itself or even border the neighbouring Kosovo. Name The name of the city comes from Scupi, which was the name of an early Paeonian settlement (later the capital of Dardania and subsequently a Roman colony) nearby. The meaning of that name is unknown, but there is a hypothesis that it derives from the Greek , (lit. "watcher, observer"), referring to its position on a high place, from which the whole place could be observed. After Antiquity, Scupi was occupied by various people and consequently its name was translated several times in several languages. Thus Scupi became "Skopje", and later "Üsküb" () for the Turks. This name was adapted in Western languages in "Uskub" or "Uskup", and these two appellations were used in the Western world until 1912. Some Western sources also cite "Scopia" and "Skopia". is in fact the name of the city in Aromanian. Nowadays, the local Albanian population call the city "Shkup" and "Shkupi", the latter being the definite form. This name has evolved from the ancient name Scupi in agreement with the Albanian phonetic system, the basis of evidence of an earlier Albanian settlement in the area. When Vardar Macedonia was annexed by the Kingdom of Serbia in 1912, the city officially became "Skoplje" () and this name was adopted by many languages. To reflect local pronunciation, the city's name was eventually spelled as "Skopje" () after the Second World War, when standard Macedonian became the official language of the new Socialist Republic of Macedonia. Geography Topography Skopje is in the north of the country, in the centre of the Balkan peninsula, and halfway between Belgrade and Athens. The city was built in the Skopje valley, oriented on a west–east axis, along the course of the Vardar river, which flows into the Aegean Sea in Greece. The valley is approximately wide and it is limited by several mountain ranges to the north and south. These ranges limit the urban expansion of Skopje, which spreads along the Vardar and the Serava, a small river which comes from the North. In its administrative boundaries, the City of Skopje stretches for more than , but it is only wide. Skopje is approximately 245 m above sea level and covers 571.46 km2. The urbanized area only covers 337 km2, with a density of 65 inhabitants per hectare. Skopje, in its administrative limits, encompasses many villages and other settlements, including Dračevo, Gorno