49 Facts About Bulgaria

Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeastern Europe. 

Bulgaria has an area of 110,879 square km. 

Bulgaria’s capital city is Sofia. 

Bulgarian is official language of Bulgaria. 

Bulgaria's currency is known as Lev (BGN). 

Bulgaria has five bordering countries that are Romania, Serbia, Republic of Macedonia, Greece, and Turkey.

Bulgaria is a land of mountains, hiking trails, ski resorts in the winter, and Black Sea beach resorts. Bulgaria, a mix of Western and Eastern cultures, has Europe's second oldest occupied town and a relatively urban lifestyle.

Human activity was present in Bulgaria during the Paleolithic period. Animal bones with man-made markings discovered in the Korarnika cave are thought to be among the earliest examples of human symbolic behaviour. The Hamangia, Vina, and Varna cultures were all prehistoric societies that lived in Bulgarian territory.

The Varna invented gold working and were early gold smelters. They created the jewellery, coins, and weapons that are now known as the Varna Necropolis treasure, which was discovered among 290 graves. This treasure is the world's oldest golden treasure, dating back over 6,000 years.

Bulgaria is one of Europe's oldest countries, dating back to before the Roman Empire. It was founded in the 7th century as the Republic of Bulgaria, and it sits at the crossroads of two important trade routes: one from eastern and northern Europe to the Mediterranean Basin, and another from central and western Europe to the Middle East.

During the First Bulgarian Empire, paganism was abolished, the Cyrillic alphabet was adopted, and a cultural golden age occurred.

Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, NATO, and the Council of Europe. It is one of the founding members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). It has also served on the United Nations Security Council three times.

Bulgaria is the only country in Europe whose name has not changed since the country's inception (in 681 AD).

Bulgarian is the official language of all ethnic Bulgarians, and all ethnic groups speak it as a first or second language. The Cyrillic alphabet is used to write the oldest written Slavic language.

Bulgarians enjoy religious freedom; there is no official state religion. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is home to the vast majority of religious Bulgarians. Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Gregorian Armenians are among the religious minorities.

The state educates all children in public primary (1-8) and secondary (9-12) schools. Prior to pursuing higher education, high school students pursue a technical, general, vocational, or specialised discipline education. The national literacy rate is estimated to be greater than 98 percent.

Bulgarian cuisine is heavily influenced by Greek and Turkish cuisine, with dishes such as baklava and Shopska salad, a cucumber, onion, tomato, white cheese, and pepper dish that is similar to a Greek salad. Lukanka, lyutenitsa, banitsa, and kozunak are popular and well-known local dishes. Some Asian dishes are also popular, such as gyuvech and moussaka.

Rakia is a traditional Bulgarian brandy, and Muskat and Mavrud are two of the country's wines. There are also many excellent local cheese varieties. Bulgarian yoghurt is the country's national dish.

Bulgarian folk music is a thriving traditional art form in the country. It achieves distinct sounds through the use of a wide variety of traditional Bulgarian instruments, including the gadulka, tupan, kaval, and gaida, and is influenced by Eastern and Western influences (bagpipe).

The bagpipes, known as the gaida in Bulgaria, are the national instrument. Bagpipes are used in traditional music in only three countries around the world. Scotland, Ireland, and Bulgaria are among them.

The rite of fire dancing is one of the oldest Bulgarian folk traditions. It was practised by the Thracians near the White Sea aeons ago. Only a few mountain villages in the Strandzha region still perform it today. Three special melodies are played by musicians, and the fire dancers enter the fiery circle after the first dancer crosses the coals in the shape of a cross. Their dance moves are intricate, and their bare feet do not get burned.

The world's oldest gold treasure, dating from the Eneolithic period, was discovered in 1972 in a necropolis (graveyard) near Varna. Its age of over 6,000 years drew the attention of scientists from all over the world. At the moment, 294 graves have been explored and documented, with 3,000 gold items discovered within them. There is a lot of variety among them: 38 different types of gold items, as well as copper and flint items, stone, silver, and clay items.

Football (soccer) is the most popular sport in the country. Bulgaria's national volleyball team is consistently ranked in the top ten, and they have won numerous medals and championships.

Bulgaria is in a demographic crisis, with the country's population growing at a negative rate for more than two decades. Overall, the birth rate is lower than the required replacement rate. The majority of children in Bulgaria are born to unmarried mothers.

Bulgarians rank second in the world in both IQ and SAT scores, according to Mensa. The most intelligent woman in the world, according to Mensa, is Bulgarian Daniela Simidchieva, who has an IQ of 200.

Notable Bulgarian-connected inventors include John Vincent Atanasoff, who invented the first electronic digital computer between 1939 and 1942; Peter Petro, the Bulgarian who invented the first digital wristwatch; and Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook, who had a Bulgarian grandfather, Marko, who emigrated in 1940 and is named after.

Bulgarian female athletes include: 100-meter hurdler Yordanka Donkova, whose world record time has stood for 27 years and who has set four other world records; high jumper Stefka Kostadinova, whose world record has stood for 28 years, one of the oldest in modern sports, and who has set seven other world records, four indoors and three outdoors.

Footballer Hristo Stoichkov, the first Bulgarian player to win the Ballon d'Or; English Channel marathon swimmer Petar Stoychev, who set a new world record for a crossing in 2007; sumo wrestler Kaloyan Mahlyanov, the first European to earn Japan's 'ozeki' title; and Dan Kolov, the world's first wrestler with only two losses and 1500 wins.

Sofia is both the capital and the largest city in Bulgaria. It is the country's economic hub and is home to over one million Bulgarians, which is three times the population of the country's second and third largest cities, Varna and Plovdiv.

Sofia was founded around 7,000 years ago at the crossroads of those two important trade routes mentioned earlier. It is Europe's second-oldest city.

Sofia has a vibrant city centre, beautiful parks, numerous restaurants, nightclubs and bars, mineral springs, architectural monuments, over 250 historic landmarks, and numerous cultural attractions.

The mountain, which is located at the base of Mount Vitosha, is an ideal day trip from Sofia for hiking and experiencing Bulgaria in all four seasons. Pancherevo Lake is only 30 minutes away and offers rowing, fishing, and picnicking.

An ancient March 1st custom commemorates the end of winter. Bulgarians trade Martenitsi bracelets, which are white and red woven bracelets worn during March until the wearer sees a blooming tree or a stork. They are then tied to trees to welcome spring. Baba Marta ("Grandmother March") is the name given to this celebration. Some of these bracelets are frequently left in trees throughout the summer.

In Bulgaria, "Name Days" are celebrated in addition to birthdays. On their Saint's birthday, people named after a specific Saint celebrate a Name Day (also known as "Saints Day"). Many Bulgarians regard their "Name Day" as important as or more important than their birthday.

It may take some time for visitors from other countries to adjust, but in Bulgaria, people shake their heads for "yes" and nod their heads for "no," which is contrary to many other cultures.

A Bulgarian folk song sung and played with bagpipe accompaniment was included on NASA's Voyager Golden Record, which was sent into space on the Mars Voyager.

Bulgaria is home to the world's largest three-dimensional IMAX theatre.

Throughout the country's history and all of its wars and battles, the Bulgarian army has never lost a single flag in battle.

Bulgarians claim to have invented yoghurt, and its yoghurt has a distinct flavour that is not found in any other country due to Lactobacillus Bulgaricus, the bacterium responsible for that flavour and consistency, which can only be found in Bulgarian air.

During the first Balkan War, the Bulgarian Air Force developed the first air-dropped bomb in military history. On October 16, 1912, Lieutenant Radul Milkov and Lieutenant Prodan Tarakchiev used it.

Rayna Kasabova, a Bulgarian Air Force pilot, was the world's first woman to participate in a military flight.

Bulgarians traditionally get their first name from their paternal grandfather. Their surname is derived from their father's name, with the suffix varying according to gender (-ova for girls and –ov for boys).

FIDE World Chess Champion Veselin Topalov and Bulgarian-born writer Elias Canetti, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1981, are two other notable Bulgarians.

Human trafficking is a problem in Bulgaria, both as a source of adults and children subjected to forced labour conditions and as a source of women and children forced into prostitution within the country in border towns and resort areas. Roma women and children account for approximately 15% of these victims.

The Bulgarian government has made significant progress in preventing trafficking by arresting many of those who prey on the services of those forced into prostitution.

The roses grown in Bulgaria's "Rose Valley" Kanalak region produce the majority of the world's rose oil (70-85 percent), which is used in most perfumes. One gramme of rose oil, which is used in some of the world's most expensive and popular French and other perfumes, requires 1,000 rose blossoms.

The Rila Cross is a carved wooden cross with 140 microscopic Biblical scenes and over 1,500 figures on it. Even the largest of them is only the size of a grain of rice.

UNESCO declared the ancient Bulgarian calendar to be the most accurate in the world in 1976.

When Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007, Cyrillic became the country's third official alphabet.