DEPOPULATION OF VILLAGES IN SOUTHEASTERN SERBIA АS HINDRANCE TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

Socio-economic data of the villages belonging to the municipality Vladičin Han were analyzed in the paper. This municipality is part of Pčinjski district and is located in southeastern Serbia. The villages have typical rural character and are located in mountain area, except Priboj, which is dislocated in the 19th century. The lowest is Priboj (350–460 m) and the highest one is Kukavica (1,170–1,230 m). The subject of this paper is also the settlements of Lebet, Rdovo and Kostomlatica. The data obtained are the result of processing database retrieved from the Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia, related to the period 1971–2011. At the beginning of this period, the village with the largest population was Priboj (359 inhabitants). According to the last census (in year 2011), there lived 296 inhabitants with average age of 44. The settlement with the smallest population, according to the latest census, is Kostomlatica village. There live 10 inhabitants with an average age of 76.3 years. Other demographic indicators point to the extinction of the villages in this region. Depopulation is the problem to which state does not pay enough attention, especially in mountainous and border areas.

Keywords

• villages, age structure, depopulation, Vladičin Han, southeastern Serbia