Refugees of The Greek Civil War - Establishment of Refugees Overseas - Yugoslavia - Socialist Republic of Macedonia

Socialist Republic of Macedonia

Most of the post-World War Two refugees sent to Yugoslavia went to the Socialist Republic of Macedonia. This was for obvious reasons such as the short distance between the borders of Greece and Yugoslavia. Soon the flow of people reversed and many Slav Macedonians from Yugoslavia entered Greece with the hope of aiding the National Liberation Front. The largest group of refugee children from the Greek Civil War was to end up in the People's Republic of Macedonia. Upon crossing the Yugoslav border many children were sent to villages such as Ljubojno and Brajčino before being relocated to larger centres such as Skopje and Bitola. These were joined by thousands more refugees, partisans and expellees until the border with Yugoslavia was closed. From then on refugees had to enter the country via Albania. The majority of these refugee children were Greek Slavic speakers, who remain in the Republic of Macedonia to this day.

The Aegean Macedonian refugees were primarily settled in deserted villages and areas across Macedonia. A large proportion went to the Tetovo and Gostivar areas. Another large group was to settle in Bitola and the surrounding areas, while refugee camps were established in Kumanovo and Strumica. Large enclaves of Greek refugees and their descendants can be found in the suburbs of Topankso Pole and Avtokamanda in Skopje. They eventually joined mainstream Yugoslav Macedonian society, with most being highly educated. Although most have never returned to Greece they are still proud of their unique Greek-Slavic identity. Many continue speaking Greek and their native Slavic dialects. The Republic of Macedonia has been the centre of Slav-Macedonian refugees from the Greek Civil War. Some estimates put the number of refugees and their descendants at over 50,000 people.