Dimitrovgrad, Serbia

For other places with the same name, see Dimitrovgrad.
Dimitrovgrad
Димитровград
Цариброд
Tsaribrod
Town and municipality
Panorama of Dimitrovgrad
Panorama of Dimitrovgrad
Coat of arms of Dimitrovgrad
Coat of arms
Location of the municipality of Dimitrovgrad within Serbia
Location of the municipality of Dimitrovgrad within Serbia
Coordinates: 43°01′N 22°47′E / 43.017°N 22.783°E / 43.017; 22.783
Country Serbia
RegionSouthern and Eastern Serbia
DistrictPirot
Settlements43
Government
 • MayorVladica Dimitrov (SNS)
Area
[1][2]
 • Town17.15 km2 (6.62 sq mi)
 • Municipality483 km2 (186 sq mi)
Elevation
545 m (1,788 ft)
Population
 (2022 census)[3]
 • Town
5,188
 • Town density300/km2 (780/sq mi)
 • Municipality
8,043
 • Municipality density17/km2 (43/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
18320
Area code+381(0)10
Car platesPI
Websitewww.dimitrovgrad.rs

Dimitrovgrad (Serbian: Димитровград) alternatively Caribrod (Bulgarian: Цариброд, romanized: Tsaribrod) is a town and municipality located in the Pirot District of southeastern Serbia. According to 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 8,043 and the town has 5,188 inhabitants.[4]

Name

Since 1950, the official name of the town has been Dimitrovgrad (Serbian: Димитровград), but the name Caribrod (Serbian: Цариброд) is also used.[5] In Bulgarian, the name Tsaribrod (Цариброд) is preferred because there is another Dimitrovgrad on the Maritsa river in Bulgaria and Tsaribrod was used before the town was named after Georgi Dimitrov, a Bulgarian Communist leader who advocated a union between the Bulgarians and remaining Yugoslav nations to form the Balkan Federation.

The idea was abandoned when Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito failed to reach agreements with Joseph Stalin (Tito–Stalin split); however, Dimitrov himself did not become unpopular in Yugoslavia from the breakdown and subsequently, the name of the town continued to be in honour of him despite many citizens themselves having preferred Caribrod.

There have been attempts to return the old name, Caribrod, but all had less than 50% turnout and most of them were in favor of keeping the name Dimitrovgrad.[5] In 2019, local government decided to add tables with name Caribrod on several municipality's objects in order to please the needs of people who like the former name.[5] In October 2019 municipal assembly decided to return the old name to the municipality. The document is sent to Ministry of Public Administration for further procedures.[6]

Geography

Climate

Dimitrovgrad has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfb).

Climate data for Dimitrovgrad (1991–2020, extremes 1961–present)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 21.0
(69.8) 		23.6
(74.5) 		26.8
(80.2) 		31.4
(88.5) 		35.2
(95.4) 		38.2
(100.8) 		41.4
(106.5) 		39.6
(103.3) 		36.2
(97.2) 		33.4
(92.1) 		26.8
(80.2) 		20.8
(69.4) 		41.4
(106.5)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 4.3
(39.7) 		7.1
(44.8) 		12.1
(53.8) 		17.5
(63.5) 		22.2
(72.0) 		26.0
(78.8) 		28.5
(83.3) 		29.1
(84.4) 		23.9
(75.0) 		18.3
(64.9) 		11.7
(53.1) 		5.3
(41.5) 		17.2
(63.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) −0.5
(31.1) 		1.4
(34.5) 		5.4
(41.7) 		10.5
(50.9) 		15.0
(59.0) 		18.7
(65.7) 		20.7
(69.3) 		20.5
(68.9) 		15.7
(60.3) 		10.9
(51.6) 		6.0
(42.8) 		1.0
(33.8) 		10.4
(50.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −4.2
(24.4) 		−3.0
(26.6) 		0.1
(32.2) 		4.2
(39.6) 		8.7
(47.7) 		12.1
(53.8) 		13.5
(56.3) 		13.3
(55.9) 		9.7
(49.5) 		5.7
(42.3) 		1.8
(35.2) 		−2.4
(27.7) 		5.0
(41.0)
Record low °C (°F) −29.3
(−20.7) 		−23.5
(−10.3) 		−18.0
(−0.4) 		−8.2
(17.2) 		−2.3
(27.9) 		1.5
(34.7) 		3.9
(39.0) 		2.4
(36.3) 		−3.5
(25.7) 		−7.9
(17.8) 		−17.0
(1.4) 		−18.0
(−0.4) 		−29.3
(−20.7)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 44.0
(1.73) 		42.6
(1.68) 		49.4
(1.94) 		55.1
(2.17) 		76.3
(3.00) 		71.4
(2.81) 		62.2
(2.45) 		52.2
(2.06) 		54.9
(2.16) 		59.6
(2.35) 		48.2
(1.90) 		43.7
(1.72) 		659.6
(25.97)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 12.2 12.0 12.5 13.3 14.5 12.2 9.8 7.9 9.1 9.8 10.4 12.1 135.8
Average snowy days 9.3 8.4 5.9 1.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 3.2 7.3 36.0
Average relative humidity (%) 81.2 76.5 69.4 66.9 70.7 70.6 66.8 65.5 70.4 75.1 78.1 82.1 72.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours 82.0 100.1 152.8 173.3 214.0 260.0 298.1 287.2 209.2 158.2 96.2 64.0 2,095.1
Source: Republic Hydrometeorological Service of Serbia[7][8]

History

The Roman road Via Militaris was built in the 1st century AD and went through the town. In May 2010, well-preserved remains of the road were excavated during the work on Corridor 10.[9]

An Ottoman military base operated in the west of Dimitrovgrad prior to the Balkan nations full independence.[10]

During the Serbo-Bulgarian War, two battles were fought here, the 1st Battle of Caribrod and the 2nd Battle of Caribrod.

The Serbian and Bulgarian Prime ministers met at the then Tsaribrod in 1912 to discuss the disputed territories in Macedonia.[11] The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes gained parts of the Principality of Bulgaria (known in Bulgaria as Western Outlands) which included Tsaribrod following the Treaty of Neuilly, signed on November 27, 1919.

From 1929 to 1941, Caribrod was part of the Morava Banovina of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. It was occupied by Kingdom of Bulgaria between 1941 and 1944 during World War II.

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
194823,063—    
195322,082−0.87%
196118,418−2.24%
197116,365−1.17%
198115,158−0.76%
199113,488−1.16%
200211,748−1.25%
201110,118−1.65%
20228,043−2.06%
Source: [12][4]

According to the 2022 census, the municipality of Dimitrovgrad has 8,043 inhabitants.[4]

Regardless of ethnic self-identification, most of the town's population speaks a South Slavic dialect usually called Torlak which includes linguistic features of both Serbian (especially phonology) and Bulgarian (postposed definite articles and lack of the infinitive verb form), as well as some Macedonian language vocabulary.

Ethnic composition of the municipality:

Ethnic group Population %
Bulgarians 3,669 45.62%
Serbs 2,016 25.07%
Romani 84 1.04%
Yugoslavs 42 0.52%
Macedonians 30 0.37%
Others 2,202 27.35%

Linguistic composition of the municipality:

Language Speakers Proportion
Serbian 3,740 46.50%
Bulgarian 2,038 25.33%
Other 779 9.68%
Undeclared 1,014 12.6%
Unknown 429 5.33%

Economy

The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2018):[13]

Activity Total
Agriculture, forestry and fishing 7
Mining and quarrying 5
Manufacturing 514
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply 19
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities 182
Construction 114
Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles 250
Transportation and storage 238
Accommodation and food services 228
Information and communication 19
Financial and insurance activities 15
Real estate activities -
Professional, scientific and technical activities 58
Administrative and support service activities 45
Public administration and defense; compulsory social security 437
Education 123
Human health and social work activities 174
Arts, entertainment and recreation 52
Other service activities 71
Individual agricultural workers 41
Total 2,594
  • Dimitrovgrad Town Hall
    Dimitrovgrad Town Hall
  • Town center
    Town center
  • The cultural center on the main square
    The cultural center on the main square
  • Poganovo Monastery
    Poganovo Monastery

See also

References

  1. ^ "Municipalities of Serbia, 2006". Statistical Office of Serbia. Retrieved 2010-11-28.
  2. ^ "Насеља општине Димитровград" (PDF). stat.gov.rs (in Serbian). Statistical Office of Serbia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  3. ^ "2022 Census of Population, Households and Dwellings: Ethnicity (data by municipalities and cities)" (PDF). Statistical Office of Republic Of Serbia, Belgrade. April 2023. ISBN 978-86-6161-228-2. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  4. ^ a b c "2022 Census of Population, Households and Dwellings" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  5. ^ a b c Jovićič, Branislav (18 February 2019). "I Dimitrovgrad i Caribrod". rts.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  6. ^ "Dimitrovgrad to return the old name - Caribrod". 021.
  7. ^ "Monthly and annual means, maximum and minimum values of meteorological elements for the period 1991–2020" (in Serbian). Republic Hydrometeorological Service of Serbia. Archived from the original on 21 April 2022. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  8. ^ "Monthly and annual means, maximum and minimum values of meteorological elements for the period 1981–2010" (in Serbian). Republic Hydrometeorological Service of Serbia. Archived from the original on 20 July 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  9. ^ "Otkriveni ostaci antičkog puta Via militaris na Koridoru 10".
  10. ^ A Military Geography of the Balkan Peninsula at Google Books
  11. ^ The Ottoman Empire and Its Successors, 1801–1927 at Google Books
  12. ^ "2011 Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in the Republic of Serbia" (PDF). stat.gov.rs. Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  13. ^ "MUNICIPALITIES AND REGIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA, 2019" (PDF). stat.gov.rs. Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia. 25 December 2019. Retrieved 28 December 2019.
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