Macedonia FAQ: Dojran

Fishing on Dojran Lake

The town of Dojran is located in the south-eastern part of Macedonia near Lake Dojran. Lake Dojran is the smallest of the three tectonic lakes in Macedonia (after Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa), and is a remainder of Lake Peon that once used to exist here. It lies on an altitude of 148 m. above sea level, with an area of 43 sq. km. Due to its small surface and depth, its water is considerably warm. It is the richest lake in fish within this area.

Although there's evidence that this area was inhabited by people in the 5th century, the current name of Dojran has a rather unusual origin.

Under Byzantine rule, Dojran was called Polin (simply meaning "town"). But in 1391, on the way of the Ottoman conquests, the head of the Ottoman army Evren Bey lead his army accross the frozen Lake Dojran not knowing that he was moving on ice covered with snow. Once he realized how lucky his military was for surviving the crossing, he had a major feast as a sign of gratitude to Allah. Once the feast was over, he asked his soldiers how they felt, and they replied "Doyuran", which in Turkish means satistied i.e. well fed. After this, the town got its modern name Dojran.

Here, the famous Dojran fishermen still fish in a very special traditional way - by the help of birds, the cormorants. Lake Dojran is also rich in vegetation. The algae that generate and emit iodine must be mentioned, as they make the water suitable for balneal therapy.


Lake Dojran	Fishermen on Dojran Lake

Except for the natural lakes in Macedonia, there is a great number of artificial lakes and ponds built for the needs of tourism, agriculture and energy production. Some of them are, Lake Mavrovo, Lake Tikves, Kalimanci, Matka (near Skopje) and Stresevo.