The 2008 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency
attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
Geography
Bulgaria
Location:
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and
Turkey
Geographic coordinates:
43 00 N, 25 00 E
Map references:
Europe
Area:
total: 110,910 sq km land: 110,550 sq km water: 360 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Tennessee
Land boundaries:
total: 1,808 km border countries: Greece 494 km, Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia 318 km, Turkey 240 km
Coastline:
354 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Climate:
temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers
Terrain:
mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Musala 2,925 m
Natural resources:
bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land
Land use:
arable land: 29.94% permanent crops: 1.9% other: 68.16% (2005)
Irrigated land:
5,880 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
19.4 cu km (2005)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 6.92 cu km/yr (3%/78%/19%) per capita: 895 cu m/yr (2003)
Natural hazards:
earthquakes, landslides
Environment - current issues:
air pollution from industrial emissions; rivers polluted from raw sewage, heavy metals, detergents; deforestation; forest damage from air pollution and resulting acid rain; soil contamination from heavy metals from metallurgical plants and industrial wastes
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85,
Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources,
Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia
People
Bulgaria
Population:
7,262,675 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 13.8% (male 514,238/female 489,608) 15–64 years: 68.6% (male 2,449,812/female 2,532,845) 65 years and over: 17.6% (male 520,962/female 755,210) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 41.1 years male: 38.9 years female: 43.4 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
−0.813% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
9.58 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
14.3 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
−3.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15–64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 18.51 deaths/1,000 live births male: 22 deaths/1,000 live births female: 14.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 72.83 years male: 69.22 years female: 76.66 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.4 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
346 (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
100 (2001 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Bulgarian(s) adjective: Bulgarian
Ethnic groups:
Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including
Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (2001 census)
Religions:
Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Muslim 12.2%, other Christian 1.2%, other 4% (2001 census)
Languages:
Bulgarian 84.5%, Turkish 9.6%, Roma 4.1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98.2% male: 98.7% female: 97.7% (2001 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 14 years male: 13 years female: 14 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
4.5% of GDP (2005)
Government
Bulgaria
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria conventional short form: Bulgaria local long form: Republika Balgariya local short form: Balgariya
Government type:
parliamentary democracy
Capital:
name: Sofia geographic coordinates: 42 41 N, 23 19 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins