Haskovo
Encyclopedia
Haskovo is a city, an administrative centre of the homonymous Haskovo Province
Haskovo Province
Haskovo Province is a province in southern Bulgaria, neighbouring Greece and Turkey to the southeast, comprising parts of the Thracian valley along the river Maritsa. It is named after its administrative and industrial centre - the city of Haskovo...

 in southern 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...

, not far from the borders with Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

. As of February 2011, it has a population of 74,843 inhabitants.

The first settlement found in Haskovo are from 5000 years BC. The thracian name of the settlement is Marsa. Haskovo celebrated its 1,000th anniversary as a town in 1985. To mark the event, a new clock tower was erected in the centre of the town. In medieval times it was known for the nearby Uzundzhovo
Uzundzhovo
Uzundzhovo is a village in southeastern Bulgaria, part of Haskovo municipality, Haskovo Province. As of 2008, it has a population of 1,727 and the mayor is Vancho Vanchev. The village lies in the agricultural Upper Thracian Plain , east of Haskovo, south of Dimitrovgrad and west of Simeonovgrad...

 fair, famous in all of Bulgaria. There is a video clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR6aCrcPCxs with pictures from the modern town.

History

According to the archeologists, the area of Haskovo was originally settled about seven thousand years ago. In and around Haskovo, evidence has been preserved that confirms its long history during the prehistoric, Thracian
Thracians
The ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...

, Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...

, Roman
Ancient 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....

, and Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...

  periods.

In the 9th century — during the First Bulgarian Empire
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...

 — a fortress was built in Haskovo that soon was transformed into a town. The town was located at the centre of a sizable region between the Klokotnitsa, Harmanliyska, and Maritsa
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...

 rivers.

In 1395 the Eski cami (the Old Mosque) was built as one of the first in the Balkans. It is interesting that its minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....

 is slightly inclined. In 1782, the town was known as Marsa. By 1830, it was known as Uzundja-ova. Many speculate that the current name came from the Arabic word "has" (هس; possession) and the Turkish word "köy" (village) . Several historians have ascertained that the Turkish word "has" has roots to the meaning "clean." Strengthening this argument, the town was called "Clean Town" during the Bulgarian Revival period. The Turkish "köy" was subsequently substituted with the Bulgarian (and common Slavic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...

) placename suffix "-ovo".

Most Bulgarians
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...

 began to re-settle in Haskovo at the beginning of the nineteenth century. At this time, the settlement was a trading centre for merchants from Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...

, Enez
Enez
Enez is a district of Edirne Province, Turkey, as well as the name of the center-town of the district. Its ancient name was Aenus. The mayor is Ahmet Çayır . The population is 3,826 as of 2010....

, and Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

. Slowly, the area acquired a strong reputation for producing cotton materials, silk fabrics, and carpets.

After the liberation in 1878 Haskovo became a centre of high-quality tobacco region. However, now there is no cigarette production in the region as the once big Tobacco company "BT Haskovo" was closed. Nowadays there are some enterprises producing food, machinery and fabric.

Haskovo Cove
Haskovo Cove
Haskovo Cove is a 2.1 km wide cove indenting for 1 km the northern coast of Greenwich Island between Aprilov Point and Miletich Point in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Situated next east of Crutch Peaks, southwest of Ongley Island and northwest of Sevtopolis Peak...

 in Greenwich Island
Greenwich Island (South Shetland Islands)
Greenwich Island is an island long and from wide, lying between Robert Island and Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands. Surface area...

 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 for the city of Haskovo.

Population

The population of Haskovo during the first decade after the liberation of Bulgaria
Liberation of Bulgaria
In Bulgarian historiography, the term Liberation of Bulgaria is used to denote the events of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78 that led to the re-establishment of Bulgarian state with the Treaty of San Stefano of March 3, 1878, after the complete conquest of the Second Bulgarian Empire, which...

 exceeded 10,000, being 14,191 in 1887. Since then it started growing decade by decade, mostly because of the migrants from the rural areas and the surrounding smaller towns, reaching its peak in the period 1987-1991 exceeding 90,000.

Culture

The cultural life in the town is presented by the newly renovated Ivan Dimov Dramatic Theatre, the historical museum and an art gallery. The annual Colourful Thrace Sings and Dances folk festival takes place in the nearby park Kenana.

A 32-metre-high monument
Monument of the Holy Mother of God (Haskovo)
The Monument of the Holy Mother of God is a monument in Haskovo, a city in southeastern Bulgaria. The monument is dedicated to Mary, the mother of Jesus and was unveiled in 2003...

 of the Mother of God and the Infant Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

 was erected on the Hill of Youth near Haskovo in 2003. The monument was inaugurated on 8 September on the occasion of the Nativity of Holy Virgin Mary, when the day of the town of Haskovo is celebrated. It entered the Guinness Book of Records as the highest monument to Our Lady in the world.

The town centre has recently been the subject of many investments and renovation.

Municipal landmarks include the Thracian Aleksandrovo tomb as well as Uzundzhovo's Church of the Assumption
Church of the Assumption (Uzundzhovo)
The Church of the Assumption is a Bulgarian Orthodox church in the village of Uzundzhovo, Haskovo Municipality, Bulgaria. Built as a mosque during the Ottoman era, it was reconstructed in 1906 as a church.-History:...

, built originally as a mosque during Ottoman
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...

 times.

Notable natives

  • Tane Nikolov
    Tane Nikolov
    Tane Nikolov was a Bulgarian revolutionary and member of the revolutionary movement in Macedonia, Thrace and Pomoravlje...

     (1873–1947), revolutionary
  • Asen Zlatarov
    Asen Zlatarov
    Asen Zlatarov was a famous Bulgarian chemist....

     (1885–1936), scientist
  • Anyu Angelov
    Anyu Angelov
    Anyu Angelov is currently serving as Bulgaria's Minister of Defense. Angelov started his career as Commander of an autonomous platoon, and was later appointed Department Deputy Chief at the Land Forces Air Defense Command, Chief of Staff and Brigade Commander...

     (1942), acting Minister of Defence
    Ministry of Defence (Bulgaria)
    The Ministry of Defence of Bulgaria is the ministry charged with regulating the Military of Bulgaria.Since August 2005 , Minister of Defence was Veselin Bliznakov of the National Movement Simeon II, with Deputy Ministers Ivan Ivanov, Radoslav Bozadzhiev, Simeon Nikolov, Sonya Yankulova and Spas...

  • Nedyalka Simeonovа (1901–1959), violinist
  • Nemzade Hatice Hanımsultan (1925–2000), Ottoman princess
  • Tsvetan Motev (b. 1964), bronze medalist from International Mathematical Olympiad 1983
  • Stanimir Stoilov (b. 1967), footballer and football manager
  • Krassen Krastev (b. 1973), dancer and choreographer
  • Grigor Dimitrov
    Grigor Dimitrov
    Grigor Dimitrov is a tennis player from Bulgaria. He achieved a career high ranking of World No. 52 on August 22, 2011. Dimitrov also enjoyed a very successful junior career, in which he held the World No...

     (b. 1991), tennis player; 2008 Wimbledon and US Open junior champion

Twin towns — Sister cities

Haskovo is twinned
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...

 with: Abington, Pennsylvania
Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Abington Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 55,310 in as of the 2010 census.Abington Township is one of Montgomery County's oldest communities dating back to before 1700 and being incorporated in 1704. It is home to some of the county's...

, USA Alexandroupoli
Alexandroupoli
Alexandroupoli , is a city of Greece and the capital of the Evros peripheral unit in Thrace. Named after King Alexander, it is an important port and commercial center of northeastern Greece.-Name:...

, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...

, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 Enguera
Enguera
Enguera is a municipality in southwestern province of Valencia, Spain.The local economy depends primarily on agriculture, and secondarily on industry and services. In recent years, agricultural crops, especially olives, have gained in importance, although the complementary or secondary component...

, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 Novara
Novara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...

, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...

, Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....

 Bodrum
Bodrum
Bodrum is a port city in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of Turkey. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova. The site was called Halicarnassus of Caria in ancient times and was famous for housing the...

, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...


External links

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