| Rahovec | |
| Settlement Type: | Town and municipality |
| Image Blank Emblem: | Stema e Komunës Rahovec.svg |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Emblem |
| Pushpin Map: | Kosovo#Europe |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Kosovo |
| Subdivision Type1: | District |
| Subdivision Name1: | District of Gjakova |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Smajl Latifi (AAK) |
| Unit Pref: | Metric |
| Area Blank1 Title: | Urban |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Timezone: | CET |
| Utc Offset: | +1 |
| Timezone Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset Dst: | +2 |
| Coordinates: | 42.3994°N 20.6547°W |
| Elevation M: | 477 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Postal Code: | 21000 |
| Area Code: | +383 29 |
| Registration Plate Type: | Vehicle registration |
| Registration Plate: | 07 |
| Total Type: | Municipal |
| Area Total Km2: | 278 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Total: | 56208 |
| Population Urban: | 15892 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Ethnicity |
| Area Rank: | 21st in Kosovo |
Rahovec (Albanian: Rahoveci) or Orahovac (Serbian: Ораховац), is a town and municipality located in the District of Gjakova in western Kosovo. According to the 2011 census, the town of Rahovec has 15,892 inhabitants, while the municipality has 56,208 inhabitants.
The name of the town and municipality is of Serbian origin and is derived from the Proto-Slavic word orěhъ, meaning nux (English: nut). The name Rahovec comes from an Albanised pronunciation of Orahovac.
The municipality covers an area of approximately 2760NaN0 and contains 35 villages.
Rahovec is especially known for its vineyards and wines.[2]
According to the last official census done in 2011, the municipality of Rahovec has 56,208 inhabitants.
In the municipality's total population, 98.14% are Albanians, amounting to 55,166 individuals, while the rest represent diverse minority groups in Kosovo, including Ashkali, Egyptians, Serbs, Bosniaks and various others.[3]
The town was known for a language known locally as "Rahovecionshe" or "Raveqki", which is a mixture of Albanian, Serbian and Bulgarian. Its use has declined rapidly after the Kosovo War and nowadays it is nearly extinct. It is thought that this pidgin language developed as a way for Albanian grape farmers to sell their products to wine producers, who were predominately Slavic-speaking.[4]