Bulgaaria

Quick Facts:

Area: 110,910 sq. km
Population: 7,621,337 (July 2002 est.)
Capital: Sofia
Language: Bulgarian
Religion: Bulgarian Orthodox 83.8%, Muslim 12.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, Jewish 0.1%, and other 2.3%
Currency: Lev (BGL)

Introduction

Bulgaria is a small country of scenic beauty, friendly people, hospitality, and warmth. Situated in the heart of the Balkan Peninsula, Bulgaria boasts an old and rich history. Thracians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Slavs, and Bulgarians inhabited this land in their time, leaving behind monuments and enriching the world's treasurehouse of culture.

Short Facts

Area: Bulgaria occupies 110 910 sq. km which is divided into two parts by the Balkan mountains, and also borders the Black sea. Bulgaria is situated in southeast Europe and occupies the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. To the north it borders Romania, to the west the Republic of Macedonia and Serbia and Montenegro, to the east the Black Sea, to the south Greece, and to the southeast Turkey's European part.

Climate: Bulgaria offers a lot of sunshine. The climate is continental
with four seasons and a Mediterranean influence in its southern regions. Although the Black Sea coast has mild winters, there is excellent snow for winter sports in the mountains. The winter temperature varies between -5 º C and 5 º C. The average summer temperatures are between 20º C and 30 º C. Bring warm clothing in winter (especially, if you go to the mountains) and light clothing in summer.

Population: There are 7,621,337 people living in Bulgaria. 83.6% are Bulgarian, 9.5% are Turk, 4.6% are Roma (gypsies), and 2.3% of the population are represented by Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, and Circassian ethnic groups.

Language: Bulgarian is a South Slavic language written in the Cyrillic alphabet. Russian is the second language of older Bulgarians and is still taught in schools.

Religion: The Bulgarian Orthodox Church, remained central to the sense of Bulgarian nationhood even under the postwar communist regimes. In spite of the official status of Orthodoxy, Bulgaria also had a tradition of tolerance toward other Christian religions. Tolerance of Islam, remained problematic under all forms of government because of that religion's historical identification with the occupation of Bulgaria.

Government: Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic, with a directly elected president (5 years) as head of state. The president appoints the Prime Minister, who is nominated by the largest parliamentary group and is responsible for forming a government. In cases of emergency the President can exercise extraordinary powers. He has the right to veto parliamentary decisions, but only once for the same bill. The Grand Assembly of 400 members was invoked in 1990 with the sole purpose to adopt a new constitution. An important provision of the 1991 constitution, with regard to its effect on day-to-day politics, is that every change in composition of the cabinet has to be endorsed by a vote of confidence. The parliament called the People Assembly, is the legislative power and has 240 seats. Deputies are elected for a four-year term through a system of proportional representation. The electoral threshold is fixed at 4 percent of the votes. To form a group in parliament, a party needs at least 10 seats. Parliament has to approve the Prime Minister and other members of the Council of Ministers.

History: Khan Asparouh founded the first Bulgarian Kingdom in 681. The Kingdom was, what is now northeast Bulgaria, and was inhabited by Slavs from the Byzantium Empire. In 1185 the Second Bulgarian Kingdom was declared after the end of Byzantium rule and oppression. In 1393 after a long war and fierce resistance the country fell under Turkish rule. After an unsuccessful revolution in 1876, Bulgaria was freed due to the Russian- Turkish Liberation War (1877-1878). In 1989, the country performed an unprecedented peaceful transition from autocratic communist rule to a democratic system. A new Parliament was elected in June 1990 after the first free elections in 50 years. This Parliament made a New Constitution said to be one of the most democratic constitutions in Europe and the first among the former socialist countries. The main tasks facing the Parliament are creating laws that will ensure a transition to a free market economy. The geographical position of Bulgaria, on the crossroads between Europe and Asia, is reflected in the rich and ancient history of Bulgarian culture, architecture, cuisine, customs and clothes.

Economy: One of the poorest countries of central Europe, Bulgaria has slowly been moving from its old command economy towards a marketoriented economy. The economy faced a major crisis in 1996, marked by a banking system in turmoil, a depreciating currency, and contracting production and foreign trade. Bulgaria’s exports include: clothing, footwear, iron and steel, machinery and equipment, and fuels. Their leading trading partners are Italy, Turkey, Germany, Greece, Serbia and Montenegro.

Education: Education in Bulgaria is free at all levels and the educational system falls within the continental European tradition. It is compulsory for children from 7 to 16 years of age to attend school. The main types of secondary schools in the country are general educational, vocational, language schools, and foreign schools. Bulgarian students are admitted into university after taking qualifying written exams for a number of statecommissioned places. Each exam is highly competitive and ensures a tuition waiver. After each semester students take exams (in accordance with the curriculum of the respective program) in the course of the regular examination period. Depending on the study program, students will be expected to take a graded exam (written or oral), a pass/fail exam (p/f), to defend a term project or paper. A six-grade system of marking is used, six being the highest and two- the lowest score.

Family life: Modern Bulgarian families are smaller, with an average of three children. Only a few families still live with three or more generations under one roof. Nevertheless, family ties remain strong. Modern Bulgarians want to own their own homes rather than living in rented houses or apartments. After marriage, a couple will live with one set of parents until they have saved enough to buy their own home.

Sometimes a family home is passed down from one generation to the next. A long standing part of Bulgarian culture is the relationship between godparent and godchild. Godparents are adults chosen by the family at a child's baptism to act as a counselors and guardians. Godparents keep close ties with godchildren throughout their lives. There are several thousand Roma (gypsies) in Bulgaria. Many work in industry, but they still live a life apart from other Bulgarians.

Recreation: Like other Europeans, Bulgarians enjoy soccer and the outdoors. Mountain climbing, skiing, hiking, and tennis are popular. It is common for families to take a one- or two-week vacation to visit either the Black Sea for swimming and sunbathing or the mountains for skiing.

Meals: Because of its geographical position and long history Bulgarian cuisine is a mixture between the best parts of the Slavonic, Greek and Turkish cuisines. Bulgarians fill up on meals of meat, potatoes, beans, and crisped up with salads. National specialties include: Shopska salad (sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and parsley topped with grated sheep's cheese), tarator ( a cold soup of chopped cucumber, walnuts and yogurt), and kebapcheta (minced meat rolled into sausage shapes and grilled). Breakfast is a bread-based snack on the run. Lunch is the main meal of the day and dinner appears late at night, mostly to signal the end of aperitifs.

Common Phrases

English	Bulgarian
Yes	Da
No	Ne
Thank-you	Blagodarya
Please	Ako obichate
Hello	Zdravey
Good-bye	Dovizhdane
My name is	Kazvam se
How are you?	Kak si