Visit Bulgaria

Visit Bulgaria

Bulgaria officially the Republic of Bulgaria (Bulgarian: tr. Republika Balgarija), is a country in southeastern Europe. It is bordered byRomania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkeyto the south, and the Black Sea to the east. With a territory of 110,994 square kilometres (42,855 sq mi), Bulgaria is Europe's 16th-largest country.

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Organised prehistoric cultures began developing on Bulgarian lands during the Neolithic period. Its ancient history saw the presence of the Thracians and later the Persians, Greeks and Romans.

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The emergence of a unified Bulgarian state dates back to the establishment of the First Bulgarian Empire in 681 AD, which dominated most of the Balkans and functioned as a cultural hub forSlavs during the Middle Ages. With the downfall of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1396, its territories came under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries. The Russo-Turkish War (1877–78) led to the formation of the Third Bulgarian State. The following years saw several conflicts with its neighbours, which prompted Bulgaria to align with Germany in both world wars. In 1946 it became a single-party socialist state as part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc.

InDecember 1989 the ruling Communist Party allowed multi-party elections, which subsequently led to Bulgaria's transition into a democracy and a market-based economy.
Bulgaria's population of 7.4 million people is predominantly urbanised and mainly concentrated in the administrative centres of its 28 provinces. Most commercial and cultural activities are centred on the capital and largest city,Sofia. The strongest sectors of the economy are heavy industry, power engineering, and agriculture, all of which rely on local natural resources.
The country's current political structure dates to the adoption of a democratic constitution in 1991. Bulgaria is a unitary parliamentary republic with a high degree of political, administrative, and economic centralisation. It is a member of the European Union, NATO, and the Council of Europe; a founding state of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE); and has taken a seat at the UN Security Council three times.
Human activity in the lands of modern Bulgaria can be traced back to the Paleolithic. Animal bones incised with man-made markings from Kozarnika cave are assumed to be the earliest examples of symbolic behaviour in humans. Organised prehistoric societies in Bulgarian lands include the NeolithicHamangia culture, Vinca culture and the eneolithic Varna culture (fifth millennium BC). The latter is credited with inventing gold working and exploitation. Some of these first gold smelters produced the coins, weapons and jewellery of the Varna Necropolis treasure, the oldest in the world with an approximate age of over 6,000 years. This site also offers insights for understanding the social hierarchy of the earliest European societies.
Thracians, one of the three primary ancestral groups of modern Bulgarians, began appearing in the region during the Iron Age. In the late 6th century BC, Darius the Great incorporated all of what is nowadays Bulgaria into his vastAchaemenid Persian Empire. Following the Ionian Revolt, Persian rule over the Balkans (which included the nowadays territory of Bulgaria), loosened. In 492 BC, his general Mardonius, resubjugated all of Thrace and conqueredMacedon, firmly restoring the Persian hold over the region. Following thePersian defeat in Greece, most of the numerous Thracian tribes were united in the Odrysian kingdom in the 470s BC by kingTeres.

Prior to the overthrow of the Persian Empire, the Thracians were eventually subjugated by Alexander the Great and later by the Romans in 46 AD. After the division of the Roman Empire in 5th century the area fell under Byzantinecontrol. By this time, Christianity had already spread in the area. A small Gothic community in Nicopolis ad Istrum produced the first Germanic language book in the 4th century, the Wulfila Bible. The first Christian monastery in Europe was established around the same time by Saint Athanasius in central Bulgaria. From the 6th century the easternmost South Slavs gradually settled in the region, assimilating the Hellenised or Romanised Thracians. Visit Bulgaria
Bulgaria occupies a portion of the eastern Balkan peninsula, bordering five countries—Greece and Turkey to the south, Macedonia and Serbia to the west, and Romania to the north. The land borders have a total length of 1,808 km (1,123 mi), and the coastline has a length of 354 km (220 mi). Its total area of 110,994 square kilometres (42,855 sq mi) ranks it as the world's 105th-largest country. Bulgaria's geographic coordinates are 43° N 25° E. Visit Bulgaria
Bulgaria landcover
The most notable topographical features are the Danubian Plain, the Balkan Mountains, the Thracian Plain, and the Rhodope Mountains. The southern edge of the Danubian Plain slopes upward into the foothills of the Balkans, while the Danube defines the border with Romania. The Thracian Plain is roughly triangular, beginning southeast of Sofia and broadening as it reaches the Black Sea coast. The Balkan mountains run laterally through the middle of the country. The mountainous southwest of the country has two alpine ranges—Rila and Pirin, which border the lower but more extensive Rhodope Mountains to the east. Bulgaria is home to the highest point of the Balkan peninsula, Musala, at 2,925 metres (9,596 ft) and its lowest point is sea level. Visit Bulgaria

Plains occupy about one-third of the territory, while plateaus and hills occupy 41 per cent. The country has a dense network of about 540 rivers, most of which are relatively small and with low water levels. The longest river located solely in Bulgarian territory, the Iskar, has a length of 368 kilometres (229 mi). Other major rivers include the Struma and the Maritsa in the south. Visit Bulgaria

Bulgaria has a dynamic climate, which results from its being positioned at the meeting point of Mediterranean and continental air masses and the barrier effect of its mountains. Northern Bulgaria averages 1 °C (1.8 °F) cooler and registers 200 millimetres (7.9 in) more precipitation annually than the regions south of the Balkan mountains. Temperature amplitudes vary significantly in different areas. The lowest recorded temperature is -38.3 °C (-36.9 °F), while the highest is 45.2 °C (113.4 °F). Precipitation averages about 630 millimetres (24.8 in) per year, and varies from 500 millimetres (19.7 in) in Dobrudja to more than 2,500 millimetres (98.4 in) in the mountains. Continental air masses bring significant amounts of snowfall during winter. Visit Bulgaria
The interaction of climatic, hydrological, geological and topographical conditions have produced a relatively wide variety of plant and animal species. Bulgaria is one of the countries with highest biodiversity in Europe. Bulgaria's biodiversity is conserved in three national parks, 11 nature parks and 17 biosphere reserves. Nearly 35 per cent of its land area consists of forests, where some of the oldest trees in the world, such asBaikushev's pine and the Granit oak, grow. Most of the plant and animal life is central European, although representatives of Arctic and alpine species are present at high altitudes. Its flora encompass more than 3,800 species of which 170 are endemic and 150 are considered endangered. A checklist of larger fungi of Bulgaria reported that more than 1,500 species occur in the country. Animal species include owls, rock partridges, wallcreepers and brown bears. The Eurasian lynx and the eastern imperial eagle have small, but growing populations. Visit Bulgaria

In 1998, the Bulgarian government approved the National Biological Diversity Conservation Strategy, a comprehensive programme seeking the preservation of local ecosystems, protection of endangered species and conservation of genetic resources. Bulgaria has some of the largest Natura 2000 areas in Europe covering 33.8% of its territory. Visit Bulgaria

All ethnic groups speak Bulgarian, either as a first or as a second language. Bulgarian is the only language with official status and native for 85.2 per cent of the population. The oldest written Slavic language, Bulgarian is distinguishable from the other languages in this group through certain grammatical peculiarities such as the lack of noun cases and infinitives, and a suffixed definite article
Bulgarian cuisine is similar to those of other Balkan countries and demonstrates a strong Turkish and Greek influence. Visit Bulgaria

Yogurt, lukanka, banitsa, shopska salad, lyutenitsa and kozunak are among the best-known local foods. Oriental dishes such as moussaka, gyuvech, and baklava are also present. Meat consumption is lower than the European average, given a notable preference for a large variety of salads. Rakia is a traditional fruit brandy which was consumed in Bulgaria as early as the 14th century. Bulgarian wine is known for its Traminer, Muskat and Mavrud types, of which up to 200,000 tonnes are produced annually. Until 1989, Bulgaria was the world's second-largest wine exporter. Bulgaria performs well in sports such as wrestling, weight-lifting, boxing, gymnastics, volleyball, football and tennis. The country fields one of the leading men's volleyball teams, ranked sixth in the world according to the 2013 FIVB rankings. Visit Bulgaria

Football is by far the most popular sport. Some famous players are AS Monacoforward Dimitar Berbatov and Hristo Stoichkov, winner of the Golden Boot and theGolden Ball and the most successful Bulgarian player of all time. Prominent domestic clubs include PFC CSKA Sofia and PFC Levski Sofia. The best performance of the national team at FIFA World Cup finals came in 1994, when it advanced to the semi-finals by defeating consecutively Greece, Argentina, Mexicoand Germany, finishing fourth. Bulgaria has participated in most Olympic competitions since its first appearance at the 1896 games, when it was represented by Charles Champaud. The country has won a total of 218 medals: 52 gold, 86 silver, and 80 bronze, which puts it in 24th place in the all-time ranking. Visit Bulgaria

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia