Although the United States and most members of the European Union (EU) recognized Kosovo’s declaration of independence from Serbia in 2. Serbia, Russia, and a significant number of other countries—including several EU members—did not. Given this lack of international consensus, Kosovo was not immediately admitted to the United Nations (UN). In 2. 01. 0 the International Court of Justice ruled that Kosovo’s declaration of independence did not violate international law, but Serbia rejected that decision. The name Kosovo is derived from a Serbian place- name meaning “field of blackbirds.” After serving as the centre of a medieval Serbian empire, Kosovo was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from the mid- 1. Islam grew in importance and the population of Albanian speakers in the region increased. In the early 2. 0th century Kosovo was incorporated into Serbia (later part of Yugoslavia). By the second half of the century, the largely Muslim ethnic Albanians outnumbered the predominantly Eastern Orthodox Serbs in Kosovo, and interethnic tensions frequently roiled the province. In 1. 99. 8 an ethnic Albanian- led secessionist rebellion escalated into an international crisis (see. Kosovo conflict), which culminated in 1. Yugoslavia—by then a rump of the former federal state, comprising only Serbia and Montenegro—by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Following the restoration of peace, Kosovo was administered by the UN Interim Administrative Mission in Kosovo. Throughout this period—in the course of which Yugoslavia changed its name to Serbia and Montenegro (2. Serbia continued to consider Kosovo part of its territory. Nevertheless, under UN supervision, Kosovo developed the structures of an independent country, and in February 2. Hutchinson Builders is one of Australia’s largest privately-owned building and construction companies. Established in 1912 our heritage has been forged by a century. Serbia. An EU mission charged with overseeing police, judicial, and customs activities largely replaced the UN presence later that year. Pristina (Albanian: Prishtin. Kosovo, about the same size as Jamaica or Lebanon, is the smallest country in the Balkans. Relief, drainage, and soils. Test Your Knowledge. Journey Around the World. The borders of Kosovo are largely mountainous, characterized by sharp peaks and narrow valleys. The highest point is Mount Gjeravica (. The interior terrain comprises high plains and rolling hills; about three- fourths of the country lies between about 1,6. Limestone caves are found in several parts of the country. A range of hills running north- south through central Kosovo separates the Kosovo Plain in the east from the Dukagjin (Metohija) Plain in the west. These plains constitute the country’s two main basins. The Kosovo Plain is drained by the northward- flowing Sitnic. The Dukagjin Plain is drained by the southward- flowing Drini i Bardh. The soils of the plains are among the most fertile in the Balkans and support the cultivation of grains, fruits, and vegetables. Climate. In general, Kosovo has a moderate continental climate, although the proximity of the Mediterranean Sea has a tempering effect, especially in the southwest. Summers are warm, with average high temperatures reaching the low 8. F (upper 2. 0s C); average highs during the winter months are in the low 4. F (about 5 . The country receives more than 2. Mountainous areas experience both colder temperatures and greater precipitation. Plant and animal life. Despite its small area, Kosovo boasts a rich assortment of plant species, including about a dozen that are found only in Kosovo. Marketex Offshore Constructions is a solely owned company operating as a separate identity within the BLRT Grupp who are one of the largest industrial holdings in. Industry information at your fingertips. Over 200,000 Hollywood insiders. Enhance your IMDb Page. Forests cover about two- fifths of the land, with oak trees predominating in lower elevations and pines growing in the mountains. Animal life is relatively diverse as well. Brown bears, Eurasian lynx, wildcats, gray wolves, foxes, chamois (a goatlike animal), roe deer, and red deer are among the mammals that inhabit the mountainous border regions. More than 2. 00 species of birds live in Kosovo or migrate there seasonally. Among them are the Old World blackbirds for which Kosovo Polje (“Field of the Blackbirds”), site of the 1. Battle of Kosovo, was named. People. Ethnic groups. In the second half of the 2. Serbian out- migration and higher Albanian birth rates, there was a dramatic shift in the ethnic composition of Kosovo. The Albanian share of the population rose from about half in 1. 1912 Center Kitchen: $30 plus tax one time charge with Great Room rental : $15 plus tax per hour when used by itself: Alcohol Use Fee: $25 plus tax in addition to. April 1912 Question 51 of 75 133 133 Points Which of the following countries from SCIN 136 at American Public University. RMS Titanic was a British passenger liner that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in the early morning of 15 April 1912, after colliding with an iceberg during her. 676 (Cyprus Dispute) read more; TCA Fact Sheet: S. 47 (Cyprus Dispute) read more; TCA Fact Sheet: The 1912-1913 Balkan Wars. Meanwhile, the proportion of Serbs fell to less than one- fifth. After the Kosovo conflict of 1. Serbs emigrated. Thus, in the early 2. Albanian and less than one- tenth Serb, with the remainder comprising Bosniaks (Bosnian Muslims), traditionally itinerant peoples (i. Roma and two other groups, Ashkali and Egyptians . The Serbs are concentrated in northern Kosovo, particularly in Mitrovic. According to the 2. Turkish, Bosnian, and Romany also have official status in relevant municipalities. The Albanian spoken in Kosovo is a subvariety of the Gheg dialect; it is commonly known as kosovarce. Standard literary Albanian is used in written communication and in the broadcast media. Serbo- Croatian, also known as Bosnian- Croatian- Serbian (BCS), is the language spoken by Serbs, Bosniaks, Croats, and Montenegrins. However, speakers of BCS tend to refer to their own language as Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian, or Montenegrin, depending on their ethnicity, and consider it to be distinct from the other groups’ languages, despite mutual intelligibility. The Roma speak Serbian or Romany, while the Ashkali and the Egyptians speak Albanian. Turkish is spoken by the Turks as well as by some Albanians. The Gorani people speak their own South Slavic dialect, akin to BCS and Macedonian. Religion. Kosovo does not have an official religion. More than nine- tenths of the people, including most Albanians, are Muslim. A significant proportion of Muslims are only nominally so; many do not regularly attend mosque services, although fasting for Ramadan is widely practiced. Most of the Serbs and some Roma are Eastern Orthodox. A small minority of the population, consisting mainly of Albanians and Croats, are Roman Catholic. Despite early competition with Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy became the predominant faith in Kosovo in the Middle Ages, when the region was the centre of a Serbian empire. In the 1. 3th century Pe. This historical importance helps to explain the special role that Kosovo plays in Serbian tradition. Islam arrived with the conquering Ottoman Turks, who, from the mid- 1. Although much of the population eventually became Muslim, the region retained its Orthodox heritage, and the patriarchate was restored from 1. The lack of religious tension during much of the Ottoman period may be explained in part by the concessions offered to Muslim converts and in part by the attitude of many peasants, who welcomed diverse forms of religious ritual as means to ward off evil. Thus, converted Muslims often maintained certain Christian practices, leading to religious syncretism. Settlement patterns. Kosovo is more densely populated than its neighbours. More than half the population lives in rural areas, mainly in small villages in the central plains and on the lower slopes of the mountains. Some rural Kosovars practice transhumance—the seasonal movement of livestock between low and high altitudes—and spend the summers in huts in mountain pastures. The principal cities are the capital, Pristina (Albanian: Prishtin. There was a considerable shift in settlement throughout Kosovo after the 1. Demographic trends. The population is fairly young: roughly one- quarter of Kosovars are under age 1. In the early 2. 1st century it was estimated that about a half million Kosovars lived abroad, notably in Germany, Switzerland, Scandinavia, and North America. A significant portion of emigrants were Serbs, many of whom left Kosovo for Serbia. Economy. Kosovo has long been one of the poorest, least- developed regions of the Balkans. During the second half of the 2. Kosovo was a part of the republic of Serbia, a number of the Yugoslav republics objected to the federal economic support given to Kosovo. This controversy ultimately contributed to the dissolution of Yugoslavia in 1. Following the 1. 99. Kosovo’s economy was boosted by the large installation of international administrators. In addition, the use of the euro—which Kosovo unofficially adopted in 2. Although the postindependence government worked to strengthen the market economy, particularly by privatizing state- controlled businesses, Kosovo continued to rely heavily on remittances from Kosovars working abroad as well as on international aid. Moreover, the economy has been highly susceptible to fluctuations in prices for imported commodities—especially food and fuel—on which Kosovo remains dependent. Unemployment and poverty are still intractable problems. In the years immediately following independence, about two- fifths of the labour force was unemployed, with rural areas especially affected, and about one- third of Kosovo’s citizens lived below the poverty line. This rampant poverty and unemployment fostered a significant black market. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing. About half of Kosovo’s area is agricultural land, worked mostly in family plots for subsistence. Kosovo is not self- sufficient in food production, however. Before 1. 99. 9 agriculture accounted for one- third of the gross domestic product (GDP). A decade later it accounted for just over one- tenth. About half the farmland is used for growing grains, mainly wheat and corn (maize), as well as potatoes, berries, and peppers. Pastures and meadows constitute most of the remainder. The high cost of agricultural machinery, seeds, and fertilizers has inhibited the increase of agricultural production. Industrial pollution of soil and water also poses a serious problem in many areas. Most of the timber harvested is used for fuel. Fisheries are most developed in western Kosovo, notably in Istog (Istok). Resources and power. Kosovo has been a mining centre since pre- Roman times, but today mining constitutes only a tiny portion of the GDP. Mineral resources include ferronickel, nonferrous metals, and asphalt.
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