Chirpan
Encyclopedia
Chirpan is a town on the Tekirska River in Stara Zagora Province
, South-central Bulgaria
. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Chirpan Municipality. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 16,355 inhabitants.
Chirpan is located north of the Maritsa River
on the Chirpan highlands, south-east of the Sredna Gora mountains
. The town is a centre for wineries
and viticulture
.
settlement of Sherampol and re-emerged in the beginning of the 15th century, its current name likely being derived from the Roman one. There has been extensive archaeological excavation at the Karasura (Carasura) site. During the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria
, Chirpan was known for its craftsmen and agriculture. The town suffered badly from an earthquake on 18 April 1928.
Chirpan was the birthplace of Ottoman Turkish
soldier Abdülkerim Nadir Pasha
, and the Bulgarian poet Peyo Yavorov, whose native house is now a museum. Chirpan was the home of painter George Danchov. His house in the centre of the town is an excellent example of Bulgarian National Revival
architecture.
Special Protection Area
for preservation of avian habitat along the Tekirska River.
on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands
, Antarctica is named after Chirpan.
Stara Zagora Province
Stara Zagora is a province of south central Bulgaria. It is named after its administrative and industrial centre—the city of Stara Zagora—the sixth-biggest town in the country...
, South-central Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Chirpan Municipality. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 16,355 inhabitants.
Chirpan is located north of the Maritsa River
Maritsa
The Maritsa or Evros , ) is, with a length of 480 km, the longest river that runs solely in the interior of the Balkans. It has its origin in the Rila Mountains in Western Bulgaria, flowing southeast between the Balkan and Rhodope Mountains, past Plovdiv and Parvomay to Edirne, Turkey...
on the Chirpan highlands, south-east of the Sredna Gora mountains
Sredna Gora
Sredna Gora is a mountain range in central Bulgaria, situated south of and parallel to Balkan mountain range and extending from the river Iskar to the west and the elbow of Tundzha north of Yambol to the east. Sredna Gora is 285 km long, reaching 50 km at its greatest width...
. The town is a centre for wineries
Winery
A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, bottling lines, laboratories, and large expanses of...
and viticulture
Viticulture
Viticulture is the science, production and study of grapes which deals with the series of events that occur in the vineyard. When the grapes are used for winemaking, it is also known as viniculture...
.
History
The modern town is the successor of the Ancient RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
settlement of Sherampol and re-emerged in the beginning of the 15th century, its current name likely being derived from the Roman one. There has been extensive archaeological excavation at the Karasura (Carasura) site. During the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria
History of early Ottoman Bulgaria
The history of Ottoman Bulgaria spans nearly 500 years, from the conquest of the Second Bulgarian Empire by the Ottoman Empire in 1396, to its liberation in 1878. Bulgarian territories were administrated as the Rumelia Eyalet. The Ottoman rule was a period marked by oppression and misgovernment and...
, Chirpan was known for its craftsmen and agriculture. The town suffered badly from an earthquake on 18 April 1928.
Chirpan was the birthplace of Ottoman Turkish
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
soldier Abdülkerim Nadir Pasha
Abdulkerim Nadir Pasha
Abdi Pasha or Abdul Kerim Pasha was an Ottoman soldier, born in Chirpan, Stara Zagora Province, Ottoman Bulgaria. He graduated from the military academy in Istanbul and was sent to Vienna to continue his education...
, and the Bulgarian poet Peyo Yavorov, whose native house is now a museum. Chirpan was the home of painter George Danchov. His house in the centre of the town is an excellent example of Bulgarian National Revival
Bulgarian National Revival
The Bulgarian National Revival , sometimes called the Bulgarian Renaissance, was a period of socio-economic development and national integration among Bulgarian people under Ottoman rule...
architecture.
Economy
There are 23,470 (2009) people in the municipality, two thirds of whom live in the town. 53% of the land is in cultivation, with major crops from wheat, sunflowers, cotton, grapes, and fruit trees. There is a 136 hectare Natura 2000Natura 2000
Natura 2000 is an ecological network of protected areas in the territory of the European Union.-Origins:In May 1992, the governments of the European Communities adopted legislation designed to protect the most seriously threatened habitats and species across Europe. This legislation is called the...
Special Protection Area
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...
for preservation of avian habitat along the Tekirska River.
Honour
Chirpan PeakChirpan Peak
Chirpan Peak is an ice covered 535 m peak forming the westn extremity of Bowles Ridge on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica overlooking Perunika Glacier to the west and south...
on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands
South Shetland Islands
The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about north of the Antarctic Peninsula, with a total area of . By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the Islands' sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories and they are free for use by any signatory for...
, Antarctica is named after Chirpan.