The first high-resolution Lake Dojran pollen record for the last 12 500 years is presented. The ecological succession shows Late Glacial steppe vegetation gradually replaced, since 11 500 yr BP, by Holocene mesophilous forests. The first human traces are recorded around 5000 yr BP and increased considerably since the Bronze Age. Pollen data and sedimentological, biomarker and diatom data available from the same core contribute to an understanding of the environmental history of the Balkans.