Northern Montenegro (Montenegrin: Śever Crne Gore / Ćевер Црне Горе), is one of three statistical regions in Montenegro. It encompasses the sparsely populated mountainous part of Montenegro. It is bordered by Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast, Kosovo to the east, Albania to the southeast and central region of Montenegro to the south.[2][3][4] It comprises thirteen municipalities and is the largest by area.

Northern Montenegro
Śever Crne Gore
Ćевер Црне Горе
Tara canyon
Tara bridge
The Black Lake
Northern Montenegro
Northern Montenegro
Country Montenegro
Largest cityPljevlja
Municipalities
Area
 • Total8,399 km2 (3,243 sq mi)
Population
 • Total152,591 Decrease
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
HDI0.826 (2021)[1]
very high · 2nd

Municipalities

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Northern Montenegro comprises thirteen municipalities. Municipalities in Northern Montenegro include: Andrijevica, Berane, Bijelo Polje, Gusinje, Kolašin, Mojkovac, Petnjica, Plav, Plužine, Pljevlja, Rožaje, Šavnik and Žabljak.

Demographics

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The northern region of Montenegro is primarily rural, with a population that tends to be smaller and more dispersed compared to urban areas. It's known for its mountainous terrain, with towns and villages scattered throughout. The largest town by population is Pljevlja, while the largest municipality is Bijelo Polje. Demographically, it includes a mix of Serbs (40.5%), Bosniaks (30.9%), Montenegrins (19%), Albanians (2.2%) and other ethnic groups (7.4%).

Municipality Area Population (2023)
Km² Rank Total Rank
Andrijevica 283 12 3,978 10
Berane 544 6 25,162 3
Bijelo Polje 924 2 39,710 1
Gusinje 486 8 4,662 9
Kolašin 897 3 6,765 7
Mojkovac 367 11 6,824 6
Petnjica 173 13 5,552 8
Plav 486 7 10,378 5
Plužine 854 4 2,232 12
Pljevlja 1,346 1 24,542 4
Rožaje 432 10 25,247 2
Šavnik 553 5 1,588 13
Žabljak 445 9 3,002 11

Religion

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Majority of the population is identifying as Orthodox Christian, but also a significant portion are Muslims.

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Religion in Northern Montenegro (2023)[5]

  Eastern Orthodoxy (56.74%)
  Islam (41.38%)
  Other religions (1.88%)

Administration

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List of current mayors and local governments
  Democratic Party of Socialists (3)
  New Serb Democracy (3)
  Bosniak Party (2)
  Socialist People's Party (2)
  Social Democrats (1)
  Democratic Montenegro (1)
  Durmitorska Inicijativa (1)

Municipality Current Mayor Party Local government Elected
Bijelo Polje Petar Smolović DPS DPS-SD-SDP-BS 2022
Pljevlja Dario Vraneš NSD ZBCG-DCG-PES! 2022
Berane Vuko Todorović NSD ZBCG-DCG-PBS-PCG-UCG 2022
Rožaje Rahman Husović BS BS 2022
Plav Nihad Canović SD SD-DPS-SDP-BS 2022
Mojkovac Vesko Delić NSD ZBCG-DCG-SNP-URA 2021
Kolašin Petko Bakić DCG DCG-ZBCG-PES!-SNP-URA-UCG 2022
Petnjica Erol Muratović DPS DPS-SD-BS 2021
Andrijevica Željko Ćulafić SNP SNP-ZBCG-DCG 2020
Gusinje Sanel Balić BS BS-DUA-AA-SD-SDP-SNP 2020
Žabljak Radoš Žugić DI DI-ZBCG-DCG-PCG 2022
Plužine Slobodan Delić SNP SNP 2022
Šavnik Jugoslav Jakić DPS DPS-SD 2022

Environment

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National Parks

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There are three national parks in Northern Montenegro: Durmitor, Biogradska gora and Prokletije. Durmitor is part of World Heritage Site.

  This indicates that the national park is part of a World Heritage Site
Name Image Location Area Established
Durmitor  
(Žabljak, Šavnik, Plužine,
Pljevlja and Mojkovac municipalities)
39,000 ha (96,371 acres) 1952
Biogradska Gora  
(Kolašin, Mojkovac, Berane,
and Andrijevica municipalities)
5,650 ha (13,961 acres) 1952
Prokletije  
(Plav and Gusinje municipalities)
16,630 ha (41,094 acres) 2009

Fauna

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European brown bear

Within Montenegro, the largest concentration of large animals can be found within the north of the country.[6] These higher numbers can be attributed to the areas being mountainous and containing a virgin forest. Brown bears can be found within this area of Montenegro, living within Biogradska Gora national park.[7] There are estimated to be less than 130 individuals living in the wild.[8] These bears are known to reach a weight of up to 200 kg and generally remain docile except for mating season.[9]

Other carnivores such as wolves and Balkan lynxes live in the virgin forest as well, remaining distant from urban areas, this excludes occasional issues occurring from wolves hunting livestock.[10] The Balkan Lynx along with other European species of lynx, remains critically endangered and there have been efforts from environmental organisations to increase protection and prevent extinction of the species.[11] The Balkan lynx has an estimated population of between 40 and 70 individuals in the wild.

 
Balkan lynx

Among these larger carnivores is the golden jackal, wild dogs that retain a more slender build and lighter coat than wolves.[12] Northern Montenegro has two predominant species of deer, these are the red deer and the roe deer.[13] Alongside these fauna in the mountains is the Balkan Chamois, a small mountain goat native to the Balkan mountain regions. [14] Domesticated animals include large numbers of rabbits and livestock.[15]

The Durmitor National Park is home to the Musor rock lizard and the sharp snouted lizard. Both species are native to Montenegro.[16]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Sub-national HDI - Subnational HDI - Global Data Lab". globaldatalab.org.
  2. ^ "Northern Region". Rural Holiday. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  3. ^ "Northern Region of Montenegro". Rams Travel. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  4. ^ "Opulent Routes". Opulent Routes. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in Montenegro 2023" (PDF). Monstat. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
  6. ^ 'Ministry for Spatial Planning and Environment, 2010 (pg.11)
  7. ^ IUCN. 2017
  8. ^ Lonely Planet. 2017
  9. ^ Lonely Planet. 2017
  10. ^ Lonely Planet. 2017.
  11. ^ UN Environment. 2018. Securing A Safe Haven for the Balkan Lynx.
  12. ^ Ljubljana, M. and Belgrade, D., 2020.
  13. ^ 'Ministry for Spatial Planning and Environment, 2010 (pg.11)
  14. ^ Wilddocu.de. 2020. Balkan Chamois (Rupicapra Rupicapra Balcanica)
  15. ^ A-z-animals.com. 2008. Animals in Montenegro
  16. ^ 'Ministry for Spatial Planning and Environment, 2010 (pg. 16)