Resen Ресен
—  Town  —
Flag Seal
Resen Location within Macedonia
Coordinates: 41°05′20″N 21°00′44″E / 41.08889°N 21.01222°E / 41.08889; 21.01222Coordinates: 41°05′20″N 21°00′44″E / 41.08889°N 21.01222°E / 41.08889; 21.01222
Country	Macedonia
Municipality	Resen municipality
Government
• Mayor	Mihail Volkanovski
Elevation	885 m (2,904 ft)
Population (2002)
• Total	8,748
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code
Area code(s)	+389
Car plates	OH

Resen (Macedonian: Ресен [ˈrɛːsɛn] ( listen)) is a town in southwestern Macedonia, with just under 9,000 inhabitants.^[1] Resen is approximately equidistant between Bitola and Ohrid. The town rises 880 meters above sea level and is situated near Lake Prespa. Resen is also the only town in the Prespa Lake area and is the seat of Resen Municipality.

Name [edit]

The name of the city in Macedonian and Bulgarian is Resen (Ресен), in Serbian Resan (Ресан), and in Turkish Resne, while in Greek it is Resna (Ρέσνα). In Albanian the town is known as Resnjë or Resnja.

History [edit]

Resen in the early 20th century

Old picture of the Saraj

The ancient Illyrian city of Damastion^[2] may be near Resen. Resen's history dates back to Roman times when the famous road Via Ignacia was built, passing through the city.

During the Middle Ages, the Prespa area was part of the Bulgarian empire under Samuil. After the Battle of Klyuch, some of Samuil's soldiers, who were each blinded in one eye, settled in a village on the shore of Lake Prespa. The Byzantines called the village Asamati. The Byzantine meaning of this word is "settlement of one-eyed people". From then on, Resen was under Byzantine rule.

Later, Resen became part of the Ottoman Empire, and it was the birth place of Ahmed Niyazi Bey, an Albanian officer from a noble family of the town, who was one of the initiators and leaders of the Young Turk Revolution in the region in 1908.^[3] Ahmed Niyazi Bey's most famous monument in Resen is the Saraj, a French-style estate he built.^[4]

Demographics [edit]

As of the 2002 census, the town of Resen has 8,748 inhabitants and the ethnic composition was the following:^[5]

• Macedonians, 6,431 (73.5%)
• Turks, 1,369 (15.7%)
• Albanians, 325 (3.7%)
• others, 623 (7.1%)

The mother tongues of the city's residents include the following:

• Macedonian, 6,574 (75.2%)
• Turkish, 1,355 (15.5%)
• Albanian, 629 (7.2%)
• others, 190 (2.2%)

The religious composition of the city was the following:

• Orthodox Christians, 6,382 (73.0%)
• Muslims, 2,272 (26.0%)
• others, 94 (1.0%)

Climate [edit]

Resen has a mild continental climate with cold winters and warm summers, which makes it a tourist attaction, especially in summer. The climate and the quality of soil are key factors for Prespa's region to have a long tradition of agriculture. One of most important landmarks of Resen's today are the apple orchards, well known for the quality and specific taste of apples.

Culture [edit]

Busts and statues in Resen's main square

Resen is home to Prespa's Ceramic Colony, established in the 1970s, which attracts renowned artists from all over the world. The organization is included in the UNESCO International Academy of Ceramics. It is housed in the Saraj, which also houses the Dragi Tozija House of Culture, the Keraca Visulčeva Gallery, and a library.

Notable citizens [edit]

References [edit]

1. ^ Municipality of Resen
2. ^ Barrington atlas of the Greek and Roman world: map-by-map directory, Tome 1,by Richard J. A. Talbert,page 758,near Resen?
3. ^ Kedourie, Sylvia (2000). Seventy-five years of the Turkish Republic. Psychology Press. p. 32. ISBN 978-0-7146-5042-5. Retrieved 18 February 2011. 
4. ^ Macedonia National Tourism Portal
5. ^ Macedonian census, language and religion

External links [edit]

Resen (town) travel guide from Wikivoyage

v t e Cities and towns in the Republic of Macedonia Berovo Bitola Bogdanci Debar Delčevo Demir Hisar Demir Kapija Gevgelija Gostivar Kavadarci Kičevo Kočani Kratovo Kriva Palanka Kruševo Kumanovo Makedonska Kamenica Makedonski Brod Negotino Ohrid Pehčevo Prilep Probištip Radoviš Resen Skopje Struga Strumica Sveti Nikole Štip Tetovo Valandovo Veles Vinica