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BULGARIA
Map of BULGARIA
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Location:
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Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey |
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Geographic coordinates:
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43 00 N, 25 00 E |
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Area:
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total: 110,910 sq km
land: 110,550 sq km
water: 360 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly larger than Tennessee |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 1,808 km
border countries: Greece 494 km, Macedonia 148 km, Romania 608 km, Serbia 318 km, Turkey 240 km |
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Coastline:
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354 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
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Climate:
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temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers |
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Terrain:
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mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Musala 2,925 m |
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Natural resources:
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bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land |
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Land use:
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arable land: 29.94%
permanent crops: 1.9%
other: 68.16% (2005) |
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Irrigated land:
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5,880 sq km (2003) |
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Total renewable water resources:
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19.4 cu km (2005) |
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 6.92 cu km/yr (3%/78%/19%)
per capita: 895 cu m/yr (2003) |
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Natural hazards:
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earthquakes, landslides |
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Environment - current issues:
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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 |
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Environment - international agreements:
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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 |
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Population:
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7,262,675 (July 2008 est.) |
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Age structure:
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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.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Bulgarian(s)
adjective: Bulgarian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Bulgarian 83.9%, Turk 9.4%, Roma 4.7%, other 2% (including Macedonian, Armenian, Tatar, Circassian) (2001 census) |
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Religions:
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Bulgarian Orthodox 82.6%, Muslim 12.2%, other Christian 1.2%, other 4% (2001 census) |
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Languages:
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Bulgarian 84.5%, Turkish 9.6%, Roma 4.1%, other and unspecified 1.8% (2001 census) |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.2%
male: 98.7%
female: 97.7% (2001 census) |
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
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total: 14 years
male: 13 years
female: 14 years (2006) |
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Education expenditures - percent of GDP:
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4.5% (2005) |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of Bulgaria
conventional short form: Bulgaria
local long form: Republika Balgariya
local short form: Balgariya |
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Government type:
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parliamentary democracy |
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Capital:
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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 last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
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Administrative divisions:
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28 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast); Blagoevgrad, Burgas, Dobrich, Gabrovo, Khaskovo, Kurdzhali, Kyustendil, Lovech, Montana, Pazardzhik, Pernik, Pleven, Plovdiv, Razgrad, Ruse, Shumen, Silistra, Sliven, Smolyan, Sofiya, Sofiya-Grad, Stara Zagora, Turgovishte, Varna, Veliko Turnovo, Vidin, Vratsa, Yambol |
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Independence:
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3 March 1878 (as an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire); 22 September 1908 (complete independence from the Ottoman Empire) |
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National holiday:
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Liberation Day, 3 March (1878)
Source: http://cia.gov
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