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Stara Zagora (, ) is a city in
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
, and the administrative capital of
Stara Zagora Province Stara Zagora (), formerly known as the Stara Zagora okrug, is a province of south-central Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative and industrial centre—the city of Stara Zagora—the sixth-biggest town in the country. The provin ...
. It is located in the
Upper Thracian Plain The Upper Thracian Plain (, ''Gornotrakiyska nizina'') constitutes the northern part of the historical region of Thrace. It is located in southern Bulgaria, between Sredna Gora mountains to the north and west, a secondary mountain chain parallel ...
, near the cities of
Kazanlak Kazanlak ( , known as Seuthopolis () in ancient times, is a List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, town in Stara Zagora Province, Bulgaria. It is located in the middle of the plain of the same name, at the foot of the Balkan Mountains, Balkan mo ...
,
Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...
, and
Sliven Sliven ( ) is List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, the eighth-largest city in Bulgaria and the administrative and industrial centre of Sliven Province and municipality in Northern Thrace. It is situated in the Sliven Valley at the foothills of th ...
. Its population is 121,582 making it the sixth largest city of Bulgaria. The city has had different names previously, including ''Beroe, Borui, Irenepolis, Eski Zagra, Augusta Traiana,'' etc. The earliest traces of civilisation date back to the 7th millennium BC. Some scholars believe that the ancient Thracian city of Beroe was located on the present site of Stara Zagora. In 1968, Neolithic dwellings from the mid-6th millennium BC were discovered in the town, which are the best preserved and richest collection in Europe of its kind and have been turned into a museum. A high density of Neolithic and Chalcolithic settlements has been identified by researchers and a ritual structure nearly 8,000 years old has also been discovered. The first copper factory in Europe and a large ore mining centre were discovered, both over 7,000 years old. The original settlement dates from the 5th-4th century B.C under the name Beroe or Beroia, founded by
Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...
. It was renamed to Ulpia Augusta Traiana during
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
rule and became the most important city, above Philippopolis. During
Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...
' rule, many buildings have been built, art and music developed and there were statues and inscriptions of
Orpheus In Greek mythology, Orpheus (; , classical pronunciation: ) was a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in se ...
. The
Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...
defeated the Romans in the
Battle of Beroe The Battle of Beroe was a conflict near Stara Zagora, ancient ''Ulpia Augusta Traiana'', between the Romans and Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medi ...
in 250 AD. During the Gothic War between 376 and 382, the Roman general, Frigeridus promptly withdrew from Beroe to
Illyria In classical and late antiquity, Illyria (; , ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; , ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyrians. The Ancient Gree ...
. At the end of the 6th century, Beroe was destroyed, but rebuilt under the name Veroia. During the Middle Ages,
Zagore Zagore may refer to: * Zagore (region) (also Zagora, Zagorie, Zagoriya), a region in medieval Bulgaria * , a village Mošćenička Draga Municipality, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia * , a village Stara Zagora Municipality, Stara Zagora Pro ...
is mentioned for the first time by Byzantine historians.
Irene of Athens Irene of Athens (, ; 750/756 – 9 August 803), surname Sarantapechaena (, ), was Byzantine empress consort to Emperor Leo IV from 775 to 780, regent during the childhood of their son Constantine VI from 780 until 790, co-ruler from 792 unti ...
visited the town, rebuilding it and renaming it to Irenepolis, in honour of her. By the end of the 10th century, the city was in Bulgarian hands and acquired a fully Bulgarian character. Bulgarians called the town Borui (a modified form of the Thracian Beroe). In 1371, the city passed to Ottoman Empire, but its earliest mention was in an Ottoman document from 1430. Plagues rampaged in the 18th-19th century, as well as famine and drought, livestock pestilence, and hailstorms destroyed all crops. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, the town had devastating moments, which included a
massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...
of the local Bulgarians, in which thousands of people lost their lives, young women and girls being sold in the slave market of the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
. In modern times, the city is relieved, as a growing city. The economy is developing like major cities in Bulgaria, with one of the highest wages in the country, high GDP in comparison with many Bulgarian cities, low unemployment of about 4%. The city is also located near the largest energy industrial complex,
Maritsa Iztok Complex The Maritsa Iztok Complex generates coal power in Bulgaria. Maritsa Iztok 1 and 3 located entirely within Stara Zagora Province in south-central Bulgaria while Maritsa Iztok 2 is split with eastern neighboring Sliven Province. It consists of t ...
, where many of the people from Stara Zagora are employed.


Name

The name comes from the Slavic root ''star'' ("old") and the name of the medieval region of
Zagore Zagore may refer to: * Zagore (region) (also Zagora, Zagorie, Zagoriya), a region in medieval Bulgaria * , a village Mošćenička Draga Municipality, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia * , a village Stara Zagora Municipality, Stara Zagora Pro ...
("beyond the
Balkan mountains The Balkan mountain range is located in the eastern part of the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border between Bulgaria and Serbia. It then runs f ...
" in Slavic) The original name was Beroe, which was changed to Ulpia Augusta Traiana by the Romans. From the 6th century the city was called Vereja and, from 784, Irenopolis (
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
: Ειρηνούπολις) in honour of the Byzantine empress Irene of Athens. In the Middle Ages it was called Boruj by the Bulgarians and later, Železnik. The Turks called it Eski Hisar (old fort) and Eski Zagra, from which its current name derives, assigned in 1871.
Beroe Hill Beroe Hill (Halm Beroe \'h&lm be-'ro-e\) is a hill of 400 m in the southwest extremity of Gleaner Heights, Livingston Island (South Shetland Islands), Livingston Island, West Antarctica. It is surmounting Perunika Glacier to the south and Saedin ...
on
Livingston Island Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetland Islands, South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands north of the ...
,
West Antarctica West Antarctica, or Lesser Antarctica, one of the two major regions of Antarctica, is the part of that continent that lies within the Western Hemisphere, and includes the Antarctic Peninsula. It is separated from East Antarctica by the Transan ...
, is named after this city, in its previous incarnation as Beroe.


History


Neolithic Age

The earliest traces of civilisation in the region of Stara Zagora date back to the end of the 7th millennium B.C. Then, almost simultaneously, four prehistoric settlements emerged on the present territory of Stara Zagora and its surroundings, one of which was the largest in the Bulgarian lands for 6 thousand years. Some scholars believe that the ancient Thracian Beroe was located there. In 1968, Neolithic dwellings from the mid-6th millennium BC were discovered in the town, which are the best preserved and richest collection in Europe and have been turned into a museum. A high density of Neolithic and Chalcolithic settlements has been identified, with over 120 prehistoric settlements and 5 prehistoric settlement mounds, with numerous finds, one of them being the largest in Europe."Праисторикът Петър Калчев: „Неолитните жилища“ – в списъка на ЮНЕСКО", NPB.bg, посетен на 23 януари 2016 г.
/ref> Life here began in the late 7th millennium BC and continued until the 12th century AD. Near Stara Zagora, a ritual structure nearly 8,000 years old has also been discovered. During extensive excavations in the 1970s near Stara Zagora, the world's largest ore mining centre was also discovered in the 5th millennium BC. These metal mines, the oldest in Europe, are nearly 7,600 years old. In 2014, archaeologists from the Regional History Museum (Stara Zagora) discovered the first copper factory in Europe, over 7,000 years old. The original Thracian settlement dates from the 5-4th century BC when it was called Beroe or Beroia. The city was founded by
Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon (; 382 BC – October 336 BC) was the king (''basileus'') of the ancient kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedonia from 359 BC until his death in 336 BC. He was a member of the Argead dynasty, founders of the ...
in 342 BC.


Antiquity

Under the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
, the city was renamed ''Ulpia Augusta Traiana'' in honour of emperor
Trajan Trajan ( ; born Marcus Ulpius Traianus, 18 September 53) was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier ...
. The city grew to its largest extent under
Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...
(161-180) and became the most important city in the Roman province of
Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...
. Its status and importance is evidenced by the visits of several emperors including
Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; ; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through cursus honorum, the ...
(193-211),
Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname Caracalla (; ), was Roman emperor from 198 to 217 AD, first serving as nominal co-emperor under his father and then r ...
(211-217), and
Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...
(294-305). The city became the largest economic, administrative and cultural centre in the province. The famous Roman historian
Ammianus Marcellinus Ammianus Marcellinus, occasionally anglicized as Ammian ( Greek: Αμμιανός Μαρκελλίνος; born , died 400), was a Greek and Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquit ...
wrote: "The great cities of Philippopolis and Augusta Traiana, which in antiquity were called Eumolpiada and Beroea, adorn the province of Thrace". The city has an independent municipal government, a city council and a people's assembly and enjoys a special status. By special order, it was in this city that the veterans of the wars fought by the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
settled. During the reign of Emperor
Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...
(161-180), straight streets, dozens of residential and public buildings, city walls enclosing an area of about 50 hectares and reinforced with about 40 towers, of which 11 have been excavated, water supply, sewerage, theatre building, temples, markets, odeon,
thermae In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large Roman Empire, imperial public bath, bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed i ...
, forum were built in the city. A theatron with marble seats was also built, from which the spectacular gladiatorial battles, processions, celebrations, or assemblies where the important affairs of the city were decided, were observed. A gymnasium existed in the city, and sporting events were held in the
stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...
. The arts and
music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...
s developed in the city, as evidenced by the examples of bronze and stone sculpture, jewellery, pottery, glass objects, statues and inscriptions for
Orpheus In Greek mythology, Orpheus (; , classical pronunciation: ) was a Thracians, Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet. He was also a renowned Ancient Greek poetry, poet and, according to legend, travelled with Jason and the Argonauts in se ...
that have been found. The
Battle of Beroe The Battle of Beroe was a conflict near Stara Zagora, ancient ''Ulpia Augusta Traiana'', between the Romans and Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medi ...
was fought near the city in 250 resulting in a Gothic Victory. It was probably after this event that the city walls were doubled like other cities in the region (e.g. Diocletianopolis,
Serdica Serdika or Serdica ( Bulgarian: ) is the historical Roman name of Sofia, now the capital of Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans ...
). In the 2nd-3rd century the city had its own coin mint showing its importance. In 377, in the
Gothic War (376-382) Gothic War may refer to: *Gothic War (248–253), battles and plundering carried out by the Goths and their allies in the Roman Empire. *Gothic War (367–369), a war of Thervingi against the Eastern Roman Empire in which the Goths retreated to Mont ...
, the Goths marched on Beroe to attack the Roman general Frigiderus but his scouts detected the invaders and he promptly withdrew to Illyria. The city was destroyed but rebuilt by
Justinian Justinian I (, ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 527 to 565. His reign was marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovatio imperii'', or "restoration of the Empire". This ambition was ...
. During the period of Late Antiquity (4th-6th centuries) the town was again named Beroe. The times are connected with the relocation of the capital of the empire from Rome to Constantinople, the accelerated Christianization of the local population, the Gothic invasions at the end of the 4th century and the devastating raids of the Huns in the middle of the 5th century. In late antiquity, a mass Christianization of the local population began in Beroe, especially after the Medo-Latin Edict. The town was one of the most active centres of early Christianity. The first to introduce Christianity here was the apostle Carpus, one of the 70 apostles of
Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
and a disciple of the apostle Paul. Beroe became the seat of a bishopric, which grew into an archbishopric. Bishop Demophilus of Beroe takes part in the Serdika Church Council. In 355, the Roman
Pope Liberius Pope Liberius (310 – 24 September 366) was the bishop of Rome from 17 May 352 until his death on 24 September 366. According to the '' Catalogus Liberianus'', he was consecrated on 22 May as the successor to Julius I. He is not mentione ...
was exiled to Beroe, and Demophilus went to Constantinople, where he reached the highest rank - Patriarch of the Byzantine Empire. In the 6th century, the city is mentioned as Beroe in the Gothic calendar under the date 19 November, associated with the famous 40 female martyrs. At the end of the century, the town was again destroyed, but then rebuilt and took the name Vereia.


Middle Ages

For the first time the
Zagore Zagore may refer to: * Zagore (region) (also Zagora, Zagorie, Zagoriya), a region in medieval Bulgaria * , a village Mošćenička Draga Municipality, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia * , a village Stara Zagora Municipality, Stara Zagora Pro ...
area is mentioned in the accounts of George Amartole, repeated by
Symeon Logothete Symeon Logothete (or Symeon Magister) was a 10th-century Byzantine Greek historian and poet. Symeon wrote a world chronicle that goes from Creation to the year 948.It has been misattributed to one Theodosius of Melitene and also to Leo Grammati ...
,
George Kedrenos George Kedrenos, Cedrenus or Cedrinos (, fl. 11th century) was a Byzantine Greek historian. In the 1050s he compiled ''Synopsis historion'' (also known as ''A concise history of the world''), which spanned the time from the biblical account of cre ...
and
Symeon the Metaphrast Symeon or Simeon (died ), distinguished as Symeon Metaphrastes (Latin) or Symeon the Metaphrast (, ''Symeṓn ho Metaphrastḗs''), was a Byzantine writer and official regarded as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. His feast day is celebrated ...
, where the help that Tervel's Bulgarian army gave to Emperor Justinian II in his restoration to the Constantinople throne is described. On this occasion, in 705, a peace treaty was signed between the Byzantine Empire and Bulgaria, according to which the Zagore region was ceded to Bulgaria. Three years later, according to other sources,
Justinian II Justinian II (; ; 668/69 – 4 November 711), nicknamed "the Slit-Nosed" (), was the last Byzantine emperor of the Heraclian dynasty, reigning from 685 to 695 and again from 705 to 711. Like his namesake, Justinian I, Justinian II was an ambitio ...
tried to regain the area, but was defeated near Anchialos. According to the later accounts of
Theophanes the Confessor Theophanes the Confessor (; 759 – 817 or 818) was a member of the Byzantine aristocracy who became a monk and chronicler. He served in the court of Emperor Leo IV the Khazar before taking up the religious life. Theophanes attended the Second C ...
, in 716 a new treaty was concluded between the new emperor
Theodosius III Theodosius III () was Byzantine emperor from to 25 March 717. Before rising to power and seizing the throne of the Byzantine Empire, he was a tax collector in Adramyttium. In 715, the Byzantine navy and the troops of the Opsician Theme, one o ...
and
Tervel Caesar Tervel (), also called Tarvel, Terval, or Terbelis in Byzantine sources, was the ruler Caesar of Bulgaria during the First Bulgarian Empire at the beginning of the 8th century. In 705 Emperor Justinian II named him caesar, the first forei ...
, according to which, in addition to the area of Zagore finally ceded to the Bulgarians, another part of Thrace was ceded to the west of Zagore, as far as the "Mileon in Thrace". In 717. In 717 Tervel gave new aid to the empire with a large army and defeated the
Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a member o ...
that had besieged Constantinople. After that, Beroe repeatedly passed now to Byzantium, now to Bulgaria. In 784 Beroe was in the possession of the Byzantine Empire and the empress
Irene Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), Greek for "peace". Irene, and related names, may refer to: * Irene (given name) Places * Irene, Gauteng, South Africa * Irene, South Dakota, United States * Irene, Texas, United States ...
visited the town together with her son
Constantine VI Constantine VI (, 14 January 771 – before 805), sometimes called the Blind, was Byzantine emperor from 780 to 797. The only child of Emperor Leo IV, Constantine was named co-emperor with him at the age of five in 776 and succeeded him as sol ...
and a large retinue of courtiers. The empress rebuilt the town and called it Irenopolis - the city of Irena. The chronicler Theophanes the Confessor describes the visit of the empress to Beroe: "In that year, in the month of January, ind. seven, the said Stavracius returned from the land of the warehouses and on the hippodrome celebrated his victory with triumph. And in the month of May, of the same seventh Ind. the Empress Irene with her son and many troops went out into Thrace, bringing with her musical instruments, and came to Beroe. She ordered that this city should be built up, and renamed it Irenopolis." John's Byzantine army, and many of the captives, were settled as
foederati ''Foederati'' ( ; singular: ''foederatus'' ) were peoples and cities bound by a treaty, known as ''foedus'', with Rome. During the Roman Republic, the term identified the '' socii'', but during the Roman Empire, it was used to describe foreign ...
within the Byzantine frontier. In 812 Irenopolis was Bulgarian again and was called Beroe after the victorious war of Krum in 812. Historical sources show that after the peace treaty of 817, the Bulgarian state took extensive measures to defend and fortify the area south of the
Balkan Mountains The Balkan mountain range is located in the eastern part of the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It is conventionally taken to begin at the peak of Vrashka Chuka on the border between Bulgaria and Serbia. It then runs f ...
from Beroe to the sea in order to annex it permanently to Bulgaria. By 850 - 860 Beroe was Bulgarian and the population was already majority Bulgarian by this time. For a few years the Byzantines took
Zagore Zagore may refer to: * Zagore (region) (also Zagora, Zagorie, Zagoriya), a region in medieval Bulgaria * , a village Mošćenička Draga Municipality, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, Croatia * , a village Stara Zagora Municipality, Stara Zagora Pro ...
, but during the conversion of Knyaz
Boris I Boris I (also ''Bogoris''), venerated as Saint Boris I (Mihail) the Baptizer (, ; died 2 May 907), was the ruler (knyaz) of the First Bulgarian Empire from 852 to 889. Despite a number of military setbacks, the reign of Boris I was marked wit ...
in 864, the Zagora area and the town of Beroe were returned to Bulgaria. The chronicles about the return of the district also state its borders - from Sider (Zhelezni vrata, today Zmeyovski Pass) to Debelt. Within the borders of Bulgaria, the town was the centre of a
comitatus Comitatus may refer to: *Comitatus (warband), a Germanic warband who follow a leader * ''Comitatus'', the office of a Roman or Frankish comes, translated as count. * ''Comitatus'', translated as county, a territory such as governed by medieval cou ...
and retained its role as one of the largest administrative, economic and religious centres. The emperors lived here for a long time and used Boruyi as a second capital. For two centuries it was the residence of the Byzantine emperors of the
Komnenos The House of Komnenos ( Komnenoi; , , ), Latinized as Comnenus ( Comneni), was a Byzantine Greek noble family who ruled the Byzantine Empire in the 11th and 12th centuries. The first reigning member, Isaac I Komnenos, ruled from 1057 to 1059. ...
family. From here they organized campaigns against the northern invaders - the
Pechenegs The Pechenegs () or Patzinaks, , Middle Turkic languages, Middle Turkic: , , , , , , ka, პაჭანიკი, , , ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Pečenezi, separator=/, Печенези, also known as Pecheneg Turks were a semi-nomadic Turkic peopl ...
and
Cumans The Cumans or Kumans were a Turkic people, Turkic nomadic people from Central Asia comprising the western branch of the Cumania, Cuman–Kipchak confederation who spoke the Cuman language. They are referred to as Polovtsians (''Polovtsy'') in Ru ...
. The stone reliefs from Stara Zagora from the 8th - 9th centuries are of high cultural and historical value, they are recognized as a masterpiece of fine art and are one of the most interesting archaeological finds in Europe. By the end of the 10th century, the city was in Bulgarian hands and acquired a fully Bulgarian character. Bulgarians called the town Borui (a modified form of the Thracian Beroe). The traveller
Al-Idrisi Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Idrisi al-Qurtubi al-Hasani as-Sabti, or simply al-Idrisi (; ; 1100–1165), was an Arab Muslim geographer and cartographer who served in the court of King Roger II at Palermo, Sicily. Muhammad al-Idrisi was born in C ...
, who visited the town, reported that in the 11th-12th centuries the road from the town of Veroi to the now unidentified town of Patsimiscus passed through successive fields of crops, continuous cultivated fields, large villages, many vineyards, orchards, past numerous herds of sheep, cattle and small livestock. During the
Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...
, when the troops of
Frederick I Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aa ...
were passing through the Balkans, the Austrian priest Ansbert, who had access to the imperial chancellery, wrote of the town of Vereia as a "large, rich city" which the crusaders captured, sacked, and burned. In 1208 the Bulgarians defeated the
Latin Empire The Latin Empire, also referred to as the Latin Empire of Constantinople, was a feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. The Latin Empire was intended to replace the Byzantin ...
in the battle of Boruy, also fought nearby.


Ottoman rule

The
Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...
conquered Stara Zagora in 1371. The earliest Ottoman document mentioning the town is from 1430. The Ottomans, knowing about the old history of the town as the centre of the Zagore region, welded a huge amount of cultural and historical heritage in the town and in the early years named it with various similar names - Zagr and Atik (Ancient Zagra), Zagra and Atik Hisar (Ancient City of Zagra), Zagra, Zagra and Eski Hisar, Zagral Eskisi (Old Zagra), Eski Zagora (Ancient Zagora), Zagrasi Atik, Zagralie Eskisi, Eskisi Zagora (Old Zagora). Later, however, in the seventeenth century, a single form - Eski Zagra. According to Evliya Celebi, in the 17th century there were 3000 houses in Stara Zagora, about 760 roads and 14 neighborhoods. At that time there were 5 mosques. There was also 1 madrasah, 42 schools, 5 hamams (named Alaja, Pasha, Yeni, Chifte and Kyuchuk hamams), 1 besisten and 855 dukhans. It does not mention the presence of a Bulgarian population in the city, although there is evidence of tombstones with Bulgarian names. Further evidence of this is a surviving Greek inscription in the church of St. Demetrius, which indicates the presence of a church on this site long before 1743, serving the Christian population. In 1738 the population of Stara Zagora was predominantly Turkish. In 1788, a plague epidemic raged, and in 1792, famine and drought, livestock pestilence, and hailstorms destroyed all crops. During this time, military contingents passed through the settlements for punitive purposes, 'stripping the naked man of his shirt and the barefoot man of his shoes'. The worst years, however, were 1813, 1814 and 1815: these were the plague years known as the 'Great Plague' or 'Great Carron'. The next plague epidemic came in 1837 and was called 'The Little Plague'. A grade school was built in 1840 and the city's name was changed to ''Zheleznik'' (; a
Slavic Slavic, Slav or Slavonic may refer to: Peoples * Slavic peoples, an ethno-linguistic group living in Europe and Asia ** East Slavic peoples, eastern group of Slavic peoples ** South Slavic peoples, southern group of Slavic peoples ** West Slav ...
translation of ''Beroe'') in 1854 instead of the
Turkish Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The w ...
(Also called Zağra-i Atik), but was renamed once again to ''Stara Zagora'' in 1870. It was an administrative centre in Edirne Vilayet before 1878 as "Zağra-i Atik".


Stara Zagora Uprising

The Herzegovina uprising in 1875 prompted Bulgarian revolutionaries to become active. On 12 August 1875, on the initiative of
Hristo Botev Hristo Botev (, ), born Hristo Botyov Petkov (Христо Ботьов Петков; – ), was a Bulgarian revolutionary and poet. Botev is considered by Bulgarians to be a symbolic historical figure and national hero. His poetry is a prim ...
and
Stefan Stambolov Stefan Nikolov Stambolov (; 31 January 1854 Adoption of the Gregorian calendar#Adoption in Eastern Europe, OS – 19 July 1895 Adoption of the Gregorian calendar#Adoption in Eastern Europe, OS) was a Bulgarian politician, journalist, revoluti ...
, an extraordinary national assembly was held in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...
, which decided to declare an immediate armed uprising in Bulgaria. Stara Zagora was chosen as the centre of the uprising. Kolyo Ganchev was elected the leader of the uprising in the town. The uprising was dispersed by the Ottomans, but served as an impetus for the liberation through the
April Uprising The April Uprising () was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876. The rebellion was suppressed by irregular Ottoman bashi-bazouk units that engaged in indiscriminate slaughter of both rebels ...
in 1876.


Battle and Stara Zagora massacre

On 31 July 1877, the first major battle of the
Russo-Turkish War The Russo-Turkish wars ( ), or the Russo-Ottoman wars (), began in 1568 and continued intermittently until 1918. They consisted of twelve conflicts in total, making them one of the longest series of wars in the history of Europe. All but four of ...
took place near Stara Zagora. The 48,000-strong Turkish army advanced on the town, which was defended only by a small Russian detachment and a unit of Bulgarian volunteers. After a six-hour fight for Stara Zagora, the Russian soldiers and Bulgarian volunteers surrendered to the pressure of the larger enemy army. The town then experienced its greatest tragedy when the Turkish army carried out a massacre against the unarmed civilians. The city was burned down and razed to the ground during three ensuing days of carnage. 14,500 Bulgarians from the town and villages south of the town lost their lives. Another 10,000 young women and girls were sold in the slave markets of the Ottoman Empire. All Christian churches were attacked with artillery and burned. The only public building surviving the fire was the mosque, Eski Dzhamiya, which still stands today. Several monuments in modern Stara Zagora commemorate these events.


Eastern Rumelia

After the
Liberation of Bulgaria The Liberation of Bulgaria is the historical process as a result of the Bulgarian Revival. In Bulgarian historiography, the liberation of Bulgaria refers to those events of the Tenth Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) that led to the re-establishme ...
from Ottoman rule in 1878, Stara Zagora became part of autonomous
Eastern Rumelia Eastern Rumelia (; ; ) was an autonomous province (''oblast'' in Bulgarian, ''vilayet'' in Turkish) of the Ottoman Empire with a total area of , which was created in 1878 by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), Treaty of Berlin and ''de facto'' ...
as a department centre before the two Bulgarian states finally merged in 1886 as a result of the
Unification of Bulgaria The Unification of Bulgaria () was the act of unification of the Principality of Bulgaria and the province of Eastern Rumelia in the autumn of 1885. It was co-ordinated by the Bulgarian Secret Central Revolutionary Committee (BSCRC). Both had ...
. The reconstruction of Stara Zagora began immediately after the Liberation. For this purpose, in 1878, the famous architect from
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
, Lubor Bayer, arrived in Stara Zagora and designed the modern rectangular checkerboard layout characteristic of today's Stara Zagora. On October 5, 1879, the governor general of Eastern Rumelia
Alexander Bogoridi Prince (''Knyaz'') Alexander Stefanov Bogoridi (; ; ) (1822 – July 17, 1910) was an Ottoman statesman of Bulgarian origin. Born in Constantinople, Alexander Bogoridi was the youngest son of one of the most influential persons in the Ottoman E ...
laid the symbolic first stone for the reconstruction of the town. The only other town in Bulgaria with such a spatial plan was Nova Zagora, which was also burnt by the Turks.


Ancient monuments

Many of the monuments from the Roman city have been excavated and are visible ''in situ'' today and include: * City walls * The "Antique" Forum * Roman city streets and buildings * The Roman Baths * 4th-6th c. public building with mosaics * 4th c. private house with mosaics of Silenus with Bacchantes and of Dionysus's Procession * South city gate * Thracian Tomb Overlooking the "antique" forum is an unusual building in the form of a monumental auditorium in the shape of a theatre.


Geography

Stara Zagora is the administrative centre of its municipality and the
Stara Zagora Province Stara Zagora (), formerly known as the Stara Zagora okrug, is a province of south-central Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative and industrial centre—the city of Stara Zagora—the sixth-biggest town in the country. The provin ...
. It is about from
Sofia Sofia 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 part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
, near the Bedechka river in the historic region of
Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...
.


Climate

The city is in an area of a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
. The average yearly temperature is about .


Flora and fauna

The territory of Stara Zagora municipality falls within the Middle Bulgarian biogeographical region - the Upper Thracian Lowland sub-region, characterized by a predominantly flat nature, intensive agriculture and significant urbanization. This predetermines a largely poor in composition and abundance biodiversity. Characteristic forest communities are xerothermic forests and the composition is diverse. The only scientifically known locality of a plant species protected by the Biodiversity Act is that in the Karasivria locality, north of the town. It is located in the north of Stara Zagora, in the area of
Spiraea ''Spiraea'' , sometimes spelled spirea in common names, and commonly known as meadowsweets or steeplebushes, is a genus of about 80 to 100 species
hypercifolia. The species is also included in the Red Book of
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
. The fauna in the area is composed of European, Euro-Siberian and Holopalearctic species. Along with these, many warm Mediterranean, transitional Mediterranean, pre-Asian and steppe species are common. The extent of occurrence of rare species and endemism is most pronounced in invertebrates.


Population

Stara Zagora was possibly the biggest city in today's Bulgarian territory before liberation from Ottoman rule. But the city was burned and destroyed by Turkish army during the Liberation war in 1877–1878, with some 30,000 citizens from Stara Zagora and nearby villages perishing in the
Stara Zagora massacre The Stara Zagora massacre () was the mass murder of approx. 14,000 civilian Bulgarians, accompanied by the burning and complete destruction of the City of Stara Zagora on , committed by regular Ottoman troops commanded by Süleyman Hüsnü Pasha, ...
. During the first decade after the
liberation of Bulgaria The Liberation of Bulgaria is the historical process as a result of the Bulgarian Revival. In Bulgarian historiography, the liberation of Bulgaria refers to those events of the Tenth Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) that led to the re-establishme ...
, in the 1880s the population of Stara Zagora decreased and numbered about 16,000. Since then it started growing decade by decade, mostly because of the migrants from the rural areas and the surrounding smaller towns, reaching its peak in the period 1989-1991 exceeding 160,000.
/ref> After this time, the population has started decreasing mostly because of the migration to the capital city of Sofia or abroad. ImageSize = width:750 height:280 PlotArea = left:50 right:20 top:25 bottom:30 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = late Colors = id:linegrey2 value:gray(0.9) id:linegrey value:gray(0.7) id:cobar value:rgb(0.2,0.7,0.8) id:cobar2 value:rgb(0.6,0.9,0.6) DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:0 till:200 ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:100 start:0 gridcolor:linegrey ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:50 start:0 gridcolor:linegrey2 PlotData = color:cobar width:19 align:left bar:1875 from:0 till:25 bar:1880 from:0 till:11 bar:1887 from:0 till:16 bar:1910 from:0 till:22 bar:1934 from:0 till:30 bar:1946 from:0 till:38 bar:1956 from:0 till:55 bar:1965 from:0 till:89 bar:1975 from:0 till:122 bar:1985 color:cobar2 from:0 till:151 bar:1992 from:0 till:150 bar:2001 from:0 till:143 bar:2011 from:0 till:138 PlotData= textcolor:black fontsize:S bar:1875 at: 25 text: 25,6 shift:(-8,5) bar:1880 at: 11 text: 10,7 shift:(-8,5) bar:1887 at: 16 text: 16,0 shift:(-11,5) bar:1910 at: 22 text: 22,0 shift:(-11,5) bar:1934 at: 30 text: 29,8 shift:(-11,5) bar:1946 at: 38 text: 38,3 shift:(-11,5) bar:1956 at: 55 text: 55,1 shift:(-14,5) bar:1965 at: 89 text: 88,9 shift:(-14,5) bar:1975 at: 122 text: 122,5 shift:(-11,5) bar:1985 at: 151 text: 151,2 shift:(-14,5) bar:1992 at: 150 text: 150,5 shift:(-14,5) bar:2001 at: 143 text: 143,4 shift:(-14,5) bar:2011 at: 138 text: 138,3 shift:(-14,5)


Ethnic linguistic and religious composition

According to the latest 2011 census data, individuals who declared their ethnic identity were distributed as follows: *
Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...
: 117,963 (93.2%) *
Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnic groups * Romani people, or Roma, an ethnic group of Indo-Aryan origin ** Romani language, an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities ** Romanichal, Romani subgroup in the United Kingdom * Romanians (Romanian ...
: 5,430 (4.3%) *
Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Turkey * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic lang ...
: 1,965 (1.6%) *Others: 579 (0.5%) *Indefinable: 617 (0.5%) *Undeclared: 11,718 (8.5%) Total: 138,272


Economy


Economy

The Stara Zagora region is dynamically developing and by a number of indicators is in a leading position in the country. In 2004, the region had a record high growth of 26% in the value of manufactured output, 23% in sales and 24.6% in gross domestic product. According to the regional administration, in 2004 and 2005 the Stara Zagora region now ranks second in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) and retains third place in terms of human development index (HDI). HDI is determined by GDP per capita, literacy rate, life expectancy, etc. In 2004, foreign direct investment in the region amounted to EUR 838 million (compared to a total of EUR 2020 million for Bulgaria), representing over 40% of all investment in the country. Around 600 million euros of the investments were in the energy sector. According to a survey conducted by the NGO Industry Watch in the second quarter of 2005, Stara Zagora ranks second (after Sofia) in terms of average wages among the 27 regional centres in Bulgaria. This applies to both nominal and real wages, determined on the basis of the ratio to purchasing power. In March 2008, Stara Zagora has one of the highest wages in the country and the unemployment is under 4%. The largest employer in Stara Zagora is the
Maritsa Iztok Complex The Maritsa Iztok Complex generates coal power in Bulgaria. Maritsa Iztok 1 and 3 located entirely within Stara Zagora Province in south-central Bulgaria while Maritsa Iztok 2 is split with eastern neighboring Sliven Province. It consists of t ...
. It employs about 20 000 people in the district, of which about 10 000 are residents of Stara Zagora. It provides 30% of Bulgaria's electricity and are the largest coal producer in Bulgaria (83%). In the industrial complex, wages are among the highest in Bulgaria. Stara Zagora distributes the electricity produced in Maritsa East. The company holds a license for distribution of electricity from the State Energy Regulatory Commission for a period of 35 years on the territory of Southern Bulgaria. The company employs 1771 people. Large companies dealing with equipment for petrol stations, gas stations and methane stations are Efir Stara Zagora and Izot servis. The largest brewery in Bulgaria - "
Zagorka Zagorka is a Bulgarian beer brand from the city of Stara Zagora. It is brewed at the Zagorka Brewery. The company was founded in 1902, in the Czech tradition, by a doctor who returned from Prague. The current brewery was opened in 1958 and since ...
", part of the Heineken group is located in Stara Zagora. It holds about 30% of the beer market in the country. Over 800 people work there. Stara Zagora is also the headquarters of the wine producer Domaine Menada, which since 2002 has been owned by the French company
Marie Brizard Wine & Spirits Marie Brizard Wine & Spirits () is a French wine and spirits producer and distributor. The company was founded in 1991. It is listed on the French stock market, and is a member of the CAC Small 90 index. The recipes of its most famous liquor, "'' ...
. The winery is one of the most prosperous on the Bulgarian market, as well as an exporter of wine abroad. Domaine Menada and Oryahovitsa are producers of
Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...
wines, as well as
Merlot Merlot ( ) is a dark-blue-colored wine grape variety that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of , the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color ...
,
Ruby Ruby is a pinkish-red-to-blood-red-colored gemstone, a variety of the mineral corundum ( aluminium oxide). Ruby is one of the most popular traditional jewelry gems and is very durable. Other varieties of gem-quality corundum are called sapph ...
,
Chardonnay Chardonnay (, ; ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new a ...
,
Dimiat Dimyat () is a white Bulgarian wine grape. It is one of Bulgaria's most widely planted white grape varieties, second only to Rkatsiteli. Wines made from this variety are noted for their perfume aromas.J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Wine Cou ...
and other varieties. In 2004, major investments were made for new facilities at the winery as well as for new vineyards. Another winery is in the village of Oryahovitsa, 15 km from Stara Zagora. Other important enterprises in the town are: DZU; Progress cast iron plant; Textile fibre plant; Tool and non-standard equipment plant; Process equipment plant; Metal structures plant; Forging and pressing plant ''Preskov''; Food industry machinery plant "Hraninvest - Hranmashkomplekt"; "Sredna Gora" Furniture Enterprise; "Natalia" Hosiery Factory; "Zagore" Grain Mill; "Zagoria" Pasta Factory; "Biser Oliva" Sunflower Oil Factory; "Gradus" Poultry Factory, etc. In 2006, the international consortium "
Linde Group Linde is a global multinational chemical company and the world's largest industrial gas supplier by market share and revenue. Founded by German scientist and engineer Carl von Linde in 1879 in Wiesbaden, Germany, the company is now headquarter ...
" invested nearly EUR 10 million on the territory of "Agrobiochem", building a high-tech air separation station where oxygen, nitrogen and argon are extracted with high purity. Stara Zagora is the centre of the rich agricultural region of Zagore, famous for its wheat, production of various cereals, crops, vegetables, fruits, grapes. They serve for the food production and raw materials for the food industry. The Stara Zagora sheep has been used since 1950 as a rootstock in the creation of the Thracian thin-horned sheep. In March 2006, Stara Zagora started the construction of the Stara Zagora Business Park on an area of 260 acres in the eastern part of the city. Partial infrastructure was built, but due to the crisis its development was suspended.


Industry

In 2008, the first shopping mall - Park Mall Stara Zagora - opened its doors in Stara Zagora, located on 30 000 m2 of built-up area, of which 20 000 m2 are commercial. In the building there is a cinema "Arena" with 6 halls and a total of 950 seats, a three-dimensional cinema, a hypermarket "Jumbo", as well as other objects. 25 million euros have been invested in the mall and over 800 jobs have been created. In 2010 the largest shopping centre in Stara Zagora and the region - Galleria Stara Zagora - opened its doors. It is located on 36 400 m2 of built-up area, of which 26 000 m2 are commercial. In the building there is a cinema "Cinema City" with 7 halls and a total of 1,300 seats, a three-dimensional cinema, as well as more than 100 other objects. 65 million euros have been invested in the mall and over 500 jobs have been created. Stara Zagora City Centre has also been built, with an area (retail, offices and residential) of over 18,000 m2 spread over 5 levels and over 10,000 m2 of parking.


Transport

The city's geographical location makes connections with the rest of the country well developed. Stara Zagora is a major railway junction, through which pass the railway lines
Sofia Sofia 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 part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
-Stara Zagora-
Burgas Burgas (, ), sometimes transliterated as Bourgas, is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, fourth-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, an ...
and railway line 4 Ruse- Podkova (project for extension through the Makaza pass to
Alexandroupolis Alexandroupolis (, ) or Alexandroupoli (, ) is a city in Greece and the capital of the Evros (regional unit), Evros regional unit. It is the largest city in Greek Thrace and the region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, with a population of 71,75 ...
on the
Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...
)/Svilengrad. Stara Zagora Airport is located in the Kolyo Ganchev district and has a long runway suitable for large aircraft, but has not been operational since the early 1990s. Pan-European corridors VIII and IX, out of a total of five, cross the territory of the country. Since 2007, the
Trakia motorway The Trakia motorway (, ) or Thrace motorway, designated A1, is a motorway in Bulgaria. It connects the capital city of Sofia, the city of Plovdiv and the city of Burgas on the Black Sea coast. The motorway is named after the historical region of ...
runs a few kilometres south of the town. Bus links connect Stara Zagora with other major cities in Bulgaria. The trolleybus system is consisted of 4 routes, all being important for the urban transportation network in Stara Zagora. It first opened in November 1987 and has a stock of 28 trolleybuses. The other important factor for the transportation is the bus system, consisting of 34 bus lines.


Education

The foundations of higher education in Stara Zagora were laid on October 30, 1974.
Trakia University The Trakia University or Thrace University (, ''Trakiyski universitet'') is a Bulgarian university in the city of Stara Zagora. It was named after the historical region of Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical regio ...
, established in 1995, is located in the western part of the city. Its structure includes the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, the Faculty of Economics, the Faculty of Pedagogy and the Faculty of Agriculture.


Sports

PFC Beroe Stara Zagora Professional Football Club Beroe Stara Zagora, better known as just Beroe (), is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Stara Zagora, that competes in the Bulgarian First Professional League, First League, the top division o ...
is a football club in Stara Zagora. It was established in 1916 and plays at
Beroe Stadium Stadion Beroe (, ) (also nicknamed The Temple) is a multi-purpose stadium in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. It is located in the north-western part of the city, near the park Ayazmoto. Currently, the venue is used for football matches and athletic compet ...
. The team is a member of the
First Professional Football League The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...
. Beroe has won the
Bulgarian Cup The Bulgarian Cup () is a Bulgarian annual football competition. It is the country's main cup competition and all officially registered Bulgarian football teams take part in it. The tournament's format is ''single-elimination'', with all matche ...
two times (2009-2010 and 2012-2013).


Main sights

* Regional Historical Museum * The Antique Forum * Thracian Tomb * The Roman Baths * Roman mosaics of “Silenus with Bacchantes" (4th century) and of Dionysus's Procession * The Samarsko Zname Monument * Ayazmoto Park * Defenders of Stara Zagora Memorial Complex * Memorial House of
Geo Milev Geo Milev (born Georgi Milev Kasabov; – 15 May 1925) was a Bulgarian poet, translator, and journalist. He is perhaps best known for his epic poem ''Septemvri'', written during the Bulgarian September Uprising. Life Geo Milev was born Georgi ...
* The South Gate of Augusta Trajana * The
Opera House An opera house is a theater building used for performances of opera. Like many theaters, it usually includes a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, backstage facilities for costumes and building sets, as well as offices for the institut ...
, built in 1925 * Stara Zagora Transmitter with one of the few
Blaw-Knox Tower The Blaw-Knox company was an American manufacturer of steel structures and construction equipment based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company is today best known for its radio towers, most of which were constructed during the 1930s in the Un ...
s in Europe * Neolithic Dwellings Museum


Coat of arms

The coat of arms of Stara Zagora was created in 1979 for the 100th anniversary of the rebuilding of the town, when the municipality made a decision to create a new
coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
. The task of composing it was given to artist Hristo Tanev. (Another source states that it was adopted in 1996.) The symbolic meaning of the shield is to protect, defend and provide sanctuary. To emphasize this the upper edge of the shield is shaped like a castle wall. The central part, on a red background, depicts a mother lion suckling a lion cub. This image has been taken from a 12th-century rock carving found in Stara Zagora in 1949 which has become one of the city symbols. The lioness, representing the mother instinct, is placed in the central part of the shield, and has not only historical but symbolic meaning, to show that despite what the city has been through in the past thousands of year it still continues its existence and continues its progress. The lower part of the shield has a green background with golden-yellow stripes which converging towards the center. This represents the fertility of the town's fields and is also a symbol of roads to the future.


Districts

* Bedechka - Gradinski (''Бедечка - Градински'', named at river Bedechka) * Central City Part (includes Supercentre, Chayka & Zagorka) (''Централна градска част (Суперцентър, Чайка и Загорка)'' - Chayka -
Sea-gull Tianjin Seagull Watch Group () is a watchmaking company located in Tianjin, China. History The company was originally formed as Tianjin Watch Factory in January 1955 with four craftsmen on order of the People's Republic of China government. In 1 ...
, Zagorka - named after
Zagorka Zagorka is a Bulgarian beer brand from the city of Stara Zagora. It is brewed at the Zagorka Brewery. The company was founded in 1902, in the Czech tradition, by a doctor who returned from Prague. The current brewery was opened in 1958 and since ...
brewery) * Makedonski (''Македонски'' - Macedonian) know also as Chumleka (''Чумлека'') * Dabrava (''Дъбрава'' - former village of Dabrava) * Eastern Industrial Zone (''Източна индустриална зона'') * Geo Milev (''Гео Милев'' - named after the Bulgarian poet) * Golesh (''Голеш'') * Industrial Zone (''Индустриална Зона'') * Kazanski (''Казански'') * Kolyo Ganchev (''Кольо Ганчев'' - named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary) * Lozenets (''Лозенец'' - from ''лозе'' -
vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...
) * Mitropolit Metodiy Kusev (''Митрополит Методий Кусев'' - named after a famous Starozagorian bishop) * Opalchenski (''Опълченски'' - Volunteer's district named after Bulgarian voluntary army units) also known as Chaika (''Чайка'' - Sea-Gull) * Samara 1, 2 & 3 - (''Самара 1, 2 и 3'' - named after the sister city of
Samara, Russia Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 million resident ...
) * Slaveykov (''Славейков'' - named after the famous Bulgarian poet
Petko Slaveykov Petko Rachov Slaveykov () (17 November 1827 OS – 1 July 1895 OS ) was a Bulgarian poet, publicist, politician and folklorist. Biography Early years and educational activity Slaveykov was born in Tarnovo to the family of the coppersmith R ...
) * Studentski grad - (''Студентски град'' - Student town) * Tri Chuchura north, centre & south - (''Три чучура север, център и юг'' - "Three spouts") * Vasil Levski - (''Васил Левски'' - named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary) * Vazrazhdane - (''Възраждане'' - Renaissance) * Zheleznik (small & big) (''Железник'' - like one of the former names of the city) * Zora (''Зора'' - Dawn) Future districts : * Atyuren (''Атюрен'' - future district of the city) * Bogomilovo (''Богомилово'' - village of Bogomilovo) * Hrishteni (''Хрищени'' - village of Hrishteni) * Malka Vereya (''Малка Верея'' - Vereya - old name of the city, Malka - small, village of Malka Vereya)


Notable people

*
Anelia Aneliya Georgieva Atanasova (, born 1 July 1982), better known mononym, mononymously as Anelia (), is a Bulgarian chalga, pop-folk singer. She gained popularity in Bulgaria with her second single "Погледни ме в очите" (''Look ...
, singer *
Anna Tomowa-Sintow Anna Tomowa-Sintow (, by official transliteration ''Anna Tomova-Sintova''; born 22 September 1941, in Stara Zagora) is a Bulgarian soprano who has sung to great acclaim in all the major opera houses around the world in a repertoire that includes ...
, dramatic soprano opera singer *
Vesselina Kasarova Vesselina Kasarova (; born 18 July 1965) is a Bulgarian operatic mezzo-soprano. Early life and education Kasarova was born in the central Bulgarian town of Stara Zagora. Under the communist regime she studied Russian as a second language and had ...
, coloratura mezzo-soprano opera singer *
Edith Schönert-Geiß Edith Schönert-Geiß (7 August 1933, Dresden – 12 June 2012, Berlin) was a German numismatist, who specialised in the classical coinage of Thrace and was instrumental in the post-war re-establishment of the Corpus Nummorum. Biography Edith ...
, numismatist who was awarded Freedom of the City * Vesselin Stoykov, bass-bariton opera singer *
Stefan Kisyov Stefan Kisyov is a Bulgarian novelist, journalist, playwright and short story writer. Kisyov was born in Stara Zagora in 1963. He studied at Sofia and Plovdiv universities, and also at the Sorbonne in Paris. He has worked as an electrician at a t ...
, writer * Stefan Slivkov, revolutionary, mayor of Stara Zagora (1885-1886) and Bulgarian National Assemblyman *
Lenko Latkov Lenko Latkov (; 1975 – 13 September 2003) was a Bulgarian rapist, pedophile and serial killer, responsible for killing three elderly women in the Haskovo Province from 1999 to 2000, as well as several rapes. He was also suspected of another th ...
, serial killer


Other

* One of the two lighting factories Svetlina is situated here.


Twin towns and sister cities

Stara Zagora is twinned with: * Barreiro, Portugal *
Kruševac Kruševac ( sr-Cyrl, Крушевац, ) is a list of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Rasina District in central Serbia. It is located in the valley of West Morava, on Rasina (river), Rasina river. According to the 202 ...
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Radom Radom is a city in east-central Poland, located approximately south of the capital, Warsaw. It is situated on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship. Radom is the fifteenth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in its province w ...
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Larissa Larissa (; , , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 148,562 in the city proper, according to the 2021 census. It is also the capital of the Larissa ...
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Samara Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...
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Yueyang Yueyang, formerly known as Yuezhou or Yochow, is a prefecture-level city on the eastern shores of Dongting Lake and the Yangtze river in the northeastern corner of Hunan Province in the People's Republic of China. Yueyang has an administrative ...
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See also

* Stara Zagora Airport * Coat of arms of Stara Zagora * Kalvacha Airport * Trolleybuses in Stara Zagora * Stara Zagora street (
Samara Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...
)


References


External links


Stara Zagora Regional museum of history

Stara Zagora Tourist Information Centre

Stara Zagora Economic Development Agency

Maps, Population, Info & Facts about cities and villages in Stara Zagora municipality

Programata Stara Zagora — the free cultural guide of Stara Zagora

Information and links about Stara Zagora

Information from Visit Bulgaria



Real Photos from Stara Zagora

News and videos from Stara Zagora

Таблица на населението по настоящ адрес, възраст и пол - област БЛАГОЕВГРАД, община БАНСКО (ползват се само адресите, включени в избирателни
{{Authority control Populated places in Stara Zagora Province Archaeological sites in Bulgaria Roman sites in Bulgaria Roman towns and cities in Bulgaria 340s BC establishments