?What are the Balkan countries and where are they located
What are the Balkan countries?
We often hear the term Balkans, Balkan countries, or the Balkan Peninsula, and sometimes we hear a political term known as (Balkanization). So what is the Balkans, where are the Balkan countries located, what are they composed of, and what is Balkanization??
Where are the Balkan countries located? Geographic borders of the Balkans:
The Balkans is a historical region, geographically located in the southeastern part of the European continent. It is composed of several countries and includes several races and faiths.
The name of the Balkans, or the entire region, is derived from the Balkan mountain range, which extends from central Bulgaria to the east of the Republic of Serbia.
The word Balkan is a Turkish word meaning "mountains," so it's no surprise that the aptly named peninsula of the region is covered in mountain ranges. Such as the Carpathian Mountains in northern Romania
The term (Balkan Peninsula) is also used as a geographical term referring to the region.
?What and where are the Balkan countries located
The Balkan Peninsula is bordered to the east by the Black Sea and the Bosphorus Strait, while the Balkan Peninsula is bordered to the west by the Adriatic Sea and the Ionian Sea. The Balkan countries are bordered to the south by the Sea of Marmara, the Aegean Sea, and the Dardanelles Strait (metaphorically the Mediterranean Sea), while the Danube and Sava rivers form the northern borders of the Balkan Peninsula. Which separates the peninsula from the rest of the European continent.
Balkan countries:
1 - Greece.
2- Bulgaria.
3- Bosnia and Herzegovina.
4- Albania.
5- Croatia.
6 - Macedonia.
7 - Serbia
8 - Montenegro (Montenegro).
9_ The European part of Türkiye.
10- Kosovo.
The Balkan countries, as a historical and political classification, also include three other countries due to their political and historical connection to the previous countries (Romania, Slovenia, Moldova).
Although these countries (Romania - Slovenia - Moldova) are outside the framework of the island as a geographical classification and natural terrain.
Some of these countries formed for a long time what was called the Serbian Empire and then it was called (Yugoslavia), which disintegrated between the years (1991-1992).
Yugoslavia included (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro (Montenegro), Serbia, Kosovo), all of which disintegrated separately except for Serbia and Montenegro, which remained under the name (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). In 2003, the previous designation was canceled and became called (Serbia and Montenegro). ) or (Serbia and Montenegro).
The term (balkanization) in politics:
It refers to the division of a geographical area into multiple states. Throughout the ages, the Balkans were located on the borders of the great empires that arose during those times. Therefore, its history is full of wars, revolutions, invasions, and conflict between nations from the era of the Roman Empire through the Ottoman Empire until the time of the Yugoslav wars. For this reason, the name “Balkans” is linked to violence, religious conflict, and ethnic cleansing.
In geopolitics, the term Balkanization refers to the division of a geographical area into multiple hostile states.
The Balkan Peninsula is rich in water and mountains, making it a unique and diverse European destination. The total area of seven Balkan countries falls within the total area of the Balkan countries, which amounts to about 505 thousand square kilometers, while other Balkan countries share a portion of their area in the total area of the Balkan countries, such as Turkey, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia.
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