Plovdiv Province (: Oblast Plovdiv, former name okrug) is a province in central southern Bulgaria. It comprises 18 municipalities (общини, obshtini, sing. общинa, obshtina) on a territory of [ Bulgarian Provinces area and population 1999 — National Center for Regional Development — page 90-91 ] with a population, as of February 2011, of 683,027 inhabitants.
Geography
Plovdiv Province includes parts of the Upper Thracian Plain, the
Rhodopes,
Sredna Gora, the Sub-Balkan valleys and
Stara Planina, including its highest peak, Botev (2,376m). The main rivers in the province are Maritsa, Stryama, Pyasachnik. There are numerous dams, the most important of which is Pyasachnik. Mineral springs are abundant; there are several major
—
Hisarya,
Narechen, Banya, and minor spas at Klisura,
Asenovgrad,
Kuklen,
Rosino,
Krasnovo,
Stoletovo, and others. There are many natural landmarks, especially in the Central Balkan National Park, including the spectacular waterfall
Raysko Praskalo, the highest in the
Balkans.
Municipalities
Plovdiv Province (Област,
oblast) contains 18 municipalities
[ Oblast Haskovo -official website ] (singular: община,
obshtina, plural: Общини,
obshtini). The following table shows the names of each municipality in English and
Cyrillic, the main town or village (towns are shown in bold), and the population of each as of 31st December 2024.
|
|
| Asenovgrad | Асеновград | 56,859 | Asenovgrad | 45,362 |
| Brezovo | Брезово | 5,877 | Brezovo | 1,527 |
| Hisarya | Хисаря | 9,952 | Hisarya | 5,888 |
| Kaloyanovo | Калояново | 10,231 | Kaloyanovo | 2,186 |
| Karlovo | Карлово | 44,894 | Karlovo | 18,803 |
| Krichim | Кричим | 7,128 | Krichim | 7,128 |
| Kuklen | Куклен | 6,134 | Kuklen | 5,559 |
| Laki | Лъки | 2,043 | Laki | 1,502 |
| Maritsa (Plovdiv rural) | Марица | 31,191 | Plovdiv | see below |
| Perushtitsa | Перущица | 4,148 | Perushtitsa | 4,148 |
| Plovdiv (city) | Пловдив | 329,489 | Plovdiv | 329,489 |
| Parvomay | Първомай | 20,757 | Parvomay | 10,973 |
| Rakovski | Раковски | 25,389 | Rakovski | 14,718 |
| Rodopi (Plovdiv rural) | Родопи | 32,359 | Plovdiv | see above |
| Sadovo | Садово | 14,528 | Sadovo | 2,339 |
| Sopot | Сопот | 8,139 | Sopot | 7,238 |
| Stamboliyski | Стамболийски | 17,654 | Stamboliyski | 9,723 |
| Saedinenie | Съединение | 8,858 | Saedinenie | 4,917 |
Towns
The province's capital is the city of
Plovdiv; other towns include
Karlovo, Sopot, Klisura,
Kalofer, Hisarya, Saedinenie, Rakovski,
Brezovo,
Stamboliyski,
Krichim,
Perushtitsa,
Sadovo,
Parvomay,
Asenovgrad, Laki,
Katunica, and Yiagodovo.
Demographics
Plovdiv Province had a
population of 715,904 (715,816 also given) according to a 2001
census, of which were
male and were
female.
[ Population to 01.03.2001 by Area and Sex from Bulgarian National Statistical Institute: Census 2001 ]
As of the end of 2009, the population, announced by the Bulgarian National Statistical Institute, numbered 701,684
of which are over 60 years of age.
Ethnic groups
Total population (2011 census): 683 027
[ Population on 01.02.2011 by provinces, municipalities, settlements and age; National Statistical Institute]
Ethnic groups (2011 census):
[ Population by province, municipality, settlement and ethnic identification, by 01.02.2011; Bulgarian National Statistical Institute ]
Identified themselves: 620 373 persons:
-
Bulgarians: 540 303 (87,09%)
-
Turks: 40 255 (6,49%)
-
Romani: 30 202 (4,87%)
-
Others and indefinable: 9 613 (1,54%)
A further 60,000 persons in Plovdiv Province did not declare their ethnic group at the 2011 census.
Ethnic groups according to the 2001 census, when 715 816 people of the population of 715,904 of Plovdiv Province identified themselves (with percentage of total population):[ Population to 01.03.2001 by District and Ethnic Group from Bulgarian National Statistical Institute: Census 2001 ]
-
Bulgarians: 621 338 (86.8%)
-
Turks: 52 499 (7.3%)
-
Romani: 30 196 (4.2%)
-
Armenians: 3 140 (0.4%)
-
Russians: 1 151 (0.2%)
-
Greeks: 766 (0.1%)
Religion
Religious adherence in the province according to 2001 census:
[ Religious adherence in Bulgaria - census 2001 ]
|
|
|
| Orthodox Christians | 608,226 | 84.97% |
| 62,595 | 8.74% |
| Roman Catholics | 23,122 | 3.23% |
| Protestantism | 3,913 | 0.55% |
| Other | 4,412 | 0.62% |
| Religion not mentioned | 13,548 | 1.89% |
| total | 715,816 | 100% |
Economy
The economy of the province is of great importance. The agricultural production is intensive and efficient with high levels of irrigation. The major crops are fruit (apples, plums, pears, cherries), grapes, melons and watermelons, vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, carrots, cabbage, potatoes), wheat, rice, barley and others. Industry is very well developed: ferrous metallurgy near
Plovdiv; thriving electronics industry in
Plovdiv, Saedinenie,
Voivodinovo,
Radinovo and other villages in the area; agricultural machinery (tractors) in
Karlovo; weapon and military plants in Sopot,
Karlovo,
Plovdiv; chemical industry in
Plovdiv,
Asenovgrad; food industry is developed almost everywhere, most notably in
Plovdiv and
Asenovgrad (wines). Tourism is a growing industry with the rich cultural heritage of the province and the numerous
mineral springs which are of international importance.
See also
-
List of villages in Plovdiv Province
External links
