Yugoslavia.Geographical Position and Natural Features.

Map   Question.

What countries does Yugoslavia border on?
Geographical Position and Natural Features. The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia lies in the north-western part of the Balkan Peninsula. It has a long and deeply indented coastline along the Adriatic Sea, In the north it is crossed by the Danube, an extremely important trade route connecting Yugoslavia with the neighbouring countries of Central Europe.
The greater part of the country is mountainous. The Dinaric Alps (2,500 metres) run parallel to the Adriatic Sea. They form a rockstrewn region of bare cliffs, between which lie winding valleys cut deep into the rock.
Other parts of the mountains are covered with oak, beech and mixed forests which yield timber. Sheep and goats are reared on the mountain pastures, pigs fed on the acorns of the oak forests. In valleys with fertile alluvial soil (soil washed down from the moun­tains by rains or rivers) the inhabitants are engaged in farming. Careful attention is given to the cultivation of tobacco and fruit-trees. The Yugoslav prune is famed for its quality.

Fig. 60. Belgrade: Marx-Engels Square. On the right  is the Supreme People's Assembly building.

The coastal belt of the Adriatic Sea is sheltered from cold winds by mountains and has a subtropical climate and vegetation. Here fruits, grapes and olives are grown.
Part of the fertile Central Danubian Plain extends into Yugoslavia on the north. This is the main grain-growing area of the Republic. Everywhere stretch fields of maize, wheat and sugar-beet. Herds of cattle graze on the pastures.
Various minerals are mined in the mountains: copper, zinc, lead, iron, mercury, and aluminium. There are small deposits of coal and oil. Certain metals are exported.
Population and Economic Activities. The population of Yugo­slavia (some 19,000,000) is multinational and consists mainly of Southern Slavs: Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Montenegrins, Macedonians and Bosnians. There are many Albanians in the south, near the Albanian frontier. In the north live Hungarians. Yugoslavia is a federal republic consisting of six socialist republics.
After World War II the power of the people was established in Yugoslavia, and the country entered the path of socialist develop­ment.
A number of new plants (machine-building, chemical, metal­lurgical) and power-stations have been set up. The achievements of the people of Yugoslavia in the development of the economy of their country are considerable.
The land has been taken away from the big landowners and given over to the peasants. Agricultural producer co-operatives are being established in the country. A considerable part of the population still consists of individual farmers, each working on his own plot of land.
The capital of Yugoslavia, Belgrade, is situated on the Danube. Belgrade, with its population of 700,000, is the largest city in the country (Fig. 60). It is an important cultural and industrial centre producing machines, electrotechnical equipment and food­stuffs. It is also an important railway junction connecting the countries of Western Europe with the Aegean Sea and Asia Minor.
Questions and Assignments..

• Mark and name on the outline map the mountains, rivers
  and capital of Yugoslavia.
• Compile  an  album of  drawings  illustrating  the  natural
  features and economies of the socialist countries.