Southern Serbia

The region of the South of Serbia is to be found alongside two of its most important rivers, the Južna Morava (South Morava) and the Nišava. Both rivers flow through the alternating scenery of wide, fertile valleys and almost impassable gorges. Bordered with high mountains on three sides, this district encompasses the roads towards the East and the South, namely Bulgaria and Greece, those ancient paths that have brought both good and evil into Serbia over the centuries. The significance of this region regarding its topography is best described by records noting that the Kunovica mountain, which finishes by the ravine of the Sićevo gorge (Sićevačka klisura), was known in the Classical Period and the Middle Ages as Catena Mundi, the “Chain of the World” on which the world was suspended! All the towns are found in valleys, each dominated by a mountain, the highest of which is the one near the city of Niš, called Suva Planina (1713 m). The secluded area surrounding the beautiful Vlasina Lake (Vlasinsko jezero) at over 1200 m above the sea is especially interesting for its nature and unique climate.

In the late Roman Period, this area was the place of birth of two emperors who changed the course of European history – Constantine the Great was born in Naisus (Niš) in 274 A.D. and Justinian was born in the vicinity of the town of Lebane where he later built the city of Justiniana Prima (today Caričin grad). In the Middle Ages this area was the borderland between Serbia, Byzantium and Bulgaria; later on, it was invaded by the Turks in the mid 15th century, who stayed until the liberation in 1878. Turkish dominion left a deep trace on daily life here, especially in the cities. After the liberation, Niš redeveloped into a great and important city. The cities of Pirot, Leskovac and Vranje also progressed quickly. The consequences of the Bulgarian occupation in the two World Wars were severe. All that was Serbian was under threat of destruction and all people who did not change their identity to become Bulgarians were terrorized. This was the time of the uprisings that emerged in this otherwise peaceful area: the long and bloody Rising of Toplica in 1916 was the only one to occur in an invaded Europe, and the fight against the German invaders 1941-44 was equally harsh. The Anglo-American bombings of 1944 were hard on the economy and stopped the rise of the most progressive city of the south, Leskovac, called the “Serbian Manchester” for its textile industry. The South has suffered greatly during these last years. The crash of large state factories was followed by the Kosovo War when this region was bombed a great deal and the population lost many soldiers in Kosovo. However, despite the ethnical problems, Albanians live in the southwest and Bulgarians in the east, alongside Serbs.

Even though the territiory of the South of Serbia is a key one due to the roads that pass through it, the inhabitants have intentionally made this area difficult to access. The vividness of southern landscape is reflected in the fiery temperament of Southern Serbians and their spicy local dishes. The South of Serbia is today famous for the Leskovac barbecue (Leskovački roštilj), the mother of all barbecues in the Balkans and beyond, as well as for their peppers, the tobacco produced in Niš and Vranje, and the hard cheese kačkavalj. A notable feature is the rapid and dynamic speech of the Southern Serbians, which is akin to those of the neighbouring Bulgarian and Macedonian dialects. It is the dialect that the writers Bora Stanković and Stevan Sremac enjoyed and celebrated, and of which the southerners are very proud.