The Republic of Bulgaria is a country in central Europe with a total area of 110,910 km2. The climate is temperate with cold, damp winters and hot, dry summers. The terrain is mostly mountains with lowlands in north and south. Natural resources are bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber and arable land. The religion is religious background of population is 85% Bulgarian Orthodox, 13% Muslim, 0.8% Jewish, 0.7% Roman Catholic, 0.5% Protestant, Gregorian-Armenian, and other. The language is Bulgarian; secondary languages spoken closely correspond to the ethnic breakdown. Part of the Ottoman empire, in 1878 Bulgaria became a principality and in 1908 an independent kingdom. In 1946 the monarchy was abolished and a Soviet style constitution adopted. In 1990 the communist rule collapsed and Bulgaria became a republic. Research Bulgaria
Abbreviations
Gazetteer
Research Bulgaria