Sopia lies about 3 km southeast of Theranda, on flat ground, and is a compact settlement. Important archaeological traces have been recorded at Katunishtë-Selishtë and at Dubiqaku. The Dubiqaku locality contains eight tumuli associated with the Illyrian-Dardanian Iron Age.
The settlement is mentioned in a document from 1348 and in a Hilandar record from 1454, where Upper and Lower Sopia appear. After the expulsion of Albanians from the Sanjak of Niš in 1877–78, muhajir families from several settlements in Toplica and the surrounding area settled here.
In 1999 almost all Albanian houses were burned or damaged; only a few escaped destruction. The mosque was demolished. On 2 April 1999, masked local Serbs executed and massacred 36 Albanians; refugees from other villages and two KLA members were also killed in Sopia. On 3 April the population was expelled toward Albania or took refuge in the mountains of Budakova.
Source
Source and further reading
Principal source: Prof. Dr. Jusuf Osmani, Settlements of Kosovo 4 — Theranda (Suhareka), Prishtina, 2003.
Source entry: SOPIA
This page presents a selected summary from the published study of the settlement. For complete archival references, family histories, microtoponymy and the full treatment, consult the original volume.