View source for Prokuplje

{{Distinguish|Pokuplje}}
{{Infobox settlement
 | native_name              = {{native name|sr-Cyrl|Прокупље|italics=off}}
 | native_name_lang         = sr
 | official_name            = Prokuplje
 | other_name               = 
 | settlement_type          = [[List of cities in Serbia|City]]
 | image_shield             = COA_Prokuplje.jpg
 | image_flag               = 
 | image_skyline            = {{multiple image
| border = infobox
| perrow = 1/2/3/2/2
| total_width = 260
| align = center
| caption_align = center
| image1 = PK sa Savicevca1.jpg
| caption1 = Panorama of Prokuplje
| image2 = Skupština Opštine Prokuplje 07.jpg
| caption2 = Prokuplje City Hall
| image3 = Narodni muzej Toplice1.jpg
| caption3 = National Museum of Toplica
| image4 = Sud, Prokuplje 06.jpg
| caption4 = Statue of Justice
| image5 = Prokuplje 16.jpg
| caption5 = Monument to World War I heroes
| image6 = Opšta bolnica, Prokuplje 06.jpg
| caption6 = Prokuplje General Hospital
| image7 = Prokuplje latcrk3.jpg
| caption7 = Latin Church
| image8 = Železnička stanica, Prokuplje 01.jpg
| caption8 = Prokuplje Railway Station
}}
 | image_caption            = 
 | image_map                = Municipalities of Serbia Prokuplje.png
 | map_caption              = Location of the city of Prokuplje within Serbia
 | mapsize                  = 
 | coordinates              = {{coord|43|14|10|N|21|35|25|E|region:RS|display=inline,title}}
 | subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
 | subdivision_name         = {{flag|Serbia}}
 | subdivision_type1        = [[Subdivisions of Serbia|Region]]
 | subdivision_name1        = [[Southern and Eastern Serbia]]
 | subdivision_type2        = [[Districts of Serbia|District]]
 | subdivision_name2        = [[Toplica District|Toplica]]
 | established_title        = City status
 | established_date         = June 2018
 | parts_type               = Settlements
 | parts_style              = para
 | p1                       = 107
 | leader_title             = Mayor
 | leader_name              = Aleksandar Simonović
 | leader_party             = [[Serbian Progressive Party|SNS]]
 | area_blank1_title        = Urban
 | area_blank1_km2          = 20.96
 | area_blank2_title        = Administrative
 | area_blank2_km2          = 759
 | area_footnotes           = <ref>{{Serbian municipalities 2006}}</ref>
 | elevation_m              = 273
 | population_footnotes     = <ref name="census2022-firstresults">{{cite web |title=Prvi rezultati Popisa stanovništva, domaćinstava i stanova 2022. |url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2022/HtmlL/G20221350.html |website=stat.gov.rs |access-date=16 February 2023 |language=Serbian |date=21 December 2022 |quote=d}}</ref>
 | population_as_of         = 2022 census
 | population_blank1_title  = Urban
 | population_blank1        = 24627
 | population_density_blank1_km2 = auto
 | population_blank2_title  = Administrative
 | population_blank2        = 38054
 | population_density_blank2_km2 = auto
 | timezone                 = [[Central European Time|CET]]
 | utc_offset               = +1
 | timezone_DST             = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
 | utc_offset_DST           = +2
 | postal_code_type         = [[Postal codes in Serbia|Postal code]]
 | postal_code              = 18400
 | area_code_type           = [[Telephone numbers in Serbia|Area code]]
 | area_code                = +381(0)27
 | blank_name               = [[Vehicle registration plates of Serbia|Car plates]]
 | blank_info               = PK
 | website                  = {{URL|www.prokuplje.org.rs}}
| blank_name_sec1           = Official languages
| blank_info_sec1           = [[Serbian language|Serbian]]<ref name="Statut">{{cite web|url=http://demo.paragraf.rs/demo/combined/Old/t/t2018_12/t12_0050.htm |title=Statut grada Prokuplja |trans-title=City of Prokuplje Statute |access-date=22 March 2025 |language=sr |publisher=City of Prokuplje}}</ref>
}}
'''Prokuplje''' ({{lang-sr-Cyrl|Прокупље}}, {{IPA|sh|prǒkupʎe|pron}}) is a [[List of cities in Serbia|city]] and the administrative center of the [[Toplica District]] in [[Southern Serbia (Geographical Region)|southern Serbia]]. As of 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 38,054 inhabitants.<ref name="census2022-firstresults" />

Prokuplje is one of the [[Roman Serbia|Roman sites of Serbia]]. When South [[Serbs]] first settled in this area in the 6th century, the city was known as ''Komplos''. The town was known as Ürgüp during Ottoman rule. After Serbia's victory over the Ottomans, Prokuplje was incorporated into the [[Kingdom of Serbia]] in 1878.

==Geography==
The [[Toplica (region)|Toplica district]] is located in [[south]]ern [[Serbia]], in the central part of the [[Balkans|Balkan peninsula]].

Prokuplje is located between municipalities of [[Blace]], [[Kuršumlija]], [[Bojnik, Serbia|Bojnik]], [[Žitorađa]], [[Merošina]], [[Aleksinac]], and [[Kruševac]].

===Climate===
Prokuplje has a [[humid continental climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification]]: ''Dfa'').

{{Weather box 
| width = auto
| metric first = yes
| single line = yes
| location = Prokuplje

| Jan high C = 3.8
| Feb high C = 6.1
| Mar high C = 11.2
| Apr high C = 16.4
| May high C = 21.0
| Jun high C = 24.9
| Jul high C = 27.4
| Aug high C = 28.0
| Sep high C = 22.4
| Oct high C = 16.8
| Nov high C = 11.2
| Dec high C = 5.0

| Jan mean C = -0.7
| Feb mean C = 1.3
| Mar mean C = 5.7
| Apr mean C = 10.9
| May mean C = 15.7
| Jun mean C = 19.7
| Jul mean C = 22.1
| Aug mean C = 22.4
| Sep mean C = 17.1
| Oct mean C = 11.5
| Nov mean C = 6.2
| Dec mean C = 1.0

| Jan low C = -4.4
| Feb low C = -3.0
| Mar low C = 0.5
| Apr low C = 5.0
| May low C = 9.9
| Jun low C = 14.0
| Jul low C = 16.3
| Aug low C = 16.5
| Sep low C = 11.9
| Oct low C = 6.8
| Nov low C = 2.1
| Dec low C = -2.3

|precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation mm = 50
| Feb precipitation mm = 45
| Mar precipitation mm = 64
| Apr precipitation mm = 78
| May precipitation mm = 84
| Jun precipitation mm = 78
| Jul precipitation mm = 63
| Aug precipitation mm = 46
| Sep precipitation mm = 54
| Oct precipitation mm = 53
| Nov precipitation mm = 52
| Dec precipitation mm = 60

| Jan humidity    =79
| Feb humidity    =75
| Mar humidity    =69
| Apr humidity    =65
| May humidity    =66
| Jun humidity    =63
| Jul humidity    =57
| Aug humidity    =54
| Sep humidity    =62
| Oct humidity    =73
| Nov humidity    =78
| Dec humidity    =80

| source = Climate-Data.org <ref name="Climate-Data.org">{{cite web|url= https://en.climate-data.org/location/45362/|title= Climate: Prokuplje, Serbia|publisher=Climate-Data.org|access-date=22 November 2023}}</ref>
}}

==History and archaeology==
{{more citations needed|section|date=February 2018}}
{{NPOV language|section|date=February 2018}}

===Neolithic and Copper Age===
{{see also|Prehistoric Serbia}}
The traces of early settlements can be found at Neolithic sites such as [[Macina, Serbia|Macina]] (near Zitni Potok), Kavolak {{convert|6|km|0|abbr=off}} west of Prokuplje (village [[Donja Trnava (Prokuplje)|Donja Trnava]]) and settlements on the south slopes of [[Jastrebac]] in [[Donja Bresnica]] village. The [[Vinča culture|Vinča period]] is preserved at the [[Pločnik (archaeological site)|Pločnik site]], situated on the left side of the road from Prokuplje to [[Kursumlija]],{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} {{convert|19|km|0|abbr=on|disp=sqbr}} west of Prokuplje, underneath the [[Plocnik|modern village]], on the left bank of the [[Toplica (South Morava)|Toplica]] river.<ref name=Starinar2014/> Together with Belovode, Pločnik is one of two Vinča culture sites from Serbia considered (as of 2014) the worldwide earliest to produce evidence of copper smelting.<ref name=Starinar2014/> The occupation periods are between c. 5350-4650 BC for Belovode and 5200-4650 BC for Pločnik, making Pločnik the second-oldest copper smelting site so far discovered anywhere in the world.<ref name=Starinar2014>{{cite journal |first1= Miljana |last1= Radivojević |first2= Julka |last2= Kuzmanović-Cvetković |title= Copper minerals and archaeometallurgical materials from the Vinča culture sites of Belovode and Pločnik: Overview of the evidence and new data |journal= Starinar |year= 2014 |issue= 64 |pages= 7–30 |doi= 10.2298/STA1464007R |url= http://www.doiserbia.nb.rs/img/doi/0350-0241/2014/0350-02411464007R.pdf |access-date=27 June 2020|doi-access= free }}</ref> There are two theories about the emergence of [[metalworking]]: the smelting technology was either discovered in one region only, at or near the [[Fertile Crescent]] in what is now southern Iran and emanated from there around the world, or it happened independently in different places, the Vinča culture area of Serbia and Bulgaria being one of them, and for now the oldest to be researched and dated.<ref name=Bower2010>{{cite web |first= Bruce |last= Bower |title= Serbian site may have hosted first copper makers |publisher= Science News |date= 25–26 June 2010 |via= The Archaeology News Network |url= https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2010/06/serbian-site-may-have-hosted-first.html |access-date= 27 June 2020 |archive-date= 28 January 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220128204308/https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2010/06/serbian-site-may-have-hosted-first.html |url-status= dead }}</ref> In October 2008, Serbian archaeologists at Pločnik found a copper axe believed to be 7,500 years old, making it 500–800 years older than what had previously been considered to be the beginning of the [[Chalcolithic|Copper Age]] and suggesting that the human use of metal is older than previously believed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/ancient-axe-find-suggests-copper-age-began-earlier-than-believed_100105122.html|title=Ancient axe find suggests Copper Age began earlier than believed|website=thaindian.com|access-date=9 April 2018|archive-date=6 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190206175553/http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/ancient-axe-find-suggests-copper-age-began-earlier-than-believed_100105122.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stonepages.com/news/archives/002557.html|title=Stone Pages Archaeo News: Ancient metal workshop found in Serbia|website=www.stonepages.com|access-date=9 April 2018}}</ref>

===Classical antiquity===
The agricultural Vinča settlements were replaced by the emerging [[Thracians]] and then the invading Celtic [[Scordisci]] in 279 BC. Pieces of ceramics found by the Latin Church are traces of those tribes' movement on their way to Greece.{{citation needed|date=June 2020}}

Between 73 and 75 BC, after the Romans subjugated the tribes of the region, this part of Serbia became a part of the Roman province of [[Moesia]]. At the time the settlement was known as ''Hammeum'' or ''Hameo'', its oldest preserved name. It was located on the Roman [[Via Militaris]], a road that connected the central Balkans with the [[Adriatic]], passing through nearby Naissus ([[Niš]]).{{citation needed|date=June 2020}} In July 2008 a major Roman spa was unearthed.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.b92.net/eng/news/comments.php?nav_id=52063 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2009-07-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607175508/http://www.b92.net/eng/news/comments.php?nav_id=52063 |archive-date=2011-06-07 }}</ref>

At the end of the 4th century AD, when the Roman Empire was divided, the Toplica region became part of the Eastern Roman or [[Byzantine Empire]]. The place became known as ''Komplos'' or ''Komblos'' (''village-town''). Some historians believe that Komplos was rebuilt by Emperor [[Justinian]] (r. 527–565).

<gallery mode="packed">
File:PK Rimske terme1.jpg|''Remains of Roman Baths''
File:Latinska crkva, Prokuplje 01.jpg|''Latin Church''
File:Prokuplje latcrk3.jpg|''Latin Church''
</gallery>

=== Middle Ages ===
When South Serbs first settled in this area in the 6th century, the city was known as ''Komplos''.

During the 9th-11th centuries and the 13th century the territory of modern-day Prokuplje was part of the [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgarian Empire]].{{sfn|Ivanišević|2013|p=450}}<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.euratlas.net/history/europe/900/index.html | title=Euratlas Periodis Web - Map of Europe in Year 900 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y0NBxG9Id58C|title=The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century|first1=John V. A.|last1=Fine|first2=John Van Antwerp|last2=Fine|date=29 December 1991|publisher=University of Michigan Press|access-date=29 December 2017|via=Google Books|isbn=978-0472081493}}</ref><ref>''The Late Medieval Balkans'', p. 48</ref><ref>''The Late Medieval Balkans'', p. 54</ref>

The city is named after the "[[Prokuplje Fortress|Fortress of St. Procopios]]", first mentioned in 1395.<ref>{{citation | author=Konstantin Jirecek | author-link=Konstantin Jirecek | title=Geschichte der Serben | volume=1 | year=1911 | page=221 | url=https://archive.org/details/geschichtederser00jire}}</ref> The Ottomans seized the city during their conquest of Serbia, but had to return it in 1444 following the [[Peace of Szeged]].<ref>{{citation | author=Gjuro Szabo | author-link=Gjuro Szabo | entry=Prokuplje | title=Narodna enciklopedija | volume=3 | year=1924 | pages=706–707 | url=https://archive.org/details/NarodnaEnciklopedija}}</ref>

===Ottoman rule===
====15th-17th centuries====
In 1454, Prokuplje was besieged by the Ottomans and during the next 423 years of Ottomans rule the name of the place was '''Urcub''' or '''Okrub'''. It was part of the [[Sanjak of Niš]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Godišnjak grada Beograda|year=1977|publisher=Museum of the Belgrade|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OE_jAAAAMAAJ&q=%22%D0%9D%D0%B8%D1%88%D0%BA%D0%B8+%D1%81%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%9F%D0%B0%D0%BA%22|access-date=11 July 2011|page=116}}</ref>

During the Ottoman rule, in the period between the 16th and 17th centuries, the town's importance increased, similarly to other towns in the region, such as [[Kruševac]], [[Stalac]] and [[Leskovac]]. Prokuplje prospered through the trade connections with [[Dubrovnik]].<ref name=Kostić/>

====1689-1878: wars and ethnic changes====
During the [[Great Turkish War]] (1683–1699), there was a massive local rebellion of Christian Serbs in support of the Austrian troops who were advancing in the area. Prokuplje was captured by Austrian troops and [[Serbian Militia]] in 1689, but after the Ottoman counter-offensive, the town was burned down during the Austrian retreat of 1690, in spite of [[Habsburg monarchy|Habsburg]] colonel [[Antonije Znorić]]'s orders to the contrary.<ref name=Kostić>{{cite web|last=Kostić|first=Radoje|title=Нишка Епархија у првој половини 18. века|url=http://www.arhivnis.co.rs/cirilica/idelatnost/br%201/cneparhija.htm|publisher=Istorijski Arhiv Niš|access-date=14 December 2011|location=Niš|quote=Прокупље је запалио пуковник Антоније Знорић приликом повлачења 1690. године|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904081315/http://www.arhivnis.co.rs/cirilica/idelatnost/br%201/cneparhija.htm|archive-date=4 September 2011}}</ref> Serbs, who had supported the Austrian troops, after their withdrawal started increasingly emigrating from the area,<ref name="HistoryOfOttomans">{{cite book |last1=Shaw |first1=Stanford J. |last2=Shaw |first2=Ezel Kural |title=History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey: Volume 1, Empire of the Gazis: The Rise and Decline of the Ottoman Empire 1280-1808 |date=1976 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521291637 |pages=219–221 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E9-YfgVZDBkC&q=Ottomans+Serbs+leaving&pg=PA63 |access-date=12 January 2019}}</ref> while there was an increase of Muslim Albanian migration into the town.<ref name="PopulationProkuplje">{{cite book |last1=Rudić |first1=Vujadin |title=Population of Prokuplje |date=1992 |publisher=Ethnographic institute, SANU |location=Belgrade |isbn=978-86-7587-011-1 |pages=11–12}}</ref>

[[File:Prokuplje spom3.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Monument in Prokuplje dedicated to the victims of the [[Balkan Wars]] and [[World War I]]]]
Toponyms such as ''Arbanaška'' and ''Đjake'' shows an historic Albanian presence in modern-day Prokuplje area that dates to the medieval era.<ref name=SabitLife>{{cite book |first= Sabit |last= Uka |title= Jeta dhe veprimtaria e shqiptarëve të Sanxhakut të Nishit deri më 1912 [Life and activity of Albanians in the Sanjak of Nish up to 1912] |publisher= Verana |year= 2004 |pages= 244–245 |quote= ''Eshtë, po ashtu, me peshë historike një shënim i M. Gj Miliçeviqit, i cili bën fjalë përkitazi me Ivan Begun. ''Ivan Begu'', sipas tij ishte pjesëmarrës në Luftën e Kosovës 1389. Në mbështetje të vendbanimit të tij, ''Ivan'' Kullës, fshati emërtohet ''Ivan Kulla'' (Kulla e Ivanit), që gjendet në mes të Kurshumlisë dhe Prokuplës. M. Gj. Miliçeviqi thotë: "Shqiptarët e ruajten fshatin Ivan Kullë (1877–1878) dhe nuk lejuan që të shkatërrohet ajo". Ata, shqiptaret e Ivan Kullës (1877–1878) i thanë M. Gj. Miliçeviqit se janë aty që nga para Luftës se Kosovës (1389). [12] Dhe treguan që trupat e arrave, që ndodhen aty, ata i pat mbjellë Ivan beu. Atypari, në malin Gjakë, nodhet kështjella që i shërbeu Ivanit (Gjonit) dhe shqiptarëve për t’u mbrojtur. Aty ka pasur gjurma jo vetëm nga shekulli XIII dhe XIV, por edhe të shekullit XV ku vërehen gjurmat mjaft të shumta toponimike si fshati ''Arbanashka'', lumi ''Arbanashka'', mali ''Arbanashka'', fshati ''Gjakë'', mali ''Gjakë'' e tjerë. [13] Në shekullin XVI përmendet lagja shqiptare Pllanë jo larg Prokuplës. [14] Ne këtë shekull përmenden edhe shqiptarët katolike në qytetin Prokuplë, në Nish, në Prishtinë dhe në Bulgari.[15].... [12] M. Đj. Miličević. ''Kralevina Srbije, Novi Krajevi''. Beograd, 1884: 354. "Kur flet mbi fshatin Ivankullë cekë se banorët shqiptarë ndodheshin aty prej Betejës së Kosovës 1389. Banorët e Ivankullës në krye me Ivan Begun jetojnë aty prej shek. XIV dhe janë me origjinë shqiptare. Shqiptarët u takojnë të tri konfesioneve, por shumica e tyre i takojnë atij musliman, mandej ortodoks dhe një pakicë i përket konfesionit katolik." [13] ''Oblast Brankovića, Opširni katastarski popis iz 1455 godine'', përgatitur nga M. Handžic, H. Hadžibegić i E. Kovačević, Sarajevo, 1972: 216. [14] Skënder Rizaj, T, K "Perparimi" i vitit XIX, Prishtinë 1973: 57.[15] Jovan M. Tomić, ''O Arnautima u Srbiji, Beograd'', 1913: 13.'' [It is, as such, of historic weight in a footnote of M. Đj. Miličević, who says a few words regarding Ivan Beg. Ivan Beg, according to him participated in the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. In support of his residence, Ivan Kula, the village was named Ivan Kula (Tower of Ivan), located in the middle of Kuršumlija and Prokuple. M. Đj. Miličević says: "Albanians safeguarded the village Ivan Kula (1877–1878) and did not permit its destruction." Those Albanians of Ivan Kulla (1877–1878) told M.Đj. Miličević that they have been there since before the Kosovo War (1389). And they showed where the bodies of the walnut trees were, that Ivan Bey had planted. Then there to Mount Đjake, is the castle that served Ivan (John) and Albanians used to defend themselves. There were traces not only from the XIII and XIV centuries, but the XV century where we see fairly multiple toponymic traces like the village Arbanaška, river Arbanaška, mountain Arbanaška, village Đjake, mountain Đjake and others. In the sixteenth century mentioned is the Albanian neighborhood Plana not far from Prokuple. [14] In this century is mentioned also Catholic Albanians in the town of Prokuplje, Niš, Priština and in Bulgaria.[15].... [12] M. Đj. Miličević. Kralevina Srbije, Novi Krajevi. Beograd, 1884: 354. When speaking about the village Ivankula, its residents state that Albanians were there from the Battle of Kosovo in 1389. Residents of Ivankula headed by Ivan Beg are living there since the XIV century and they are of Albanian origin. Albanians belong to three religions, but most of them belong to the Muslim one, after Orthodoxy and then a minority belongs to the Catholic confession. [13] Oblast Brankovića, Opširni katastarski popis iz 1455 godine, përgatitur nga M. Handžic, H. Hadžibegić i E. Kovačević, Sarajevo, 1972: 216. [14] Skënder Rizaj, T, K "Perparimi" i vitit XIX, Prishtinë 1973: 57. [15] Jovan M. Tomić, O Arnautima u Srbiji, Beograd, 1913: 13.] |isbn= 9789951864527 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title= Formation of a Diasporic Community: The History of Migration and Resettlement of Muslim Albanians in the Black Sea Region of Turkey |journal= Middle Eastern Studies |volume= 45 |issue= 4 |pages= 556–557 |quote= Using secondary sources, we establish that there have been Albanians living in the area of Nish for at least 500 years, that the Ottoman Empire controlled the area from the fourteenth to nineteenth centuries which led to many Albanians converting to Islam, that the Muslim Albanians of Nish were forced to leave in 1878, and that at that time most of these Nishan Albanians migrated south into Kosovo, although some went to Skopje in Macedonia.; p. 557. It is generally believed that the Albanians in Samsun Province are the descendants of the migrants and refugees from Kosovo who arrived in Turkey during the wars of 1912–13. Based on our research in Samsun Province, we argue that this information is partial and misleading. The interviews we conducted with the Albanian families and community leaders in the region and the review of Ottoman history show that part of the Albanian community in Samsun was founded through three stages of successive migrations. The first migration involved the forced removal of Muslim Albanians from the Sancak of Nish in 1878; the second migration occurred when these migrants’ children fled from the massacres in Kosovo in 1912–13 to Anatolia; and the third migration took place between 1913 and 1924 from the scattered villages in Central Anatolia where they were originally placed to the Samsun area in the Black Sea Region. Thus, the Albanian community founded in the 1920s in Samsun was in many ways a reassembling of the demolished Muslim Albanian community of Nish…. Our interviews indicate that Samsun Albanians descend from Albanians who had been living in the villages around the city of Nish… pp. 557–558. In 1690 much of the population of the city and surrounding area was killed or fled, and there was an emigration of Albanians from the Malësia e Madhe (North Central Albania/Eastern Montenegro) and Dukagjin Plateau (Western Kosovo) into Nish.|doi=10.1080/00263200903009619 |year = 2009|last1 = Geniş|first1 = Şerife|last2= Maynard|first2= Kelly Lynne|s2cid= 143742189 }}</ref> The rural parts of [[Toplica (South Morava)|Toplica]] valley and adjoining semi-mountainous interior was inhabited during Ottoman rule by compact Muslim Albanian population, while Serbs in those areas lived near the river mouths and mountain slopes; both peoples inhabited other regions of the South Morava river basin.{{sfn|Jagodić|1998|loc= para. 4, 9, 32–42, 45–61}}<ref name=Lukovic2011>{{cite journal |first= Miloš |last= Luković |title= Development of the Modern Serbian state and abolishment of Ottoman Agrarian relations in the 19th century |journal= Český Lid |publisher= Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences |volume= 98 |issue= 3 |year= 2011 |page= 298 |jstor= 42640413 |quote= During the second war (December 1877 — January 1878) the Muslim population fled towns (Vranya (Vranje), Leskovac, Ürgüp (Prokuplje), Niş (Niš), Şehirköy (Pirot), etc.) as well as rural settlements where they comprised ethnically compact communities (certain parts of Toplica, Jablanica, Pusta Reka, Masurica and other regions in the South Morava River basin). At the end of the war these Muslim refugees ended up in the region of Kosovo and Metohija, in the territory of the Ottoman Empire, following the demarcation of the new border with the Principality of Serbia. [38] [38] On Muslim refugees (''muhaciri'') from the regions of southeast Serbia, who relocated in Macedonia and Kosovo, see Trifunovski 1978, Radovanovič 2000. }}</ref> The town of Prokuplje had Albanian majority under the Ottoman rule.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Manaj |first1=Ramë |title=THE EXPULSION OF ALBANIANS FROM SANJAK OF NISH 1877/78 |last2=Osmani |first2=Jusuf |last3=Mekaj |first3=Shpresa |last4=Aliu |first4=Bekim |publisher=STATE AGENCY OF KOSOVO ARCHIVES |year=2018 |location=Prishtinë |pages=22}}</ref>

===Modern Serbia and Yugoslavia (1877-)===
In 1877, the entire [[Toplica region]] was captured from the Ottomans by Serbian forces, with Prokuplje changing hands on 19 December 1877. The [[Berlin Congress]] of 1878 recognised the city and the wider area as part of Serbia.

[[The Expulsion of Albanians 1877–1878|During the 1877–1878 period]], Albanians were expelled by Serbian forces,<ref name="Turovic2002">{{cite book |last=Turović |first=Dobrosav |title=Gornja Jablanica, Kroz istoriju |publisher=Beograd Zavičajno udruženje |year=2002 |pages=87–89}}</ref><ref name="Uka2004gjur">{{cite book |last=Uka |first=Sabit |title=Gjurmë mbi shqiptarët e Sanxhakut të Nishit deri më 1912 [Traces on Albanians of the Sanjak of Nish up to 1912] |publisher=Verana |year=2004 |isbn=9789951864527 |page=155 |quote=''Në kohët e sotme fshatra të Jabllanicës, të banuara kryesisht me shqiptare, janë këto: Tupalla, Kapiti, Gërbavci, Sfirca, Llapashtica e Epërrne. Ndërkaq, fshatra me popullsi te përzier me shqiptar, malazezë dhe serbë, jane këto: Stara Banja, Ramabanja, Banja e Sjarinës, Gjylekreshta (Gjylekari), Sijarina dhe qendra komunale Medvegja. Dy familje shqiptare ndeshen edhe në Iagjen e Marovicës, e quajtur Sinanovë, si dhe disa familje në vetë qendrën e Leskovcit. Vllasa është zyrtarisht lagje e fshatit Gërbavc, Dediqi, është lagje e Medvegjes dhe Dukati, lagje e Sijarinës. Në popull konsiderohen edhe si vendbanime të veçanta. Kështu qendron gjendja demografike e trevës në fjalë, përndryshe para Luftës se Dytë Botërore Sijarina dhe Gjylekari ishin fshatra me populisi të perzier, bile në këtë te fundit ishin shumë familje serbe, kurse tani shumicën e përbëjnë shqiptarët.'' [In contemporary times, villages in the Jablanica area, inhabited mainly by Albanians, are these: Tupale, Kapiti, Grbavce, Svirca, Gornje Lapaštica. Meanwhile, the mixed villages populated by Albanians, Montenegrins and Serbs, are these: Stara Banja, Ravna Banja, Sjarinska Banja, Đulekrešta (Đulekari) Sijarina and the municipal center Medveđa. Two Albanian families are also encountered in the neighborhood of Marovica called Sinanovo, and some families in the center of Leskovac. Vllasa is formally a neighborhood of the village Grbavce, Dedići is a neighborhood of Medveđa and Dukati, a neighborhood of Sijarina. So this is the demographic situation in question that remains, somewhat different before World War II as Sijarina and Đulekari were villages with mixed populations, even in this latter settlement were many Serb families, and now the majority is made up of Albanians.]}}</ref><ref name="Blumi2013">{{cite book |last=Blumi |first=Isa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nTKaAAAAQBAJ |title=Ottoman refugees, 1878–1939: migration in a post-imperial world |publisher=A&C Black |year=2013 |isbn=9781472515384 |page=50 |quote=As these Niš refugees waited for acknowledgment from locals, they took measures to ensure that they were properly accommodated by often confiscating food stored in towns. They also simply appropriated lands and began to build shelter on them. A number of cases also point to banditry in the form of livestock raiding and "illegal" hunting in communal forests, all parts of refugees’ repertoire... At this early stage of the crisis, such actions overwhelmed the Ottoman state, with the institution least capable of addressing these issues being the newly created Muhacirin Müdüriyeti... Ignored in the scholarship, these acts of survival by desperate refugees constituted a serious threat to the established Kosovar communities. The leaders of these communities thus spent considerable efforts lobbying the Sultan to do something about the refugees. While these Niš muhacir would in some ways integrate into the larger regional context, as evidenced later, they, and a number of other Albanian-speaking refugees streaming in for the next 20 years from Montenegro and Serbia, constituted a strong opposition block to the Sultan’s rule."; p.53. "One can observe that in strategically important areas, the new Serbian state purposefully left the old Ottoman laws intact. More important, when the state wished to enforce its authority, officials felt it necessary to seek the assistance of those with some experience, using the old Ottoman administrative codes to assist judges make rulings. There still remained, however, the problem of the region being largely depopulated as a consequence of the wars... Belgrade needed these people, mostly the landowners of the productive farmlands surrounding these towns, back. In subsequent attempts to lure these economically vital people back, while paying lip-service to the nationalist calls for "purification," Belgrade officials adopted a compromise position that satisfied both economic rationalists who argued that Serbia needed these people and those who wanted to separate "Albanians" from "Serbs." Instead of returning to their "mixed" villages and towns of the previous Ottoman era, these "Albanians," "Pomoks," and "Turks" were encouraged to move into concentrated clusters of villages in Masurica, and Gornja Jablanica that the Serbian state set up for them. For this "repatriation" to work, however, authorities needed the cooperation of local leaders to help persuade members of their community who were refugees in Ottoman territories to "return." In this regard, the collaboration between Shahid Pasha and the Serbian regime stands out. An Albanian who commanded the Sofia barracks during the war, Shahid Pasha negotiated directly with the future king of Serbia, Prince Milan Obrenović, to secure the safety of those returnees who would settle in the many villages of Gornja Jablanica. To help facilitate such collaborative ventures, laws were needed that would guarantee the safety of these communities likely to be targeted by the rising nationalist elements infiltrating the Serbian army at the time. Indeed, throughout the 1880s, efforts were made to regulate the interaction between exiled Muslim landowners and those local and newly immigrant farmers working their lands. Furthermore, laws passed in early 1880 began a process of managing the resettlement of the region that accommodated those refugees who came from Austrian-controlled Herzegovina and from Bulgaria. Cooperation, in other words, was the preferred form of exchange within the borderland, not violent confrontation.}}</ref> in a way that today would be characterized as [[ethnic cleansing]].<ref name="Muller">{{Cite journal |last1=Müller |first1=Dietmar |year=2009 |title=Orientalism and Nation: Jews and Muslims as Alterity in Southeastern Europe in the Age of Nation-States, 1878–1941 |journal=East Central Europe |volume=36 |pages=63–99 |doi=10.1163/187633009x411485}}</ref> It is estimated that around 11,437 Albanians left their homes in 119 villages in the Prokuplje district with the arrival of the [[Royal Serbian Army]].<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |last1=Jagodić |first1=Miloš |date=1 December 1998 |title=The Emigration of Muslims from the New Serbian Regions 1877/1878 |url=https://journals.openedition.org/balkanologie/265 |journal=Balkanologie |volume=2 |issue=2 |doi=10.4000/balkanologie.265 |s2cid=140637086|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

A report was made by local authorities in early 1878 for the minister of education at the time, [[Alimpje Vasiljević]]. There were 131 villages, with 1,485 Serbian homes and 1,553 Muslim homes, while 12 villages were unregistered as snowfall made them inaccessible, but the inhabitants of these abandoned villages were previously Albanian.<ref name=":0" />

From 1929 to 1941, Prokuplje was part of the [[Morava Banovina]] of the [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]]. During the [[World War I|First]] and [[Second World War]] Prokuplje was completely destroyed, but in the post-war period it became an industrial town.

[[File:Toplicki district.gif|thumb|right|Location within Toplica District]]

In June 2018, Prokuplje gained the status of a [[List of cities in Serbia|city]], along with [[Bor, Serbia|Bor]].<ref name="citystatus">{{cite news |title=Srbija dobila još dva grada |url=https://www.b92.net/info/vesti/index.php?yyyy=2018&mm=06&dd=20&nav_category=12&nav_id=1407599 |access-date=20 June 2018 |work=b92.net |agency=Tanjug |date=20 June 2018 |language=sr}}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{Historical populations
| type = 
| percentages = pagr
|1948|59292 |1953|62614 |1961|60075 |1971|57315 |1981|56256 |1991|52969 |2002|48501 |2011|44419 |2022|38291
| source = <ref>{{cite web|title=2011 Census of Population, Households and Dwellings in the Republic of Serbia|url=http://pod2.stat.gov.rs/ObjavljenePublikacije/Popis2011/Knjiga20.pdf|website=stat.gov.rs|publisher=Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia|access-date=12 January 2017}}</ref>
}}
According to the official census done in 2011, the city of Prokuplje has 44,419 inhabitants. A total of 61.5% of its population is living in urban areas. As of 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 38,291 inhabitants.<ref name="census2022-firstresults" /> Prokuplje has 14,814 households with 3,00 members on average, while the number of homes is 22,898.<ref>{{cite web|title=Number and the floor space of housing units|url=http://pod2.stat.gov.rs/ObjavljenePublikacije/Popis2011/Knjiga%2022_Broj%20i%20povrsina%20stambenih%20jedinica-Number%20and%20the%20floor%20space%20of%20housing%20units.pdf|website=stat.gov.rs|publisher=Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia|access-date=21 March 2018|language=sr}}</ref>

Religion structure in Prokuplje is predominantly [[Serbian Orthodox Church|Serbian Orthodox]] (41,494), with minorities like [[Islam|Muslim]]s (289), [[Atheism|Atheist]]s (122), [[Catholic Church|Catholic]]s (76) and others.<ref name="popis50">{{cite web|title=Religion, Mother tongue, and Ethnicity|url=http://pod2.stat.gov.rs/ObjavljenePublikacije/Popis2011/Knjiga4_Veroispovest.pdf|website=stat.gov.rs|publisher=Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia|access-date=21 March 2018|language=sr}}</ref> Most of the population speaks [[Serbian language]] (41,764).<ref name="popis50"/>

The composition of population by sex and average age:<ref name="popis50"/>
* Male - 22,056 (40.90 years) and
* Female - 22,363 (43.65 years).

A total of 17,777 citizens (older than 15 years) have [[secondary education]] (47.1%), while the 5,002 citizens have [[higher education]] (13.3%). Of those with higher education, 2,700 (7.2%) have university education.<ref name="popis51">{{cite web|title=Educational attainment, literacy and computer literacy|url=http://pod2.stat.gov.rs/ObjavljenePublikacije/Popis2011/Skolska%20sprema,%20pismenost%20i%20kompjuterska%20pismenost-Educational%20attainment,%20literacy%20and%20computer%20literacy%20.pdf|website=stat.gov.rs|publisher=Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia|access-date=21 March 2018|language=sr}}</ref>

===Ethnic groups===
Most of Prokuplje's population is of [[Serbs|Serb]] ethnicity (92.16%). The ethnic composition of the city:
{|class="wikitable"
|-
! Ethnic group
! Population
!%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Serbs]]||align="right"|40,936
|92.16%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Romani people in Serbia|Roma]]||align="right"|2,145
|4.83%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Montenegrins of Serbia|Montenegrins]]||align="right"|113
|0.25%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Romanians of Serbia|Romanians]]||align="right"|75
|0.17%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Macedonians in Serbia|Macedonians]]||align="right"|74
|0.17%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Croats of Serbia|Croats]]||align="right"|35
|0.08%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|[[Gorani people|Gorani]]||align="right"|24
|0.05%
|-
|style="background:#F5F5DC;"|Others||align="right"|1,017
|2.29%
|-
|style="background:#F0F0F0;"|'''Total'''||align="right"|44,419
|
|}

==Economy==
Prokuplje has a weak economy, with most of the employed people working in public sector. In 2009, [[Leoni Wiring Systems Southeast]] opened a factory in Prokuplje, employing around 1,750 people as of 2013.<ref name="secondFacility">{{cite news|title=Počela izgradnja druge fabrike kompanije Leoni u Srbiji|url=https://www.blic.rs/vesti/ekonomija/pocela-izgradnja-druge-fabrike-kompanije-leoni-u-srbiji/n5vr4kn|access-date=15 February 2018|work=blic.rs|date=23 August 2013|language=sr}}</ref>

The following table gives a preview of total number of registered people employed in legal entities per their core activity (as of 2022):<ref name="stats2023">{{cite web|title=MUNICIPALITIES AND REGIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA, 2023.|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G2023/PdfE/G202313050.pdf|website=stat.gov.rs|publisher=[[Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia]]|access-date=20 September 2024}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%;"
|- 
! Activity
! Total
|- 
|Agriculture, forestry and fishing||align="right"|74
|- 
|Mining and quarrying||align="right"|1
|- 
|Manufacturing||align="right"|5,433
|- 
|Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply||align="right"|96
|- 
|Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities||align="right"|318
|- 
|Construction||align="right"|470
|- 
|Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles||align="right"|1,313
|- 
|Transportation and storage||align="right"|323
|- 
|Accommodation and food services||align="right"|345
|- 
|Information and communication||align="right"|185
|- 
|Financial and insurance activities||align="right"|88
|- 
|Real estate activities||align="right"|16
|-
|Professional, scientific and technical activities||align="right"|281
|- 
|Administrative and support service activities||align="right"|71
|- 
|Public administration and defense; compulsory social security||align="right"|949
|- 
|Education||align="right"|916
|- 
|Healthcare and social work ||align="right"|1,103
|- 
|Arts, entertainment and recreation||align="right"|160
|- 
|Other service activities||align="right"|208
|-
|Individual agricultural workers||align="right"|118
|- class="sortbottom"
|'''Total'''||align="right"|'''12,467'''
|}

==International relations==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Serbia}}

===Twin towns – Sister cities===
Prokuplje is [[Twin towns and sister cities|twinned]] with:
*{{flagicon|SUI}} [[Yverdon-les-Bains]], [[Switzerland]]<ref name="Swiss twinnings">{{cite web|url=http://www.asccre.ch/fr/N208/vaud-waadt-vaud.html|title=Association Suisse des Communes et Régions d'Europe|access-date=2013-07-20|work=L'Association suisse pour le Conseil des Communes et Régions d'Europe (ASCCRE)|language=fr|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120724051705/http://www.asccre.ch/fr/N208/vaud-waadt-vaud.html|archive-date=2012-07-24}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|NOR}} [[Hemnes Municipality|Hemnes]], [[Norway]]
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Montauban]], [[France]]
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Épône]], France<ref>{{Cite web|title=Francuski đaci u poseti vršnjacima iz Prokuplja |url=https://www.juznevesti.com/Drushtvo/Francuski-djaci-u-poseti-vrsnjacima-iz-Prokuplja.sr.html |access-date=2024-10-01 |website=Južne vesti |language=sr}}</ref>
*{{flagicon|SRB}} [[Bogatić]], Serbia<ref>{{Cite web|title=Bratime se Prokuplje i Bogatić |url=https://www.juznevesti.com/Drushtvo/Bratime-se-Prokuplje-i-Bogatic.sr.html |access-date=2024-10-01 |website=Južne vesti |language=sr}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Prokuplje opstina.jpg|Prokuplje City Hall
File:Skupština Opštine Prokuplje 11.jpg|City Hall
File:Prokuplje 16.jpg|City center Monument
Narodni muzej Toplice1.jpg|National Museum
File:Sud, Prokuplje 02.jpg|City Court
File:Crkva u Kondželju.JPG|Church in Kondželj
File:Prokuplje, panorama.jpg|City panorama
PK sa Savicevca1.jpg|City panorama
File:Rastovničko jezero, Prokuplje 06.jpg|Rastovnica Lake
File:Prokuplje Hisar Toplica.jpg|Toplica River
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[List of cities in Serbia]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Prokuplje}}
* {{official website|http://www.prokuplje.org.rs/}}

{{Toplica District}}
{{Municipalities and cities of Southern and Eastern Serbia}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prokuplje}}
[[Category:Prokuplje| ]]
[[Category:Populated places in Toplica District]]
[[Category:Municipalities and cities of Southern and Eastern Serbia]]
[[Category:Roman sites in Serbia]]
[[Category:Cities and towns in Southern Serbia]]