Country name: Republic of Bulgaria
Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey
Area: 110,910 sq km
Population: 7,385,367 (July 2006 est.)
Capital: Sofia
Language: Bulgarian 84.5%, Turkish 9.6%, Roma 4.1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
Natural resources: bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Legal system: civil law and criminal law based on Roman law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Currency:
1.The Bulgarian Lev (BGL) is the currency in use. The Lev is divided into 100 Stotinki.
2.Bills are available in denominations of LEV 2.5, 10, 20, 50.
3.Coins are available in denominations of Stotinki 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50.
4.There is a fixed rate of exchange against the Euro, Lev 1.955 = Euro 1.
Bulgaria is a small country situated in Southeastern Europe on the Balkan Peninsula. The area that it takes is estimated to be 110,099 square kilometers. The population of Bulgaria has been declining for the past couple of years and the most recent estimates point that it is around 7.5 million people. Bulgaria is situated on the Black Sea coast which makes the country an appealing tourist destination during the summer season. On the South, Bulgaria shares border with Greece and Turkey, on the North with Romania and on the West with Macedonia and Serbia.
In the 7th century, or to be more specific in 681 Bulgaria was formed as a state. During successive centuries it was involved in wars against the Byzantine Empire in order to claim its place on the Balkans. Eventually, Bulgaria was overtaken by the Empire but for a short period of time. In 1396, Bulgaria was overtaken by the Ottoman Empire and was under Turks’ rule for roughly 5 centuries. Northern Bulgaria gained autonomy from the Turks in 1878 and Bulgaria became officially independent on September 22nd 1908.
Its largest and most developed city is also its capital- Sofia. The city is a major industrial, cultural and political centre where the government and all major financial institutions are situated including the President’s residence. The time zone of Bulgaria is GMT +2. The average country’s altitude is 470 meters while peak Musala is the highest point not only in Bulgaria but also on the Balkan Peninsula with 2925 meters. The average temperatures during the winter are around 0 degrees in Celsius and around 20-23 degrees in Celsius during summer. The official language of the country is Bulgarian( 85%); however Turkish(9% ) is also used by Turkish immigrants.
The Bulgarian official currency is called Lev. One dollar can be exchanged for 1.23 levs; one Euro can be exchanged for 1.955 levs and one pound for 2.449 levs.
The official religion in Bulgaria is Christian Orthodox (around 84%), however Muslim is also evident (circa 11-12%).
Bulgaria is a parliamentary democracy.
The country joined NATO during 2004 and has been a member of the European Union since January 1st 2007. Although, currently Bulgaria is the poorest country in the European Union it has achieved a significant economic growth for the last a couple of years. That growth averaged around 5-6% and this led to attracting large shares of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) but the incapability of the government to deal with the high levels of corruption, crime and the weak judicial system still make the country not very attractive for further investment by large corporations.
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