in the 15th century and located in the center of the city.

The city increased its political importance through the League of Peja
League of Peja
The League of Peja was an Albanian political organization established in 1899 in the city of Peć , Kosovo. It was led by Haxhi Zeka, a former member of the League of Prizren and shared the same platform in quest for an autonomous Albanian vilayet within Ottoman Empire.Albanian patriotic circles...

, established in 1899 by Albanian patriots led by Haxhi Zeka
Haxhi Zeka
Haxhi Zeka, or Haxhi Mulla Zeka, was an Albanian national leader. He was a member of the League of Prizren, while in 1899 formed and headed the League of Peja, another organization seeking autonomy for Albania within the Ottoman Empire...

. The League inherited the traditions and character of the League of Prizren
League of Prizren
The League for the Defense of the Rights of the Albanian Nation commonly known as the League of Prizren was an Albanian political organization founded on 10 June 1878 in Prizren, in the Kosovo province of the Ottoman Empire....

 to defend the rights of the Albanians and give them autonomous status within the Ottoman Empire
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...

. After an armed conflict with the ottoman forces in 1900 the League ended its operations.

The 500 years of Ottoman rule came to an end in the First Balkan War
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...

 of 1912-1913, when Montenegro
Kingdom of Montenegro
The Kingdom of Montenegro was a monarchy in southeastern Europe during the tumultuous years on the Balkan Peninsula leading up to and during World War I. Legally it was a constitutional monarchy, but absolutist in practice...

 took control of the city. In the late 1915, during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...

 took the city. Peć was retaken in October 1918. After World War I, the city became part of Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...

 (at first officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes). Between 1931 and 1941 the city was part of Zeta Banovina
Zeta Banovina
The Zeta Banovina or Zeta Banate was a province of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between 1929 and 1941. This province consisted of all of the present-day Montenegro as well as adjacent parts of Central Serbia, Kosovo, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina...

. During the 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...

 Peć was occupied by Albania
Albania under Italy
The Albanian Kingdom existed as a protectorate of the Kingdom of Italy. It was practically a union between Italy and Albania, officially led by Italy's King Victor Emmanuel III and its government: Albania was led by Italian governors, after being militarily occupied by Italy, from 1939 until 1943...

. After the war, Peć again became part of Yugoslavia as part of Kosovo and Metohija
Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija (1946-1974)
The Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija was an autonomous province of Serbia, within the larger federation of Yugoslavia from 1963 to 1974, when it was replaced by the Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo...

, an autonomous province within the People's Republic of Serbia.

Relations between Serbs and Albanians
Albanians in Kosovo
Albanians are the largest ethnic group in Kosovo . According to the 1991 Serbian census, boycotted by Albanians, there were 1,596,072 ethnic Albanians in Kosovo or 81.6% of population...

, who were the majority population, were often tense during the 20th century. They came to a head in the Kosovo War
Kosovo War
The term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...

 of 1999, during which the city suffered heavy damage and mass killings. More than 80 percent of the total 5280 houses in the city were heavily damaged (1590) or destroyed (2774). It suffered further damage in violent inter-ethnic unrest
2004 unrest in Kosovo
Violent unrest in Kosovo, which at the time was under United Nations administration, broke out on 17 March 2004. Kosovo Albanians, numbering over 50,000, took part in widescale attacks on the Serbian people, compared by the then Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica to ethnic cleansing but not...

 in 2004.

Economy

The economy was inevitably badly affected by the war, but historically it has centered on agricultural activities and craftworks produced by the city's traditional craftsmen—coppersmiths, goldsmiths, slipper makers, leather tanners, saddle makers, etc.

Touristic Places

Peć has undeveloped tourist areas such as the Rugova Canyon
Rugova Canyon
The Rugova Canyon is a long canyon in Kosovo. It is located in the Prokletije close to the border with Montenegro. The city of Peć is located at the entrance of the canyon. Rugova Canyon is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kosovo.-Notes:...

. Skiing is possible in the mountains nearby.

Demographics

Ethnic Composition in the municipality
Year/Population Albanians  % Serbs  % Montenegrins  % Roma  % Bosniaks  % Others  % Total
1961 Census 41,532 62.35 8,852 13.28 12,701 19.05 728 1.09 1,397 2.1 66,656
1971 Census 63,193 70.12 9,298 10.31 11,306 12.54 433 0.48 5,203 5.77 90,124
1981 Census 79,965 71.99 7,995 7.2 9,796 8.82 3,844 3.46 8,739 7.86 111,071
1991 Census 96,441 75.5 7,815 6.11 6,960 5.44 4,442 3.5 9,875 7.72 127,796
January 1999 ~104,600 ~92 n/a n/a n/a n/a ~3,500-4,000 ~3.3 n/a n/a ~4,000-4,200 ~3.6 ~113,000
May 2006 (est.) 125,712 89.3 ~1,100 ~1.2 ~1,800 ~1.9 ~4,500 ~4.9 ~5000 ~5.4 91,112
2008 Vast majority ~125,000
Source: Yugoslav Population Censuses for data through 1991, OSCE estimates for data from 1999, 2006 and 2008


According to the 1981 census, the city had a population of 54,497; according to the 1991 census it had grown to 68,163. In 2003 the city had a population of 81,800.

In 2009, OSCE estimated ca. 82,300 people in the city of Peć.

The vast majority of the inhabitants are Kosovo Albanians
Albanians in Kosovo
Albanians are the largest ethnic group in Kosovo . According to the 1991 Serbian census, boycotted by Albanians, there were 1,596,072 ethnic Albanians in Kosovo or 81.6% of population...

, but there is also a large minority community. Most Kosovo Serbs live in the village enclaves
Kosovo Serb enclaves
Kosovo Serb Enclaves are the areas of Kosovo where Serbs form a majority, except for North Kosovo. While North Kosovo is connected to the rest of Serbia and mostly functions as a part of it, the enclaves are surrounded with areas of Albanian majority....

 of Goraždevac
Goraždevac
Goraždevac is a village near the city of Peć in Kosovo. It has been inhabited since at least the thirteenth century, when it was mentioned in the chrysobull of Stefan Nemanja .The village possesses the oldest log-cabin church in Serbia, constructed at the end of the sixteenth century and...

, Belo Polje and Ljevoša. There is also a large Bosniak
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...

 community in the city of Peć and in Vitomirica, while significant Roma
Roma in Kosovo
Roma in Kosovo are Serbian Roma , polylingual Roma and Albanian Roma who self-identify as Ashkali or Balkan Egyptians...

, Ashkali
Ashkali
In the Balkans, the Ashkali and Egyptians are Albanian-speaking ethnic minorities of Kosovo and Albania. Observers consider them Albanized Romanies, but they do not self-identify as such...

 and Egyptian communities reside in urban and rural areas.

Sport

Peć is one of the more successful cities in Kosovan sport leagues. Its premier football team is KF Besa
KF Besa
Klubi Futbollistik Besa is an amateur football club based in Peć, Kosovo and plays in the top division of football in Kosovo, the Kosovar Superliga....

, its basketball teams are KB Peja and KF Shqiponja
KF Shqiponja
Klubi Futbollistik Shqiponja Pejë was a football club based in Peć, Kosovo . The club was founded in 1999....

. Both of them are active in the Kosovar Superliga. KB Peja is the older and more established basketball team. Additionally the city is host to a handball team, KH Besa Famiglia, a volleyball team Ejona Peja, a judo team Ippon
Ippon
Ippon literally "one full point", it is the highest score a fighter can achieve in a Japanese martial arts ippon-wazari contest, usually judo, karate or jujutsu.-Ippon in judo:...

, as well as a women's basketball team KB Penza. Since June 2008 Peć has also a Taekwondo Team: Tae Kwon Do Club Peja (Klubi i Tae Kwon Do-së Peja).

Notable people

  • Agim Çeku
    Agim Çeku
    Agim Çeku is the current Minister of Security Forces for the Republic of Kosovo. He is also the former Prime Minister of Kosovo and a chief of the Kosovo Liberation Army . He was born in the village of Ćuška near Peć, in the Yugoslav province of Kosovo .Çeku is an ethnic Albanian...

    , Military commander of the KLA during the 1999 Kosovo War
  • Fatos Beciraj
    Fatos Beciraj
    Fatos Beqiraj is a Montenegrin footballer of Albanian ethnicity. He plays for Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb in the Prva HNL, having signed for them in August 2010 from Budućnost Podgorica.-Career:...

    , football player, who plays for Dinamo Zagreb
    Dinamo Zagreb
    GNK Dinamo Zagreb, commonly referred to as Dinamo Zagreb , or by their nickname Modri are a Croatian football club based in Zagreb. They play their home matches at Stadion Maksimir. They are the most successful club in Croatian football, having won thirteen Croatian championship titles, ten...

     and for Montenegro national football team
    Montenegro national football team
    The Montenegro national football team represents Montenegro in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Montenegro, the governing body for football in Montenegro...

  • Qerim Begolli
    Qerim Begolli
    Qerim Begolli was a notable activist of both National Renaissance of Albania and the resistance of Albania during the Second World War. Begolli was vice-president of the League of Prizren in 1880, and one of the signatories of Albanian Declaration of Independence...

    , One of the signatories of Albanian Declaration of Independence
    Albanian Declaration of Independence
    The Albanian Declaration of Independence is the declaration of independence of the Albanian Vilayet from the Ottoman Empire. Albania was proclaimed independent in Vlorë on November 28, 1912.-Background:...

  • Salih Gjuka
    Salih Gjuka
    Salih Gjuka was one of the signatories of the Albanian Declaration of Independence.-References:...

    , One of the signatories of Albanian Declaration of Independence
    Albanian Declaration of Independence
    The Albanian Declaration of Independence is the declaration of independence of the Albanian Vilayet from the Ottoman Empire. Albania was proclaimed independent in Vlorë on November 28, 1912.-Background:...

  • Bogoljub Karić
    Bogoljub Karic
    Bogoljub Karić ) is a businessman and politician from Serbia.- Early life :Bogoljub Karić was born on January 17, 1954 in Peć, Kosovo, Serbia, FPR Yugoslavia, to Janićije Karić and Danica Kuzmanović. He earned a degree in Geography from Prirodno-matematički fakultet in Priština and his Master's...

    , politician and businessman
  • Rahman Morina
    Rahman Morina
    Rahman Morina , , was an police officer and political figure. He is remembered as a collaborator of the Slobodan Milosevic regime.- Early career :...

    , Politician
  • Xhevdet Muriqi
    Xhevdet Muriqi
    Xhevdet Muriqi is a former Kosovar Albanian footballer who is best known for his time with KF Prishtina during the 1980s as part of the "Golden Generation".-Prishtina:...

    , Former football player, part of the "Golden Generation" of KF Prishtina
    KF Prishtina
    Football Club Prishtina is a football club based in Prishtina, Kosovo. The club was founded in 1922 and currently plays in the Raiffeisen Football Superleague of Kosovo.- History :...

  • Fadil Muriqi
    Fadil Muriqi
    Fadil Muriqi is a former Kosovar Albanian footballer who is best known for his time with KF Prishtina during the 1980s as part of the "Golden Generation".-Prishtina:...

    , Former football player, part of the "Golden Generation" of KF Prishtina
    KF Prishtina
    Football Club Prishtina is a football club based in Prishtina, Kosovo. The club was founded in 1922 and currently plays in the Raiffeisen Football Superleague of Kosovo.- History :...

  • Bedri bej Ipeku
    Bedri bej Ipeku
    Bedri bej Ipeku was an Albanian politician of the 19th and 20th century.Pejani was born in the city of Pejë October 10, 1885 and, only 27, took part and was a signatory of the Albanian Declaration of Independence...

    , politician
  • Riza Sapunxhiu
    Riza Sapunxhiu
    Riza Sapunxhiu was a Kosovo Albanian communist politician and economist of the former Yugoslavia. He was born in Peć, at the time in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes...

    , Politician
  • Agnesa Vuthaj
    Agnesa Vuthaj
    Agnesa Vuthaj is an Albanian beauty pageant contestant and winner of Miss Kosovo title in 2003 as well as Miss Albania title in 2004.- Personal life :...

    , model
  • Milutin Šoškić
    Milutin Šoškic
    Milutin Šoškić is a Serbian former goalkeeper who is one of FK Partizan's biggest legends.- References :**...

    , Former football player

External links

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