Category: Bulgaria

Bulgaria is a country in southern Europe, bathed by the Black Sea (354 km of coastline). It is a parliamentary republic with 7 million residents (2018). The capital is Sofia. The Bulgarians, an ancient Turkish tribe from Central Asia, joined the local Slavs in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. At the end of the 14th century, the country was invaded by Ottoman Turks. Northern Bulgaria achieved autonomy in 1878 and the whole of Bulgaria became independent in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both world wars, Bulgaria fell within the sphere of Soviet influence in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multi-party election since World War II and started a democratization process with a market economy. Most of the country has mountainous terrain, with lowlands to the north and southeast. The highest point is Musala (2,925 meter).