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Prokuplje (Прокупље, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Toplica District in southern Serbia. As of 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 38,054 inhabitants.
Prokuplje is one of the Roman Serbia. When South Serbs first settled in this area in the 6th century, the city was known as Komplos. The town was known as Ürgüp during Ottoman rule. After Serbia's victory over the Ottomans, Prokuplje was incorporated into the Kingdom of Serbia in 1878.
Prokuplje is located between municipalities of Blace, Kuršumlija, Bojnik, Žitorađa, Merošina, Aleksinac, and Kruševac.
Between 73 and 75 BC, after the Romans subjugated the tribes of the region, this part of Serbia became a part of the Roman province of Moesia. At the time the settlement was known as Hammeum or Hameo, its oldest preserved name. It was located on the Roman Via Militaris, a road that connected the central Balkans with the Adriatic, passing through nearby Naissus (Niš). In July 2008 a major Roman spa was unearthed.
At the end of the 4th century AD, when the Roman Empire was divided, the Toplica region became part of the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire. The place became known as Komplos or Komblos ( village-town). Some historians believe that Komplos was rebuilt by Emperor Justinian (r. 527–565).
During the 9th-11th centuries and the 13th century the territory of modern-day Prokuplje was part of the Bulgarian Empire. The Late Medieval Balkans, p. 48 The Late Medieval Balkans, p. 54
The city is named after the "Fortress of St. Procopios", first mentioned in 1395. The Ottomans seized the city during their conquest of Serbia, but had to return it in 1444 following the Peace of Szeged.
During the Ottoman rule, in the period between the 16th and 17th centuries, the town's importance increased, similarly to other towns in the region, such as Kruševac, Stalac and Leskovac. Prokuplje prospered through the trade connections with Dubrovnik.
Toponyms such as Arbanaška and Đjake shows an historic Albanian presence in modern-day Prokuplje area that dates to the medieval era. The rural parts of Toplica valley and adjoining semi-mountainous interior was inhabited during Ottoman rule by compact Muslim Albanian population, while Serbs in those areas lived near the river mouths and mountain slopes; both peoples inhabited other regions of the South Morava river basin. The town of Prokuplje had Albanian majority under the Ottoman rule.
During the 1877–1878 period, Albanians were expelled by Serbian forces, in a way that today would be characterized as ethnic cleansing. It is estimated that around 11,437 Albanians left their homes in 119 villages in the Prokuplje district with the arrival of the Royal Serbian Army.
A report was made by local authorities in early 1878 for the minister of education at the time, Alimpje Vasiljević. There were 131 villages, with 1,485 Serbian homes and 1,553 Muslim homes, while 12 villages were unregistered as snowfall made them inaccessible, but the inhabitants of these abandoned villages were previously Albanian.
From 1929 to 1941, Prokuplje was part of the Morava Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. During the First and Second World War Prokuplje was completely destroyed, but in the post-war period it became an industrial town.
In June 2018, Prokuplje gained the status of a city, along with Bor.
Religion structure in Prokuplje is predominantly Serbian Orthodox (41,494), with minorities like Islam (289), Atheism (122), Catholic Church (76) and others. Most of the population speaks Serbian language (41,764).
The composition of population by sex and average age:
A total of 17,777 citizens (older than 15 years) have secondary education (47.1%), while the 5,002 citizens have higher education (13.3%). Of those with higher education, 2,700 (7.2%) have university education.
The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2022):
==Gallery==
1689-1878: wars and ethnic changes
During the Great Turkish War (1683–1699), there was a massive local rebellion of Christian Serbs in support of the Austrian troops who were advancing in the area. Prokuplje was captured by Austrian troops and Serbian Militia in 1689, but after the Ottoman counter-offensive, the town was burned down during the Austrian retreat of 1690, in spite of Habsburg colonel Antonije Znorić's orders to the contrary. Serbs, who had supported the Austrian troops, after their withdrawal started increasingly emigrating from the area, while there was an increase of Muslim Albanian migration into the town. (1992). 9788675870111, Ethnographic institute, SANU. ISBN 9788675870111
Modern Serbia and Yugoslavia (1877-)
In 1877, the entire Toplica region was captured from the Ottomans by Serbian forces, with Prokuplje changing hands on 19 December 1877. The Berlin Congress of 1878 recognised the city and the wider area as part of Serbia.
Demographics
According to the official census done in 2011, the city of Prokuplje has 44,419 inhabitants. A total of 61.5% of its population is living in urban areas. As of 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 38,291 inhabitants. Prokuplje has 14,814 households with 3,00 members on average, while the number of homes is 22,898.
Ethnic groups
Most of Prokuplje's population is of Serbs ethnicity (92.16%). The ethnic composition of the city:
40,936 92.16% 2,145 4.83% 113 0.25% 75 0.17% 74 0.17% 35 0.08% 24 0.05% 1,017 2.29% 44,419
Economy
Prokuplje has a weak economy, with most of the employed people working in public sector. In 2009, Leoni Wiring Systems Southeast opened a factory in Prokuplje, employing around 1,750 people as of 2013.
74 1 5,433 96 318 470 1,313 323 345 185 88 16 281 71 949 916 1,103 160 208 118 12,467
International relations
Twin towns – Sister cities
Prokuplje is twinned with:
See also
External links
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