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 Macedo ...
and the administrative and economic capital of
Shumen Province
Shumen Province ( bg, Област Шумен, transliterated ''Oblast Shumen'', former name Shumen okrug) is a province in northeastern Bulgaria named after its main city Shumen. It is divided into 10 municipalities with a total population, as ...
.
Etymology
The city was first mentioned as ''Šimeonis'' in 1153 by the
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
traveler
Idrisi
TerrSet (formerly IDRISI) is an integrated geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing software developed by Clark Labs at Clark University for the analysis and display of digital geospatial information. TerrSet is a PC grid-based syste ...
. The name is probably from Bulgarian ''shuma'' '(deciduous forest).' Some believe Konstantin Jireček that it comes from the name of the Bulgarian emperor
Simeon the Great
Tsar Simeon (also Symeon) I the Great ( cu, цѣсар҄ь Сѷмеѡ́нъ А҃ Вели́къ, cěsarĭ Sỳmeonŭ prĭvŭ Velikŭ bg, цар Симеон I Велики, Simeon I Veliki el, Συμεών Αʹ ὁ Μέγας, Sumeṓn prôto ...
. In the following periods, the city was mentioned with variants, such as ''Şumena'', ''Şumna'', ''Şumular'', ''Sumunum'', ''Şumnu'' and ''Şumen''. The eleventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica lists it as ''Shumla'', similar to the way it lists Pleven as Plevna.
History
Antiquity and the Middle Ages
Earliest reports for
Shumen fortress
''Shumenska krepost''
, location = Shumеn, Bulgaria
, image =
, caption = The main tower of the Shumen fortress
, map_type = Bulgaria
, coordinates =
, map_size = 250
, type ...
date back to the early
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...
. From the 12th century BC is the first fort, surrounding accessible parts of the area. Archaeological surveys, conducted in 1957, 1961 to 1987, determined the chronological periods, the lifestyle and the livelihood of the inhabitants of the fortress. It had a wall thickness of about two meters, built of rough stones. In the 5th century BC a second wall was built in front of the former.
In the 2nd century the
Romans
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 ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
built a military fortress on the ruins of the
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 ...
fortifications. The construction of the wall is already bonded to mortar; a tower was constructed above the gate; square tower was built to the west and semicircular to the south. In the 4-5th centuries the entire hill was fortified with a new wall with nine towers. Between the 8th and the 10th century the fort was renovated, for the purpose the Roman wall and towers were used and to the northeast was built a new wall with two towers.
In 681 khan
Asparukh
Asparuh (also ''Ispor''; bg, Аспарух, Asparuh or (rarely) bg, Исперих, Isperih) was а ruler of Bulgars in the second half of the 7th century and is credited with the establishment of the First Bulgarian Empire in 681.
Early life
...
incorporated the territory into the First Bulgarian Empire. In 811 Shumen was burned by the
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
Krum of Bulgaria
Krum ( bg, Крум, el, Κροῦμος/Kroumos), often referred to as Krum the Fearsome ( bg, Крум Страшни) was the Khan of Bulgaria from sometime between 796 and 803 until his death in 814. During his reign the Bulgarian territor ...
encased Nicephorus's skull in silver and used it as a cup for wine drinking. The Bulgarian fortification of the 7-10th centuries developed into a feudal city with a castle with surrounding inner and outer defensive zones, in which can be counted 28 towers and bastions, three gates and five small porticoes, and many churches and workshops (12th to 14th century). During the golden age of Bulgarian culture under
Simeon the Great
Tsar Simeon (also Symeon) I the Great ( cu, цѣсар҄ь Сѷмеѡ́нъ А҃ Вели́къ, cěsarĭ Sỳmeonŭ prĭvŭ Velikŭ bg, цар Симеон I Велики, Simeon I Veliki el, Συμεών Αʹ ὁ Μέγας, Sumeṓn prôto ...
(893-927), Shumen was a centre of cultural and religious activity, and may have borne the name ''Simeonis''.
During the Second Bulgarian Empire, Shumen was a significant military, administrative and economic center, displacing the old Bulgarian capital
Preslav
The modern Veliki Preslav or Great Preslav ( bg, Велики Преслав, ), former Preslav ( bg, link=no, Преслав; until 1993), is a city and the seat of government of the Veliki Preslav Municipality (Great Preslav Municipality, new ...
and developing outside the fortress. In the medieval city of Shumen the main religion was the
Orthodox Christianity
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Chur ...
, evidence of which were the found in the outline of the walls, seven churches, commemorative coins with the image of crosses, angels, and numerous findings of Orthodox crosses separately, as well as their image on rings and on other artefacts, found in the graves and the homes. Change occurs only after the Ottoman conquest of the city in the 15th century, when Islam was introduced.
Ottoman Empire
In 1388 the sultan
Murad I
Murad I ( ota, مراد اول; tr, I. Murad, Murad-ı Hüdavendigâr (nicknamed ''Hüdavendigâr'', from fa, خداوندگار, translit=Khodāvandgār, lit=the devotee of God – meaning "sovereign" in this context); 29 June 1326 – 15 Jun ...
forced it to surrender to the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
. After
Władysław Warneńczyk Władysław is a Polish given male name, cognate with Vladislav. The feminine form is Władysława, archaic forms are Włodzisław (male) and Włodzisława (female), and Wladislaw is a variation. These names may refer to:
Famous people Mononym
* W ...
's unsuccessful crusade in 1444, the city was destroyed by the Ottomans and moved to its present location. In the 18th century it was enlarged and fortified. Three times (1774, 1810 and 1828) it was unsuccessfully attacked by Russian armies. The Turks consequently gave it the name of ''Gazi'' ("Victorious"). In 1854 it was the headquarters of
Omar Pasha
Omer Pasha, also known as Omer Pasha Latas ( tr, Ömer Lütfi Paşa, sr, Омер-паша Латас, Omer-paša Latas; 24 September 1806 – 18 April 1871) was an Ottoman field marshal and governor. Born in Austrian territory to Serbian Or ...
and the point at which the Turkish army concentrated (see
Crimean War
The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia.
Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
). Many Turks were settled in the area during the Ottoman period to spread the Islamic faith among the Slavic Bulgarian Christians and many Muslim Turkic men married Bulgarian women and converted them to Islam during the period .
Bulgarian National Revival
During the 19th century, Shumen was an important centre of the
Bulgarian National Revival
The Bulgarian National Revival ( bg, Българско национално възраждане, ''Balgarsko natsionalno vazrazhdane'' or simply: Възраждане, ''Vazrazhdane'', and tr, Bulgar ulus canlanması) sometimes called the Bu ...
, with the first celebration of
Cyril and Methodius
Cyril (born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (815–885) were two brothers and Byzantine Christian theologians and missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs, they are known as the "Apostles to the Slavs".
They are credited wit ...
in the Bulgarian lands taking place on 11 May 1813 and the first theatre performance. A girls' religious school was established in 1828; a class school for girls and a ''
chitalishte
A ''chitalishte'' (, . Derives from the verb "чета" - "to read" or "читател" - "reader") is a typical Bulgarian public institution and building that fulfills several functions at once, such as a community centre, library, and a theat ...
'' (community centre) followed in 1856. The first Bulgarian symphony orchestra was founded in the city in 1850. In the same year, influential Hungarian politician and revolutionary leader Lajos Kossuth spent a part of his exile in the then- Ottoman town of Shumen. The house he lived in is preserved as a museum.
Kingdom of Bulgaria
On 22 June 1878 Shumen finally capitulated to the Russians and became part of the newly independent
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 Macedo ...
. In 1882 the Shumen Brewery, the first brewery in Bulgaria, was founded.
People's Republic of Bulgaria
In the period 1950–1965 the city was called ''Kolarovgrad'', after the name of the communist leader
Vasil Kolarov
Vasil Petrov Kolarov ( bg, Васил Петров Коларов; 16 July 1877 – 23 January 1950) was a Bulgarian communist political leader and leading functionary in the Communist International (Comintern).
Biography Early years
Kolarov wa ...
.
Geography
The city lies west of Varna and is built within a cluster of hills, northern outliers of the eastern Balkans, which curve around it on the west and south in the shape of a horseshoe. A rugged ravine intersects the ground longitudinally in the horseshoe ridge.
From Shumen roads radiate northwards to the Danubian cities of
Rousse
Ruse (also transliterated as Rousse, Russe; bg, Русе ) is the fifth largest city in Bulgaria. Ruse is in the northeastern part of the country, on the right bank of the Danube, opposite the Romanian city of Giurgiu, approximately south of ...
Dobruja
Dobruja or Dobrudja (; bg, Добруджа, Dobrudzha or ''Dobrudža''; ro, Dobrogea, or ; tr, Dobruca) is a historical region in the Balkans that has been divided since the 19th century between the territories of Bulgaria and Romania. I ...
, southwards to the passes of the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
, and eastwards to Varna and
Balchik
Balchik ( bg, Балчик ; ro, Balcic) is a Black Sea coastal town and seaside resort in the Southern Dobruja area of northeastern Bulgaria. It is in Dobrich Province, 35 km southeast of Dobrich and 42 km northeast of Varna. It spr ...
.
Population
In January 2012, Shumen was inhabited by 80 511 people in the city limits, while the
Shumen Municipality
Shumen Municipality ( bg, Община Шумен) is a municipality ('' obshtina'') in Shumen Province, Northeastern Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative centre - the city of Shumen which is also the capital of the province.
The munici ...
with the legally affiliated adjacent villages had 93 160 inhabitants.National Statistical Institute - 2012 The following table presents the change of the population after 1887. The number of the residents of the city (not the municipality) reached its peak in the period 1990-1991 when it exceeded 110,000.
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Bulgarians
Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe.
Etymology
Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...
: 61,584
*
Turks
Turk or Turks may refer to:
Communities and ethnic groups
* Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages
* Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
* Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
: 10,029
*
Romani
Romani may refer to:
Ethnicities
* Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia
** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule
* Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...
Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
, with a significant portion of Muslims and much smaller minorities of other religions.
In the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Shumen is a part of the
Eparchy
Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on the ...
(diocese) of Varna and Veliki Preslav and the capital of the Shumen church district ( okolia). There are two major Orthodox temples in the city, the Church of the Holy Ascension (est. 1829) and the Church of the
Three Holy Hierarchs
The Three Hierarchs ( grc, Οἱ Τρεῖς Ἱεράρχαι; ell, Οι Τρεις Ιεράρχες) of Eastern Christianity refers to Basil the Great (also known as Basil of Caesarea), Gregory the Theologian (also known as Gregory of Nazian ...
(est. 1857), and a few chapels.
In Shumen is located the largest
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
in Bulgaria and the second largest in the Balkans, the Sherif Halil Pasha Mosque, more commonly known as the Tombul (or Tumbul) Mosque, built between 1740 and 1744.
Vasil Levski National Military University
, mottoeng =
, established = 26 November 1878
, endowment =
, rector = Brigadier-General Ivan Georgiev Malamov
, vice_chancellor =
, city = Veliko Tarnovo
, state =
, country = Bulgaria
, students =
, undergrad =
, postgrad =
, other =
, ...
and the Affiliate of Medical University of Varna are the higher education establishments in the city. The former operates a small astronomical observatory.
Sports
FC Shumen 1929 was the local football club since 2013 and the financial failure of
PFC Shumen 2010
Football Club Volov 1929 Shumen ( bg, Футболен Клуб Волов 1929 Шумен) is a Bulgarian football club, playing in the city of Shumen, which currently competes in the North-East Third League. The club was established in 1929 un ...
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
,
volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...
and handball are also represented, and most of the games are held at the 'Mladost' sports centre and Arena Shumen, the 2,300-seater indoor hall opened in 2018.
Other sporting activities include martial arts (mostly karate) and horse racing. Shumen has its own rallying tournament, the 'Stari Stolitsi'.
Climate
Main sights
Shumen boasts the Monument to 1300 Years of Bulgaria, regarded as the only monument in the world to depict the history of a whole country from its creation to the present day.
The Shumen Fortress, partially restored after being destroyed by the Ottomans, is an important historical monument of the medieval Bulgarian Empire. It is not far from the city on the Shumen Plateau.
The Regional Historical Museum, which is a successor of the Archaeological Society created in Shumen in 1904 by Rafail Popov.
The
Madara Horseman
The Madara Rider or Madara Horseman ( bg, Мадарски конник, ''Madarski konnik'') is an early medieval large rock relief carved on the Madara Plateau east of Shumen in northeastern Bulgaria, near the village of Madara. The monument i ...
, a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
and the only such example of medieval rock art in Europe, is an ancient (710 AD) monument usually attributed to the Bulgar culture. It lies some from Shumen.
The religious buildings in the city include the
Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or " canonical ...
Holy Three Saints Cathedral and Holy Ascension Basilica, as well as the Sherif Halil Pasha mosque (also known as the Tombul Mosque), the largest mosque in Bulgaria and one of the largest in the Balkans, serving Shumen and the region's Muslim minority.
Kurşun çeşme is a fountain built in 1774 built in the times of Ottoman Empire.
People
* Maxim Behar (born 1955), public relations expert
*
Hacho Boyadzhiev Hacho Kirilov Boyadzhiev ( bg, Хачо Кирилов Бояджиев; 20 January 1932 – 23 April 2012) was a Bulgarian television and film director.
He was probably best known as the director of the popular TV musical ''The Phoney Civiliz ...
(1932–2012), film director
*
Stoyan Danev
Stoyan Petrov Danev ( bg, Стоян Петров Данев) (28 January 1858, in Şumnu, Ottoman Empire (today Shumen) – 30 July 1949) was a leading Bulgarian liberal politician and twice Prime Minister.
A legal graduate of both the Univ ...
(1858–1949), politician, twice prime minister of Bulgaria
*
Ivan Dochev
Ivan Dimitrov Dochev ( bg, Иван Димитров Дочев) (7 January 1906 – 14 May 2005) was a Bulgarian far-right politician active either side of the Second World War.
Early years
Born in Shumen the son of an army colonel, Dochev worked ...
Vasil Kolarov
Vasil Petrov Kolarov ( bg, Васил Петров Коларов; 16 July 1877 – 23 January 1950) was a Bulgarian communist political leader and leading functionary in the Communist International (Comintern).
Biography Early years
Kolarov wa ...
(1877–1950), politician, Communist leader
* Todor Kolev (1939–2013), actor
*
Racho Petrov
Racho Petrov Stoyanov ( bg, Рачо Петров Стоянов) (3 March 1861 – 22 January 1942) was a leading Bulgarian general and politician.
Petrov was born in Shumen. A talented soldier, he was appointed Chief of General Staff at ...
(1861–1942), a leading Bulgarian general and politician
*
Ahmet Fikri Tüzer
Ahmet Fikri Tüzer (1878, Şumnu, Ottoman Empire, today Shumen in Bulgaria – 16 August 1942, Ankara) was a Turkish politician, who was a member of the Republican People's Party and the acting Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey
...
(1878–1942), Prime Minister of Turkey for one day (8–9 July 1942), born in what was then Şumnu
*
Slavena Vatova
Slavena Vatova ( bg, Славена Вътова, born 1989) is a Bulgarian model who won the title of Miss Bulgaria in 2006.
In 2005, Slavena won the Miss Black Sea contest and a year later in 2006 she was selected as Miss Bulgaria. She repres ...
Pancho Vladigerov
Pancho Haralanov Vladigerov (or Wladigeroff, Wladigerow, Vladiguerov, Vladigueroff; bg, Панчо Хараланов Владигеров ; 13 March 18998 September 1978) was a Bulgarian composer, pedagogue, and pianist.
Vladigerov is arguably ...
(1899–1978), composer, pedagogue and pianist
*
Panayot Volov
Panayot Volov ( bg, Панайот Волов; c.1850 – 26 May 1876), also known under pseudonym Petar Vankov ( bg, Петър Ванков)), was the organizer and leader of the Gyurgevo Revolutionary Committee of the Bulgarian April Uprising ...
(1850-1876), organizer and leader of the Gyurgevo Revolutionary Committee of the Bulgarian April Uprising against the Ottoman Empire in 1876
*
Dobri Voynikov
Dobri Popov Voynikov ( bg, Добри Попов Войников; 10 November 1833 – 27 March 1878) was a Bulgarian teacher, playwright and journalist of the Bulgarian National Revival. He is regarded as the father of modern Bulgarian theat ...
(1833–1878), writer and enlightener
* Nadezhda Panayotova, voice actress and singer
*
Toni Storaro
Toni Storaro ( bg, Тони Стораро; born Tuncher Fikret Ali, bg, Тунчер Фикрет Али, tr, Tunçer Fikret Ali; on 2 August 1976)twinned with:
Honour
Shumen Peak
Shumen Peak ( bg, връх Шумен, vrah Shumen, ) rises to 770 m in Friesland Ridge, Tangra Mountains, Livingston Island, Antarctica and surmounts Charity Glacier to the west, Tarnovo Ice Piedmont to the south, and Prespa Glacier to the sout ...
on
Livingston Island
Livingston Island (Russian name ''Smolensk'', ) is an Antarctic island in the Southern Ocean, part of the South Shetlands Archipelago, a group of Antarctic islands north of the Antarctic Peninsula. It was the first land discovered south of 60 ...
in the
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands with a total area of . They lie about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, and between southwest of the nearest point of the South Orkney Islands. By the Antarctic Treaty of 1 ...
,
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 cont ...
is named after Shumen. The tails of the Bulgarian currency
lev
Lev may refer to:
Common uses
*Bulgarian lev, the currency of Bulgaria
*an abbreviation for Leviticus, the third book of the Hebrew Bible and the Torah
People and fictional characters
*Lev (given name)
*Lev (surname)
Places
*Lev, Azerbaijan, a ...
are the same as the seal of Shumen, showing the
Madara Rider
The Madara Rider or Madara Horseman ( bg, Мадарски конник, ''Madarski konnik'') is an early medieval large rock relief carved on the Madara Plateau east of Shumen in northeastern Bulgaria, near the village of Madara. The monument i ...