Kalofer ( pronounced:) is a town in central Bulgaria, located on the banks of the

Tundzha The Tundzha ( ; ; ''Tonsus'' in antiquity) is a river in southeastern Bulgaria and northwesternmost Turkey, a left tributary of the Maritsa. With a length of 390 km, of which 350 km are in Bulgaria, it is Maritsa's longest tributary, ...

between 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 ...

to the north and the

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. ...

to the south. Kalofer is part of

Plovdiv Province Plovdiv Province (: ''Oblast Plovdiv'', former name okrug, Plovdiv okrug) is a provinces of Bulgaria, province in central southern Bulgaria. It comprises 18 municipalities (общини, ''obshtini'', sing. общинa, ''obshtina'') on a territ ...

and the Karlovo municipality. It is best known as the birthplace of Bulgarian poet and revolutionary Hristo Botev. The modern settlement of Kalofer emerged in the 16th century, managing to preserve its Bulgarian character in 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 ...

and to develop as a centre of craftsmanship, primarily cord production. The Kalofer monastery has been in operation since 1640 and the convent since 1700. During the

Bulgarian National Revival The Bulgarian Revival (, ''Balgarsko vazrazhdane'' or simply: Възраждане, ''Vazrazhdane'', and ), sometimes called the Bulgarian National Revival, was a period of socio-economic development and national integration among Bulgarian pe ...

the town became a centre of revolutionary activity, being the birthplace of figures such as Hristo Botev, Exarch Joseph, Dimitar Panichkov, and Nikola Ivanov. Today, it is best known for the imposing Hristo Botev Monument (one of many in the country).

Geography

Kalofer is located in the southern outskirts of Stara Planina. It is only 17 kilometers away from Karlovo, еlevation 603 m (1,978 ft), 22 km away from Sopot, 56 km away from

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 ...

, 222 km away from

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 ...

, 300 km away from Varna and 164 km from the capital of Bulgaria

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 ...

History

Kalofer was founded in the 16th century (1533). From the very beginning, it enjoyed

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

, which allowed it to preserve its typical Bulgarian character. At the height of its economic boom, some 1,200 devices for producing traditional colored Bulgarian wollen threads (gaitan) operated at the town. The town has been burnt down at least three times. Forestation has mostly covered traces from the damage, but they can still be found here and there. With the passage of time, the residents of Kalofer devised their own methods of survival and cultivated a strength of character, which has remained their typical personality trait until today. Every single time the town was burnt, the people of Kalofer built it all over again, carrying stones from their own farming land, working through the night. Reconstruction activities usually started by re-building the church or the monastery. In July 1877, an attack by Circassian bashi-bazouk led to the massacre of 618 Bulgarians from the town and the nearby villages, while the entire town was (yet again) burned to the ground, along with 1308 houses, 250 stores, 200 ginning undertakings and watermills and 1400 stables. Some 1,000 additional people lost their lives from exposure and the elements while climbing the

in an attempt to reach Troyan.

Religion

Kalofer has a number of churches and monasteries, many with church bells. On a small street is a convent for girls, inheriting four metochions, in which Anastasia Dimitrova, the first Bulgarian female teacher, was educated. The monastery for men has been open since 1640, and the convent for nuns since 1700. Today, both of them, despite the numerous burnings, are open for visitors.

Economy

In Kalofer typical Bulgarian customs and traditions have been well preserved over the centuries. A part of the attractions in the region is visiting ateliers producing the internationally famous Kalofer lace or the traditional rugs or woolen covers (kitenitsi). The making of souvenirs, works of copper, barrels for wine, incrustrated knives, as well as the typical Bulgarian dishes will always be remembered in this region.

Amenities

There is no bank in Kalofer, but two bank branches are available. In the city center there are two

automated teller machine An automated teller machine (ATM) is an electronic telecommunications device that enables customers of financial institutions to perform financial transactions, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, funds transfers, balance inquiries or account ...

s. The post office in Kalofer is open Monday to Friday, and there are shops and convenience stores in the area. Several shops are located in the center of the town, and there is a market on Thursdays.

Annual events

*January 6: Birth of Hristo Botev and Epiphany (Yordanov Den). *June 2: Day of Botev. *August 15: Holiday of Kalofer Lace.

Honour

Kalofer Peak 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 ...

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 Kalofer.

Famous people

Revolutionaries

* Vidul Stranski * , Bulgarian revolutionary from VMORO, Chetnik of Ivan Naumov Alyabaka * Galab Voivoda (ca. 1838 - 1921) * Dimitar Pashov (1882 -?), Participant in the Ilinden-Preobrazhensko uprising in the Edirne region with the detachment of Krastyo Bulgaria * Ivan Degov Karlovets (1876 -?), Participant in the Ilinden-Preobrazhensko uprising in the Edirne region with the detachment of Krastyo Bulgaria * Panko St. Parvanov (1875 -?), Participant in the Ilinden-Preobrazhensko uprising in the Edirne region with the detachment of Krastyo Bulgaria * Stoyan Buynov (around 1839 - 1908) * Stefan Kostov, revolutionary from VMORO, Chetnik of Nikola Ivanov * Hristo Botev, poet and revolutionary (1848 - 1876) * Hristo Stefanov (1866 -?), Activist of the IMRO, participant in the Ilinden-Preobrazhensko uprising in 1903 with the detachment of Ivan Varnaliev

Personalities of education,culture and arts

* Atanas Tinterov, professor of mathematics (1856 - 1927) * Botyo Petkov from Karlovo, teacher (1815 - 1869) * Dimitar Mutev, Odessa (1818 - 1864) * Dimitar Panichkov, publisher and printer (c.1810 - 1909) * Dimitar Fingov, teacher (1840 - 1912) * Ivan Kozarev, teacher (1849 - 1933) * Kostadin Bradinski, teacher (1847 -?) * Nenko Koritarov, cultural figure, conductor, composer (ed. "The Blacksmith's Song"), member of the Union of Bulgarian Composers (UBC) (1925 - 2008) * Nikola Kasapski, teacher, writer and translator (unknown - 1879) * Nikola Batsarov, teacher (1881 - 1892) * Nikola Nachov, writer and historian (1859 - 1940) * Stefan Avramov, teacher (1862 - 1908) *

Stefan Kanchev Stefan Kirov Kanchev ( ; 6 August 1915 – 22 August 2001) was a Bulgarian graphic artist best known for his logo design work. Referred to as the "father of Bulgarian graphic design" and the "master of the trademark", Kanchev authored around 1, ...

, graphic artist (1915 - 2001) * Stefan Botev, teacher (1854 - 1890)

References

External links

The official forum of Kalofer

Transportation, logistics and offroad services in Kalofer and nearby in Balkan mountain (at the moment Bulgarian version only)

Website about Kalofer and the Central Balkan Mountains

Kalofer at Journey.bg

Nikola Gruev's photo gallery of Kalofer

Website about Hristo Botev (in Bulgarian)
{{Authority control Towns in Bulgaria Populated places in Plovdiv Province