Ohrid (Macedonian: Охрид [ˈɔxrit]) is a city in North Macedonia and serves as the capital of Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country. As of 2021, Ohrid had a population of more than 38,000 people. The city is famous for having once contained 365 churches, one for each day of the year, and is often called the "Jerusalem of the Balkans." Ohrid has many beautiful houses and monuments, and tourism is a major part of its economy. It is located southwest of Skopje, west of Resen, and west of Bitola. In 1979 and 1980, Ohrid and Lake Ohrid were recognized as Cultural and Natural World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Ohrid is one of only 40 places in UNESCO's World Heritage list that are both Cultural and Natural sites.

Name

In ancient times, the city was called Lychnis, Lychnidos, or Lychnidus in Greek, and Lychnidus in Latin. These names likely mean "city of light" or "a shiny stone that gives light," based on the Greek word lychnos, which means "lamp" or "portable light." A writer named Polybius, who lived in the second century BC, referred to the city as Lichnidion.

Over time, the ancient name Lychnidus changed to Ohrid. This shift happened because people who spoke Tosk Albanian and Eastern South Slavic languages lived together for a long time. This led to changes in how words were spoken, such as turning the sound n into r and ly into o.

The city became the capital of the First Bulgarian Empire during the early medieval period. Byzantine writers, who lived in the Byzantine Empire, often called it Achrida. By 879 AD, the city was no longer known as Lychnidos but was instead called Ohrid.

Today, the city is named Ohrid in Macedonian and other South Slavic languages. In Albanian, it is called Ohër or Ohri, and in modern Greek, it is known as Ochrida or Achrida. In Aromanian, the city is called Ohãrda.

History

The earliest people living near Lake Ohrid were the Illyrian tribes called Enchele and Dassaretii. According to tradition, the town was founded by Cadmus, a Phoenician king from Thebes, who fled to Enchele after being banished from his homeland. In ancient times, the town was called Lychnidos. It is said that Cadmus also founded Budva in Montenegro. Lychnidos was the capital of the Illyrian Dassaretii tribe.

Recent excavations show the town existed during the time of King Philip II of Macedon. These findings suggest that Samuil's Fortress was built on the site of an older fortification from the 4th century BC. In 210 BCE, Philip V of Macedon attacked several southern Illyrian communities. He kept soldiers in Lychnidos but lost control of the town in 208 BCE when its commander joined a local leader named Aeropus and invited the Dardani people to the region.

During the Roman conquests in the late 3rd and early 2nd century BCE, Lychnidos was mentioned as a town near Dassaretia. In Roman times, it was located along the Via Egnatia, a road connecting the Adriatic port Dyrrachion (modern-day Durrës) to Byzantium. Archaeological discoveries, such as the Polyconch Basilica from the 5th century, show that Christianity was practiced in the area early on. Bishops from Lychnidos participated in important church meetings.

South Slavs began arriving in the region during the 6th century AD. By the early 7th century, a Slavic tribe called the Berziti lived there. Bulgaria conquered the city around 840.

The name "Ohrid" first appeared in 879. The Ohrid Literary School, established in 886 by Clement of Ohrid, became one of the two major cultural centers of the First Bulgarian Empire. Between 990 and 1015, Ohrid was the empire's capital and stronghold.

From 990 to 1018, Ohrid was the seat of the Bulgarian Patriarchate. After the Byzantine Empire captured the city in 1018 under Basil II, the Bulgarian Patriarchate was reduced to an Archbishopric of Ohrid, placed under the authority of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

After 1018, most church leaders were Greek, including during Ottoman rule, until the archbishopric was abolished in 1767. In the early 16th century, the archbishopric controlled areas such as Sofia, Vidin, Vlach, and Moldavia, parts of the former Serbian Patriarchate of Peć, and even Orthodox regions in Italy, Venice, and Dalmatia.

As a religious city, Ohrid was an important cultural center in the Balkans. Most surviving churches were built by the Byzantines and Bulgarians, with others dating to the short period of Serbian rule in the late Middle Ages.

In 1083, Bohemond, leading a Norman army from southern Italy, captured the city. The Byzantines regained it in 1085. Albanian ruler Golem of Kruja, around 1250, likely controlled Ohrid but later gave it to the Byzantines. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the city changed hands between the Despotate of Epirus, the Bulgarian, Byzantine, and Serbian Empires, and Albanian rulers. In the mid-13th century, Ohrid was ruled by Pal Gropa, a member of the Albanian noble Gropa family. A text by Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos mentions nomadic Albanians near Ohrid around 1328. Turkish people settled in Ohrid between 1451 and 1481.

In 1334, the city was captured by Stefan Uroš IV Dušan and became part of the Serbian Empire. After Dušan's death, the city was controlled by Andrea Gropa. After Andrea's death, Prince Marko included it in the Kingdom of Prilep.

In the early 1370s, Marko lost Ohrid to Pal II Gropa, another member of the Gropa family, and tried but failed to reclaim it in 1375 with Ottoman help.

In 1395, the Ottomans under Bayezid I captured Ohrid, making it the seat of the newly established Sanjak of Ohrid. After Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg freed Krujë to start his rebellion, his troops, along with Gjergj Arianiti and Zaharia Gropa, liberated Ohrid and the castle of Svetigrad.

From September 14–15, 1464, 12,000 Albanian troops from the League of Lezhë and 1,000 from the Republic of Venice defeated a 14,000-man Ottoman force near Ohrid in the Battle of Ohrid. When Mehmed II returned from Albania in 1466, he removed Dorotheos, the Archbishop of Ohrid, and sent him, along with clerks, nobles, and many citizens, to Istanbul, likely due to their anti-Ottoman activities during Skanderbeg's rebellion.

In 1874, the Christian population of Ohrid overwhelmingly voted to join the Bulgarian Exarchate (97%). In 1889, Gustav Weigand discovered the Codex Dimonie, a collection of religious texts in Aromanian, in Ohrid. In 1900, statistics showed the city was inhabited by 8,000 Bulgarians.

Geography and climate

Ohrid is located in the south-western part of North Macedonia, on the shore of Lake Ohrid, at an elevation of 695 meters above sea level.

Ohrid has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, which is similar to an oceanic climate because its elevation affects the weather. The warmest month is August, with average temperatures ranging from 27.7°C (82°F) to 14.2°C (57.6°F). The coldest month is January, with average temperatures between 2.5°C (36.5°F) and a range from 6.2°C (43.2°F) to −1.5°C (29.3°F). The rainiest month is November, with about 90.5 mm (3.6 in) of rain. Summer months—June, July, and August—receive the least rain, about 30 mm (1.2 in). The lowest temperature recorded is −17.8°C (0.0°F), and the highest is 38.5°C (101.3°F).

Demographics

At the 2021 census, Ohrid had 38,818 residents with the following ethnic groups:

• Macedonians, 28,920 (74.5%)
• Persons with data from official records, 3,421 (8.8%)
• Others, 2,728 (7.0%)
• Albanians, 1,924 (5.0%)
• Turks, 1,825 (4.7%)

As of the 2002 census, the city of Ohrid had 42,033 inhabitants with the following ethnic groups:

• Macedonians, 33,791 (80.4%)
• Albanians, 2,959 (7.0%)
• Turks, 2,256 (5.4%)
• Others, 3,027 (7.2%)

The primary languages spoken by Ohrid’s residents include:

• Macedonian, 34,910 (83.1%)
• Albanian, 3,957 (9.4%)
• Turkish, 2,226 (5.3%)
• Others, 1,017 (2.4%)

The religious groups in Ohrid were:

• Orthodox Christians, 33,987 (80.9%)
• Muslims, 7,599 (18.1%)
• Others, 447 (1.1%)

The oldest residents of Ohrid live in the Varoš neighborhood. Other Macedonians in Ohrid come from villages in the Kosel, Struga, Drimkol, Debarca, Malesija, and Kičevo regions, as well as other parts of southern Macedonia. Albanians in Ohrid come from villages near Lake Ohrid in the west and south. A large group of Albanians who have adopted Turkish customs live in Ohrid and originally came from the cities of Elbasan, Durrës, and Ulcinj. The Romani people in Ohrid come from Podgradec and speak a southern Tosk Albanian dialect.

The Aromanian population in Ohrid first arrived in 1778 from Moscopole. Others came later from Kavajë (late 18th century), the Myzeqe region, Elbasan, Llëngë, and Mokër (mid-19th century), and from Gorna Belica and Malovišta (late 19th century). Many Aromanians from Ohrid moved to Trieste, Odessa, and Bucharest. Orthodox Albanians settled in Ohrid during the second half of the 19th century and came from Pogradec, Lin, Çërravë, and Peshkopi.

All Turks from the village of Peštani moved to Ohrid by 1920 after selling their land and property. These families are now known as Peştanlı. In 1949, more families from Aegean Macedonia settled in Ohrid.

In Yugoslav censuses, Romani people in Ohrid who speak Albanian mainly identified as Albanians. As tensions grew between Albanians and the government over population numbers and rights, Romani identity became a topic of debate starting in the 1990s. Ohrid Romani who speak Albanian refused to be called Albanians, believing this was due to being influenced by Albanian culture or being called Gypsies. With support from Macedonian groups, they now identify as Egyptians, claiming their ancestors came from Egypt long ago. These Romani people consider Albanian a language used at home, not their primary language. Turkish-speaking Romani in Ohrid identified as Turks during the Yugoslav period but now call themselves Egyptians in independent Macedonia. In the late 20th century, some Muslim Romani who speak Albanian from Krani and Nakolec villages moved to Ohrid.

Cultural Heritage sites

Ohrid Municipality has more than 100 sites designated as Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, with most located within the city of Ohrid.

• Ancient Theatre of Ohrid from the Hellenistic and Roman periods
• Vidobišta Roman-era tombs
• Kozluk, a Roman-era settlement
• Mančevci site with an early Christian basilica
• Hermeleja, a Roman-era settlement
• Saint Erasmus
• Karagjulevci tombs from the Ancient Macedonian era
• Samuel's Fortress and remaining parts of the city walls
• Plaošnik
• Studenčišta basilica
• Saint 40 Holy Martyrs early Christian basilica

A legend supported by observations from the 17th-century Ottoman traveler Evliya Çelebi suggests there were 365 chapels within the town boundaries, one for each day of the year. This number is much smaller today.

• Grave of Grigor Prličev
• Church of Saints Clement and Panteleimon
• Church of the Holy Mother of God Čelnica
• Little Church of Saint Vrači (Saints Kuzman and Damjan)
• Church of Saint Demetrius
• Church of the Holy Mother of God – Bolnička
• Church of Saint Nicholas – Bolnički
• Church of the Holy Mother of God – Perivleptos
• Little Church of Saint Clement
• Church of Saint John the Baptist – Kaneo
• Church of Saint Sophia
• Church of Saints Constantine and Elena
• Church of the Holy Mother of God Kamensko
• Church of Saint Nicholas – Gerakomija
• Church of Saint Nicholas – Arbanaški
• Church of Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker
• Church of Saint Vrači (Saints Kuzman and Damjan), with frescoes from the 14th century. A 14th-century icon from the church is on the front of the 1000 denars banknote, issued in 1996 and 2003.
• Church of Saint George
• Church of Saint Nicholas

Ohrid is not only a religious center but also a place of learning and Slavic language education. The restored Monastery at Plaošnik was one of the oldest universities in the western world, dating back to before the 10th century. Several well-known churches and monasteries, such as the Monastery of Saint Naum, are located in surrounding villages.

• Voska Hamam
• Eski Hamam
• Zejnel Abedin Pasha Tekke
• Sinan Çelebi Türbe
• Ali Pasha Mosque
• Hajdar Pasha Mosque
• Hadži Durgut Mosque
• Hadži Hamza Mosque

• Memorial mound on Slavej Planina
• Common grave of fallen National Liberation War soldiers
• Memorial plaque for fallen professors and students of the Ohrid Gymnasium in the National Liberation War

Many homes and commercial buildings in Ohrid are listed as Cultural Heritage sites. Some, such as the Robevi family house, the Prličev family home, and the Uzunov family home, are now museums. Others include the Saint Clement of Ohrid Gymnasium, the Ohrid Clock Tower, and the Icon Gallery.

Transportation

There is an international airport near Ohrid, called Ohrid Airport (now named "St. Paul the Apostle Airport").

Before 1966, Ohrid was connected to Skopje by the Ohrid line, a railway that was 167 kilometers (104 miles) long and used a narrow-gauge track of 600 millimeters.

Sports

GFK Ohrid Lihnidos is a football team that plays at the SRC Biljanini Izvori stadium in Ohrid. During the 2021–22 season, the team competed in the second level of the Macedonian Football League system.

FK Voska Sport is another football team from Ohrid. As of the 2023–24 season, this team plays in the top level of the Macedonian First League.

RK Ohrid is a handball team that plays at the Biljanini Izvori Sports Hall arena, which can hold 3,500 people. During the 2016–17 season, the team participated in the Macedonian Handball Super League, the highest level of competition in the country.

The Ohrid Swimming Marathon is an international open water swim event held in Lake Ohrid. Swimmers must complete a 30 km (19 mi) course that starts at the Monastery of Saint Naum and ends at the Ohrid harbor.

Recurring events

• Ohrid Summer Festival, an annual theater and music festival held from July to August
• Ohrid Choir Festival, an annual international choir festival taking place at the end of August
• Balkan Folklore Festival, an annual music and dance festival celebrating folklore traditions, held at the beginning of July
• Balkan Music Square Festival, a music festival in August where ethnic musicians from the Balkan region participate
• Ohrid Fest (Охридски Трубадури), a music festival in August featuring musicians from the Balkan region. The event lasts four days and includes four themed nights: Debutant Night, Folk Night, Pop Night, and International Night
• World Prize of Humanism in the Ohrid Academy of Humanism, established by Jordan Plevnes
• Ohrid Art and Scientific Meetings (Охридска научна и уметничка визита), an event held at the House of Uranija-MANU in Ohrid by the Macedonian Academy of Science and Arts