The provinces of Bulgaria ( bg, области на България, oblasti na Bǎlgarija) are the first-level administrative subdivisions of the country. Since 1999,

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 ...

has been divided into 28 provinces ( bg, области, links=no – ''oblasti;'' singular: – ''

oblast An oblast (; ; Cyrillic (in most languages, including Russian and Ukrainian): , Bulgarian: ) is a type of administrative division of Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Ukraine, as well as the Soviet Union and the Kingdo ...

''; also translated as "regions") which correspond approximately to the 28 districts (in bg, links=no, окръг – '' okrǎg'', plural: – ''okrǎzi''), that existed before 1987. The provinces are further subdivided into 265 municipalities (singular: – '' obshtina'', plural: – ''obshtini'').

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and h ...

– the capital city of Bulgaria and the largest settlement in the country – is the administrative centre of both

Sofia Province Sofia Province ( bg, Софийска област, translit=Sofiyska oblast) is a province (''oblast'') of Bulgaria. The province does not include Sofia in its territories, but Sofia remains its administrative center. The province borders on t ...

and

Sofia City Province Sofia City Province ( bg, Област София-град, translit=Oblast Sofiya-grad) is a province (''oblast'') of Bulgaria. Its administrative center is the city of Sofia, the capital of the country. The province borders on Sofia Provin ...

(Sofia- grad). The capital is included (together with three other cities plus 34 villages) in

Sofia Capital Municipality The Stolichna Municipality ( bg, Столична община, lit=Capital Municipality, translit=Stolichna obshtina (also transcribed as Stolična obština)) is an obshtina (''municipality'') in Sofia City Province, Western Bulgaria. It is named ...

(over 90% of whose population lives in Sofia), which is the sole municipality comprising Sofia City province.

Terminology

The provinces do not have official names – legally (in the President's decree on their constitution), they are not named but only described as "oblast with administrative centre oun – together with a list of the constituting municipalities. In Bulgaria they are usually called " djectiveOblast"; occasionally they are referred to as "Oblast oun and rarely as "oblast with administrative centre oun. The Bulgarian term "област" (''oblast'') is preferably translated into English as "province", in order to avoid disambiguation and distinguish from the former unit called "окръг" (''okrag'', translated as "district") and the term "регион" (always translated as "region"). At any rate, "district" and "region" are sometimes still used to name these contemporary 28 units. * "region": "28 regions (en) / région (fr) / oblast (bg)" – in ISO 3166-2 Newsletter II-3 (2011-12-13, corrected 2011-12-15) * "district": "The territory of the South Central Region encompasses five districts – Pazardzhik, Plovdiv, Smolyan, Haskovo, and Kyrdzhali." – in a website of the European Commission.

Provinces

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Municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

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Region , - , align="left",

Blagoevgrad Blagoevgrad ( bg, Благоевград ) is а town in Southwestern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Blagoevgrad Municipality and of Blagoevgrad Province. With a population of almost inhabitants, it is the economic and cultural centre ...

, , 341,173 , , 323,552 , , −5.2% , , 6,449.47 , , 50.17 , , 14 , , South Western , align="left",

Burgas Burgas ( bg, Бургас, ), sometimes transliterated as ''Bourgas'', is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the fourth-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, and Varna, with a pop ...

, , 423,547 , , 415,817 , , −1.8% , , 7,748.07 , , 54.58 , , 13 , , South Eastern , align="left",

Dobrich Dobrich ( bg, Добрич ; ro, Bazargic, tr, Hacıoğlu Pazarcık) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, 9th most populated city in Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Dobrich Province and the capital of the region of Southern Dobr ...

, , 215,217 , , 189,677 , , −11.9% , , 4,719.71 , , 40.36 , , 8 , , North Eastern , align="left",

Gabrovo Gabrovo ( bg, Габрово ) is a town in central northern Bulgaria, the administrative centre of Gabrovo Province. It is situated at the foot of the central Balkan Mountains, in the valley of the Yantra River, and is known as an internat ...

, , 144,125 , , 122,702 , , −14.9% , , 2,023.01 , , 59.77 , , 4 , , North Central , align="left",

Haskovo Haskovo ( bg, Хасково ) is a city in the region of Northern Thrace in southern Bulgaria and the administrative centre of the Haskovo Province, not far from the borders with Greece and Turkey. According to Operative Program Regional Develo ...

, , 277,478 , , 246,238 , , −11.3% , , 5,533.29 , , 61.06 , , 11 , , South Central , align="left",

Kardzhali Kardzhali ( bg, Кърджали , ''Kărdžali''; tr, Kırcaali; gr, Κάρτζαλι, ''Kártzali''), sometimes spelt Kardžali or Kurdzhali, is a town in the Eastern Rhodopes in Bulgaria, centre of Kardzhali Municipality and Kardzhali Pro ...

, , 164,019 , , 152,808 , , −6.8% , , 3,209.11 , , 37.90 , , 7 , , South Central , align="left",

Kyustendil Kyustendil ( bg, Кюстендил ) is a town in the far west of Bulgaria, the capital of the Kyustendil Province, a former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see. The town is situated in the southern part of the Kyustendil Valley, ...

, , 162,534 , , 136,686 , , −15.9% , , 3,051.52 , , 45.16 , , 9 , , South Western , align="left",

Lovech Lovech ( bg, Ловеч, Lovech, ) is a city in north-central Bulgaria. It is the administrative centre of the Lovech Province and of the subordinate Lovech Municipality. The city is located about northeast from the capital city of Sofia. Near ...

, , 169,951 , , 141,422 , , −16.8% , , 4,128.76 , , 34.21 , , 8 , , North Western , align="left",

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

, , 182,258 , , 148,098 , , −18.7% , , 3,635.38 , , 41.20 , , 11 , , North Western , align="left",

Pazardzhik Pazardzhik ( bg, Пазарджик ) is a city situated along the banks of the Maritsa river, southern Bulgaria. It is the capital of Pazardzhik Province and centre for the homonymous Pazardzhik Municipality. The Tatars founded Pazardzhik i ...

, , 310,723 , , 275,548 , , −11.3% , , 4,456.92 , , 62.72 , , 12 , , South Central , align="left",

Pernik Pernik ( bg, Перник ) is a town in western Bulgaria (about south-west of Sofia) with a population of 70,285 . Pernik is the most populated town in western Bulgaria after Sofia. It is the main town of Pernik Province and lies on both bank ...

, , 149,832 , , 133,530 , , −10.9% , , 2,394.22 , , 56.18 , , 6 , , South Western , align="left",

Pleven Pleven ( bg, Плèвен ) is the seventh most populous city in Bulgaria. Located in the northern part of the country, it is the administrative centre of Pleven Province, as well as of the subordinate Pleven municipality. It is the biggest ...

, , 311,985 , , 269,752 , , −13.5% , , 4,653.32 , , 63.98 , , 11 , , North Western , align="left",

Plovdiv Plovdiv ( bg, Пловдив, ), is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, standing on the banks of the Maritsa river in the historical region of Thrace. It has a population of 346,893 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is the ...

, , 715,816 , , 683,027 , , −4.6% , , 5,972.89 , , 114.35 , , 18 , , South Central , align="left", Razgrad , , 152,417 , , 125,190 , , −17.9% , , 2,639.74 , , 47.28 , , 7 , , North Central , align="left",

Ruse Ruse may refer to: Places *Ruse, Bulgaria, a major city of Bulgaria **Ruse Municipality **Ruse Province ** 19th MMC – Ruse, a constituency *Ruše, a town and municipality in north-eastern Slovenia * Ruše, Žalec, a small settlement in east-cen ...

, , 266,157 , , 235,252 , , −11.6% , , 2,803.36 , , 89.93 , , 8 , , North Central , align="left",

Shumen Shumen ( bg, Шумен, also romanized as ''Shoumen'' or ''Šumen'', ) is the tenth largest city in Bulgaria and the administrative and economic capital of Shumen Province. Etymology The city was first mentioned as ''Šimeonis'' in 1153 by t ...

, , 204,378 , , 180,528 , , −11.7% , , 3,389.68 , , 53.65 , , 10 , , North Eastern , align="left",

Silistra Silistra ( bg, Силистра ; tr, Silistre; ro, Silistra) is a town in Northeastern Bulgaria. The town lies on the southern bank of the lower Danube river, and is also the part of the Romanian border where it stops following the Danube. Si ...

, , 142,000 , , 119,474 , , −15.9% , , 2,846.29 , , 41.74 , , 7 , , North Central , align="left",

Sliven Sliven ( bg, Сливен ) is the eighth-largest city in Bulgaria and the administrative and industrial centre of Sliven Province and municipality in Northern Thrace. Sliven is famous for its heroic Haiduts who fought against the Ottoman Turk ...

, , 218,474 , , 197,473 , , −9.6% , , 3,544.07 , , 54.16 , , 4 , , South Eastern , align="left",

Smolyan Smolyan ( bg, Смолян) List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, is a town and ski resort in the south of Bulgaria near the border with Greece. It is the administrative and industrial centre of the homonymous Smolyan Province. The town is built ...

, , 140,066 , , 121,752 , , −13.1% , , 3,192.85 , , 34.47 , , 10 , , South Central , align="left",

Sofia City Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and has ...

, , 1,170,842 , , 1,291,591 , , +10.3% , , 1,348.90 , , 957.44 , , 1 , , South Western , align="left", Sofia (province) , , 273,240 , , 247,489 , , −9.4% , , 7,062.33 , , 34.01 , , 22 , , South Western , align="left",

Stara Zagora Stara Zagora ( bg, Стара Загора, ) is the sixth-largest city in Bulgaria, and the administrative capital of the homonymous Stara Zagora Province. Name The name comes from the Slavic root ''star'' ("old") and the name of the medieva ...

, , 370,615 , , 333,265 , , −10.1% , , 5,151.12 , , 67.20 , , 11 , , South Eastern , align="left",

Targovishte Targovishte ( bg, Търговище, also transliterated ''Tǎrgovište'', , tr, Eski Cuma) is a city in Bulgaria, the administrative and economic capital of Targovishte Province. It is situated at the northern foot of the low mountain of ...

, , 137,689 , , 120,818 , , −12.3% , , 2,558.53 , , 44.17 , , 5 , , North Eastern , align="left", Varna , , 462,013 , , 475,074 , , +2.8% , , 3,819.47 , , 124.40 , , 12 , , North Eastern , align="left",

Veliko Tarnovo Veliko Tarnovo ( bg, Велико Търново, Veliko Tărnovo, ; "Great Tarnovo") is a town in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred as the "''City of the Tsars''", Veliko Tarnovo ...

, , 293,172 , , 258,494 , , −11.8% , , 4,661.57 , , 55.19 , , 10 , , North Central , align="left",

Vidin Vidin ( bg, Видин, ; Old Romanian: Diiu) is a port city on the southern bank of the Danube in north-western Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Romania and Serbia, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as ...

, , 130,074 , , 101,018 , , −22.3% , , 3,032.88 , , 32.89 , , 11 , , North Western , align="left",

Vratsa Vratsa ( bg, Враца ) is the largest city in northwestern Bulgaria and the administrative and economic centre of the municipality of Vratsa and Vratsa district. It is located about 112 km north of Sofia, 40 km southeast of Montana. ...

, , 243,036 , , 186,848 , , −23.1% , , 3,619.77 , , 45.59 , , 10 , , North Western , align="left",

Yambol Yambol ( bg, Ямбол ) is a town in Southeastern Bulgaria and administrative centre of Yambol Province. It lies on both banks of the Tundzha river in the historical region of Thrace. It is occasionally spelled ''Jambol''. Yambol is the ad ...

, , 156,070 , , 131,447 , , −15.8% , , 3,355.48 , , 31.23 , , 5 , , South Eastern

History

In 1987, the then-existing 28 districts were transformed into 9 large units (in Bulgarian called

s – ''provinces''), which survived until 1999.→ The 9 large provinces are listed below, along with the pre-1987 districts (post-1999 small provinces) comprising them. {, class="wikitable" ! 1987–1998
oblasts !! Comprising former districts (future provinces) , Burgas , , Burgas, Sliven, Yambol , Haskovo , , Haskovo, Kardzhali, Stara Zagora , Lovech , , Gabrovo, Lovech, Pleven, Veliko Tarnovo , Montana , , Montana, Vidin, Vratsa , Plovdiv , , Pazardzhik, Plovdiv, Smolyan , Razgrad , , Razgrad, Ruse, Silistra, Targovishte , Sofia , , Sofia City , Sofia , , Blagoevgrad, Kyustendil, Pernik, Sofia , Varna , , Dobrich, Shumen, Varna On 1 January 1999, the old districts were restored with some modifications, but the designation ("oblast") "province" was kept.

References

{{Provinces of Bulgaria Bulgaria, Provinces Bulgaria 1 Provinces, Bulgaria Lists of populated places in Bulgaria

Terminology

Provinces

History

See also

References