Sofia

Sofia is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Bulgaria, with a population of 1,870,010[not in citation given], and some 2,147,450[not in citation given] in the metropolitan area, the Capital Municipality. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of the mountain massif Vitosha, and is the administrative, cultural, economic, and educational centre of the country.

One of the oldest cities in Europe, the history of Serdica-Sredets-Sofia can be traced back some 7000 years ago - prehistoric settlements were excavated in the centre of the present city - near the royal palace, as well as in outer districts such as Slatina and Obelia. The well preserved town walls (especially their substructures) from antiquity date back before the 7th century BC, when Thracians established their city next to the most important and highly respected mineral spring, still functioning today. Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence, and remnants of the city's millenary history can still be seen today alongside modern landmarks.

Sofia's development as a significant settlement owes much to its central position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the northern foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by mountains on all sides. The valley is the largest one in the country with territory of 1,186 square kilometres (457.9 sq mi) and average altitude of 550 metres (1,804 ft). Three mountain passes lead to the city, which have been key roads since antiquity, connecting the Adriatic Sea and Central Europe with the Black and Aegean Seas.

A number of low rivers cross the city, including the Vladaiska and the Perlovska. The Iskar River in its upper course flows near eastern Sofia. The city is known for its numerous mineral and thermal springs. Artificial and dam lakes were built in the last century.

It is located 150 km (90 miles) northwest of Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second largest city, 390 km west of Burgas, 472 km (294 miles) west of Varna, Bulgaria's major port-cities on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. The city is situted at less than 200 kilometres (124 mi) from the borders with three countries: 55 kilometres (34 mi) from Kalotina on the Serbian border, 113 kilometres (70 mi) from Gyueshevo on the frontier with the Republic of Macedonia and 183 kilometres (114 mi) from the Greek border at Kulata.

Sofia was originally a Thracian settlement called Serdica, or Sardica, possibly named after the Thracian tribe Serdi. Around 500 BC another tribe settled in the region, the Odrysi, known as an ethnos with their own kingdom. For a short period during the 4th century BC, the city was ruled by Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great.

Around AD 29, Serdica was conquered by the Romans. It became a municipium, or centre of an administrative region, during the reign of Emperor Trajan (98-117)and was renamed Ulpia Serdica.

It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made by Ptolemy (around 100 AD).

Serdica (Sardica) expanded, as turrets, protective walls, public baths, administrative and cult buildings, a civic basilica, an amphitheatre - the City Council (Boulé), a large Forum, a big Circus (Theatre) etc. were built. When Emperor Diocletian divided the province of Dacia into Dacia Ripensis (at the banks of the Danube) and Dacia Mediterranea, Serdica became the capital of Dacia Mediterranea. The city subsequently expanded for a century and a half, it became a significant political and economical centre, moreso - it became one of the first roman cities where Christianity was recognized as an official religion (Еmperor Galerius). So it was only very natural that Constantine the Great called Serdica (Sardica) "My Rome".

Serdica was of moderate size, but magnificent as an urban concept of planning and architecture, with abundant amusements and an active social life. It flourished during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian I, when it was surrounded with great fortress walls whose remnants can still be seen today.

The city was destroyed by the Huns in 447 but was rebuilt by Justinian and for a while called Triaditsa.

The city of Sofia is one of 28 Provinces of Bulgaria (not to be confused with Sofia Province, which surrounds but does not include the city). Besides the city of Sofia, the capital province encompasses three other cities and 34 villages, being split into a total of 24 municipalities. Each municipality has a head person who is elected by the municipal assembly. The head of the county is its mayor. The assembly members are chosen every four years.

According to 1999 data, the whole Capital Municipality, with a population of 1,326,377 as of June 2006, had a population density of 917.8, by far the highest in the country. The city itself has a population of 1,203,680.

The ratio of women per 1,000 men was 1,114 and the rate of population ageing was 100.3. The birth rate per 1000 people was 7.9 and steadily declining in the last 15 years, the death rate reaching 12.2 and growing. The population was declining by 4.3 per cent. However, considerable immigration to the capital from poorer regions of the country, as well as urbanization, are the reason Sofia's population is in practice increasing. 5.7 people of every one thousand were married and the infant mortality rate was 11 dead babies per 1,000 born alive, down from 18.9 in 1980.
Sofia has a huge nightlife scene with many different night clubs, live venues, pubs, mehani (Bulgarian traditional taverns), and restaurants. Many of the famous Bulgarian music groups were established in Sofia such as Shturtzite, Hipodil, Epizod and FSB. The city hosts many of the major world music acts that play shows in Bulgaria such as Depeche Mode, Iron Maiden, Marilyn Manson, Eros Ramazotti, DJ Tiesto, Transglobal Underground, Judas Priest, Robin Gibb, Wu-tang Clan and Rihanna to name a few.
Sofia houses numerous museums, notably the National Historical Museum, the Bulgarian Natural History Museum, the Museum of Earth and Men, the Ethnographic Museum, the National Museum of Military History, the National Polytechnical Museum and the National Archaeological Museum. In addition, there are the Sofia City Art Gallery, the Bulgarian National Gallery of Arts, the Bulgarian National Gallery for Foreign Art as well as numerous private art galleries.

The city also offers many places of special interest such as the Sts. Cyril and Methodius National Library (which houses the largest national book collection and is Bulgaria's oldest cultural institute), the Sofia State Library, the British Council, the Russian Cultural Institute, the Polish Cultural Institute, the Hungarian Institute, the Czech and the Slovak Cultural Institutes, the Italian Cultural Institute, the French Cultural Institute, Goethe Institut, Instituto Cervantes, and the Open Society Institute. Families with children used to be able to enjoy Sofia Land, the nearly nine-acre amusement park adjacent to the Sofia Zoological Garden (founded in 1888). Unfortunately the park was closed in 2006.

Sofia currently enjoys a booming film industry as the filming ground of several international film productions. Vitosha Boulevard, also called Vitoshka — ranked as the world's 22nd most expensive commercial street — represents numerous fashion boutiques and luxury goods stores and features exhibitions by world fashion designers. Sofia's geographic location, situated in the foothills of the weekend retreat Vitosha mountain, further adds to the city's specific atmosphere.

A number of ancient Roman and Byzantine buildings have been preserved in the city and its outskirts. Most notably, the 10th century Boyana Church (one of the UNESCO World Heritage protected sites), the Church of St. George, considered the oldest building in Sofia, and the early Byzantine Church of St Sophia.

A medieval monument of significant interest is The Church of St. Petka located in the very centre of the city providing a sharp contrast to the surrounding three Socialist Classicism edifices of the former Party House, TZUM, and Sheraton Sofia Hotel Balkan.
After the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule in 1878 and the establishment of an autonomous Bulgarian monarchy with its capital in Sofia, Knyaz Alexander Battenberg invited architects from Austria-Hungary to shape the new capital's architectural appearance.

Among the architects invited to work in Bulgaria were Friedrich Grünanger, Adolf Václav Kolář, Viktor Rumpelmayer and others, who designed the most important public buildings needed by the newly-reestablished Bulgarian government, as well as numerous houses for the country's elite. Later, many foreign-educated Bulgarian architects also contributed.

The architecture of Sofia's centre is thus a combination of Neo-Baroque, Neo-Rococo, Neo-Renaissance and Neoclassicism, with the Vienna Secession also later playing an important part, but it is mostly typically Central European.

Among the most important buildings constructed in Sofia in the period are the former royal palace, today housing the National Art Gallery and the National Ethnographic Museum (1882); the Ivan Vazov National Theatre (1907); the former royal printing office, today the National Gallery for Foreign Art; the National Assembly of Bulgaria (1886), the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (1893), etc.

After the Second World War and the establishment of a Communist government in Bulgaria in 1944, the architectural line was substantially altered. Socialist Classicism public buildings emerged in the centre, but as the city grew outwards, the new neighbourhoods were dominated by many Communist-era tower blocks and examples of Brutalist architecture.

After the abolishment of Communism in 1989, Sofia has witnessed the construction of whole business districts and neighbourhoods, as well as modern skryscraper-like glass-fronted office buildings, but also top-class residential neighbourhoods.