Bulgaria is the oldest surviving state in Europe to have kept its original name - since AD681 - and most of the population are descendants of the Bulgar invasion of the south Danube around that time.
On two occasions during the Medieval period, the Bulgarians managed to establish empires, which existed in a state of armed conflict with Byzantium.
Bulgaria's territory in Macedonia was then overrun by the Serbs – then the rising power in the Balkans. Their dominance was short-lived, however, as the Ottoman Turks arrived in the 1350s.
Within 40 years, the country had been completely absorbed into the Ottoman Empire.
Following an uprising in 1876, Bulgarian volunteer forces, with strong Russian support, defeated the Turks and established an independent state.
King Ferdinand was the dominant figure in Bulgarian politics up to World War I, although was discredited thereafter, due to his support for the Germans.
The popular Agrarian leader, Aleksandur Stambolyiski, imprisoned by Ferdinand, formed a reformist government that lasted until 1923, when it was overthrown in a right-wing coup.
The government of Alexander Tsankov, which replaced Stambolyiski's administration, established a royalist-militarist government with King Boris as head of state.
Soviet forces entered the country in 1944, and the monarchy was abolished and a republic declared.
By the end of 1947, the Communist Party had completed its takeover of the country.
Bulgaria's dominant political figure was Todor Zhivkov, under whose leadership Bulgaria became the staunchest of Moscow's allies.
In 1989, Zhivkov resigned. The first multi-party elections for 44 years were held in June 1990; the ruling Communists had restyled themselves the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), and won an absolute majority.
Throughout the first half of the 1990s, Bulgaria was wracked by instability, and plunged into economic crisis.
The main opposition to the BSP was the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF), whose leader, Zhelyu Zhelev, held the presidency between 1990 and his fall as UDF leader in 1996. His successor, Petar Stoyanov, went on to win the presidency in October 1996.
In 2001, Bulgarian politics were turned upside down by the former King Simeon II, who set up a political party modestly entitled Simeon The Second National Movement; that June, the Movement won a resounding victory at the National Assembly elections.
The BSP's Georgi Parvanov won the presidential election in 2001. The Socialist Party, led by Sergei Stanishev, won the 2005 election, but did not win enough seats to form a government on their own.
Bulgaria became a NATO member in 2004, and entered the EU in 2007.
The majority of the population are Christian, the main denomination being Bulgarian Orthodox Church with a membership of 83% of the population. Eastern Orthodox Christianity is considered to be the traditional religion in Bulgaria. There is also a significant Muslim minority (13%) and a small Jewish community.
Social conventions:Normal courtesies should be observed and handshaking is the normal form of greeting. Dress should be conservative but casual. If invited to the home, a small souvenir from one's homeland is an acceptable gift, and something for their children is always welcome. Do not give money. Remember that a nod of the head means 'No' and a shake means 'Yes'.
Smoking: Bulgarian restaurants, cafés and nightclubs have zones for smokers and non-smokers. There is no smoking in public places.
Bulgarian is the official language and the Cyrillic alphabet is used - Bulgaria is the only EU nation to use it. Turkish and Macedonian are amongst the minority languages. English, German, French and Russian are spoken in major tourist resorts and hotels.
