Istok

Istok
—  Municipality and city  —
Istok (Исток)
Istog (Burimi)

Flag

Seal
Istok
Location in Kosovo
Coordinates:
Country Kosovo[a]
District District of Peć
Population (2011)
 • Total 39,294 (municipality)
 • Density 86.5/km2 (224/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 31000
Area code(s) +381
Car plates 03
Website Municipality of Istok (Albanian)

Istok or Istog (Albanian: Istog or Burimi; Serbian: Исток or Istok) is a town and municipality in the Peć district of north-western Kosovo[a]. The town is the administrative capital of the municipality, which includes the town and the surrounding villages.

Contents

Name

The name of the town comes from the archaic version of the Serbian word istok (modern version istek), meaning "well, water source" referring to the springs of the Istočka river, a tributary to the White Drin river. [1] The name of the nearby village of Vrela, one of the largest settlements in the municipality, also means "springs", as does the newly proposed Albanian name of the town, Burimi.

Demographics

Ethnic Composition, Including IDPs
Year/Population Albanians  % Serbs  % Montenegrins  % Muslim Slavs  % Roma/Ashkali  % Total
1961 19,067 56.45 9,097 26.91 3,804 11.25 881 2.6 16 33,799
1971 27,371 66.74 8,944 21.81 2,420 5.90 1,876 4.57 243 0.59 41,009
1981 35,972 71.79 7,736 15.44 1,856 3.70 3,545 7.08 747 1.49 50,104
1991 43,910 76.68 5,968 10.42 1,302 2,27 4,070 7.11 1,346 2.35 57,261
1998 51,000 80.1 7,270 11.4
2006 41,000 92 540 1.2 1,330 2.9 1,740 44,610
Ref: Yugoslav Population Censuses for data through 1991, and OSCE estimates for data in 1998 and 2006

Although there is no official data, the total population of the municipality is estimated at 65,000.

Economy

After World War II, watermills on the river of Istok were nationalized and a new fish plant was built to operate as a Socially-owned Enterprise. The company's name during socialism was "Ribnjak" (in Serbian) meaning "Piscatory or Fishery", and when it was privatized as Motel "Trofta" (in Albanian) meaning "Trout", or the type of fish it has been and is still producing, selling, and distributing. The company currently employs around 70 workers.

Notable people

Besim Kabashi Former Kickboxer in Germany. He is considered as one of the best Kickboxers who ever have lived. He have been WKA champions the last 4 years.

See also

Notes and references

Notes:

a.   ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Serbia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Kosovo. The latter declared independence on 17 February 2008, while Serbia claims it as part of its own sovereign territory. Its independence is recognised by 86 UN member states.

References:

  1. ^ Jovan Đ. Marković (1990): Enciklopedijski geografski leksikon Jugoslavije, page 87; Svjetlost-Sarajevo; ISBN 86-01-02651-6

External links