The Republic of Bulgaria is a country in southeastern Europe.

It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, and the Black Sea to the east.

Bulgaria is a part of the Balkan countries along the Balkan mountain range. The capital and largest city is Sofia; other major cities are Plovdiv, Varna and Burgas. Bulgaria is Europe’s 16th-largest country. Bulgaria dates back to 6,500 BC. The Thracians were the first to occupy Bulgaria, the country has been conquered by the Persians, Celts and Ancient Macedonians until it was conquered by the Roman Empire in 45 AD. The Eastern Roman, or Byzantine Empire lost its territories to an invading Bulgar horde in the late 7th century.                                                        

They were ones that founded the first unified Bulgarian state in 681 AD which dominated most of the Balkans and significantly influenced Slavic cultures by developing the Cyrillic script.

The First Bulgarian Empire lasted until the early 11th century.

The Second Bulgarian Empire founded in 1218 disintegrated in 1396 and its territories fell under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries.

The Russian-Turkish War of 1877–78 resulted in the formation of the Third Bulgarian State until today.

In 1946 Bulgaria became a one-party socialist state and part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc as a result of the second worldwar.

The ruling Communist Party gave up its monopoly on power after the Revolutions of 1989 and allowed multi-party elections.

Bulgaria has since then transitioned into a democracy and a market-based economy.

In 1991, the sovereign state has been a unitary parliamentary republic with a high degree of political, administrative, and economic centralisation. The population of 7 million Bulgarians lives mainly in Sofia and the 27 provincial capital cities, but it is estimated that over 2 million Bulgarians live elsewhere in Europe. Bulgaria is a member of the European Union, NATO, and the Council of Europe; it is a founding state of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and has taken a seat at the UN Security Council three times.

Bulgaria’s market economy is part of the European Single Market and mostly relies on services; followed by industry, Tourism, Education, Mining, ICT and agriculture.

Bulgaria has an historically mixed ethnic population.

Bulgarians 84%                                                                                     
Turkish 9%                                                                                               
Romani gypsies 5%                                                                       
Macedonians 1%             
Others 1 %