Nis

Name of City: Nis Country: Serbia Population: 253,077 (as of May 2009)

Nis is a city in Serbia famous for its huge amount in industrial productions. The city was a significant location to Serbia since early years when the country was still known as Yugoslavia. Its significance is due to various industries present in the city such as textile, mechanical, and tobacco. The productions of these industries account to one-third of the gross domestic product in Serbia. It is also a place with high standards for education. This fact has been proven by the recent statistics depicting that more than half of the city's population is literate.
There are several schools for primary and secondary level, as well as other educational institutions that take efforts in making the population in the city more competitive and literate.

The city is located in the Ni?ava District of Serbia, near the Ni?ava River. It is the largest city in the southern part of Serbia and third in the country, next to Novi Sad and Belgrade. It has a moderate and continental climate with an average temperature at 11.2?C. The warmest month in the city is July, having an average temperature of 21.2?C while the coldest is January with temperature averaging at 0.2?C.

In early history, the city was named Naissus, when it was under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was used as a base for various operations during Rome's conquest of the Balkans. The name Naissus was originally mentioned in documents made by the Romans at the beginning of the 2nd century, and was considered worthy to be noted in the Geography of Ptolemy.

For many centuries, the city has been under the rule of many nations. After the Roman Empire, Bulgarians ruled the city in the 9th century. It was under the Hungarian rule in the 11th century, a time when the city's forces won the battle in 1069 against the People's Crusade. In 1375, the city fell into the hands of the Turks after siege was launched, which lasted for 25 days.

The city is well-known for its museums, public library, theatres, and music. Most of its people are very fond of literature and art, and follow the city's traditions even these days. This is the reason why many tourists are attracted towards the city. Among the interesting landmarks in the city are the historical monuments, which made it a famous tourist spot.

The Skull Tower is one of the tourist sites in the city. It is a monument for the Serbian rebels in 19th century, which is located on the Zoran ?in?i? Boulevard. The Concentration Camp is a rare prisoner camp of the German Nazis in Europe. It is also one of the tourist spots in the city located on 12.February Boulevard. Other tourist sites in the city include the Memorial Chapel, which is dedicated for the victims of the NATO bombings; Mediana, an archaeological site from the Roman period; Tinkers Alley, a street filled with tinkers built in 18th century; Ni?ka Banja, a popular spa during the summer season; the fortress-cafes, situated close to the Stambol gate; and a lot more. There are also historical sites in the city such as the Bubanj, the place where civilian hostages from south Serbia and Nis were shot by the German Nazis during the World War II.