Bustling and Beautiful Bulgaria Quiz

Answer: Khan

Bulgaria, as we know it, was formed initially around 680 CE, conquered by the Bulgars. These were a nomadic people that had established an empire located on the northern side of the Black Sea. The empire disintegrated when the last leader, Kubrat, passed away. His five sons did not heed their father's advice as they did not stick together, and the empire fell. One of the tribes travelled to the Balkan region under their leader, Asparukh. With the help of the local peoples, the Bulgars managed to secure their new location as a new empire, and Asparukh took the title Khan.

The First Bulgarian Empire survived for about 400 years before it was brought down by wartime defeats.

Answer: North Macedonia

Bulgaria has about 1,867 km of borders and 378 km of coast. The longest border is with Romania, to the north, and the shortest border is with North Macedonia, only 165 km, to the southwest. This border, as well as the one with Serbia, were established in 1991 when Yugoslavia was dissolved into the constituent republics that had made up that country.

While Bulgaria was the first to recognize North Macedonia as independent, relations between these two countries have been turbulent. Bulgaria once ruled North Macedonia and they feel that Macedonians are a part of the Bulgarian people and the Macedonian language is a dialect of Bulgarian. Nevertheless, the two countries did sign a Friendship Treaty in 2017 with the intent on bringing the two nations closer.

Answer: Danube

Ruse is built on the right bank of the Danube and opposite the Romanian city of Giurgiu. In fact, a bridge was built between these two cities making it the first such bridge connecting the two countries. Since the border between Bulgaria and Romania is largely the Danube, the construction of this steel truss bridge in 1954 was significant in building a close relationship between the two countries.

The 2011 census counted 149,642 people living in Ruse making it Bulgaria's fifth-largest city. My grandmother was born in Ruse and would always speak of how lovely the city was and how much it was similar to Vienna. Archaeological studies have shown that the site has been inhabited for thousands of years. Over the years, it has been modernized, but much of the Neo-Baroque and Neo-Rococo building styles remain.

Answer: Black Sea

Bulgaria's eastern border is the Black Sea. The country's third-largest city is Varna, a coastal city and an important part of the country. It is considered a resort city and there are many busy hotels that dot the coast of the city. It is also the headquarters for the Bulgarian Navy, the other base being in the more southern city of Burgas, also on the Black Sea. Though it's not a very large navy, and not ultra-modern, it has proven useful in protecting the coast of the country.

Answer: Thracians

While all of the aforementioned cultures lived in the Balkan Peninsula at some point, the dominant culture that lived in Bulgaria was the Thracian culture. Not only did they start developing cities and infrastructure in the region, they set up a thriving network between the Thracian tribes that eventually congealed into a union, one that was controlled by one empire or another. In fact, the name "Thrace" was given by the Greeks, and not one they used themselves. It was really under Roman rule that the Thracian identity began to dissolve when all free people in the Roman Empire were granted citizenship. Nevertheless, the impact that the Thracians had on the area of Bulgaria in particular is undeniable, especially in the building in such cities as Burgas, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, and Yambol.

Stara Zagora was a site of Bulgarian tragedy. In the Russian-Turkish Liberation War, the Turkish army conquered the city and started massacring the unarmed population. About 14,500 Bulgarians were killed and 10,000 more were sold into slavery. The Bulgarians eventually won the war, but never forgot this horrific event.

Answer: Hills

Bulgaria is made up of mostly transitional hilly regions; about 41% of the land is considered hilly between 200 m and 600 m in elevation. The lowlands and coastal areas make up 31.42% of the country, meaning, on the whole, it is a pleasant country to bike across. The mountains make up about 27.58%, the majority of those lower than 1 km.

Climate-wise, Bulgaria is very difficult to classify even though the country is not that large. There are five separate climate zones, the continental zone being the most influential on the weather. Believe it or not, Bulgarian weather is dependent on the wind flows in the Azores and in Iceland, and, to a much lesser extent, the Mediterranean Sea. Despite being right on the coast, the Black Sea does not affect the weather for the large majority of the country.

Answer: Çorlu

Çorlu was a city in ancient Thrace, and nowadays is in the European part of Turkey. All the rest are names for Sofia.

Humans have lived in the area that is now Sofia since at least the 30th millennium BCE, according to archaeological finds. There are settlements from about 7,000 BCE, and it was founded for the last time by the Thracians and/or Celtic tribes in the 5th century BCE. Since then, it has been an important city in the Balkan region. Its first recorded name was Serdica, after the Serdi tribe. It retained this name, in part, at least until the 19th century CE. Around the 11th century CE the name Sredets appears meaning 'middle,' probably because the city was in the middle of the region. Serdonpolis was given by the Greeks, Atralisa by the Arabs, Triaditza by the Byzantines, and many more names.

Today, Sofia (derived from Greek meaning 'wisdom') is a primate city as the nation's capital.

Answer: Natural mineral bath

Bulgaria is blessed with many natural banyas all over the country. These are mineral springs that have been turned into baths that can be relaxing, but also medicinally therapeutic. The mineral springs in the northern part of the country tend to be colder whereas the ones in the south are warm. In fact, the town of Sapareva Banya has a banya whose waters are naturally hotter than 100 degrees Celsius.

The city of Burgas, the fourth-largest city in Bulgaria, has some banyas. In fact the Romans discovered this and built one, which became the town of Aquae Calidae, which is Latin for 'warm waters.' Its location on the Black Sea made it easy for people to reach the baths from far and wide. Ancient tourism!

Answer: Rila

Musala is a mountain in the Rila mountain chain, which is part of the greater Rila-Rhodope massif. It is the tallest point in Bulgaria, and, in fact, it is the tallest point in the entire Balkan Peninsula. It is even taller than Mt. Olympus, the purported home of the Greek gods. Musala itself reaches an elevation of 2,473 m. and was once called Tangra.

It was renamed Musala by the Ottomans ('mus' meaning mountain, and 'Allah' is God = mountain of God). The first summit ascent recorded was by Philip II, father of Alexander the Great.

Answer: Philippopolis

Archaeological finds in Plovdiv have shown that a settlement has existed there from at least the 6th millennium BCE, and it sits at a very fertile spot on the banks of the Maritsa river. It was officially declared a polis by Philip the Great of Macedonia and was rebuilt to be a heavily fortified city. He then called it Philippopolis, after himself, of course. Over the years, Plovdiv changed hands numerous times, but always managed to bounce back from whatever conflict had scarred it. It was the capital of Thrace and the Thracian province of Greece, then Rome. When the second Bulgarian Empire was conquered by the Ottomans, they held onto the city for five centuries, the longest it knew peace.

Interestingly, the city was known, and still is, as the 'city of seven hills.' This is due to the fact that there were seven hills around the site of the city. However, one of these hills does not exist anymore... it was destroyed in order to provide building material for the city and at its site currently sits a shopping mall. Progress!

My grandfather was born in Plovdiv, but moved away at a young age. He didn't really speak much of his home town.