The Republic of Macedonia, often referred to as Macedonia, is a landlocked country on the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Serbia to the north, Albania to the west, Greece to the south, and Bulgaria to the east. It was admitted to the United Nations in 1993; however, the UN and many other international institutions and countries use the provisional reference the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), pending resolution of a naming dispute with Greece.

Area
25,713 sq km (9928 sq miles).
The former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia’ is only one of three areas of the historical region of ‘Macedonia’, which includes Pirin Macedonia (Bulgaria) and Aegean Macedonia (Greece), with a total area of 66,600 sq km (25,700 sq miles), most of which is in Greece. In deference to Greek sensibilities, the United Nations and other international organisations have formally recognised Macedonia under the interim name of ‘The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia’; however this is gradually reverting to ‘The Republic of Macedonia’.

Population
2,022,547 (official estimate 2002).

Population Density
79.7 per sq km.

Capital
Skopje. Population: 467,257 (2002).

Geography
Roughly rectangular in shape, and on the strategic Vardar Valley northsouth communications route, Macedonia (Former Yugoslav Republic) is landlocked, bordering Serbia & Montenegro to the north, Albania to the west, Greece to the south and Bulgaria to the east.

Language
Macedonian (a slavonic language using the Cyrillic script) is the most widely used language. Albanian, Turkish and Serbo-Croat are also used by ethnic groups. English, French and German are widely spoken.