Stara Zagora, Bulgaria

🇧🇬 Stara Zagora is the fifth-largest agglomeration in Bulgaria, and the administrative capital of the homonymous Stara Zagora Province located in the historical region of Thrace.

History Earliest traces of civilisation date back to the 7th millenium B.C. Some scholars believe that the ancient Thracian Beroe was located there. In 1968, Neolithic dwellings from the mid-6th millennium BC were discovered in the town, which are the best preserved and richest collection in Europe and have been turned into a museum.

A high density of Neolithic and Chalcolithic settlements has been identified by researchers and a ritual structure nearly 8,000 years old has also been discovered. Also the first copper factory in Europe and a large ore mining centre were discovered, both over 7,000 years old. The original settlement dates from the 5th-4th century B.C under the name Beroe or Beroia, founded by Philip II of Macedon. It was renamed to Ulpia Augusta Traiana during Roman rule and became the second most important city, after Philippopolis. During Marcus Aurelius' rule, many buildings have been built, art and music developed and there were statues and inscriptions of Orpheus.

The Battle of Beroe was fought, which resulted in a Gothic victory over the Romans. During the Gothic War between 376-382, the city was under attack by the Goths in order to attack Frigiderus, a Roman general, but he promptly withdrew to Illyria. At the end of the 6th century, Beroe was destroyed, but rebuilt under the name Veroia.

During the Middle Ages, Zagore is mentioned for the first time by Byzantine historians. Irene of Athens visited the town, rebuilding it and renaming it to Irenepolis, in honour of her. By the end of the 10th century, the city was in Bulgarian hands and acquired a fully Bulgarian character. Bulgarians called the town Borui (a modified form of the Thracian Beroe).

In 1371, the Ottomans conquered the town, but its earliest mention was in an Ottoman document from 1430. Plagues rampaged in the 18th-19th century, aswell as famine and drought, livestock pestilence, and hailstorms destroyed all crops. During the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, the town had devastating moments, which included a massacre which made thousands of people lose their lives, young women and girls being sold in the slave market of the Ottoman Empire.

In modern times, the city is relieved, as a growing city. The economy is developing like major cities in Bulgaria, with one of the highest wages in the country, high GDP in comparison with many Bulgarian cities, low unemployment of about 4%. The city is also located near the largest energy industrial complex, Maritsa Iztok Complex, where many of the people from Stara Zagora are employed.

Ancient monuments Many of the monuments from the Roman city have been excavated and are visible in situ today and include: • City walls • The "Antique" Forum • Roman city streets and buildings • The Roman Baths • 4th-6th c. public building with mosaics • 4th c. private house with mosaics of Silenus with Bacchantes and of Dionysus's Procession • South city gate • Thracian Tomb.

Overlooking the "antique" forum is an unusual building in the form of a monumental auditorium in the shape of a theatre.

Geography Stara Zagora is the administrative centre of its municipality and the Stara Zagora Province. It is about 231 km (144 mi) from Sofia, near the Bedechka river in the historic region of Thrace.

Economy The Stara Zagora region is dynamically developing and by a number of indicators is in a leading position in the country. In 2004, the region had a record high growth of 26% in the value of manufactured output, 23% in sales and 24.6% in gross domestic product.

According to the regional administration, in 2004 and 2005 the Stara Zagora region now ranks second in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) and retains third place in terms of human development index (HDI). HDI is determined by GDP per capita, literacy rate, life expectancy, etc. In 2004, foreign direct investment in the region amounted to EUR 838 million (compared to a total of EUR 2020 million for Bulgaria), representing over 40% of all investment in the country. Around 600 million euros of the investments were in the energy sector.

According to a survey conducted by the NGO Industry Watch in the second quarter of 2005, Stara Zagora ranks second (after Sofia) in terms of average wages among the 27 regional centres in Bulgaria. This applies to both nominal and real wages, determined on the basis of the ratio to purchasing power. In March 2008, Stara Zagora has one of the highest wages in the country and the unemployment is under 4%.

The largest employer in Stara Zagora is the Maritsa Iztok Complex. It employs about 20 000 people in the district, of which about 10 000 are residents of Stara Zagora. It provides 30% of Bulgaria's electricity and are the largest coal producer in Bulgaria (83%). In the industrial complex, wages are among the highest in Bulgaria. Stara Zagora distributes the electricity produced in Maritsa East. The company holds a license for distribution of electricity from the State Energy Regulatory Commission for a period of 35 years on the territory of Southern Bulgaria. The company employs 1771 people. Large companies dealing with equipment for petrol stations, gas stations and methane stations are Efir Stara Zagora and Izot servis. The largest brewery in Bulgaria - "Zagorka", part of the Heineken group is located in Stara Zagora. It holds about 30% of the beer market in the country. Over 800 people work there. Stara Zagora is also the headquarters of the wine producer Domaine Menada, which since 2002 has been owned by the French company Marie Brizard Wine & Spirits. The winery is one of the most prosperous on the Bulgarian market, as well as an exporter of wine abroad. Domaine Menada and Oryahovitsa are producers of Cabernet Sauvignon wines, as well as Merlot, Ruby, Chardonnay, Dimiat and other varieties. In 2004, major investments were made for new facilities at the winery as well as for new vineyards. Another winery is in the village of Oryahovitsa, 15 km from Stara Zagora.

Other important enterprises in the town are: DZU; Progress cast iron plant; Textile fibre plant; Tool and non-standard equipment plant; Process equipment plant; Metal structures plant; Forging and pressing plant ''Preskov''; Food industry machinery plant "Hraninvest - Hranmashkomplekt"; "Sredna Gora" Furniture Enterprise; "Natalia" Hosiery Factory; "Zagore" Grain Mill; "Zagoria" Pasta Factory; "Biser Oliva" Sunflower Oil Factory; "Gradus" Poultry Factory, etc. In 2006, the international consortium "Linde Group" invested nearly EUR 10 million on the territory of "Agrobiochem", building a high-tech air separation station where oxygen, nitrogen and argon are extracted with high purity.

Stara Zagora is the centre of the rich agricultural region of Zagore, famous for its wheat, production of various cereals, crops, vegetables, fruits, grapes. They serve for the food production and raw materials for the food industry. The Stara Zagora sheep has been used since 1950 as a rootstock in the creation of the Thracian thin-horned sheep.

In March 2006, Stara Zagora started the construction of the Stara Zagora Business Park on an area of 260 acres in the eastern part of the city. Partial infrastructure was built, but due to the crisis its development was suspended.

Economy: Industry In 2008, the first shopping mall - Park Mall Stara Zagora - opened its doors in Stara Zagora, located on 30 000 m² of built-up area, of which 20 000 m² are commercial. In the building there is a cinema "Arena" with 6 halls and a total of 950 seats, a three-dimensional cinema, a hypermarket "Jumbo", as well as other objects. 25 million euros have been invested in the mall and over 800 jobs have been created.

In 2010 the largest shopping centre in Stara Zagora and the region - Galleria Stara Zagora - opened its doors. It is located on 36 400 m² of built-up area, of which 26 000 m² are commercial. In the building there is a cinema "Cinema City" with 7 halls and a total of 1,300 seats, a three-dimensional cinema, as well as more than 100 other objects. 65 million euros have been invested in the mall and over 500 jobs have been created.

Stara Zagora City Centre has also been built, with an area (retail, offices and residential) of over 18,000 m² spread over 5 levels and over 10,000 m² of parking.

In the city, there are a number of hypermarkets and supermarkets across: • Billa - 6 stores • Lidl - 2 stores (1 in construction) • Kaufland - 2 stores • Technopolis, Technomarket, Zora - 2 stores each • Metro - 1 store.

Transport The city's geographical location makes connections with the rest of the country well developed. Stara Zagora is a major railway junction, through which pass the railway lines Sofia-Plovdiv-Burgas and railway line 4 Ruse-Podkova (project for extension through the Makaza pass to Alexandroupolis on the Aegean Sea)/Svilengrad.

Stara Zagora Airport is located in the Kolyo Ganchev district and has a long runway suitable for large aircraft, but has not been operational since the early 1990s.

Pan-European corridors VIII and IX, out of a total of five, cross the territory of the country. Since 2007, the Trakia motorway runs a few km south of the town. Bus links connect Stara Zagora with other major cities in Bulgaria.

The trolleybus system is consisted of 4 routes, all being important for the urban transportation network in Stara Zagora. It first opened on November 1987 and has a stock of 28 trolleybuses. The other important factor for the transportation is the bus system, consisting of 34 bus lines.

Education The foundations of higher education in Stara Zagora were laid on October 30, 1974. Today in the western part of the city is located the Trakia University, established in 1995. Its structure includes the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, the Faculty of Economics, the Faculty of Pedagogy and the Faculty of Agriculture.

Sport PFC Beroe Stara Zagora is a football club in Stara Zagora. It was established in 1916 and plays at Beroe Stadium. The team is a member of the First Professional Football League. Beroe has won the Bulgarian Cup two times (2009-2010 and 2012-2013).

Tourist Industry • Regional Historical Museum • The Antique Forum • Thracian Tomb • The Roman Baths • Roman mosaics of “Silenus with Bacchantes" (4th century) and of Dionysus's Procession • The Samarsko Zname Monument • Ayazmoto Park • Defenders of Stara Zagora Memorial Complex • Memorial House of Geo Milev • The South Gate of Augusta Trajana • The Opera House, built in 1925 • Stara Zagora Transmitter with one of the few Blaw-Knox Towers in Europe • Neolithic Dwellings Museum.

Districts • Bedechka - Gradinski (Бедечка - Градински, named at river Bedechka) • Central City Part (includes Supercentre, Chayka & Zagorka) (Централна градска част (Суперцентър, Чайка и Загорка) - Chayka - Sea-gull, Zagorka - named after Zagorka brewery) • Makedonski (Македонски - Macedonian) know also as Chumleka (Чумлека) • Dabrava (Дъбрава - former village of Dabrava) • Eastern Industrial Zone (Източна индустриална зона) • Geo Milev (Гео Милев - named after the Bulgarian poet) • Golesh (Голеш) • Industrial Zone (Индустриална Зона) • Kazanski (Казански) • Kolyo Ganchev (Кольо Ганчев - named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary) • Lozenets (Лозенец - from лозе - vineyard) • Mitropolit Metodiy Kusev (Митрополит Методий Кусев - named after a famous Starozagorian bishop) • Opalchenski (Опълченски - Volunteer's district named after Bulgarian voluntary army units) also known as Chaika (Чайка - Sea-Gull) • Samara 1, 2 & 3 - (Самара 1, 2 и 3 - named after the sister city of Samara, Russia) • Slaveykov (Славейков - named after the famous Bulgarian poet Petko Slaveykov) • Studentski grad - (Студентски град - Student town) • Tri Chuchura north, centre & south - (Три чучура север, център и юг - "Three spouts") • Vasil Levski - (Васил Левски - named after the famous Bulgarian revolutionary) • Vazrazhdane - (Възраждане - Renaissance) • Zheleznik (small & big) (Железник - like one of the former names of the city) • Zora (Зора - Dawn)

Future districts : • Atyuren (Атюрен - future district of the city) • Bogomilovo (Богомилово - village of Bogomilovo) • Hrishteni (Хрищени - village of Hrishteni) • Malka Vereya (Малка Верея - Vereya - old name of the city, Malka - small, village of Malka Vereya).