Talk:North Macedonia

This is the talk page for discussing changes to the North Macedonia ARTICLE. Please place discussions on the underlying political issues on the Related disputes page. Non-editorial comments on this talk page may be removed by other editors.
Please sign your comments using four tildes (~~~~). Place comments that start a new topic at the bottom of the page and give them == A Descriptive Header ==. If you're new to Wikipedia, please see Welcome to Wikipedia and frequently asked questions.	Talk page guidelines Please respect Etiquette, assume good faith and be nice.

Previous discussion have been archived. Editors interested in improving this article are encouraged to see also Archive1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 (polls on move and intro par), 11 12 Two subpages for the naming conflict have also been created: /FYROM name support position and /Comments to FYROM name support position

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About FYROM

I m sorry to hurt your feelings but under the current status this state is formally referred by the UN as Former Yugoslavic Republic of Macedonia which is abbreviated as FYROM. Till there is another settlement within UN this and only this is the oficial undisputed name. Italiotis 09:20, 15 September 2007 (UTC)

He's right, look at the official United Nations member states list: http://www.un.org/members/list.shtml#t Since thats is the name recognised by the UN for now, i believe it should be the main article and NOT a redicect page. Does any mod see this? Zisimos 23:27, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

It's Republic Of Macedonia!!! NOT FYROM!!!

I don't wanna argue but stop acting dumb! It's Republic Of Macedonia, it's NOT FYROM!!!

Please look at this http://www.un.org/members/list.shtml#t Zisimos 23:28, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

About the name of Macedonia

There are a couple of points that I would like to stretch about the Macedonia name dispute. And I m going to stretch both historical , etthnical, and linguistic points. First of all Macedonia as an area has been altered substantially through time. Initially it was the name used to designate the ancient greek kingdom of Macedon and its greek inhabitants. This area is completely encompassed within the borders of modern Greece and constitues today the greek province of Macedonia. The ancient Macedonians were one the the seven ancient greek tribes that constituted the greek nation according to the cosmogony of Isiodus. On top of it Herodotus further stretches that Macedonians were Greeks of Doric origin, who never followed the doric descent to the southern greece but remained in their original area Macedon. Macedon from the the 4 century BC were speaking Attic Greek and whatever writing findings we have before that time that signify that the ancient Macedonian Language was simply another Greek dialect closely related to the doric form of greek. So it is widely accepted that ancient macedonians were simply Greeks. Some dispute however rises from some scholars who challenge this issue. Those scholars belong to the same school of thought that initiated the theory of Black Athina simply stating that that the ancient Athenians and perhaps the ancient greeks where of African/Nubian and not of european origin . This school of thought came in existence as the result of an attempt to rewrite the history and forge a new perception of a multiroot origin of classical civilisations. All those theories of course never become dominant among the scientific community remaining isolated opinions of some scholars, but opinions and not reality nontheless. However it was this school of thought that suggested that the ancient Macedonians were not greeks in an attempt to include the slavic people into the group of people who produced classical civilisations. This exact forgery -that was never managed to be imposed universally- Tito, the communist president of the republic of Yogoslavia for decades,managed to exploit. Among Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, and Bosnia he created a sixth state encompassing the area of ancient Paionia, and named ir Yugoslavic republic of Macedonia. This area was inhabited by Serbians, Albanians and finally by a substatial Bulgarian minority who Tito used to built upon his irridentic claims on the whole area of the Ottoman province of Macedonia. Macedonia under the Ottomans was the name of an area much wider than the ancient Macedonia(alocated today in northern Greece). It constituted further the ancient paionia, most wisely known as Vardar Macedonia constituting the current state of the self called republic of macedonia, and Pirin Macedonia, currently the pirin mountains, the land gains of serbia and Bulgaria respectively during the Balkan wars of 1912-1913. Those Bulgarian people Tito groomed to develop a totally different national identity from the rest of Bulgarians. He named their language , a dialect of bulgarian language , as macedonian, and raise a forged irredetic claim during the cold war on greek Macedonia. The years passed ,communist regimes collapsed and with them Tito s regime. Nonetheless the fragile Yogoslavia splited in parts and the little southern republic emerged to a state still using the name of macedonia and sstill raising direct or indirect claims on the region of Macedonia and the greek history of ancient hellenistic roman and byzantine Macedonia. Those people, Bulgarians by origin speaking a bulgarian dialect, are still bearers of Tito s irredentism and self determine themselves mistakenly as ethnic Macedonians. All the world concider them as a people of slavic origin with the right to self determine themselves as distinct of Bulgaria. Nonetheless it is rational for them to bear a name that will describe them distict from Bulgarians but at the same distict from the name of macedonia which describes an important part of the greek history and culture. The current description as republic of Macedonia is completely inaccurate and a huge historical mistake that will have to be corrected the soonest, and those people must finally acquire an accurate and real description of their nationality A nationality that came in existence only 60 years ago. And don t forget till today people from FYROM still acquire bulgarian passports in order to come and work in EU on the basis that they are bulgarian by origin —Preceding unsigned comment added by Italiotis (talk • contribs) 15:27, 8 September 2007 (UTC)

Language

I think that the languages spoken are serbian,bulgarian and albanian. There is no such thing as macedonian language. It is the language of the country, but it is nonsense (as if we are talking of australian or brazilian language)85.74.51.209 12:20, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

• I am Bulgarian, and I have been living with two Macedonians for three years now... I will not make statements whether or not their language is BG or whatever, but I will tell you that we understand each other perfectly, and we are good friends.

I can't understand Serbs or Croats that way, and I talk in English with them. But Macedonians - no problem at all. I did not have to learn Macedonian at all - I just had to "get used" to it for 1 month. Now I can speak it relatively well.

So therefore is the Fyromian language a dialect of bulgarian? If so, are we allowed to state that, or like their nations' name, if they want to say it is one thing, we all have to agree? Reaper7 23:29, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

I once heard a saying that a language is a dialect with an army. :-) See Macedonian language#Classification and related languages for info on the classification of the language. I should note that scholars don't have universally accepted criteria for distinguishing languages from dialects, but the experts do seem to take the view that that Macedonian is sufficiently distinct to be described as a language. For instance, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) treats Macedonian as a distinct language for classification purposes. -- ChrisO 23:52, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

Chris you were looking for this. Also, in terms of abstand, their language could well fall within the definition of a Bulgarian dialect. However, linguists say that a language is a language if its speakers say so. And there's no doubt about what they say it is. NikoSilver 23:57, 15 April 2007 (UTC)

Nice catch on the quote, Niko! I'd forgotten the "-and a navy" bit, but in hindsight it wouldn't have been very appropriate in the context, would it? Though there is a Swiss Navy, sort of... -- ChrisO 00:02, 16 April 2007 (UTC)

Heh, if it relied on the navy alone, there would be no doubt about the Greek language at least! NikoSilver 00:31, 16 April 2007 (UTC)

I am curious why Russian is used first in the infobox? CApitol3 00:24, 9 July 2007 (UTC)

FYROM

I know it is being disputed for ages and it will be disputed for centuries but nevertheless, this f*** country's OFFICIAL name is FORMER YUGOSLAV Republic of Mecedonia!!!!

At least, when you begin the article about this country, write the full damn name and then call it whatever you want!! I know it will not change much but at least make it official!

Do you hear anybody disputing an article about calling Istanbul Constantinople?? No!Because like it or not it's Istanbul NOWDAYS! And like it or not, the official name of FYROM is FYROM for crying out loud! (oh, sorry FYROMacedonia...oh yea, and the northern province of Greece is GRMacedonia or should we call it something else after 2500 years to make the Skopjians happy?)

By the way i hate being rude and sarcastic but sometimes it's completely impossible to hold oneself. I didn't ask to change the whole article, just the beginning (put the official, recognized by the UN, name pleeeeease...)-- kompikos

Piss off Kompikos. Why don;t you go shave your fat, hairy greek mother's beard

Hahaha, how funny, swearing. Kompikos is actually right, the official name is FYROM and I do not know why the name here is Republic of Macedonia. Why should we call Greek Macedonia Greek Macedonia then? It's real name is Makedonia in Greek, so the name should be Macedonia there aswell, at least as long as the same thing applies to FYROM. You POVers are irritating me. - Beares 15:58, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

The official name of the country is Republic of Macedonia. Part of the countries and international organizations use FYROM in the international diplomatic relations, but that doesn't make it the official name. Electionworld Talk? 20:17, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

What is it's name in the UN? There you go, pal: FYROM. Until the UN changes the name to Republic of Macedonia or Macedonia, it should be called FYROM. Now if some countries do not want to bother using the entire name is another matter. End of discussion. Beares 11:24, 15 June 2007 (UTC)

Since when does the UN decide the official name of a country. It is up to the countries themselves to decide their official names. Nowhere the right is given to the UN to make these kinds of decisions. I am aware that the UN and part of its members uses the diplomatic name FYROM, but that doesn't make it the official name. Article one of the Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia is clear: The Republic of Macedonia is a sovereign, independent, democratic and social state. The sovereignty of the Republic of Macedonia is indivisible, inalienable and nontransferable. [1]. Please stop your POV towards the Republic of Macedonia. BTW As a short name I would use the official name, to distinguish it with other regions inside Macedonia. Electionworld Talk? 12:32, 15 June 2007 (UTC)

The official name of a country is not what it calls itself, that is the inofficial name, what name is used in for example the Olympics? FYROM. Now what a country chooses to call itself internally is irrelevant in this article(The Constitution of the Republic of Macedonia). You are pushing your POV and accusing me for doing it. - Beares 17:31, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

The official name of a country is the right of any country itself. I am not POV in this issue, neither form Greece or from Fyrom, not even from the region. The name of the country is according to its constitution Republic of Macedonia. Electionworld Talk? 18:56, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Again, no, the official name is what all other countries (The UN) calls it, and how it is recognized. If Greece suddenly changed its name to Albania, do you think it would be accepted? No, but a compromise would be reached. As has been done with FYROM. Which, again, means that FYROM is the politically correct and neutral name (Don't say that it is what the Greeks call it because they call it Skopje or in Greek Ta Skopja). And because Wikipedia is, or at least is supposed to be, a neutral site, the right name for this country is FYROM, not Republic of Macedonia. End of discussion right there, pal. - Beares 11:08, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

OK end of discussion, but de won't agree. Electionworld Talk? 18:04, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

I have no problem with that, you have your opinion and I have mine, but I have a problem with the other guy insulting Kompikos for no apparent reason in a way that sounds racist. - Beares 09:36, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I agree, thats not the way Wikipedians should behave. Electionworld Talk? 12:18, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Indeed. Getting back to the issue where you disagree, I'd like to note to my fellow philhellen Beares the following: It is indeed crazy and confusing that they call themselves Macedonians -period. See Macedonia (terminology), or this edit to have a small idea why it is so. Regardless, (and unfortunately/wrongly/mistakenly/unjustly/confusingly/...) most English speakers have chosen to call them that. It is sad, but true. It is a fact of life. Wikipedia does not take position on whether this is correct or not. Wikipedia just uses the most common reference in English, and if there is doubt (which is indeed arguable), it uses the self-identifying name. Hopefully, the whole world (<--ahem, mouseover here) will change their minds. But until then, we are doomed to title the article as such.

To highlight the absurdity of it all, please read and then mouseover the following sentences:

• The modern Germans who speak German and live in modern Germany, have nothing to do with the Germanic tribes who spoke Germanic languages in Germania.

You may not agree to all I say above, but fact is: WP will not change the world; the world will change WP. NikoSilver 13:11, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Unfortunately you are right, NikoSilver, in a world were most people ignore facts and prefer looking at a map instead, this will be the consequence. BTW, has anyone noticed that Wikipedia is not seen as a word/name? It gets this red thing under it (Don't know what to call it). Quite funny IMHO, considering that this is Wikipedia... Anyway, the main reason to why I reacted was because of the other posters (Not Electionworlds) insult. Just wanted to say that :P. - Beares 16:20, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Ох, ЛУДАЦИ... I think that everybody from this discussion should GET A LIFE, WAKE UP & start thinking about his/her OWN PROBLEMS. Macedonia or fyrom is not yours neither my problem. In the end we can't do a sh** to change that...

"linguists say that a language is a language if its speakers say so" - I believe you are mistaken, a professional linguist would never say such nonsense. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.247.249.65 (talk) 13:22, August 30, 2007 (UTC)

Naming dispute

Can someone provide a link/list of countries recognizing Macedonia as "Republic of Macedoia" (to be 106 according to the Macedonia naming dispute page) and those recognizing it as "FYROM"? Alinor 13:34, 24 March 2007 (UTC)

Impossible. See the end of the thread here for explanation. NikoSilver 13:30, 3 April 2007 (UTC)

That's not even relevent Alinor. A country has the right to decide whatever name it wishes. There is Ireland and Northern Ireland and people don't care about the naming. Do the other countries of North America care that citizens of the USA call themselves 'American'? Do members if the European countries care that citizens of Cyprus refer to themselves as European even though the island is geographically part of Asia? Macedonia has every right to choose whatever name it likes without interference from other countries. Everyone accepts that it's called Macedonia but on paper and in the United Nations they use FYR of Macedonia just to please the Greeks. 217.200.200.54 22:26, 21 September 2007 (UTC)

Shouldn't the "F" in "Former" be Capitalized?

"Macedonia gained its independence peacefully from Yugoslavia in 1991, but Greece's objection to the new state's use of what it considered a Hellenic name and symbols delayed international recognition, which occurred under the provisional designation of "the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia." In 1995, Greece lifted a 20-month trade embargo and the two countries agreed to normalize relations. The United States began referring to Macedonia by its constitutional name, Republic of Macedonia, in 2004 and negotiations continue between Greece and Macedonia to resolve the name issue." - CIA Factbook

When referring to the name that the Greeks prefer, including the word "former," it would seems that it would be proper to capitalize the "F". Note that that is the convention accepted by the CIA, the BBC, IOC, IANA and other major international organizations.4.243.146.157 01:00, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

The short answer is no. See Macedonia naming dispute (with added bolding): "It should be noted that this is purely a provisional reference — describing how the UN calls the state — rather than a determination by the UN of what the state's name should be (hence not a provisional name). This is emphasized by the fact that the expression begins with the uncapitalised words "the former". The UN also did not seek to set a standard for how others should refer to the republic, emphasizing that the reference had been adopted for use only "within the United Nations". The same convention was adopted by many other international organizations and states but they did so independently, not as the result of being instructed by the UN. The United Nations Security Council has emphasized that the reference is purely descriptive and "merely reflected the historic fact that it had been in the past a republic of the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia."" -- ChrisO 01:58, 25 March 2007 (UTC)

Former is with an "f" and not capitalised, the UN acnowledges that fact here http://www.un.org/members/list.shtml#t Zisimos 23:29, 4 October 2007 (UTC)

Here we go again..

From the History section:

In the late 6th century AD, Byzantine control over the area disintegrated, and the region was conquered by Slavic tribes from the north, assimilating the preexisting Greek, Latin, Illyrian and Thracian-speaking inhabitants.

The citation is from a Fyromian site aswell: http://www.unet.com.mk/mian/slavsin.htm

The greeks stayed within the walls of Salonika during this time and did not assimilate or suddenly start speaking slav. Reaper7 11:22, 25 April 2007 (UTC)

You're a goofy little shit. Can you imagine Italy throwing a fit because the United States has a Latin motto? Or Israelis throwing fits because people from any number of European countries give their children Hebriac names like Isaac and Simon? Or the aboriginal population in Australia throwing complaining because the white settlers adopt their words and give their cities aboriginal names? That's how absolutely absurd the Greek argument is in this matter. I side with the Greeks on most everything - from their dispute with Turkey regarding Cyprus to your 2000 Olympic bid - but on this matter you're behaving like a bunch of Turks. The mindless, pointless, absolutely nonsensical rambling about something as inconsequential as the name of a country which has NEVER DONE ANYTHING TO GREECE - which hystorically was part of the region of Macedonia (SO THE NAME IS ACCURATE) - is absolute lunacy. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.183.178.138 (talk) 03:59, 6 May 2007 (UTC).

Of course i agree with the above you said, but why is FYROM trying so desperate to prove that the ancient Macedonians have nothing to do with Greeks? And i'm not talking about some few ultra nationalist people in FYROM and abroad, i'm talking about the government too... why is that? Also since you said "FYROM is a part of Macedonia region, so the name is accurate", what about the other regions? Why FYROM to monopolize a name, that don't belong only to them (but Greece and Bulgaria too). So the appropriate is to choose a name (with the term Macedonia) that separates you from the Greek and Bulgaria Macedonia and of course to stop claiming other nations history (i'm talking about ancient Macedonia). If you can do that, then i'm sure we have nothing else to argue ;-) —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Sakis79 (talk • contribs) 09:51, 6 May 2007 (UTC).

>> And this is way Modern Macedonians have nearly nothing in common with Ancient Macedonians. And all those slavs are part of the Bulgarian nation! Yavor 00:20, 2 May 2007 (UTC)

And modern America has nearly nothing to do with Ancient Rome, but they have a latin motto on their money. What kind of crazy nonsense is that?? I think Italy should protest this outrage before the UN security councel!!! —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.183.178.138 (talk) 04:01, 6 May 2007 (UTC).

>>> And to be fair, shouldn't Kuber's Bulgars who settled in Macedon (lowest estimates are 80 000) be added? Or are we ignoring facts?

There is nothing wrong with "monopolising" names. Where do you think of when you say America? Do you think of the two continents of the western hemisphere, or the USA? If I were to say Brussels is the capital of Europe would you think I meant the whole continent or the EU? New Guinea is part of Australia but not Australia. Are all the people of the British Isles British? I wouldn't try that in the Republic of Ireland.

So as you can see "monopolising" names isn't new, nor something to get to caught up in, and certainly shouldn't be allowed to affect the ease of understanding of the article. Scroggie 19:48, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Umm, I don't know what sprung off this comment, but all the examples you stated have different official names that disambiguate adequately. I don't think that Greece wold raise issue if that solution were to be applied, and some people euphemistically/for-simplicity used Americans to refer to the inhabitants of the USA.(<---mouse over these) As for Australia, I doubt New Guinea would be able to monopolize the name instead of the Australian Commonwealth which occupies -say- 95% of the continent. In our case the country occupies only 30% or so, with Greece occupying 51% (not to mention the unrelatedness in historic background). NikoSilver 20:09, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

User 24.183.178.138, I suggest you refrain from participating on this site until, 1/ you cease using apparently derogatory remarks about our Turkish friends,("[Greeks] behaving like a bunch of Turks"). 2/ Until you learn to contextualise each individual case regarding names and appelations. Politis 20:29, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Their Eurovision candidate is one very beautiful girl if it helps. I was almost stunned (and that's rare). Also, the Greek commentator's tongue slipped to say plain "good luck Macedonia", to be quickly corrected by her almost angry colleague. I just say this to verify that the above official/simple distinction could also even occasionally apply in Greece! (and because I really liked the girl) NikoSilver 21:20, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

From Monastiri and beautiful? She must be of Greek Vlach origin. Go for it Karolina, Greece is behind you! ;-) Politis 21:31, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

Yes, she is one very beautiful F.Y.R.O.M. girl born in Bitola and she has very good voice. We Macedonians are happy that she succeeded to go in the final. Niko, I'm glad that you liked her;) MatriX 11:03, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

I bet you're glad about the rest of my comment too. ;-) NikoSilver 11:07, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

:) Lets hope Karolina and your Sarbel would have great success tommorow eveningMatriX 11:15, 11 May 2007 (UTC)

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Use of talk pages

Please do not use Talk:Republic of Macedonia as a message board. This is not what talk pages are for - see Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines. -- ChrisO 07:29, 7 June 2007 (UTC)

as i saw myself, the text says that United nations recognise that country as FYROM, so i cant understand why you keep the name Macedonia.. Instead you should refert to it as FYROM..

Did someone remove the image of the FYROM money note depicting the white tower??

Reaper7 18:35, 12 June 2007 (UTC)

Official languages issue again

I know this was discussed so many times, but it is a fact that the Albanian is not an official language throughout Macedonia. It is not used in the Government, it the police, in the army, in the international relations, on the border crossings etc. If you put it in the intro along with the Macedonian, it looks like they have the same importance and that is simply not true. The government in Macedonia didn't accept so far the Albanian as the second official language throughout the country. For example, see the following info taken from [2]:

But, the talks suffered a setback on Tuesday when the Slav parties rejected two of the Albanians' key demands - that Albanian be made one of Macedonia's official languages and that a local police force be set up independent of the Interior Ministry (IM).

In a statement released Wednesday, U.S. and EU envoys said the draft political settlement on the table provides for retaining Macedonian as the "primary official language" throughout the country, and IM central control over the police.

Albanian would become an official language "in some areas and in restricted circumstances," the statement said.

Also, check the following link-[3].

The last situation is that in April the prime minister Gruevski held talks with the Albanian opposition leader Ahmeti and they have some progress regarding the possible adoption of a special languages law that will define clearly the usage of languages in Macedonia (see [4]):

"Progress has been made on several open issues, but there will be additional talks. We await for the DUI proposal on the law on languages. Afterwards, we will see what they ask and whether this is acceptable", stated Gruevski. MatriX 18:07, 13 June 2007 (UTC)

Matrix, no WP:OR. The fact of the matter is that real encyclopedias see fit to treat both languages equally [5]. Original researchis not enough to overrull this.--Ploutarchos 14:07, 16 June 2007 (UTC)

Albanian is an official MINORITY language, meaning that it does not have the same status as Macedonian. For example, on Macedonian currency, the name on it is REPUBLIKA MAKEDONIJA, there is no Albanian name. So if the Macedonian name is the official name of the country as it is shown on the currency, then why are we adding the Albanian name on Wikipedia if its not even on their currency???Uuttyyrreess 22:22, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

The bottom line is that Macedonians all over the world are very offended when seeing this wikipedia article and seeing that the name of their country is in Albanian. As I said Albanian language is not at the same status as Macedonian language, it is not divided 50/50 as you can see the Albanian language is not taught in schools where there are'nt Albanians, it is not on the currency, it is not on the passports, there is not Albanian version of the anthem, etc. Uuttyyrreess 22:27, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

ACCORDING to thye CIA WORLD FACT BOOK[6]:

conventional long form: Republic of Macedonia 
conventional short form: Macedonia 
local long form: Republika Makedonija 
local short form: Makedonija 

Therefore the Albanian does not apply for the name of the country, passports, currency, etc. Obviously the britannica source is a misunderstanding and an error because they assumed that since Albanian is a minority language that every thing was split 50/50 including the name of the country, but they were wrong.Uuttyyrreess 22:42, 17 June 2007 (UTC) The Albanian name is not the official name of the country.Uuttyyrreess 23:43, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Read Ohrid Agreement. Mr. Neutron 23:10, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Read Macedonia's Currency

Read Macedonia's Passports

Read Macedonia's Profile on the CIA World Factbook

Read Reality Uuttyyrreess 23:40, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

Currency was issued mostly in 1996 before the Ohrid Agreement. The text of the Ohrid agreement stats that there will be passports, street signs and currency in Albanian language. Mr. Neutron 00:00, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Can you show me where in the Ohrid agreement it says that? Uuttyyrreess 00:10, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

"6.8. Any official personal documents of citizens speaking an official language other than Macedonian will also be issued in that language, in addition to the Macedonian language, in accordance with the law."

"6.5. Any other language spoken by at least 20 percent of the population is also an official language, as set forth herein. In the organs of the Republic of Macedonia, any official language other than Macedonian may be used in accordance with the law, as further elaborated in Annex B. Any person living in a unit of local self-government in which at least 20 percent of the population speaks an official language other than Macedonian may use any official language to communicate with the regional office of the central government with responsibility for that municipality; such an office will reply in that language in addition to Macedonian. Any person may use any official language to communicate with a main office of the central government, which will reply in that language in addition to Macedonian. " Mr. Neutron 00:20, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

There is no mention of passports, currency, or the name of the country. Sigh Uuttyyrreess 00:34, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Are you blind? "Personal documents" Mr. Neutron 00:36, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Personal documents could mean a whole other range of documents excluding passports and currency (despite that fact that passports and currency of Macedonia upto date is all written in Macedonian). The bottom line is that this does not supply us with enough information to conclude that the actual official name of the whole country is being changed to Albanian.Uuttyyrreess 00:46, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Read the infobox on the Romania article. German, Serbian, Hungarian, etc. all are official languages of Romania (at local levels just like Macedonia) yet the name of the country is always represented by its official primary language, Romanian. The same is also true for articles on the People's Republic of China, and especially Russia. Uuttyyrreess 00:53, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Maybe some modifications in the relevant section (Republic_of_Macedonia#Languages) so as to describe and clarify the whole controversy are in order:

Instead of this text:

Macedonian is the only language explicitly designated as an official national language in the constitution. It also provides however that languages spoken by over 20% of the total population are also official - at present, only Albanian fulfils this requirement. Additionally, in municipalities where at least 20% of the population is from other ethnic minorities, their individual languages are used for official purposes in local government.

We could change to:

As a result of the Ohrid Agreement, the constitution provides that languages spoken by over 20% of the total population are also official, along with Macedonian. Only the Albanian language fulfills the constitutional provision at a national level. However, as of 2007, Macedonian is still the only language explicitly designated as an official national language in the constitution, with the official recognition of other languages restricted to municipalities where at least 20% of the population is from other ethnic minorities, and that "in addition to Macedonian".

Comments? BTW, please copy it and edit it mercilessly below if you wish to propose something else. NikoSilver 15:24, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Whoah! Please look what I came up with by browsing the sources: Regarding the earlier example, compare the language treatment here with the one here. I am re-adding the Albanian language in the infobox and intro. Now it is officially sourced. If you read Britannica's note #2, it even says: "Albanian was made an official language in June 2002." I'm glad we are all stepping out of the train of WP:OR interpretations with this! NikoSilver 15:34, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

As I already said, Albanian has not the same importance as the Macedonian and it just have a special privileges to be used in some circumstances. Moreover, the Macedonian constitution clearly specifies the official name of the country - using the Macedonian alphabet - for that reason I suggest keeping the only official naming of the country in the intro and in the infobox as well.MatriX 16:13, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

We are not here to interpret the constitution ourselves (and there are interpretations for the opposite above, as I notice). Britannica has interpreted it for us instead. Also, I just noticed someone removing the Albanian language while maintaining the source. This is becoming really annoying. NikoSilver 16:21, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Britannica cannot be more relevant than the Macedonian constitution where the official name is defined using the Macedonian alphabet only. MatriX 16:24, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

...which obviously means that the other interpretation of the constitution is correct, and not yours. NikoSilver 16:26, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

... and you should make a distinction between an official language and official name or naming of a country. MatriX 16:29, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

...and you should read that Britannica does *neither* make that distinction in listing the official names! Please stop. NikoSilver 16:47, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

The Britannica source is obviosly a flaw as it goes against the CIA World Factbook, also this other Brittanica article says that the official name of the country is Republika Makedonija only [7]. So there is obviously a flaw on the on-line version, so if anyone as acess to the hard copy of the Britannica book, mabey you can scan it and show everyone here what it says. Uuttyyrreess 19:48, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Also, because the Albanian name is not shown on the official currency of Macedonia, and because Albanian is official only in locally (not through out the country), Macedonia falls under the same situation as Romania, read the infobox on that article, you'll see that there is more than one official language in Romania, but the official name of the country is shown in Romanian. Uuttyyrreess 19:53, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Also, what more proof do you want from this [8] ?

Useful reads from that article:

• Origins, language, ethnicities, descent: [9]
• Disclaimer for history: [10]
• Who were what and when: [11]
• Independence: [12]

As a side note, claiming there's "a flaw" in the country page (which is linked from the introduction page), is just _laughable_. I am sorry you feel that strongly about the Albanians. Maybe this attitude reflects what type of information is being pushed within the modern republic's borders... It is really sad, and I hope the new country gets over it. NikoSilver 20:56, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Until another language is shown on the country's currency, which upto date is written all in Macedonian with the official name Republika Makedonija, then the official name of the country is Macedonian. What more can I say? Uuttyyrreess 21:34, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

?? What is written on the currency has no bearing in what languages are official or not in a state. Surely you know that>? Reaper7 22:13, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Go tell Britannica. NikoSilver 22:28, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Ha ha you're so funny! Uuttyyrreess 22:33, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Yes the Albanians in Fyrom must be laughing... Reaper7 23:38, 18 June 2007 (UTC)

Instead of quibbling about the sourced (vs WP:OR) practice of including the Albanian name, perhaps we should consider including a footnote next to the name similar to Britannica's highlighting the FYROM name further.--Ploutarchos 08:29, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Nobody is feeling that strongly about the Albanians, but why you are so insisting that their language is official at national level where it is not? I said a lot of times already - it has special privileges - but it is not used at national level and putting the Albanian name in the intro you are equalizing the status of the Albanian with the one of the Macedonian. That is why I'm opposing it so strongly. MatriX 16:56, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

MatriX you so lost!

"6.5. Any other language spoken by at least 20 percent of the population is also an official language, as set forth herein. In the organs of the Republic of Macedonia, any official language other than Macedonian may be used in accordance with the law, as further elaborated in Annex B. Any person living in a unit of local self-government in which at least 20 percent of the population speaks an official language other than Macedonian may use any official language to communicate with the regional office of the central government with responsibility for that municipality; such an office will reply in that language in addition to Macedonian. Any person may use any official language to communicate with a main office of the central government, which will reply in that language in addition to Macedonian. " Mr. Neutron 17:19, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Neutron, you are so blind:

In a statement released Wednesday, U.S. and EU envoys said the draft political settlement on the table provides for retaining Macedonian as the "primary official language" throughout the country, and IM central control over the police.

Albanian would become an official language "in some areas and in restricted circumstances," the statement said. MatriX 17:29, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Show source then? Mr. Neutron 17:32, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I provided it at the beginning of this section. MatriX 17:39, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Show the link where it says and in restricted circumstances. Mr. Neutron 17:43, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

[13] MatriX 17:45, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Get a sources from .eu or .gov and try again. Mr. Neutron 17:48, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Ok, is BBC enough good for you?? : [[14]] MatriX 17:50, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

This source does not support your point. Mr. Neutron 17:56, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

How do you mean!? Here is what it says: Following Macedonian accusations that they were willing to grant equal status to the Albanian language, Mr Leotard and Mr Pardew were forced to issue a statement. Their proposals retained Macedonian as the country's primary official language, they said. MatriX 17:58, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

And? It does not say anything about Albanian, which is obvious also an official language. Mr. Neutron 18:19, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

It says that the Macedonian would retain as the primary official language in the country and that the Albanian would not be equalized with the Macedonian. You should finally accept that the Macedonian is the only official language at national level and stop reverting the article. MatriX 18:23, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Albanian would not be equalized with the Macedonian - this is a product of your twisted imagination :) Mr. Neutron 18:27, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Oh, personal attacks again? Are you doing that always when you have nothing else to say? How sad MatriX 18:30, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Actually, you have nothing to else to say, and can only fabricate sources. Mr. Neutron 18:31, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Mr. Neutron, enough is enough, you asked for a source and you got it, now its time to stop and think what you're doing. Uuttyyrreess 17:53, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Dear wikipedians. For me it is clear: Macedonian is the national official language of the RoM, but Albanian is also an official language. There is a justification of adding the name in Albanian too. I think it is a real problem on pages like this one that nationalism dominates a lot of contributions. Electionworld Talk? 18:32, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

I appreciate your thoughts, but the reality is different: Albanian is not used in the Government, policy, army, border crossings, in the international relations of the Republic of Macedonia etc. As the Albanian has some special status in the country, I agree that it should be correctly explained in the article (as it is in the info box already), but we should find some other formulas different from the one that puts both names in the intro section (it is obvious that it irritates the Macedonian editors as it doesn't reflect the reality that we face each day here in the country). MatriX 18:39, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Correctness of the articles is not based on whether Mac. editors are irritated. In this case, if they are irritated, the problem is with them, not with wikipedia. Original research and falsifying sources will not be tolerated! Mr. Neutron 18:42, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

And, to conclude, the only official name of the country is the one described in the Macedonian constitution and is written in Macedonian alphabet. The Albanian name of the country is not an official name of the country, it is not used in the constitution, it is not used everywhere at national level. MatriX 18:47, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Just look at the Romania page. Hungarian, German, Romani, Ukranian and Serbian are all official languages of Romania (info box). So why isn't the name "Romania" written in these languages? Because the primary ofiicial language is Romanian. Uuttyyrreess 18:57, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Do you see the difference in language treatment between this and this? Albanian in FYROM is certainly not the same as German... in Romania.--Ploutarchos 19:16, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Romanian and Macedonian are primary languages, German and Albanian are official local languages, both Romania and Macedonia are in the same situation. There is no difference. Uuttyyrreess 19:46, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Did you even look at the sources??? Britannica treats "Macedonian" and Albanian equally in the FYROM page, but doesn't even mention German in the Romania page. Being official nationwide is all that's required, even if it's never used (see Romansch at Switzerland which is spoken by 1% of the total pop.)--Ploutarchos 19:49, 19 June 2007 (UTC)

Come on, Switzerland is a confederation, whereas Macedonia is an unified country, with just one official language that is used throughout the country - Macedonian. The Albanian name you extensively put into the intro section is not an official name of this country. MatriX 17:21, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

North Macedonia? New Macedonia?

What about if FYROM adopted a name like North Macedonia or New Macedonia? Would Greeks be satisfied?

See Macedonia naming dispute#Greek position for an answer. I think yes. Not to mention that the prevailing position in Greece is that we are brought to this position due to our stubbornness. More specifically, the then MFA Antonis Samaras allegedly rejected the proposal for "Slavomacedonia/n/s" against the PM Constantine Mitsotakis's wishes. When he was replaced, he overthrew the government. That was easy because despite the large percentage of the governing party in votes (~48%), the then electoral law gave it only marginal parliamentary majority with 151/300 members. NikoSilver 19:29, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Also, I remember a few days ago some statements by today's PM and MFA, who both said something like:

"We covered already our part of the distance [i.e. quit rejecting Mk name inclusion] between the two positions; now it is the turn for Skopje to do the same [i.e. quit rejecting anything but plain Mk]."

Comments in brackets are mine of course. NikoSilver 19:39, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

Of course, that raises the question of whether any Greek government wants to cross the howling ultranationalists who reject any usage of the name "Macedonia" at all. One suspects that these people might not be too happy. -- ChrisO 19:43, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I've no idea Chris; I really wish they did. Actually I wish they had done so there and then when it was "hot". To tell you the truth I'm almost confident most Greeks want such a solution, given that I didn't spot any serious reactions on the government's widely discussed alleged acceptance of Nimetz's last proposal for "Makedonija-Skopje".

However, I've reasons to expect any party being on the opposition to reject it as "treason" for stealing votes, thereby fueling the ultra-nationalists. Regardless, I think we elect leaders for being wise, not for being feathers in the wind.

Anyway... the worst part is that I've come to a point not to expect such a proposal any more given the circumstances... The whole situation in our neck of the woods definitely smells like "divide et impera": See Yugoslavia, see Kossovo, see Iraq being split shortly, see Kurdistan becoming autonomous, see next Turkey and Iran being split to those bits... For Greece, see Cyprus, see alleged minorities of (Slavo)Macedonians,[1] and now of Albanians on the northwest(!),[2] see Aegean dispute... NikoSilver 20:11, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

For any such compromise name to have any hope of viability, it would have to be extended to both the predominant ethnic group and language of the neighbouring state, and any illusions of descent from ancient Macedon abandoned in official discourse and the education system. New Zealanders have no connection to Zealand, for example, other than the name. If this were applied here, it might just work. ·ΚέκρωΨ· 23:00, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I'm wondering, Greece is opposing the usage of the name Macedonia of its neighboring country and for the reason that it uses the same name for its northern province. Why don't you then change the name of your province to something like, for example: Greek Macedonia (as you are saying that Macedonia was Greek)? That way everyone would make a distinction between our Macedonia and yours? MatriX 17:25, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

MatriX: Interesting way of thinking; in addition, we can call Greek Macedonia “Real Macedonia” and your country “Pseudo-Macedonia”, how about that? Now until then, let’s get serious: I suggest you read a few good history books, because it seems like you do need them badly… Helladios 17:58, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

How about calling your northern province Northern Greece as it was called before 1988? MatriX 18:02, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

How about calling yourself Yugoslav Socialist Republic of Macedonia as you were called before 1991Mr. Neutron 18:04, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Ok, but then you can also return to your previous name People's Republic of Bulgaria:).MatriX 18:08, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Hmm, you do really need a lot of history books… Btw, does the name Vardarska Banovina reminds you of something? Helladios 18:11, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Different names were used throughout the history, but we remained what we are. Did you forget that both our countries also were part of the Ottoman empire and called differently then? MatriX 18:16, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Your country was never part of the Ottoman Empire. You are brand new, 20th century country. Mr. Neutron 18:17, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

If the country was created later, that doesn't mean that the people didn't existed and didn't wanted to create its own country.MatriX 18:20, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Since we talk for the past, lets remember what Krste Misirkov said about a century ago:

• Some will ask why I speak of breaking away from the Bulgarians when in the past we have even called ourselves Bulgarians and when it is generally accepted that unification creates strength, and not separation.

• Krste Misirkov, "On Macedonian Matters", Macedonian Review Editions 1974, (Sofia 1903)

• And, anyway, what sort of new Macedonian nation can this be when we and our fathers and grandfathers and great-grandfathers have always been called Bulgarians?

• Krste Misirkov, "On Macedonian Matters", Macedonian Review Editions 1974, (Sofia 1903)

Helladios 18:24, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

[15]: Nurigiani (1972) calls "the founder of the Modern Macedonian literary language" published In Macedonian Matters (Sofia, 1903). There he stated that the Macedonians are "a separate and independent Slav people). I think this is not a forum where we should interpret the history, this talk page is about the contents of the article, not how Macedonia or your northern province should be called, neither what Misirkov said in 1903, so I'll quit the discussion. MatriX 18:36, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Cheers! Helladios 18:38, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Misirkov also considered Vardar Macedonia as "Bulgarian land" and its people Bulgarian. Mr. Neutron 18:37, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Did it occur to any of you that we all come from Adam and Eve? Did you ever think that Onassis' or Kennedy's or Einstein's son can be a total looser? That the beggar's daughter in the corner of the street can become Madonna? So who gives a shit if my or your grandpa's balls were "truly" Macedonian? Just try to make sure you live up to his expectations. The rest is bullshit, and is pursued by people who have no other way to make themselves "distinct"! NikoSilver 23:06, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

"Stealing" some neighbor's history is immaterial; your kids can become equally clever without it!

"Protecting" your "own" history is bollocks; your kids can become equally dumb with it!

Macedonia is big. It (mainly) contains 3 distinct ethnic groups, with various ancestries. The rest is semantics; and semantics is a really lame reason to argue about... Has any neighbor of the three ever thought that we have many more reasons to stick together rather than arguing about bullshit? That most our (perceived) "enemies" are common? That we share a common culture? That these "problems" we have between us may be planted, because we shouldn't even fucking care? Great. Now what are we doing about it? NikoSilver 23:06, 21 June 2007 (UTC)

Update

Following ChrisO's question, there was an unofficial poll carried out in 2004 that I just spotted: [16]. For those of you who can't read Greek, 68-75% support a solution with "Macedonia plus something". (There's a comment quoting the poll results "before reset" which raises the number of participants to c.270 -with the same results). Also, I found this fantastic opinion/article in Kathimerini by the prominent Greek journalist Athanassios Ellis, which states "We requested the maximum [i.e. "no Macedonia in the title"], hence we lost the minimum.[i.e. not even a dab]" The journalist also reconfirms that each political party accuses the other one for "treason" even if the solution chosen is similar to the one provided by the accusatory party! I posted these here to confirm my initial response. NikoSilver 13:23, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

That's all well and good, Niko, but it doesn't justify the intransigence of the other side. Greece made the first move by accepting the initial Nimetz proposal as a "basis for negotiations"; the ball's squarely in their court now. ·ΚέκρωΨ· 13:31, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

According to a recent sourced addition of an anonymous user in Macedonia naming dispute about "Gorna Macedonia", it may not be entirely their fault. See this diff [17], which blames the Tetovo crisis for yet another failure in a definite solution. Jeez, I hope this all comes to an end at some point! NikoSilver 15:20, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

Or it could just be that they used the Albanian insurgency as an excuse not to reach a painful but inevitable (for both sides) compromise with Greece, in which case it is very much their fault. ·ΚέκρωΨ· 15:25, 25 June 2007 (UTC)

And I'm pretty sure it was Gorna Makedonija, Slavic for Upper Macedonia. Gorna Macedonia must be a typo on E's part. ·ΚέκρωΨ· 04:06, 26 June 2007 (UTC)

Obviously I have nothing intelligent to add to the name dispute, since the dispute itself is moronic, but since I am already here, I will throw in my 2c though nobody asked me for it :) I am baffled, dazed and confused how did it come to this state of affairs and how come Macedonia and Greece are not the closest allies on the Balkans? For God's sake, Greece is Macedonia's exit to sea, and Macedonia is Greece's highway to Europe! The two countries NEED each other! And instead of being allies and stand together (since pretty much every other neighboring country hates them both, for different reasons though :) they are going bananas over some stupid name and some second hand history from 2000 years ago, passed down by who knows how many drunken Roman and Byzantine historians until it reached us as something just a little more than a fairytale! I live in the 21st century AD, not in the 5th BC! I couldn't give less crap about what happened 2500 years ago, I care how is my life today (well, to be exact I live on a different continent, but those are details :).. So what I propose is: kill all the politicians (both Greek and Macedonian), get drunk together (both rakija and Ouzo are fine :) and I am sure the people themselves will come a commonly agreeable solution :)) -me out Capricornis 05:02, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

As about your comment "some second hand history from 2000 years ago" I strongly disagree. History is not something that we are allowed to leave for the past and just forget it, or worse, re-modify it for our diplomatic or political needs but something that we have to learn from in order for humanity to gain wisdom from its experiences and its mistakes (imagine for example someone like Hitler uprising to power because we did not take a lesson from WW2). As for the rest of the conversation I think you are partly right. This kind of rivalry is more dangerous than moronic and is one more reason why nobody should forget history. It seems that many people have forgotten that this kind of rivalries drived us to the Balkan Wars that created a lot of misslocations, immigrancy, misery and national hate between our countries. Moronically we find war and dispute much easier than trying to get along and make an objective view of the truth without rights and wrongs and without sublimation and demonalization. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.218.44.77 (talk) 12:32, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

Culture Section

Needs cleanup. The text reads, "The Republic of Macedonia is amongst one of the countries with the most beautiful preserved Byzantine fresco paintings, mainly from the period between the 11th and 16th centuries." A reference for that would not even be useful. Peacock phrases like "most beautiful" are against Wikipedia's editing policy. And phrases like "exquisite beauty" aren't any better. It sounds like a tourist brochure.Acumensch 04:23, 22 June 2007 (UTC)

Albanian language

I THe Albanian language is recognised as an official language in RoM. But it is not THE national language.

So i urge the editors to exclude the Albanian version of Republic of MAcedonia from the intro section

It;s that simple.

Satellite view of the Republic of Macedonia

Should be removed for obvious reasons: /media/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Macedonia.JPG Reaper7 18:06, 4 July 2007 (UTC)

Indulge me, what are the obvious reasons? -- ChrisO 00:55, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

Someone (ie a human who wants to learn about this nation who does not know it already) will see what we see now. A sat picture of a piece of land, no boarders to indicate where it begins or ends, a piece of land that seems unfortunately for reality to go half into Hellenic non-slav terority and appears to show your nation as a mediterranean one and not a land locked one like we know it to be. It is ok for the people of Fyrom - within their boarders to create any reality or history they please, that is their right, but for goodness sakes, non Fyromian kids read wiki, at least they deserve to see the real boarders of your land and not some ambiguous sat image which carelessly engulfs a big part of Hellas. Reaper7 01:01, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

OK, perhaps the best thing to do in that case would be to trace the country borders onto the map in a similar fashion to Image:Southeast mediterranean annotated geography.jpg, which I produced a while ago. (I wasn't responsible for the RoM satellite image, for the record). -- ChrisO 01:04, 5 July 2007 (UTC)

Slight historical inaccuracy concerning the First Bulgarian Empire

In the start of the third paragraph in the History section of this article, I wish to point out what I believe is an error.

"In the late 6th century AD, Byzantine control over the area disintegrated, and the region was invaded by Slavic tribes from the north, assimilating the preexisting Greek, Latin, Illyrian and Thracian-speaking inhabitants in the regions of today's Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria, where they formed eventually the First Bulgarian Empire, centered at the city of Ohrid.[4]"

Ohrid was a major cultural center of Bulgaria, yes, but the only time when Ohrid could be called the 'center' of the First Bulgarian Empire was near the end of the empire, when Byzantium had conquered Eastern Bulgaria.

Not only this, but the First Bulgarian Empire didn't hold Macedonia in its creation, Macedonia was later acquired through conquest, whereas other territories, now Romanian, Moldovan, and Ukrainian were, in fact, part of Bulgaria through the first empire. (I'm not sure what the paragraph above tries to convey, but what it does convey, is inaccurate.)

Perhaps the article should read:

"In the late 6th century AD, Byzantine control over the area disintegrated, and the region was invaded by Slavic tribes from the north, assimilating the preexisting Greek, Latin, Illyrian and Thracian-speaking inhabitants in the regions of today's Republic of Macedonia, where they were eventually absorbed into the First Bulgarian Empire. A city of the region, Ohrid, became one of Bulgaria's leading cultural centers throughout the first empire."

chris289

Yes very good point. I suggest you go ahead and implement that change. In fact I would go further to elaborate a little. " In the ......... today's RoM. THis area was subsequently conquered/ incorporated into the First Bulgarian empire. A city or the region........ In fact, after the fall of the Bulgarian capital in 972, the area corresponding to today's RoM continued to assert independence against the Byzantines, before also falling finally in ? 1041". Hxseek 21:20, 25 July 2007 (UTC)

PS just put a source in or I;m sure our comrade Greek wikipedians will object the change and claim it's falsifying history

It is not sure if it is right to say that The First Bulgarian State/Bulgarians don't call it Empire/ ABSORBED or CONQUERED these lands. If you take a look at our history, you'll see, that The Proto-bulgarians or The Bulgars are more likely to have UNITED with the Slavs! The central government was given to the first, and the local - to the Slavs. Later the khans started a process of "slavinization", which led to assimiation of The Proto-bulgars. You cannot say that we CONQUERED The Slavs in the region of Macedonia. I believe that they united with us! I haven't heard of any military conflicts between slavs there. We have only studied a few conflicts and they were round today's Serbia, Bosnia, Western Romania and Hungary, and concerned only a few tribes of The Slavs. And you know that they say: "The King is dead. Long live the King" /or something like that/ The same is with Preslav and Ohrid ;) Ohrid became the capital of Bulgaria 82.199.193.217 13:16, 9 September 2007 (UTC)yavor

Recent developments of Albanian language in Macedonia

The Britannica source concerning the official name of the Republic of Macedonia is no longer reliable or upto date since recent developments in Macedonia's government rejected full complete official use of the Albanian language [18] and also rejected bilingualism. According to another news report, [19], the Albanian party claims that Prime Minister Gruevski doesn't have enough power to "prevent it from being announced as a second official language in Macedonia". This was their response to Gruevski's comment that nobody should hope for bilingualism in Macedonia.

From the same news report, it also says that on July 19th, Nikola Gruevski said there’s an agreement with DUI leader Ali Ahmeti. They agreed on three points, while the language issue was still hanging.

The Republic of Macedonia has a Constitution and Framework Agreement, which do not provide for bilingualism in Macedonia and none of the parties should hope for one because it is not mentioned neither in the Constitution, nor in the Framework Agreement. We do not intend to fulfill somebody’s wishes, which are out of the Constitution and Framework Agreement,” Gruevski said.

Uuttyyrreess 15:52, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

This does not talk about a political decision, only about inclination of Gruevski to reject it. Wikipedia is not a Crystal Ball. If a decision is made, it could be reflected in the article. Also, I dont see a decision to overthrow the Ohrid Agreement, which I assume is therefore still in effect, and according to which every language with more than 20% total speakers is official on national level. Mr. Neutron 16:01, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

VMRO-DPMNE and DUI are having an ongoing political dispute but Gruevski's decision has not been made official. So until the dispute is solved between the parties the Albanian language will be official. 16:07, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

Another slight inaccuracy

From history

The Skaviniai were eliminated by the Byzantine Emperors, who would submit or expel the Slavic invaders from the Greek peninsula in successive waves[5]. The elimination of the Slavic element in Greek-Byzantine Macedonia reached its peak with Justinian II, who is said to have removed as many as 200,000 from Macedonia to central Anatolia[5].

I think this is not accurate, aimed at subtely colouring the article. The slavs raided northern greece and were eventually pacified, yes. But they were not all expelled. This is testamount by the existence of slavophone Greeks, as well as macedonians and southern bulgarians ! It would be more accurate to say that the slavic threat on Thessaloniki was quelled, and many were exiled or forcibly Hellenized, but obviously many, if not most, remained -under Byz rule. Back then the byzantine empire reached far further north than northern greece. Obviously the slavs were not expelled

Hxseek 21:28, 25 July 2007 (UTC)

New state university in Macedonia - added to education section

There is a new state university being started in Macedonia, called 'Goce Delchev' and is located in Shtip. I think October 2007 is when the first classes commence, but I am not sure, maybe it was October 2006. The university doesn't have a web page yet (I think), but here is an advertisement from 'The Economist' soliciting computer equipment tenders for the new university http://www.economist.com/classifieds/view_ad.cfm?sitd=6058&sitd_type=T Capricornis 04:36, 4 September 2007 (UTC)

the web page was in the Economist article http://www.ugd.edu.mk/ (only in macedonian for now) and first classes commence October 2007. :) Capricornis 00:25, 5 September 2007 (UTC)

Picture of Gotse Delchev's monuments and grave

Please, could anyone upload a picture of a monument of Gotse Delchev from the Republic of Macedonia, especially of the famous statue from Skopje? A quality picture of Delchev's grave will be even more appropriate. I think that such pictures are necessity in the article Gotse Delchev. Greetings, Vulgarian 11:23, 5 October 2007 (UTC)