Sofia

I

Introduction

Sofia (also Sofiya; ancient Serdica or Sardica), capital city of Bulgaria, in Grad Sofiya (Sofia city province), on an elevated plain at the foot of the Balkan Mountains, in the western part of the country. It is Bulgaria's largest city and its commercial, manufacturing, transport, and cultural centre. Population 1,194,164 (2002 estimate).

II

Economy

Although Sofia is the country’s economic core and largest population centre, it is currently struggling to make the transition from centralized planning to a market economy. Manufactured goods include metal, wood, and rubber products, machinery, chemicals, electronic and transport equipment, processed food, textiles, clothing, footwear, and printed fabrics. Tourism is also important to the city's economy.

III

Places of Interest

Sofia is the site of the University of Sofia (1888); higher institutes of physical culture, chemical technology, engineering, forestry, mining, economics, and fine arts; the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (1869); the Academy of Medicine (1972); the Bulgarian State Conservatory (1904); and Cyril and Methodius National Library. Among the city's many museums are the National Natural History Museum; the National Archaeological Museum; the National Art Gallery, with a collection of Bulgarian and foreign art; the National Ethnographical Museum, with displays of regional ethnography and folk culture; the Museum of Sofia's History; and the National Museum of the Revolutionary Movement of Bulgaria. Historic buildings include the Chapel of St George, originally a Roman bath and the oldest structure in the city; the ruins of the 6th-century church of St Sofia; Alexander Nevsky Cathedral (late 19th century); and the Buyuk Dzhamiya Mosque (15th century). The Boyana Church, which contains a noteworthy collection of medieval frescoes, painted in 1259, is nearby; it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. Mount Vitosha, rising about 550 m (1,800 ft) above the plain, is situated around 8 km (5 mi) south of the city in Vitosha National Park.

IV

History

A Thracian settlement on the site of the present-day city, dating from the 7th century bc, was captured by the Romans around 29 bc. In the early 2nd century ad the community was fortified by the Roman emperor Trajan and was known as Serdica (Greek Sardica). The settlement prospered because of its location on important trans-European trade routes, including the road from Belgrade to İstanbul. The community was invaded by the Huns in 441 and then plundered and burned by them in around 447; it was rebuilt during the 6th century by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. In 809 the settlement was taken by the Bulgarians, who renamed it Sredets, but it again came under Byzantine rule from 1018 to 1185, when the Second Bulgarian Empire was established. In 1382 the town was captured by the Ottoman Turks. About this time the name Sofia (Greek for “wisdom”), taken from the name of the 6th-century church, came into use.

From the 17th century, Turkish rule was gradually destabilized because of internal tensions and a continuous military pressure from Czarist Russia. Bulgaria became independent of the Ottomans in 1878, and the following year Sofia was chosen as the national capital. Industry developed rapidly, and the city’s economic growth attracted a large number of rural migrants seeking employment.

During World War II the city suffered heavy damage, but it was rebuilt after 1945. Communist authorities initiated Sofia’s industrial expansion. This emphasis on rapid industrial growth, together with unchecked urban development, resulted in environmental problems such as pollution and poor water quality. When, in the early 1990s, Bulgaria broke away from Soviet influence, these issues, together with a declining economy and a need for political and social reforms, provoked large-scale public protests in Sofia.