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Prishtina or Pristina (Albanian: Prishtina or Prishtinë; Serbian: Приштина, Priština) is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. The city has a majority Albanian population, alongside other smaller communities. With a municipal population of 204,721 inhabitants, Prishtina is the second-largest city in the world with a predominantly Albanian-speaking population, after Albania's capital, Tirana. Geographically, it is located in the north-eastern part of Kosovo close to the Goljak mountains.

During the Paleolithic Age, what is now the area of Prishtina was involved by the Vinča culture. It was home to several Illyrian and Roman people at the classical times. King Bardyllis brought various tribes together in the area of Prishtina in the 4th century BC, establishing the Dardanian Kingdom. The heritage of the classical era is still evident in the city, represented by ancient city of Ulpiana, that was considered one of the most important Roman cities in the Balkan peninsula. Between the 5th and the 9th century the area was part of the Byzantine Empire. In the middle of the 9th century it was ceded to the First Bulgarian Empire. In the early 11th century it fell under Byzantine rule and was included into a new province called Bulgaria. Between the late 11th and middle of the 13th century it was ceded several times to the Second Bulgarian Empire.

In the late Middle Ages, Prishtina was an important town in Medieval Serbia and also the royal estate of Stefan Milutin, Stefan Uroš III, Stefan Dušan, Stefan Uroš V and Vuk Branković. Following the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans, Prishtina became an important mining and trading center due to its strategic position near the rich mining town of Novobërda. The city was known for its trade fairs and items, such as goatskin and goat hair as well as gunpowder. The first mosque in Prishtina was built in the late 14th century while under Serbian rule.

Prishtina is the most important transportation junction of Kosovo, for air, rail, and roads. The international airport of Prishtina is the largest airport of the country and among the largest in the region. A range of expressways and motorways, such as the R6, R7 and R7.1, radiate out the city and connect it to Albania and Macedonia.

Prishtina is as well as the most essential economic, financial, political and trade center of Kosovo mostly due to its significant location in the center of the country. It is the seat of power of the Government of Kosovo, the residences for work of the President and Prime Minister of Kosovo and the Parliament of Kosovo.

Twin cities[]

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