Editing Skopje (section)

=== Urban sociology ===
[[File:Kapistec.jpg|thumb|Kapištec neighbourhood, developed during the 1970s. Some post-earthquake prefabricated houses can be seen in the foreground.]]

Skopje is an ethnically diverse city, and its urban sociology primarily depends on ethnic and religious affiliation. [[Macedonians (ethnic group)|Macedonians]] form 66% of the city population, whilst [[Albanians in North Macedonia|Albanians]] and [[Roma in North Macedonia|Roma]] account respectively for 20% and 6%.<ref name="stats1"/> Each ethnic group generally [[self-segregates]] itself to certain areas of the city. Macedonians live south of the [[Vardar]] in areas massively rebuilt after 1963, whilst Muslims live on the northern side, in the oldest neighbourhoods of the city. These neighbourhoods are considered more traditional, whereas the south side evokes modernity to Macedonians.<ref name="thiesen57">{{Cite book |author=Ilká Thiessen |title=Waiting for Macedonia: Identity in a Changing World |publisher=University of Toronto Press |year=2007 |isbn=9781551117195 |page=57}}</ref>

The northern areas are the poorest; this is especially true for [[Topaana]], in [[Čair municipality]], and for [[Šuto Orizari municipality]], which are the two main Roma neighbourhoods. They are made of many illegal constructions not connected to the electric grid nor water supply, which are passed from one generation to another. Topaana, close to the [[Old Bazaar, Skopje|Old Bazaar]], is a very old area: it was first mentioned as a Roma neighbourhood in the beginning of the 14th century. It has between 3,000 and 5,000 inhabitants. Šuto Orizari, on the northern edge of the city, is a municipality of its own, with [[Romani language|Romani]] as its local official language. It was developed after the 1963 earthquake to accommodate Roma who had lost their homes.<ref name="roma"/>

The population density varies greatly from one area to another. So does the size of the living area per person. The city average was at {{cvt|19.41|m2|2|abbr=off}} per person {{As of|2002|lc=y}}, but at {{cvt|24|m2|0|abbr=off}} in [[Centar municipality (Skopje)|Centar]] on the south bank, and only {{cvt|14|m2|0|abbr=off}} in [[Čair municipality|Čair]] on the north bank. In [[Šuto Orizari municipality|Šuto Orizari]], the average was at {{cvt|13|m2|0|abbr=off}}.<ref name="stats1"/>