Smolyan () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and ski resort in the south 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 ...

near the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the

Smolyan Province Smolyan Province (, ''Oblast Smolyan''; former name Smolyan okrug) is a province in Southern-central Bulgaria, located in the Rhodope Mountains, neighbouring Greece to the south. It is named after its administrative and industrial centre — the ...

. The town is built along the narrow valley of the Cherna ('black') and the Byala ('white') river in the central

Rhodope Mountains The Rhodopes (; , ; , ''Rodopi''; ) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in Greece. Golyam Perelik is its highest peak ...

. It is located at the foot of the mountain's highest peak

Golyam Perelik Golyam Perelik ( ) is the highest peak in the Rhodope Mountains, situated 19 km to the west of Smolyan. It makes the Rhodopes the seventh highest Bulgarian mountain range after Rila, Pirin, Stara Planina, Vitosha, Osogovo and Slavyanka. Th ...

(2191 m). Popular ski resorts of

Pamporovo Pamporovo (, ''pronunciation'': /pam'porovo/) is a popular ski resort in Smolyan Province, southern Bulgaria. It is set amongst Norway spruce forests and is primarily visited during the winter for skiing and snowboarding. It is also a popular t ...

and

Chepelare Chepelare ( ) is the principal town in Chepelare Municipality, part of Smolyan Province in Southern Bulgaria. It is situated in the central part of the Rhodopes, on the banks of Chepelare River. Chepelare is a popular winter resort with one o ...

lie in the vicinity. As of June 2022 the town has a population of 30 689 inhabitants.

Name

The name of the town comes from the local Slavic tribe of the

Smolyani The Smolyani (; in Byzantine sources ''Smolenoi'' or ''Smoleanoi'') were a medieval Slavic tribe that settled in the Rhodope Mountains, the valley of the Mesta River and the region around Blagoevgrad Province, possibly in the 7th–8th century. T ...

, the name of whom is probably cognate to the Slavic word ''smola'' ("resin").

History

According to archaeological evidence, the area around Smolyan was first settled in the

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds, The Second, or (The) 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Minute and second of arc, ...

-1st millennium BC. In the Middle Ages it acquired its name from the

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 ...

tribe, the ''

'', who settled in the region in the 7th century. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, it was ruled by the Part of the

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

and Bulgarian Empires. For a while during the 14th century it came under the control of the Bulgarian feudal lord

Momchil Momchil (, , ; – 7 July 1345) was a 14th-century Bulgarians, Bulgarian brigand and local ruler. Initially a member of a bandit gang in the borderlands of Second Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Byzantine Empire, Byzantium and Serbian Empir ...

, alongside the whole

Rhodope mountains The Rhodopes (; , ; , ''Rodopi''; ) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in Greece. Golyam Perelik is its highest peak ...

, before eventually being subjugated by 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 ...

. During the Ottoman period the town was renamed to "Paşmaklı". It remained under

Ottoman rule The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an 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 Central Euro ...

for five centuries, a township of the Ottoman Sanjak of Gümülcine in the Adrianople Vilayet between 1867 and 1912. It remained a Muslim-majority town with a large Christian minority until 1912. The area was liberated by the 21st

Sredna Gora Sredna Gora ( ) is a mountain range in central Bulgaria, situated south of and parallel to the Balkan Mountains and extending from the river Iskar (river), Iskar to the west and the elbow of river Tundzha north of the city of Yambol to the east. ...

Regiment led by Vladimir Serafimov in 1912, during the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and involved actions of the Balkan League (the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Greece, Greece and Kingdom of Montenegro, Montenegro) agai ...

. However, the town retained its Ottoman-era name "Paşmaklı" until 1934, when it was changed to "Smolyan" by official decree. The modern town of Smolyan was formed by the merger of three existing villages — Ustovo, Raykovo and Ezerovo — in 1960.

Population

The population of Smolyan just after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

was about 5,000.България / Bălgarija
pop-stat.mashke.org 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 beginning of the 1990s, exceeding 34,000.
/ref>

Ethnic linguistic and religious composition

According to the latest 2011 census data, the individuals who declared their ethnic identity were distributed as follows:Population by province, municipality, settlement and ethnic identification, by 01.02.2011; Bulgarian National Statistical Institute
*

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, ...

: 25,045 (97.0%) *

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

: 258 (1.0%) *

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 ...

: 153 (0.6%) *Others: 120 (0.5%) *Indefinable: 248 (1.0%) **Undeclared: 4,818 (15.7%) Total: 30,642 In

Smolyan Municipality Smolyan () is a List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, town and ski resort in the south of Bulgaria near the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the Smolyan Province. The town is built along the narrow valley of t ...

32708 declared as Bulgarians, 301 as Roma and 170 as Turks, and 9,000 did not declare their ethnic group.

Culture and sports

Due to its suitable location on top of Mount Rozhen, the Bulgarian National Astronomical Observatory is located nearby, with a

planetarium A planetarium (: planetariums or planetaria) is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. A dominant feature of most planetariums is ...

in operation in the town. There is one theatre, the Rhodope Drama Theatre, and a gathering of theatre practitioners and scholars known as The Rhodopi International Theatre Laboratory is held every summer. There is also a regional historical museum founded in 1935. Smolyan has an elite division football team,

PFC Rodopa Smolyan FC Rodopa (ФК Родопа) is a Bulgarian football club (association football), football club based in Smolyan, which currently plays in the Third Amateur Football League (Bulgaria), South-East Third League, the third tier of Bulgarian footbal ...

, that had been playing in the A Professional Football Group between 2003-2007. The largest church in southern Bulgaria, the Cathedral of Saint Vissarion of Smolyan, was inaugurated in the city in July 2006.

Municipality

Smolyan is also the seat of Smolyan municipality (part of Smolyan Province), which includes the following 79 villages: *

Aligovska Aligovska () is a village in Smolyan Municipality, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. It is located 174.91 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of ...

Arda Arda or ARDA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Arda (Middle-earth), fictional world in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien * Arda (band), a Russian heavy metal band People * Arda (name) Places *Arda (Maritsa), a river in Bulgaria and Greece *A ...

Belev dol Belev dol () is a village in Smolyan Municipality, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village covers an area of 3.764 km2 and is located 178.3 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of c ...

Bilyanska Bilyanska () is a village in Smolyan Municipality, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village is located 174.093 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, large ...

* Borikovo *

Bostina Bostina () is a village in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village covers an area of 4.77 km2 and is located 168.3 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List ...

* Bukata * Bukatsite *

Chamla Chamla () is an abandoned village in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village is located 150.9 km from Sofia. Geography Chamla is formally the highest village in Bulgaria, even thoug ...

Chepleten Chepleten () is a village in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village covers an area of 6.76 km2 and is located 179.63 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and Li ...

Chereshkite Chereshkite () is a village in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village is located 167.965 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgari ...

* Chereshovo *

Chereshovska Reka Chereshovska Reka () is a village in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village is located from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest ...

Chokmanovo Chokmanovo () is a village in the municipality of Smolyan, in the Arda valley of the Rhodopi Mountain range. It is 11 km south of the town of Smolyan and 30 km from the ski resort of Pamporovo. The region is very sunny, and the village ...

Chuchur Chuchur () is a hamlet in the municipality of Smolyan, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. The village is located 177.9 km from Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, larges ...

Dimovo Dimovo ( ) is a town in northwestern Bulgaria, part of Vidin Province. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Dimovo Municipality, which lies in the eastern part of Vidin Province, from Vidin at the Danube and from Bregovo at the Tim ...

* Dunevo * Elenska * Elyovo * Fatovo * Gabritsa *

Gela Gela (Sicilian and ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the regional autonomy, Autonomous Region of Sicily, Italy; in terms of area and population, it is the largest municipality on the southern coast of Sicily. Gela is part of the Province o ...

* Gozdevitsa * Gorna Arda * Gorovo * Gradat * Gudevitsa * Hasovitsa * Isyovtsi * Katranitsa * Kiselichevo * Kokorkovo * Koshnitsa * Kremene * Kukuvitsa * Kutela *

Laka In Hawaiian mythology, Laka is the name of two different popular heroes from Polynesian mythology. (In other parts of Polynesia they are known as Rātā, Rata, Lata, Ata, or Lasa). In one Hawaiian legend, Laka is the daughter of the '' Ali'i ...

* Levochevo * Lipets *

Lyulka Lyulka was a USSR aero engine design bureau and manufacturer from 1938 to the 1990s, when manufacturing and design elements were integrated as NPO Saturn based at Rybinsk. The Lyulka design bureau had its roots in the " Kharkiv Aviation Institute ...

* Milkovo *

Mogilitsa Mogilitsa (; also ''Mogilitza'', ''Mogilica'', meaning "hillock") is a village in the Rhodope Mountains in southernmost Bulgaria, part of Smolyan municipality, Smolyan Province. As of September 2005, it has a population of 483. Mogilitsa lies at , ...

* Momchilovtsi * Mugla * Nadartsi * Oreshitsa * Ostri Pazlak * Petkovo *

Peshtera Peshtera ( , sometimes transliterated as ''Peštera'') is a town in the Rhodope Mountains, southern Bulgaria. It is located in Pazardzhik Province near the towns of Batak and Bratsigovo. The town is the third largest in the province after Paza ...

* Pisanitsa * Podvis * Polkovnik Serafimovo * Poprelka * Potoka * Rechani *

Reka Reka may refer to: Places * Řeka, a village in the Czech Republic * Reka, Cerkno, a village near Cerkno, Slovenia * Reka, Laško, a village near Laško, Slovenia * Reka (Kladovo), a village near Kladovo, Serbia * Reka, Koprivnica, a village n ...

* Rovina * Selishte *

Shiroka Laka Shiroka Laka ( ) is a village in the very south of Bulgaria, located in Smolyan municipality, Smolyan Province. It is a proclaimed architectural and folklore reserve and lies in the central Rhodope Mountains, 23 km (14 mi) northwest of Smolyan, 16 ...

* Sivino * Slaveyno *

Smilyan Smilyan ( Bulgarian: Смилян) is a village in Smolyan Municipality, located in the Smolyan Province of southern Bulgaria. It is located 176.862 km from Sofia and the village covers an area of 29.248 km2. As of 2019, the village had a pop ...

* Sokolovtsi * Solishta * Sredok * Stikal * Stoykite * Sarnino * Strazha * Taran * Tikale * Trebishte *

Turyan The Turyan (), also called Turyanchay () is a river of Azerbaijan. It flows through Qabala and Goychay raions. It is long, and has a drainage basin. Overview The Turyanchay starts off at Ragdan peak which is located on the boundary of Qabala ...

Uhlovitsa Uhlovitsa () is a show cave in the Blue Pools Area (Bulgarian: Mестността „Сините вирове“, or ''Mestnostta "Sinite virove"'') in the Smolyan Province of the Rhodope Mountains, southern Bulgaria. The cave is close to Mogil ...

* * Varbovo *

Vievo Vievo is a village in the Rhodope Mountains in the Smolyan Province of Bulgaria. History During the First Balkan War, the village was set on fire by the local Bulgarian militia to ethnically cleanse the Muslim population from the region. The r ...

* Vlahovo * Zaevite * Zmievo

Geography

Climate

Smolyan has a dry-

warm-summer humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

: Dsb), featuring warm, dry summers and cold, snowy winters.

Honour

Smolyan Point Smolyan Point (Nos Smolyan \'nos 'smo-lyan\) is located on the north-western coast of South Bay, Livingston Island, South Bay, Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica forming the northwest side of the entrance to Emona Ancho ...

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 ...

in the

South Shetland Islands The South Shetland Islands are a group of List of Antarctic and subantarctic islands, Antarctic islands located in the Drake Passage with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the n ...

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

is named after Smolyan.

Notable people

Valya Balkanska Valya Mladenova Balkanska (; born 8 January 1942) is a Bulgarian folk music singer from the Rhodope Mountains known locally for her wide repertoire of Balkan folk songs, but in the West mainly for singing the song " Izlel ye Delyo Haydutin", par ...

Victor Houteff Victor Tasho Houteff ( Bulgarian; Виктор Ташо Хутев; March 2, 1885 – February 5, 1955) was a Bulgarian-American religious leader who was the founder of the Davidian Seventh-day Adventist organization, known as The Shepherd's R ...

, founder of the Davidian branch, an offshoot of the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...

. * Velichko Cholakov *

Daniil of Bulgaria Patriarch Daniil or Daniel (; secular name: Atanas Trendafilov Nikolov; ; born 2 March 1972) is a prelate of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, currently serving as Patriarch of All Bulgaria since June 2024. Prior to his election, he was the Metropol ...

Gallery

File:Смолян Райково 2713784204 3519c6e659 o.jpg File:Смолян Технически Колеж 2727441793 76680bdefa o.jpg File:Смолян Невястата 2702326413 a0331a0230 o.jpg File:Смолян Стенопис 1 2827787856 aae5a15ff2 o.jpg File:Смолян 2695825013 82452c9437 o.jpg File:Смолян 2691396959 f63b323fab o.jpg File:Смолян Райково 2724872359 21527b973c o.jpg File:Смолян Устово 2851700364 587e738628 o.jpg File:Kaptaja.jpg File:Stanevska.jpg File:Ustovo.jpg File:Historical-museum-smolian.jpg

References

External links

Smolyan municipality website

Smolyan municipality at Domino.bg

Planetarium Smolyan

Official website of village of "Kutela"
{{Authority control Cities and towns in the Rhodopes Populated places in Smolyan Province