Macedonia region

Macedonia Maqedonia  (Albanian) Македония (Bulgarian) Μακεδονία (Greek) Македонија (Macedonian) Македонија (Serbian)
Topographical map of the geographical region of Macedonia.
Capitals	Skopje (Rep. Macedonia) Thessaloniki (Greek Macedonia) Blagoevgrad (Pirin Macedonia)
Languages	Albanian Bulgarian Greek Macedonian Serbian Turkish Vlach/Aromanian Romani
Membership	Albania  Bulgaria  Greece  Macedonia  Kosovo  Serbia
Area
• Total	67,000 km2 (26,000 sq mi)
Population
• Estimate	over 4,760,000
Currency	Albanian lek Bulgarian lev Euro Macedonian denar Serbian dinar

Macedonia /ˌmæsᵻˈdoʊniə/ is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, however it came to be defined as the modern geographical region by the mid 19th century. Nowadays the region is considered to include parts of six Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia and Kosovo. It covers approximately 67,000 square kilometres (25,869 sq mi) and has a population of 4.76 million.

Its oldest known settlements date back approximately to 7,000 BC. From the middle of the 4th century BC, the Kingdom of Macedon became the dominant power on the Balkan peninsula; since then Macedonia has had a diverse history.

The definition of Macedonia has changed several times throughout history. Prior to its expansion under Alexander the Great, the ancient kingdom of Macedonia, to which the modern region owes its name, lay entirely within the central and western parts of the current Greek province of Macedonia and was consisted of 17 provinces/districts or eparchies (Ancient Greek: επαρχία).