Geography |
The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, located on the Balkan Peninsula, is bounded on the north by Serbia and Montenegro, on the east by Bulgaria, on the south by Greece, and on the west by Albania. The country covers an area of 25 713 km2.
The topography is rugged, with mountains and hills and deep valleys. Most of the country lies on a plateau ranging from 600 to 900 m above sea level, with some peaks exceeding 2 500 m. Mount Korabit, the highest peak, rises to 2 751 m on the western border. The Vardar River rises in the north-west and flows through central and southern Macedonia into Greece, where it is called the Axiós River, and thence into the Aegean Sea. The three largest lakes are the Ohrid, Prespa, and Dorïan.
Macedonia has cold, snowy winters. Summers are hot in the mountain valleys but cooler at higher elevations. Temperatures in Skopje average 1° C in January and 24° C in July. The city has an average annual rainfall of 550 mm.
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.