Rumelia comes from the Ottoman word for “Rome” or “Rum” and once referred to the entire Balkan peninsula. Over the centuries, the context and definition changed, and at various times it could have meant Northern Thrace, Macedonia (including the Greek Park), or just the tiny part around Bitola. The last of which is where my name for the region comes from. Instead of referring to this region by other misleading names, Rumelia does an excellent job of conveying the Ottoman Empire’s role in Macedonian history.

The Macedonian Language is largely based on Bulgarian, with heavy Serbian influence from the 20th century. The Bulgarian connection is key, as North Macedonia was originally set to become part of an independent Bulgaria until the Berlin Conference in 1888 let the Ottomans retain control over North Macedonia. This was due to political horsetrading among European Great Powers but also to the much more diverse ethnic makeup of the region. Split among Bulgarians (who were expelled during the Balkan Wars), Greeks, Turks, Roma, and Aromanians, the region was and remains a melting pot for different cultures.

The borders of Northern Macedonia were set in the 20th century after the population transfers following the breakup of Ottoman Greece and greater Bulgaria. They roughly conform to the boundaries of several ancient Ottoman Villayets but are derived mainly from the geography of the Vardar Valley and its tributaries. Rumelia, as a subregion of North Macedonia, excludes the Shopluk region, which corresponds to the Ossogovo Mountains that extend into Bulgaria and Serbia. Whereas that rugged region was home to nomadic pastoralists, the Shopi, the rest of Rumelia was largely agricultural.