Polog
Polog (Macedonian: Полог, Albanian: Pollog) is a region in the northwestern corner of North Macedonia, bordering Kosovo to the north and Albania to the west.
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People
Polog is made up of nine municipalities. Over 300,000 people live in the region, making it the country's second-largest after Skopje. It is the only one of the eight regions in North Macedonia in which ethnic Macedonians do not form a majority of the population; ethnic Albanians makeup nearly three-quarters of Polog. The municipalities of Bogovinje, Brvenica, Gostivar, Tearce, Tetovo, Vrapčište, and Želino have large Albanian majorities with varying degrees of Macedonian and Turkish minorities. Jegunovce and Mavrovo and Rostuša municipalities have slight Macedonian majorities.
Most of the region is rural, however two of North Macedonia's larger cities, Tetovo and Gostivar, are located in Polog.
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- Aside from breathtaking nature, Mavrovo National Park is also home to some of the most picturesque villages in the Balkans. Galičnik may be the best-known village in North Macedonia due to its well-preserved architecture and the annual Galičnik Wedding occurring in July. Lazaropole is also well-known, especially for the Church of St George and its frescoes. Historic Janče sits high up, across a valley from the Monastery of St John Bigorski.
- The Monastery of St John Bigorski, within Mavrovo National Park, may be the most important landmark in Polog. It was established roughly one thousand years ago, though it got its present look in the 16th century. One of its most valuable treasures is its wood-carved iconostasis.
- The Ottoman heritage of Tetovo, the region's largest city, is visible in the uniquely decorated Šarena Džamija, the Arabati Baba Tekje, the best surviving Bektashi Tekje in Europe, the ruined Tetovo Fortress, and the Bey's Hamam.
- The village of Vrutok, near Gostivar, is home to the source of the Vardar, North Macedonia's most important river.