Bankya ( bg, Банкя ) is a small town located on the outskirts of

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. ...

in western

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Mac ...

. It is administratively part of Greater

. The district is famous for the

mineral spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage unde ...

s and baths that have been used for medicinal purposes for hundreds of years. In 1969 the village of Bankya was proclaimed a town, and in 1979 it became part of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Bankya is 17 km west of capital Sofia. It is situated at the foot of Lyulin Mountain at an average elevation of around 630–750 meters. The first people to populate the region of Bankya were

Thracian The Thracians (; grc, Θρᾷκες ''Thrāikes''; la, Thraci) were an Indo-European speaking people who inhabited large parts of Eastern and Southeastern Europe in ancient history.. "The Thracians were an Indo-European people who occupied ...

tribes, over 2500 years ago. Archaeological excavations near the quarter of Ivanyane have unearthed remains of

Ancient Roman In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...

buildings, walls and sewers, and bronze bracelets from the 4th–5th century. Bankya's economy depends mainly on tourism and balneological treatment. Bankya Bulgaria Jan 1995

Bankya was first mentioned as ''Banka'' in the 15th century. The former villages of Verdikal, Gradoman and Mihaylovo are part of the town itself, while Ivanyane and Klisura are part of the municipality. Bankya's name stems from the common noun ''bankya'', "hot spring", a diminutive of ''banya'' ("baths"). Bankya is the birthplace of the founder of

GERB GERB ( bg, ГЕРБ, translation=coat of arms, acronym for Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria) is a conservative, populist political party which was the ruling party of Bulgaria between 2009 and 2021. History GERB is headed by fo ...

–

Boyko Borisov Boyko Metodiev Borisov ( bg, Бойко Методиев Борисов, ; born 13 June 1959) is a Bulgarian politician who served as the prime minister of Bulgaria from 2009 to 2013, 2014 to 2017, and 2017 to 2021, making him Bulgaria's List of ...

, former

Prime Minister of Bulgaria The prime minister of Bulgaria ( bg, Министър-председател, Ministar-predsedatel) is the head of government of Bulgaria. They are the leader of a political coalition in the Bulgarian parliament – known as the National Asse ...

, and of rapper SOS

Places of interest

* "Vazov's Oak",

Ivan Vazov Ivan Minchov Vazov ( bg, Иван Минчов Вазов; – 22 September 1921) was a Bulgarian poet, novelist and playwright, often referred to as "the Patriarch of Bulgarian literature". He was born in Sopot, a town in the Rose Valley ...

's favourite resting place. * The Church of Martyrs

Quiricus and Julietta Cyricus ( el, Κήρυκος, am, ቂርቆስ, arc, ܡܪܝ ܩܘܪܝܩܘܣ ܣܗܕܐ ''Mar Quriaqos Sahada''; also Cyriacus, Quiriac, Quiricus, Cyr), and his mother, Julitta ( el, Ἰουλίττα, am, እየሉጣ arc, ܝܘܠܝܛܐ, ''Yul ...

, built in 1932 and inaugurated by bishop Stephen from Sofia. * The Mineral Baths in Bankya, built in 1907 – 1910 to the design of

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

architect Carl Hocheder.

Honour

Bankya Peak Bankya Peak ( bg, връх Банкя, vrah Bankya, ) is the peak rising to 877 mR ...

Graham Land Graham Land is the portion of the Antarctic Peninsula that lies north of a line joining Cape Jeremy and Cape Agassiz. This description of Graham Land is consistent with the 1964 agreement between the British Antarctic Place-names Committee a ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

is named after the town.

References

{{authority control Districts of Sofia Spa towns in Bulgaria Towns in Bulgaria Populated places in Sofia City Province kk:Банкя