Kotel is a town in 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...

, part of Sliven Province

Sliven Province

Sliven Province is a province in southeastern Bulgaria, named after its administrative and industrial centre - the city of Sliven. It embraces a territory of 3,544.1 km² that is divided into 4 municipalities, with a total population, as of December 2009, of 204,887...

. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Kotel Municipality. As of december 2009, the town has a population of 6,232 inhabitants.

Kotel is known for the numerous personalities of the 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...

 that are somehow connected to the town, such as politicians Alexander Bogoridi

Alexander Bogoridi

Prince Alexander Stefanov Bogoridi Стефанов Богориди; Turkish: Aleko Pasha; ) was an Ottoman statesman of Bulgarian origin....

 and Stefan Bogoridi

Stefan Bogoridi

Prince Stefan Bogoridi was a high ranking Ottoman statesman of Bulgarian origin, grandson of Sophronius of Vratsa and father of Alexander Bogoridi and Nicolae Vogoride...

, enlighteners Sophronius of Vratsa

Sophronius of Vratsa

Saint Sophronius of Vratsa , born Stoyko Vladislavov , was a Bulgarian cleric and one of the leading figures of the early Bulgarian National Revival....

 and Petar Beron

Petar Beron

Dr. Petar Beron was a famous Bulgarian educator. He created the first modern Bulgarian primer, erroneously called the Fish Primer because of the dolphin drawn in the end of the book .-Biography:Petar Beron was born around 1800, probably in 1799, in the town of Kotel in a rich family...

, public figure Gavril Krastevich

Gavril Krastevich

Gavril Krastevich was a Bulgarian politician. He was born in Kotel in 1813. He was a general governor of Eastern Rumelia between 1884 and 1885 when it was part of the Ottoman Empire. Krastevich died in Istanbul on 16 November 1898....

, revolutionary Georgi Rakovski, as well as World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 prime minister Dobri Bozhilov

Dobri Bozhilov

Dobri Bozhilov was Prime Minister of Bulgaria during World War II.Born in Kotel, Bulgaria, Bozhilov attended the Higher Commercial School in Svishtov before starting work as a bookkeeper at the Bulgarian National Bank for the Kyustendil Banking Agency in 1902...

. It has a well-known music school and a large talented Roma population who can be found playing in restaurants and orchestras all over Bulgaria. Because of its situation in the mountains Kotel is also a popular healthy resort for the cure of diseases such as TB. Kotel has been a center for carpet making and there is a museum devoted to the craft.

History

Kotel was settled during the beginning of the Ottoman occupation of Bulgaria, when people fled from neighboring cities and towns.

Honour

Kotel Gap

Kotel Gap

Kotel Gap is a saddle of elevation 660 m extending 1 km between Serdica Peak and Silistra Knoll in Levski Ridge, Tangra Mountains on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The saddle is part of the divide between the glacial catchments of Macy Glacier to the north and...

 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 Kotel.

Agriculture

There is a strong sheep farming tradition in the region, which includes the practice of transhumance

Transhumance

Transhumance is the seasonal movement of people with their livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and to lower valleys in winter. Herders have a permanent home, typically in valleys. Only the herds travel, with...

, migrating the sheep from lowland winter pastures to mountain summer pastures. This was profiled in a BBC Radio 4

BBC Radio 4

BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...

 documentary.

Notable residents

Gavril Krastevich

Gavril Krastevich

Gavril Krastevich was a Bulgarian politician. He was born in Kotel in 1813. He was a general governor of Eastern Rumelia between 1884 and 1885 when it was part of the Ottoman Empire. Krastevich died in Istanbul on 16 November 1898....

, Governor General of Eastern Rumelia

Eastern Rumelia

Eastern Rumelia or Eastern Roumelia was an administratively autonomous province in the Ottoman Empire and Principality of Bulgaria from 1878 to 1908. It was under full Bulgarian control from 1885 on, when it willingly united with the tributary Principality of Bulgaria after a bloodless revolution...

Stefan Bogoridi

Stefan Bogoridi

Prince Stefan Bogoridi was a high ranking Ottoman statesman of Bulgarian origin, grandson of Sophronius of Vratsa and father of Alexander Bogoridi and Nicolae Vogoride...

, Prince of Samos

Samoš

Samoš is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Kovačica municipality, in the South Banat District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 1,247 people .-See also:...

Sophronius of Vratsa

Sophronius of Vratsa

Saint Sophronius of Vratsa , born Stoyko Vladislavov , was a Bulgarian cleric and one of the leading figures of the early Bulgarian National Revival....

, Theologian, Bulgarian nationalist

Gallery