Peripheral Metropolises in Southeast Europe. An Introduction

Among the European peripheries, Southeast Europe stands out as a specific periphery. In a historic view, it is rooted in a Byzantine and Ottoman past. Industrialisation and urbanisation arrived with considerable delay, to be intensified by varieties of Communist rule after World War II. Since 1989/1992, post-socialist transformation was accompanied by the break-up of Yugoslavia and several wars. After stabilisation, eight nation-states have applied for EU membership, and four have joined since. For the metropolises (and capital cities) of this region, integration into the European and global economy has increased their status as gateways for investment and traffic – tending to leave their own, the periphery’s periphery, behind. Large urban development projects are being planned and built in all metropolises of Southeast Europe, as symbols of new nation-states and anchors for investment capital. In the name of national priorities and technocratic necessities, special legislation tends to by-pass local powers. All these topics are analysed in the five articles on “Peripheral Metropolises – Urban Dynamics in Southeast Europe” that follow, to which this article offers an overview and introduction.