The most interesting facts about Bulgaria, from Europe’s oldest country and city to the birthplace of the Cyrillic alphabet.
Fast facts
Official name: Republic of Bulgaria
Population: 6.8 million
Area: 110,879 sq km
Capital city: Sofia
Major languages: Bulgarian, Turkish, Romani
Major religions: Eastern Orthodox, Muslim
Time zone: UTC+2 (Eastern European Time)
– Source: CIA World Fact Book
Interesting facts about Bulgaria
1. Bulgaria is a country in Southeastern Europe bordering Greece, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Turkey.
– Source: CIA World Fact Book
2. Archaeological evidence suggests Bulgaria has been inhabited since at least the Middle Paleolithic Period (Old Stone Age) from 100,000 to 40,000 BC.
– Source: Britannica
3. The modern Bulgarian state was founded in 681, making it one of the oldest countries in Europe.
– Source: Britannica
4. Bulgaria was the birthplace of the Cyrillic alphabet which was created in the 890s. It is now used in dozens of Slavonic languages.
– Source: BBC News
5. From 1018 to 1185, Bulgaria was part of the Byzantine empire and then, from 1396, it was part of the Ottoman Empire for over 500 years.
– Source: BBC News
6. Adopted in 1990, Bulgaria’s flag is made up of three horizontal stripes of white, green and red. The white represents peace, love and freedom, the green represents the agricultural landscape and the red stands for the struggle for independence and military courage.
– Source: Britannica
7. During the First World War (1914-18), Bulgaria fought alongside the Central Powers (Austria-Hungary and Germany). 100,000 Bulgarian soldiers died – the most severe per capita loss of any country involved in the war.
– Source: Britannica
8. Yoghurt may have been invented in Bulgaria 4,000 years ago when nomadic tribes carried their milk in animal skins which caused bacteria to grow, fermentation and eventually, yoghurt. This is impossible to confirm but Bulgaria definitely played a critical role in introducing yoghurt to the West and turning it into a popular and commercial product.
– Source: BBC Travel
9. After the Second World War, Bulgaria became a Communist state and a satellite of the USSR until its collapse in 1991.
– Source: BBC News
10. In 1992, Zhelyu Zhelev became Bulgaria’s first democratically elected head of state (in 1990, he had been elected by the new National Assembly).
– Source: The Independent
11. Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second-largest city, is the oldest continually inhabited city in Europe. It has been occupied by humans for over 8,000 years.
– Source: Rough Guides, BBC Travel
12. Bulgaria is named after the Bulgar tribes who settled in the region in the 7th century.
– Source: CIA World Fact Book
13. Bulgaria has some of Europe’s most dangerous roads with 10.2 estimated deaths per 100,000 people.
– Source: World Health Organization
14. The Nestinarstvo fire-dancing festival in Bulgaria sees participants walk and dance barefoot on burning embers as part of a ritual to ensure the well-being and fertility of the village.
– Source: UNESCO
15. Bulgaria has the world’s 12th cheapest internet and Europe’s sixth cheapest. The average price of a monthly broadband package is just $10.67 USD.
– Source: Cable
16. Bulgarians are the world’s 10th biggest drinkers. The average Bulgarian consumes 12.65 litres of pure alcohol per person per year.
– Source: World Bank, Our World in Data
17. Bulgaria’s capital city, Sofia, was named after the Sveta Sofia Church, one of the capital’s oldest churches, which dates back to the 4th century AD.
– Source: Lonely Planet, CIA World Fact Book
18. One of Bulgaria’s most famous landmarks is the Aleksander Nevski Cathedral, an enormous church built between 1882 and 1912. The church was built in honour of 200,000 Russians who died fighting for Bulgarian independence during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78.
– Source: Lonely Planet
19. Bulgaria is one of the countries least impacted by terrorism, recording neither a terror attack nor death from terrorism in the last five years.
– Source: Global Terrorism Index 2022
20. The UNESCO-listed Rock-Hewn Churches of Ivanovo are a collection of churches, chapels, monasteries and cells carved into a network of caves dug by hermits. They were constructed during the 12th century with murals, including a Last Supper scene, added in the 14th.
– Source: UNESCO, Lonely Planet
21. Bulgaria’s UNESCO-listed Pirin National Park is famous for its 176 lakes, waterfalls, caves and coniferous forests. It’s also home to 45 mammal species, including bears, wolves and jackals, 159 bird species, eight species of amphibians, 11 species of reptiles and six fish species.
– Source: UNESCO, Lonely Planet
22. Bulgaria is the world’s fastest-shrinking country. Its population was around 9 million in the late-1980s, but it fell to below 7 million in 2018. It is predicted to fall below 6 million in the next 50 years.
– Source: BBC Worklife
23. Formed over 230 million years, the Belogradchik Rocks are famous for resembling people, animals and objects. Adam and Eve, the Bear, the Camel, the Monks, the Mushroom and the Shepherd Boy are just some of the named natural formations which reach up to 200m (656ft) high.
– Source: UNESCO, Atlas Obscura
24. In 1978, writer Georgi Markov, a Bulgarian defector and anti-Communist, died after being injected with poison from the tip of an umbrella by Bulgarian secret agents in London.
– Source: The Guardian
25. One of Bulgaria’s most unusual buildings is the Buzludzha Monument, better known as “Bulgaria’s UFO”. The now-abandoned facility was constructed in the 1970s and served as the seat of the Bulgarian Socialist Party until communism was abandoned in 1990.
– Source: CNN, National Geographic
26. Bulgaria has had one Nobel Prize winner. The 1981 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to Elias Canetti “for writings marked by a broad outlook, a wealth of ideas and artistic power.”
– Source: Nobel Prize
Every effort has been made to verify these facts about Bulgaria using primary sources. However, if you find an error or have any questions, please contact us.