Strumica

Strumica (Macedonian: Струмица [ˈstrumit͡sa]) is the largest city in eastern Republic of Macedonia, near the Novo Selo-Petrich border crossing with Bulgaria. About 100,000 people live in the region surrounding the city. It is named after the Strumica River which runs through it. The city of Strumica is the seat of Strumica Municipality.

Name

The town is first mentioned in the 2nd century BC with the Hellenic name Αστραίον (Astraîon, Hellenic for "starry") by Ptolemy and Pliny. It was later known as Tiveriopolis; it received its present name from the Slavic settlers of the Middle Ages. In modern Greek the town is known as Στρώμνιτσα (Strómnitsa), and its name in Turkish is Ustrumca.

History

Ancient period

According to archeological research, the beginning of continuous life in Strumica dates back to 6th millennium B.C., a fact proved by the neolith settlement Stranata near the village Angelci, as well as by the findings from the Czar’s Towers site nearby Strumica, where traces of a prehistoric culture which existed from the late a neolith until early Bronze Age (early 4th to mid 3rd millennium B.C.) were discovered. The area was populated later by the Paionians.