Coordinates	28°36′50″N77°12′32″N
Native name	Република България''Republika Balgariya''
Conventional long name	Republic of Bulgaria
Common name	Bulgaria
Image coat	Coat of arms of Bulgaria.svg
Map caption
National motto	(Bulgarian) (transliteration)Unity makes strength(English)
National anthem	(Bulgarian)(transliteration)''Dear Motherland''(English)
Official languages	Bulgarian
Capital	20px Sofia (''София'')
Largest city	capital
Government type	Parliamentary democracy
Leader title1	President
Leader name1	Georgi Parvanov
Leader title2	Prime Minister
Leader name2	Boyko Borisov
Ethnic groups	85.8% Bulgarians,7.8% Turks, 4.9% Roma, 1.5% others and don't self-define
Ethnic groups year	2011
Sovereignty type	Formation
Established event1	First Bulgarian Empire
Established date1	681–1018
Established event2	Second Bulgarian Empire
Established date2	1185–1396
Established event3	Re-established as a tributary principality
Established date3	1878
Established event4	Third independent Bulgarian state
Established date4	Since 1908
Accessioneudate	1 January 2007
Area rank	105th
Area magnitude	1 E11
Area km2	110,993.6
Area sq mi	42823
Percent water	0.3
Population census	7,364,570
Population census year	2011
Population census rank	98th
Population density rank	96th
Population density km2	66.2
Population density sq mi	171
Population density rank	139th
Gdp ppp year	2010
Gdp ppp	$96.778 billion
Gdp ppp rank	70th
Gdp ppp per capita	$12,851
Gdp ppp per capita rank	65th
Gdp nominal	$47.702 billion
Gdp nominal rank	75th
Gdp nominal year	2010
Gdp nominal per capita	$6,334
Gdp nominal per capita rank	74th
Gini	33.5
Gini year	2008
Gini category	medium
Hdi year	2010
Hdi	0.743
Hdi rank	60th
Hdi category	high
Currency	Lev2
Currency code	BGN
Country code	bg
Time zone	EET
Utc offset	+2
Time zone dst	EEST
Utc offset dst	+3
Demonym	Bulgarian
Drives on	right
Cctld	.bg3
Calling code	359
Footnote1
Footnote2	plural ''Levs''.
Footnote3	In common with other European Union member-states, the .eu domain is also in use.
Footnote4	Cell phone system GSM and NMT 450i
Footnote5	Domestic power supply /, Schuko (CEE 7/4) sockets
Footnote6	}}

Bulgaria (}}), officially the Republic of Bulgaria (}}) is a country in Southeast Europe. Bulgaria borders five other countries: Romania to the north (mostly along the Danube), Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Greece and Turkey to the south. The Black Sea defines the extent of the country to the east.

With a territory of , Bulgaria ranks as the 15th-largest country in Europe. Several mountainous areas define the landscape, most notably Stara Planina (''the Balkan mountains'') and Rhodope mountain ranges, as well as the Rila range, which includes the highest peak in the entire Balkans. In contrast, the Danubian plain in the north and the Upper Thracian Plain in the south represent Bulgaria's lowest and most fertile regions. The Black Sea coastline covers the entire eastern bound of the country.

The emergence of a unified Bulgarian ethnicity and state dates back to the 7th century AD. All Bulgarian political entities that subsequently emerged preserved the traditions (in ethnic name, language and alphabet) of the First Bulgarian Empire (681–1018), which at times covered most of the Balkans and became a cultural hub for the Slavs in the Middle Ages. With the decline of the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1396), Bulgarian territories came under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries. The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878 led to the establishment of a Third Bulgarian state as a principality in 1878, which gained its full sovereignty in 1908. In 1945, after World War II, it became a communist state and was a part of the Eastern Bloc until the political changes in Eastern Europe in 1989/1990, when the Communist Party allowed multi-party elections. Bulgarian politics undertook a transition to democracy and elements of free-market capitalism were introduced.

The Bulgarian government functions as a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic. Sofia, the capital, is Bulgaria's largest and the European Union's 12th largest city, and is also a global city. Its government is a member of the European Union, NATO, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization and is a founding state of the OSCE and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization. Bulgaria has a high Human Development Index of 0.743, ranking 58th in the world in 2010.

History

Prehistory and antiquity

Prehistoric cultures in the Bulgarian lands include the Neolithic Hamangia culture and Vinča culture (6th to 3rd millennia BC), the eneolithic Varna culture (5th millennium BC; see also Varna Necropolis), and the Bronze Age Ezero culture. The Karanovo chronology serves as a gauge for the prehistory of the wider Balkans region.

The Thracians, one of the three primary ancestral groups of modern Bulgarians, lived separated in various tribes until King Teres united most of them around 500 BC in the Odrysian kingdom. They were eventually subjugated by Alexander the Great and later by the Roman Empire. After migrating from their original homeland, the easternmost South Slavs settled on the territory of modern Bulgaria during the 6th century and assimilated the Hellenized or Romanised Thracians. Eventually the Bulgar élite incorporated all of them into the First Bulgarian Empire. By the 9th century, Bulgars and Slavs were mutually assimilated.

First Bulgarian Empire

Asparukh, heir of Old Great Bulgaria's khan Kubrat, migrated with several Bulgar tribes to the lower courses of the rivers Danube, Dniester and Dniepr (known as ''Ongal'') after his father's state was subjugated by the Khazars. He conquered Moesia and Scythia Minor (Dobrudzha) from the Byzantine Empire, expanding his new kingdom further into the Balkan Peninsula. A peace treaty with Byzantium in 681 and the establishment of a Bulgarian capital at Pliska south of the Danube mark the beginning of the First Bulgarian Empire.

Succeeding khans strengthened the Bulgarian state — Tervel (700–721) established Bulgaria as a major military power by defeating a 26,000-strong Arab army during the Second Arab Siege of Constantinople; Krum (802–814) doubled the country's territory, killed emperor Nicephorus I in the Battle of Pliska, and introduced the first written code of law; Boris I (852–889) abolished Tengriism in favor of Eastern Orthodox Christianity in 864, and introduced the Cyrillic alphabet. Simeon the Great's rule (893–927) saw the largest territorial expansion of Bulgaria in its history, along with a golden age of Bulgarian culture and a military supremacy over the Byzantine Empire, demonstrated in the Battle of Achelous (917).

After Simeon's death, Bulgaria declined during the mid-10th century, weakened by wars with Croatians, Magyars, Pechenegs and Serbs, and the spread of the Bogomil heresy. This resulted in consecutive Rus' and Byzantine invasions, which ended with the seizure of the capital Preslav by the Byzantine army. Under Samuil, Bulgaria somewhat recovered from these attacks and even managed to conquer Serbia, Bosnia and Duklja, but this ended in 1014, when Byzantine Emperor Basil II ("the Bulgar-Slayer") defeated its armies at Klyuch. Samuil died shortly after the battle, on 15 October 1014, and by 1018 the Byzantine Empire conquered the remaimed parts of the First Bulgarian Empire, putting it to an end.

Second Bulgarian Empire

Basil II managed to prevent rebellions by retaining the local rule of the Bulgarian nobility (incorporated into Byzantine aristocracy as archons or strategoi), guaranteeing the indivisibility of Bulgaria in its former geographic borders and recognising the autocephaly of the Bulgarian Archbishopric of Ohrid. After his death Byzantine domestic policies changed, which led to a series of unsuccessful rebellions, the largest being led by Peter II Delyan. It was not until 1185 when Asen dynasty nobles Ivan Asen I and Peter IV organized a major uprising and succeeded in reestablishing the Bulgarian state, marking the beginning of the Second Bulgarian Empire.

The Asen dynasty set up its capital in Tarnovo. Kaloyan, the third of the Asen monarchs, extended his dominions to Belgrade, Nish and Skopie; he acknowledged the spiritual supremacy of the Pope, and received a royal crown from a papal legate. Cultural and economic growth persisted under Ivan Asen II (1218–1241), who extended Bulgaria's control over Albania, Epirus, Macedonia and Thrace. The achievements of the Tarnovo artistic school as well as the first coins to be minted by a Bulgarian ruler were only a few signs of the empire's welfare at that time.

The Asen dynasty ended in 1257, and due to Tatar invasions, internal conflicts, and constant Byzantine and Hungarian attacks, the country's military and economic might declined. By the end of the 14th century, factional divisions between Bulgarian feudal landlords (''bolyari'') and the spread of Bogomilism had caused the Second Bulgarian Empire to split into three small tsardoms (At Vidin, Tarnovo and Karvuna) and several semi-independent principalities that fought among themselves, and also with Byzantines, Hungarians, Serbs, Venetians and Genoese. In the same period the Ottoman Turks, who had already started their invasion of the Balkans, conquered most Bulgarian towns and fortresses south of the Balkan Mountains and began their northwards conquest.

Ottoman rule and national awakening

In 1393, the Ottomans captured Tarnovo, the capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, after a three-month siege. In 1396, the Vidin Tsardom fell after the defeat of a Christian crusade at the Battle of Nicopolis. Finally, the Vidin Tzardom fell to in 1423 and with this, the Ottomans finally subjugated and occupied all Bulgarian controlled lands south of the Danube. During their rule, the Bulgarian population south of the Danube suffered greatly from oppression, intolerance and misgovernment.North of the Danube, where a significant number of Bulgarian nobility and common folk remained, the population was under the jurisdiction of various Christian autonomous, predominately Wallachian led principalities, where the Bulgarian alphabet continued to be used and many cities kept their Bulgarian names, like the Wallachian capital of Targovishte. The nobility in the Christian principalities north of the Danube, continued to be known by their Bulgarian titles of Boyars and regularly helped Bulgarian population to continue to migrate north, as part of their military campaigns south of the Danube. Thus, Bulgarian population north of the Danube never came under Ottoman occupation, which greatly helped the National revival south of the Danube in later centuries. The nobility south of the Danube however, was eliminated and parts of the peasantry enserfed to Ottoman masters while Bulgarians lacked judicial equality with the Ottoman Muslims and had to pay much higher taxes than them. Bulgarian culture became isolated from Europe, its achievements destroyed, and the educated clergy fled to other countries.

Throughout the nearly five centuries of Ottoman rule, the Bulgarian people responded to the oppression by strengthening the ''haydut'' ("rebels") tradition, and attempted to reestablish their state by organizing several revolts, most notably the First and Second Tarnovo Uprisings (1598 / 1686) and Karposh's Rebellion (1689). The National awakening of Bulgaria became one of the key factors in the struggle for liberation, resulting in the 1876 April uprising—the largest and best-organized Bulgarian rebellion. Though crushed by the Ottoman authorities—in reprisal, the Turks massacred some 15,000 Bulgarians—the uprising prompted the Great Powers to take action. They convened the Constantinople Conference in 1876, but their decisions were rejected by the Ottoman authorities, which allowed the Russian Empire to seek a solution by force without risking military confrontation with other Great Powers (as had happened in the Crimean War of 1854 to 1856). The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 resulted in the defeat of Ottoman forces by the Russian Army (supported by Bulgarian volunteer forces and the Romanian Army) and the Treaty of San Stefano (3 March 1878), which set up an autonomous Bulgarian principality.

The Great Powers immediately rejected the treaty, fearing that such a large country in the Balkans might threaten their interests. The subsequent Treaty of Berlin (1878) provided for a much smaller autonomous state comprising Moesia and the region of Sofia. The Bulgarian principality proclaimed itself a fully independent state on 5 October (22 September O.S.), 1908, after it won a war against Serbia and incorporated the semi-autonomous Ottoman territory of Eastern Rumelia.

Modern era

In the years following the achievement of complete independence Bulgaria became increasingly militarized, and was referred to as "the Balkan Prussia". In 1885 Northern Bulgaria and Southern Bulgaria united and subsequently defeated Serbia in the war of 1885. Between 1912 and 1918, Bulgaria became involved in a string of three consecutive conflicts – the Balkan Wars and World War I. After a disastrous defeat in the Second Balkan War, Bulgaria again found itself fighting on the losing side as a result of its alliance with the Central Powers in World War I. Despite achieving several decisive victories at Doiran, Monastir and again at Doiran in 1918, the country capitulated in 1918 and suffered significant territorial losses, a total of 412,000 casualties, and a wave of more than 253,000 refugees who put an additional strain on the already ruined national economy.

The political unrest resulting from these losses led to the establishment of a royal authoritarian dictatorship by Tsar Boris III (1918–1943). Bulgaria entered World War II in 1941 as a member of the Axis but declined to participate in Operation Barbarossa and saved its Jewish population from deportation to concentration camps. In the summer of 1943 Boris III died suddenly, an event which pushed the country into political turmoil as the war turned against Nazi Germany and the Communist guerilla movement gained more power. In September 1944 the Communist-dominated Fatherland Front took power, following strikes and unrest, ending the alliance with Nazi Germany and joining the Allied side until the end of the war in 1945.

The Communist uprising of 9 September 1944 led to the abolition of monarchic rule, but it was not until 1946 that a people's republic was established. It came under the Soviet sphere of influence, with Georgi Dimitrov (1946–1949) as the foremost Bulgarian political leader. Bulgaria installed a Soviet-style planned economy with some market-oriented policies emerging on an experimental level under Todor Zhivkov (1954–1989). By the mid 1950s standards of living rose significantly. Lyudmila Zhivkova, daughter of Zhivkov, promoted Bulgaria's national heritage, culture and arts worldwide. On the other hand, an assimilation campaign of the late 1980s directed against ethnic Turks resulted in the emigration of some 300,000 of them to Turkey. On 10 November 1989, the Bulgarian Communist Party gave up its political monopoly, Zhivkov resigned, and Bulgaria embarked on a transition from a single-party republic to a parliamentary democracy.

In June 1990 the first free elections took place, won by the moderate wing of the Communist Party (the Bulgarian Socialist Party—BSP). In July 1991, a new constitution that provided for a relatively weak elected President and for a Prime Minister accountable to the legislature, was adopted. The new system eventually failed to improve living standards or create economic growth — the average quality of life and economic performance actually remained lower than in the times of Communism well into the early 2000s.

A reform package introduced in 1997 restored positive economic growth, but led to rising social inequality. Bulgaria became a member of NATO in 2004 and of the European Union in 2007. The US Library of Congress Federal Research Division reported it in 2006 as having generally good freedom of speech and human rights records, while Freedom House listed Bulgaria as "free" in 2011, giving it scores of 2 for political rights and 2 for civil liberties.

This score represents a reduction in its previous ranking of 1 for Political Rights on 2008.

Geography

Bulgaria lies between latitudes 41° and 45° N, and longitudes 22° and 29° E.

Geographically and in terms of climate, Bulgaria features notable diversity, with the landscape ranging from the Alpine snow-capped peaks in Rila, Pirin and the Balkan Mountains to the mild and sunny Black Sea coast; from the typically continental Danubian Plain (ancient Moesia) in the north to the strong Mediterranean climatic influence in the valleys of Macedonia and in the lowlands in the southernmost parts of Thrace.

Relief and natural resources

About 30% of the land is made up of plains, while plateaus and hills account for 41%. The mountainous southwest of the country has two alpine ranges — Rila (where mount Musala, at , is located) and Pirin, and further east stand the lower but more extensive Rhodope Mountains. The Balkan mountain chain runs west-east through the middle of the country, north of the Rose Valley. Hilly countryside and plains lie to the southeast, along the Black Sea coast, and along Bulgaria's main river, the Danube, to the north.

Bulgaria has large deposits of bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, bismuth and manganese. Smaller deposits exist of iron, gold, silver, uranium, chromite, nickel, and others. Bulgaria has abundant non-metalliferous minerals such as rock-salt, gypsum, kaolin and marble.

Hydrography and climate

The country has a dense network of about 540 rivers, most of them—with the notable exception of the Danube—short and with low water-levels. Most rivers flow through mountainous areas. The longest river located solely in Bulgarian territory, the Iskar, has a length of . Other major rivers include the Struma and the Maritsa in the south.

Bulgaria overall has a temperate climate, with cold winters and hot summers. The barrier effect of the Balkan Mountains has some influence on climate throughout the country – northern Bulgaria experiences lower temperatures and receives more rain than the southern lowlands.

Precipitation averages about per year. In the lowlands rainfall varies between , and in the mountain areas between of rain falls per year. Drier areas include Dobrudja and the northern coastal strip, while the higher parts of the Rila, Pirin, Rhodope Mountains, Stara Planina, Osogovska Mountain and Vitosha receive the highest levels of precipitation.

Environment and wildlife

Bulgaria has signed and ratified the Kyoto protocol and has achieved a 30% reduction of carbon dioxide emissions from 1990 to 2009, completing the protocol's objectives. However, pollution from outdated factories and metallurgy works, as well as severe deforestation (mostly caused by illegal logging), continue to be major problems. Urban areas are particularly affected mostly due to energy production from coal-based powerplants and automobile traffic, while pesticide usage in the agriculture and antiquated industrial sewage systems have resulted in extensive soil and water pollution with chemicals and detergents. In addition, Bulgaria remains the only EU member which does not recycle municipal waste, although an electronic waste recycling plant was put in operation in June 2010. The situation has improved in recent years, and several government-funded programs have been initiated in order to reduce pollution levels.

Three national parks, 11 nature parks and 17 biosphere reserves exist on Bulgaria's territory. Nearly 35% of its land area consists of forests, where some of the oldest trees in the world – such as Baikushev's Pine and the Granit oak – have grown. The brown bear and the jackal are prominent mammals, while the Eurasian lynx, the Eastern imperial eagle and the European mink have small, but growing populations.

Politics

The National Assembly or ''Narodno Sabranie'' (Народно събрание) consists of 240 deputies, each elected for four-year terms by popular vote. The National Assembly has the power to enact laws, approve the budget, schedule presidential elections, select and dismiss the Prime Minister and other ministers, declare war, deploy troops abroad, and ratify international treaties and agreements. The president serves as the head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. While unable to initiate legislation other than constitutional amendments, the President can return a bill for further debate, although the parliament can override the President's veto by vote of a majority of all MPs. Boyko Borisov, leader of the centre-right party Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria, became prime minister on 27 July 2009, and Georgi Parvanov was re-elected as a president in 2005.

Law

The Bulgarian legal system recognizes the Acts of Parliament as a main source of law, and is a typical representative of the Romano-Germanic law family. The judiciary is overseen by the Ministry of Justice, while the Supreme Administrative Court and Supreme Court of Cassation, the highest courts of appeal, rule on the application of laws in lower courts. The Supreme Judicial Council manages the system and appoints judges. Bulgaria's judiciary remains one of Europe's most corrupt and inefficient.

Law enforcement organisations are mainly subordinate to the Ministry of Interior. The National Police Service is responsible for combating general crime and supporting the operations of other law enforcement agencies, the National Investigative Service and the Central Office for Combating Organized Crime. The Police Service has criminal and financial sections and national and local offices. The Ministry of Interior also heads the Border Police Service and the National Gendarmerie, a specialized branch for anti-terrorist activity, crisis management and riot control. In 2008, the State Agency for National Security, a specialized body for counterintelligence, was established with the aim to eliminate threats to national security. Bulgaria's police force numbers 27,000 officers.

Foreign relations and military

Bulgaria became a member of the United Nations in 1955, and a founding member of OSCE in 1975. As a Consultative Party to the Antarctic Treaty, the country takes part in the administration of the territories situated south of 60° south latitude. It joined NATO on 29 March 2004, signed the European Union Treaty of Accession on 25 April 2005, and became a full member of the European Union on 1 January 2007.

In April 2006 Bulgaria and the United States of America signed a defence cooperation agreement providing for the usage of the Bezmer and Graf Ignatievo air bases, the Novo Selo training range, and a logistics centre in Aytos as joint military facilities. ''Foreign Policy'' magazine lists Bezmer Air Base as one of the six most important overseas facilities used by the USAF.

The military of Bulgaria, an all-volunteer body, consists of three services—land forces, navy and air force. As a NATO member, the country maintains a total of 913 troops deployed abroad. Historically, Bulgaria deployed significant numbers of military and civilian advisors in socialist-oriented countries, such as Nicaragua and Libya (more than 9,000 personnel).

Following a series of reductions beginning in 1990, the active troops today number about 32,000, down from 152,000 in 1988, and are supplemented by a reserve force of 303,000 soldiers and officers and paramilitary forces, numbering 34,000. The inventory includes highly capable Soviet equipment, such as MiG-29 fighters, SA-10 Grumble SAMs and SS-21 Scarab short-range ballistic missiles. Military spending in 2009 cost $1.19 billion.

Administrative divisions

Between 1987 and 1999 Bulgaria's administrative structure consisted of nine provinces (''oblasti'', singular ''oblast''). Since 1999, it includes 27 provinces and a metropolitan capital province (Sofia-Grad). All areas take their names from their respective capital cities.

Arms	Province	Arms	Province	Arms	Province
					Sofia Province (excludes the metropolitan capital area)

The provinces subdivide into 264 municipalities.

Economy

Bulgaria has an industrialized, open free-market economy, with a large, moderately advanced private sector and a number of strategic state-owned enterprises. The World Bank classifies it as an "upper-middle-income economy". Bulgaria has experienced rapid economic growth , even though its income level remains one of the lowest within the EU. According to Eurostat data, Bulgarian PPS GDP per capita stood at 45% of the EU average in 2009, while the cost of living in the country was 51% of the EU average in 2010. The Bulgarian lev is the country's national currency. The lev is pegged to the euro at a rate of 1.95583 levs for 1 euro.

In 2010, GDP (PPP) was estimated at $96.778 billion, with a per capita value of $12,851. The services sector accounts for 63.7% of the GDP, followed by the industry with 30.3% and agriculture with 6.0%. Major industries include iron, copper, bismuth and coal extraction, electronics, chemicals, machinery, steel and refined petroleum fuel production, vehicle components, firearms and construction materials. The total labor force amounts to 3.4 million people.

Amidst the Financial crisis of 2007–2010, unemployment rates increased to 9.1% in 2009, while GDP growth contracted from 6.3% (2008) to −4.9% (2009). The crisis had a negative impact mostly on industry, with a 10% decline in the national industrial production index, a 31% drop in mining, and a 60% drop in "ferrous and metal production". Positive growth was restored to 0.3% in 2010. Corruption in the public administration and a weak judiciary have also hampered Bulgaria's economic development. Bulgaria is ranked 51st in the Ease of Doing Business rank list, higher than most other Eastern European states.

Although it has relatively few reserves of fossil fuels, Bulgaria's well-developed energy sector and strategic geographical location make it a key European energy hub. A single nuclear power station with two active reactors satisfies 34% of the country's energy needs, and another nuclear power station with a projected capacity of is under construction. have seen a rapid increase in electricity production from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power, making Bulgaria one of the fastest-growing wind energy producers in the world. The industry is concentrated around textiles, metallurgy, fuel and food processing, production of various chemicals, and mining. In Europe, the country ranks as the 3rd-largest copper producer, 6th-largest zinc producer, and 9th-largest coal producer, and is the 9th-largest bismuth producer in the world.

In contrast with the industrial sector, Bulgarian agriculture has marked a decline since the beginning of the 2000s, with production in 2008 amounting to only 66% of that between 1999 and 2001. Overall, the agricultural sector has dwindled since 1990, with cereal and vegetable yields dropping nearly 40% by 1999. A five-year modernization and development program was launched by the government in 2007, aimed at strengthening the sector by investing a total of 3.2 billion euro. Specialized equipment amounts to some 25,000 tractors and 5,500 combine harvesters, with a fleet of light aircraft. Bulgaria remains a major European producer of agricultural commodities such as tobacco (3rd) and raspberries (12th).

Tourism

In 2008 Bulgaria was visited by a total of 8,900,000 people, with Greeks, Romanians and Germans accounting for more than 40% of all visitors. Significant numbers of British, Russian, Dutch, Serbian, Polish and Danish tourists also visit Bulgaria. In 2010, Lonely Planet ranked it among its top 10 travel destinations for 2011.

Main destinations include the capital Sofia, coastal resorts Albena, Sozopol, Nesebar, Golden Sands and Sunny Beach and winter resorts such as Pamporovo, Chepelare, Borovetz and Bansko. The rural tourist destinations of Arbanasi and Bozhentsi offer well-preserved ethnographic traditions. Other popular attractions include the 10th-century Rila Monastery and the 19th-century Euxinograd château.

Infrastructure

Bulgaria occupies a unique and strategically important geographic location. Since ancient times, the country has served as a major crossroads between Europe, Asia and Africa. Five of the ten Trans-European corridors run through its territory.

Bulgaria's national road network has a total length of , of which are paved. Motorways, such as Trakiya, Hemus and Struma, have a total length of . Bulgaria also has of railway track, more than 60% of which is electrified, and plans to construct a high-speed railway by 2017, at a cost of €3 bln. Sofia and Plovdiv are major air travel hubs, while Varna and Burgas are the principal maritime trade ports.

Science and technology

In 2008 Bulgaria spent 0.4% of its GDP on scientific research, which represents one of the lowest scientific budgets in Europe. Chronic underinvestment in the scientific sector since 1990 forced many scientific professionals to leave the country. Bulgaria has traditions in astronomy, physics, nuclear technology, medical and pharmaceutical research, and maintains an Antarctic exploration program by means of an artificial satellite and a permanent research base. The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) is the leading scientific institution in the country and employs most of Bulgaria's researchers in its numerous branches.

Bulgarian scientists have made several notable discoveries and inventions, such as the prototype of the digital watch (Peter Petroff); galantamine (Dimitar Paskov); the molecular-kinetic theory of crystal formation and growth (formulated by Ivan Stranski) and the space greenhouse (SRI-BAS). With major-general Georgi Ivanov flying on Soyuz 33 in 1979, Bulgaria became the 6th country in the world to have an astronaut in space.

Due to its large-scale computing technology exports to COMECON states, in the 1980s Bulgaria became known as the Silicon Valley of the Eastern Bloc. The country ranked 8th in the world in 2002 by total number of ICT specialists, outperforming countries with far larger populations, and it operates the only supercomputer in the Balkan region, an IBM Blue Gene/P, which entered service in September 2008.

Demographics

The data of the 2011 census gives a figure of 7,364,570 inhabitants, down from a peak population of 8,981,000 inhabitants in 1988.

Bulgaria is in a state of demographic crisis, and has had negative population growth since the early 1990s, with the country's economic difficulties leading to low fertility rates and high levels of emigration. Despite some progress, the population is still decreasing with 30,000 people per year and the growth rate is the lowest of any sovereign nation in the world.

According to the 2001 census, the population of 7,932,984 people consists mainly of 6,655,210 ethnic Bulgarians (83.9%), followed by the Turkish (9.4%) and Roma minority (4.7%). Of the remaining 2%, 0.9% comprises some 40 smaller minorities, while 1.1% of the population have not declared their ethnicity. Some 6,700,000 people (~85%) speak Bulgarian as their mother tongue, which belongs to the group of South Slavic languages and is the only official language.

According to the 2001 census most of the population (82.6%) self-identify as Orthodox Christian. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church gained autocephalous status in 927 AD and is the earliest Slavic Orthodox Church. Other religious denominations include Islam (12.2%), Roman Catholicism (0.6%) and Protestantism (0.5%); with other religions (0.2%), and with "not stated" totalling approximately 4%. Bulgaria regards itself officially as a secular state. The Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion, but appoints Orthodoxy as "a traditional" religion.

Education

The Ministry of Education, Youth and Science oversees education in Bulgaria. All children aged between 7 and 16 must attend full-time education. Six-year-olds can enroll at school at their parents' discretion. The State provides education in its schools free of charge, except for higher education establishments, colleges and universities. The curriculum focuses on eight main subject-areas: Bulgarian language and literature, foreign languages, mathematics, information technology, social sciences and humanities, natural sciences and ecology, music and art, physical education and sports.

Government estimates from 2003 put the literacy rate at 98.6%, approximately the same for both sexes. Bulgaria has traditionally had high educational standards.

Health

Bulgaria has a universal, mostly state-funded healthcare system. The National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) pays a gradually increasing portion of the costs of primary healthcare. Employees and employers pay an increasing, mandatory percentage of salaries, with the goal of gradually reducing state support of health care. Between 2002 and 2004, health-care expenditures in the national budget increased from 3.8% to 4.3%, with the NHIF accounting for more than 60% of annual expenditures. In 2010, the healthcare budget amounts to 4.2% of GDP, or about 1.3 billion euro.

Bulgaria has 181 doctors per 100,000 people, which is above the EU average. Some of Bulgaria's largest medical facilities are the Pirogov Hospital and the Military Medical Academy of Sofia. Life expectancy is 73.6 years, which is below the European union average.

Urbanization

Most of the population (72.5%) resides in urban areas. Bulgaria's 20 largest cities have populations as follows:

Culture

Traditional Bulgarian culture contains mainly Thracian, Slavic and Bulgar heritage, along with Greek, Roman, Ottoman and Celtic influences. Thracian artifacts include numerous tombs and golden treasures. The country's territory includes parts of the Roman provinces of Moesia, Thrace and Macedonia, and many of the archaeological discoveries date back to Roman times, while ancient Bulgars have also left traces of their heritage in music and in early architecture. Both the First and the Second Bulgarian empires functioned as the hub of Slavic culture during much of the Middle Ages, exerting considerable literary and cultural influence over the Eastern Orthodox Slavic world by means of the Preslav and Ohrid Literary Schools. The Cyrillic alphabet, used as a writing system to many languages in Eastern Europe and Asia, originated in the former around the 9th century AD.

Archaeological and World Heritage sites

A vast number of archaeological sites from all eras are scattered around the country's territory. Bulgaria has the third-largest total number of uncovered archaeological sites in Europe after Italy and Greece, and many of them are Thracian in origin. A historical artifact of major importance is the oldest golden treasure in the world, dating back to 5,000 BC, coming from the site of the Varna Necropolis.

Apart from these sites, nine UNESCO World Heritage Sites exist: the Madara Rider, the Thracian tombs in Sveshtari and Kazanlak, the Boyana Church, the Rila Monastery, the Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo, Pirin National Park, Sreburna Nature Reserve and the ancient city of Nesebar.

Art, music and literature

Bulgarian musical tradition is long-standing and can be traced back to the early Middle Ages and the works of Yoan Kukuzel (c. 1280–1360). National folk music has a distinctive sound and uses a wide range of traditional instruments, such as gudulka, gaida (bagpipe), kaval and tupan. The State Television Female Vocal Choir is the most famous performing folk ensemble, and received a Grammy Award in 1990. Bulgarian classical music is represented by composers Emanuil Manolov, Pancho Vladigerov, Marin Goleminov and Georgi Atanasov, opera singers Ghena Dimitrova, Boris Hristov and Raina Kabaivanska, and pianists Alexis Weissenberg and Vesselin Stanev.

Bulgaria has a rich religious visual arts heritage, especially in frescoes, murals and icons, many of them produced by the medieval Tarnovo Artistic School.

One of the earliest pieces of Slavic literature were created in Medieval Bulgaria, such as ''The Didactic Gospel'' by Constantine of Preslav and ''An Account of Letters'' by Chernorizets Hrabar, both written c. 893. Notable Bulgarian authors include late Romantic Ivan Vazov, Symbolists Pencho Slaveykov and Peyo Yavorov, Expressionist Geo Milev, science fiction writer Pavel Vezhinov, novelist Dimitar Dimov and postmodernist Alek Popov. German-language writer Elias Canetti was the only Bulgarian to win the Nobel Prize (Literature, 1981).

Media

The media in Bulgaria has a record of unbiased reporting. The written media have no legal restrictions and newspaper publishing is entirely liberal. The extensive freedom of the press means that no exact number of publications can be established, although some research put an estimate of around 900 print media outlets for 2006. The largest-circulation daily newspapers include ''Dneven Trud'' and ''24 Chasa''.

Non-printed media sources, such as television and radio, are overseen by the Council for Electronic Media (CEM), an independent body with the authority to issue broadcasting licenses. Apart from a state-operated national television channel, radio station and the Bulgarian News Agency, a large number of private television and radio stations exist. However, most Bulgarian media experience a number of negative trends, such as general degradation of media products, self-censorship and economic or political pressure. ''Slavi's Show'' and ''Gospodari Na Efira'' are among the most popular TV programs, both having more than 1,000,000 views per show.

Internet media are growing in popularity due to the wide range of available opinions and viewpoints, lack of censorship and diverse content. Since 2000, a rapid increase in the number of Internet users has occurred – from 430,000 they grew to 1,545,100 in 2004, and 3.4 million (48% penetration rate) in 2010.

Cuisine

Yogurt (''kiselo mlyako''), lukanka, banitsa, shopska salad, lyutenitsa and kozunak give Bulgaria a distinctive cuisine. Most dishes are oven baked, steamed, or in the form of stew. Deep-frying is uncommon, but grilling — especially different kinds of meats — is widely practiced. Pork is the most common meat, followed by chicken and lamb. Oriental dishes such as moussaka, gyuvech, and baklava are also present. Bulgarian cuisine is also noted for the quality of dairy products (a large variety of sirene and kashkaval cheese sorts) and salads, as well as the variety of wines and local alcoholic drinks such as rakiya, mastika and menta.

Exports of Bulgarian wine go worldwide, and until 1990 the country exported the world's second-largest total of bottled wine. As of 2007, more than 200,000 tonnes of wine were produced annually. Among the more prominent local sorts are Dimiat and Mavrud.

Sports

Bulgaria performs well in sports such as volleyball, wrestling, weight-lifting, canoeing, rowing, shooting sports, gymnastics, chess, and recently, sumo wrestling and tennis. The country fields one of the leading men's volleyball teams, ranked 7th in the world according to the 2011 FIVB rankings, while the women's volleyball team finished second in European League 2010.

Football has become by far the most popular sport in the country. Some of the most famous players are Manchester United forward Dimitar Berbatov and Hristo Stoichkov, twice winner of the European Golden Shoe and the most successful Bulgarian player of all time. Prominent domestic football clubs include PFC CSKA Sofia and PFC Levski Sofia. Bulgaria's best performance at World Cup finals came in 1994, with a 4th place.

Bulgaria participates in most Olympic competitions since its first appearance at the 1896 games, when it was represented by Charles Champaud. The country has appeared in most Summer Olympiads, and by 2010 had won a total of 218 medals: 52 gold, 86 silver, and 80 bronze, which puts it at 24th place in the all-time ranking.

2010 Wimbledon semi-finalist Tsvetana Pironkova is also Bulgarian.

See also

Bulgarian resistance movement during World War II

List of Bulgarian monarchs

List of twin towns and sister cities in Bulgaria

References

Further reading

Chary, Frederick B. ''The History of Bulgaria'' (The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations) (2011) excerpt and text search

Detrez, Raymond. ''Historical Dictionary of Bulgaria'' (2nd ed. 2006). lxiv + 638 pp. Maps, bibliography, appendix, chronology. ISBN 978-0-8108-4901-3.

Crampton, R. J. ''A Concise History of Bulgaria'' (2005) Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press ISBN 9780521616379

Bell, John D., ed. (1998). ''Bulgaria in Transition: Politics, Economics, Society, and Culture after Communism''. Westview. ISBN 978-0813390109

Chary, Frederick B., ''The Bulgarian Jews and the Final Solution 1940–1944''. University of Pittsburg Press (1972). ISBN 0-8229-3251-2

Hall, Richard C. ''Bulgaria's Road to the First World War'' (1996) New York: Columbia University Press ISBN 088033357X

Lampe, John R. ''The Bulgarian Economy in the Twentieth Century'' (1986) London: Croom Helm ISBN 0709916442

Miller-Yianni, ''Simple Treasures in Bulgaria'' (2008) UK; Lulu Inc. ISBN 978-0-9559-8490-7

Miller-Yianni, ''Bulgarian History: A Concise Account'' (2010) UK; Lulu Inc. ISBN 978-1-4457-1633-6

Perry, Duncan M. ''Stefan Stambolov and the Emergence of Modern Bulgaria, 1870–1895'' (1993) Durham: Duke University Press ISBN 0822313138

Todorov, Tzvetan ''The fragility of goodness: why Bulgaria’s Jews survived the Holocaust: a collection of texts with commentary'' (2001) Princeton: Princeton University Press ISBN 0691088322

External links

Government

Official governmental site

President of The Republic of Bulgaria

National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria

Chief of State and Cabinet Members

General information

Bulgaria information from the United States Department of State

Portals to the World from the United States Library of Congress

Bulgaria at ''UCB Libraries GovPubs''

Travel

Category:European countries Category:Member states of the European Union Category:Black Sea countries Category:Member states of La Francophonie Category:Liberal democracies Category:Former empires Category:Republics Category:Slavic countries Category:States and territories established in 681 Category:States and territories established in 1878 Category:States and territories established in 1908 Category:Member states of the Union for the Mediterranean Category:Member states of NATO Category:Member states of the United Nations

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Sofi Marinova (born 1975) (Bulgarian: Софи Маринова) is a chalga singer from Bulgaria.

Her boyfriend as of 2010 is "Dacho", who appeared on the third season of VIP Brother in Bulgaria.

Albums

Edinstven moi/Only Mine (1997)

Moiat sun/My Dream (1998)

Studen Plamak/Cold Fire (1999)

Nejna e noshta/The Night is Gently (2000)

Osudena liubov/Judged Love (2002)

5 oktavi liubov/5 Octaves of Love (2004)

Hitove/Hits (2005)

Obicham/I love (2005)

Ostani/Stay (2006)

Vreme spri/Time stop (2008)

VIP (2009)

References

Category:1975 births Category:Living people Category:Bulgarian female singers Category:Bulgarian pop singers

bg:Софи Маринова es:Sofi Marinova ja:ソフィ・マリノヴァ rmy:Sofi Marinova sr:Софи Маринова

Coordinates	28°36′50″N77°12′32″N
Position	Small forward / Power forward
Height ft	6 | height_in 6|weight_lbs 220
Number	10, 91, 73, 70
Birth date	May 13, 1961
Birth place	Trenton, New Jersey
Nationality	American
League
Career start	1986
Career end	2006
Draftyear	1986
Draftround	2
Draftpick	27
Draftteam	Detroit Pistons
High school	South Oak Cliff
College	Cooke County (1983)Southeastern Oklahoma State (1983–1986)
years1	– | team1 Detroit Pistons
years2	– | team2 San Antonio Spurs
years3	– | team3 Chicago Bulls
years4	| team4 Los Angeles Lakers
years5	| team5 Dallas Mavericks
years6	2003–2004 | team6 Long Beach Jam (ABA)
years7	2004–2005 | team7 Orange County Crush (ABA)
years8	2005, 2005–2006 | team8 Tijuana Dragons (ABA)
years9	2005 | team9 Torpan Pojat (Finland)
years10	2006 | team10 Brighton Bears (United Kingdom)
Stats league	NBA
Stat1label	Points
Stat1value	6,683
Stat2label	Rebounds
Stat2value	11,954
Stat3label	Assists
Stat3value	1,600
Letter	r
Bbr	rodmade01
Highlights	5× NBA Champion (1989–1990, 1996–1998) 2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (–) 2× NBA All-Star (1990, 1992) 2× All-NBA Third Team (, ) 7× All-Defensive First Team (–, –) All-Defensive Second Team () 7× NBA rebounding champion (–) Detroit Pistons #10 retired
hof player	dennis-rodman }}

Dennis Keith Rodman (born May 13, 1961) is a retired American Hall of Fame professional basketball player of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) Detroit Pistons, San Antonio Spurs, Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks. Born in Trenton, New Jersey, he was nicknamed "Dennis the Menace" and "The Worm" and was known for his fierce defensive and rebounding abilities. Playing small forward in his early years before becoming a power forward, Rodman earned NBA All-Defensive First Team honors seven times and was voted NBA Defensive Player of the Year twice. He also led the NBA in rebounds per game for a record seven consecutive years and won five NBA championships (1989, 1990, 1996, 1997, 1998). His biography at NBA.com states that he is "arguably the best rebounding forward in NBA history". On April 1, 2011, the Pistons retired Rodman's #10 jersey. Later that same year, Rodman was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Rodman experienced an unhappy childhood and was shy and introverted in his early years. After aborting a suicide attempt in 1993, he reinvented himself as the prototypical "bad boy" and became notorious for numerous controversial antics. He dyed his hair in artificial colors, presented himself with many piercings and tattoos and regularly disrupted games by clashing with opposing players and officials. He famously wore a wedding dress to promote his autobiography. Rodman pursued a high-profile affair with singer Madonna and was briefly married to actress Carmen Electra.

Apart from basketball, Rodman is a part-time professional wrestler. He was a member of the nWo and fought alongside Hulk Hogan at two ''Bash at the Beach'' events. He had his own TV show, ''The Rodman World Tour'', and had lead roles in the action films ''Simon Sez'' and ''Double Team'' alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme. Both films were severely critically panned, with the latter earning Rodman a triple Razzie Award. He appeared in several reality TV series and was the winner of the $222,000 main prize of the 2004 edition of ''Celebrity Mole''. Rodman also won the first ever Celebrity Championship Wrestling tournament.

Early life and education

Dennis Rodman was born in Trenton, New Jersey, the son of Shirley and Philander Rodman Jr., an Air Force pilot, later a veteran of the Vietnam War after Rodman's birth. When he was young, his father left his family, eventually settling in The Philippines. Shirley subsequently took many odd jobs—at times, four at the same time—to support her family. In his 1997 biography ''Bad As I Wanna Be'', he expresses his disgust and hate for his father: "I haven't seen my father in more than 30 years, so what's there to miss... I just look at it like this: Some man brought me into this world. That doesn't mean I have a father." The impoverished Rodman and his two sisters, Debra and Kim, grew up in the Oak Cliff section of Dallas, Texas, considered one of the worst areas of Dallas in those times. Rodman was so attached to his mother that he refused to move when she sent him to a nursery when he was four years old. According to Rodman, Shirley Rodman was more interested in his two sisters Debra and Kim, who were both considered more talented than he was in basketball, and made him a laughingstock whenever he tagged along with them. He felt generally "overwhelmed" by the all-female household. Debra and Kim would go on to become All-Americans at Louisiana Tech and Stephen F. Austin respectively.

When Rodman experienced his growth spurt, he became even more withdrawn because he felt odd in his own body. Rodman was so insecure around women that he thought he was homosexual in his teens. He lost his virginity when he was 20 years old and had his first sexual experience with a prostitute; he described this as an unpleasant experience.

While attending South Oak Cliff High School, Rodman played under future Texas A&M; coach Gary Blair. However, Rodman was not considered an athletic standout. According to himself, he was "unable to hit a layup" and was listed in the high school basketball teams, but was either benched or cut from the squads. Measuring only as a freshman in high school, he also failed to make the football teams and was "totally devastated". After finishing school, Rodman worked as an overnight janitor at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. He experienced a sudden growth spurt, and decided to give basketball another shot.

A family friend tipped off the head coach of Cooke County College in Gainesville, Texas. In his single semester there, he averaged 17.6  points and 13.3 rebounds, before flunking out due to poor academic performances. After his short stint in Gainesville, he transferred to Southeastern Oklahoma State University, an NAIA school. There, Rodman was a three-time NAIA All-American and led the NAIA in rebounding in both the 1984–85 and 1985–86 seasons. In three seasons there, 1983–84 through 1985–86, he averaged 25.7 points and 15.7 rebounds, led the NAIA in rebounding twice and registered a .637 field goal percentage. At the Portsmouth Invitational, a pre-draft camp for NBA hopefuls, he won Most Valuable Player honors and caught the attention of the Detroit Pistons.

During this time, Rodman worked at a summer youth basketball camp, where he befriended camper Byrne Rich, who was shy and withdrawn, following a hunting accident in which he mistakenly shot and killed his best friend. The two became almost inseparable and formed a bond. Rich invited Rodman to his rural Oklahoma home; at first, Rodman was not well-received by the Riches due to being an African-American. But, the Riches were so grateful to him for bringing their son out of his shell that they were able to set aside their prejudices. Although Rodman had severe family and personal issues himself, he "adopted" the Riches as his own in 1982 and went from the city life to "driving a tractor and messing with cows." Rodman credits the Riches as his "surrogate family" that helped him through college.

Basketball career

Detroit Pistons

Rodman made himself eligible for the 1986 NBA Draft. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons as the 3rd pick in the second round (27th overall), joining the rugged team of coach Chuck Daly that was called "Bad Boys" for their hard-nosed approach to basketball. The squad featured Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars at the guard positions, Adrian Dantley and Sidney Green at forward, and center Bill Laimbeer. Bench players who played more than 15 minutes per game were sixth man Vinnie Johnson and the backup forwards Rick Mahorn and John Salley. Rodman fit well into this ensemble, providing 6.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and some tough defense in 15.0 minutes of playing time per game. Winning 52 games, the Pistons comfortably entered the 1987 NBA Playoffs. They swept the Washington Bullets and soundly beat the Atlanta Hawks in five games, but bowed out in seven matches against the archrival Boston Celtics in what was called one of the physically and mentally toughest series ever. Rodman feuded with Celtics guard Dennis Johnson and taunted Johnson in the closing seconds when he waved his right hand over his own head. When the Celtics took Game Seven, Johnson went back at Rodman in the last moments of the game and mimicked his taunting gesture. After the loss, Rodman made headlines by directly accusing Celtics star Larry Bird of being overrated because he was white: "Larry Bird is overrated in a lot of areas. ...Why does he get so much publicity? Because he's white. You never hear about a black player being the greatest." Although teammate Thomas supported him, he endured harsh criticism, but avoided being called a racist because, according to him, his own girlfriend Anicka "Annie" Bakes was white.

In the following 1987–88 season, Rodman steadily improved his stats, averaging 11.6 points and 8.7 rebounds and starting in 32 of 82 regular season games. The Pistons fought their way into the 1988 NBA Finals, and took a 3–2 lead, but lost in seven games against the Los Angeles Lakers. In Game Six, the Pistons were down by one point with eight seconds to go; Dumars missed a shot, and Rodman just fell short of an offensive rebound and a putback which could have won the title. In Game Seven, L.A. led by 15 points in the fourth quarter, but Rodman’s defense helped cut down the lead to six with 3:52 minutes to go and to two with one minute to go. But then, he fouled Magic Johnson, who hit a free throw, missed an ill-advised shot with 39 seconds to go, and the Pistons never recovered. In that year, his girlfriend Annie bore him a daughter named Alexis.

Rodman remained a bench player during the 1988–89 season, averaging 9.0 points and 9.4 rebounds in 27 minutes, yet providing such effective defense that he was voted into the All-Defensive Team, the first of eight times in his career. In that season, the Pistons finally vanquished their playoffs bane by sweeping the Boston Celtics, winning in six games versus the Chicago Bulls and scoring champion Michael Jordan then easily defeating the Lakers 4–0 in the 1989 NBA Finals. Although he was hampered by back spasms, Rodman dominated the boards, grabbing 19 rebounds in Game 3 and providing tough interior defense.

In the 1989–90 season, Detroit lost perennial defensive forward Rick Mahorn due to the expansion draft of the Minnesota Timberwolves. It was feared that the loss of Mahorn – average in talent, but high on hustle and widely considered a vital cog of the "Bad Boys" teams – would diminish the Pistons’ spirit, but Rodman seamlessly took over his role. He went on to win his first big individual accolade. Averaging 8.8 points and 9.7 rebounds while starting in the last 43 regular season games, he established himself as the best defensive player in the game; during this period, the Pistons won 59 games, and Rodman was lauded by the NBA "for his defense and rebounding skills, which were unparalleled in the league". For his feats, he won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award; he also connected on a .595 field goal percentage, which made him the most precise shooter of the league. In the 1990 NBA Playoffs, the Pistons beat the Bulls again, and in the 1990 NBA Finals, Detroit met the Portland Trail Blazers. Rodman suffered from an injured ankle and was often replaced by Mark Aguirre, but even without his defensive hustle, Detroit beat Portland in five games and claimed their second title.

During the 1990–91 season, Rodman finally established himself as the starting small forward of the Pistons. He played such strong defense that the NBA stated he "could shut down any opposing player, from point guard to center". After coming off the bench for most of his earlier years, he finally started in 77 of the 82 regular season games, averaged 8.2 points and 12.5 rebounds and won his second Defensive Player of the Year Award. In the 1991 NBA Playoffs, however, the Pistons were swept by the championship-winning Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals. It was the 1991–92 season where Rodman made a remarkable leap in his rebounding, collecting an astounding 18.7 rebounds per game (1,530 in total), winning his first of seven consecutive rebounding crowns, along with scoring 9.8 points per game, and making his first All-NBA Team. His 1,530 rebounds (the most since Wilt Chamberlain's 1,572 in the 1971–72 season) have never been surpassed since then; the best mark not set by Rodman is by Kevin Willis, who grabbed 1,258 boards in 1991–92. In a March 1992 game, Rodman totaled a career high 34 rebounds. However, the aging Pistons were eliminated by the upcoming New York Knicks in the First Round of the 1992 NBA Playoffs.

Rodman experienced a tough loss when coach Chuck Daly, whom he had admired as a surrogate father, resigned in May; Rodman skipped the preseason camp and was fined $68,000. The following 1992–93 season was even more tumultuous. He finally married Annie Bakes, the mother of his four year old daughter Alexis, in September 1992. The marriage went sour quickly and Bakes divorced him in December, an experience which left him traumatized. The Pistons won only 40 games and missed the 1993 NBA Playoffs entirely. One night in February 1993, Rodman was found asleep in his car with a loaded rifle. Four years later in his biography ''As Bad As I Wanna Be'', he confessed having thought about suicide and described that night as an epiphany: "I decided that instead [of killing myself] I was gonna kill the impostor that was leading Dennis Rodman to a place he didn't want to go... So I just said, 'I'm going to live my life the way I want to live it and be happy doing it.' At that moment I tamed [sic] my whole life around. I killed the person I didn't want to be." Although he had three years and $11.8 million remaining on his contract, Rodman demanded a trade. On October 1, 1993, the Pistons dealt him to the San Antonio Spurs.

San Antonio Spurs

In the 1993–94 NBA season, Rodman joined a Spurs team which was built around perennial All-Star center David Robinson, with a supporting cast of forwards Dale Ellis, Willie Anderson and guard Vinnie Del Negro. On the hardwood, Rodman now was played as a power forward and won his third straight rebounding title, averaging 17.3 boards per game along with a career-low 4.7 points, but yet another All-Defensive Team call-up. Living up to his promise of killing the "shy imposter" and "being himself" instead, Rodman began to show first signs of bizarre behaviour: before the first game, he shaved his hair and dyed it blonde, which was followed up by stints with red, purple, blue hair and a look inspired from the film ''Demolition Man''. During the season, he headbutted Stacey King and John Stockton, refused to leave the hardwood once after being ejected, and had a highly-publicized two month affair with Madonna. The only player to whom Rodman related was reserve center Jack Haley, who won his trust by not being shocked after a visit to a gay bar. However, despite a 55-win season, Rodman and the Spurs did not survive the First Round of the 1994 NBA Playoffs and bowed out against the Utah Jazz in four games.

In the following 1994–95 NBA season, Rodman clashed with the Spurs front office. He was suspended for the first three games, took a leave of absence on November 11, and was suspended again on December 7. He finally returned on December 10 after missing 19 games. After joining the team, he suffered a shoulder separation in a motorcycle accident, limiting his season to 49 games. Normally, he would not have qualified for any season records for missing so many games, but by grabbing 823 rebounds, he just surpassed the 800-rebound limit for listing players and won his fourth straight rebounding title by averaging 16.8 boards per game and made the All-NBA Team. In the 1995 NBA Playoffs, the 62-win Spurs with reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Award winner Robinson entered the Western Conference Finals and were considered favorites against the reigning champions Houston Rockets who had only won 47 games. It was thought that Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon would have a hard time asserting himself versus Robinson and Rodman, who had both been voted into the NBA All-Defensive Teams. However, neither Robinson nor Rodman, who had disrupted a playoff game against the Lakers by sitting down on the court, could stop Olajuwon, who averaged 35.3 points against the elite defensive Spurs frontcourt, and helped eliminate the Spurs in six games.

Rodman admitted his frequent transgressions, but asserted that he lived his own life and thus a more honest life than most other people: "I just took the chance to be my own man... I just said: 'If you don't like it, kiss my ass.' ...Most people around the country, or around the world, are basically working people who want to be free, who want to be themselves. They look at me and see someone trying to do that... I'm the guy who's showing people, hey, it's all right to be different. And I think they feel: 'Let's go and see this guy entertain us.'"

Chicago Bulls

Prior to the 1995–96 NBA season, Rodman was traded to the Chicago Bulls of perennial scoring champion Michael Jordan for center Will Perdue and cash considerations to fill a large void at power forward left by Horace Grant, who left the Bulls prior to the 1994–95 season. Although the trade for the already 34 year old and volatile Rodman was considered a gamble at that time, the power forward quickly adapted to his new environment, helped by the fact that his best friend Haley was also traded to the Bulls. Under coach Phil Jackson, he scored an average of 5.5 points and 14.9 rebounds per game, winning yet another rebounding title, and was part of the great Bulls team that won 72 of 82 regular season games, an all-time NBA record. About playing next to iconic Jordan and hard-working Scottie Pippen, Rodman said: "On the court, me and Michael are pretty calm and we can handle conversation. But as far as our lives go, I think he is moving in one direction and I'm going in the other. I mean, he's goin' north, I'm goin' south. And then you've got Scottie Pippen right in the middle. He's sort of the equator." Although struggling with calf problems early in the season, Rodman grabbed 20 or more rebounds 11 times and had his first triple-double against the Philadelphia 76ers on January 16, 1996 scoring 10 points and adding 21 rebounds and 10 assists; by playing his trademark tough defense, he joined Jordan and Pippen in the All-NBA Defense First Team, making it the first time that three players from the same NBA team made the All-NBA Defensive First Team. Ever controversial, Rodman made negative headlines after a head butt of referee Ted Bernhardt during a game in New Jersey on March 16, 1996; he was suspended for six games and fined $20,000, a punishment that was criticized as too lenient by the local press. In the 1996 NBA Playoffs, Rodman scored 7.5 points and grabbed 13.7 rebounds per game and had a large part in the six-game victory against the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1996 NBA Finals: in Game Two at home in the Bulls' United Center, he grabbed 20 rebounds, among them a record-tying 11 offensive boards, and in Game Six, again at the United Center, the power forward secured 19 rebounds and again 11 offensive boards, scored five points in a decisive 12–2 Bulls run, unnerved opposing power forward Shawn Kemp and caused Seattle coach George Karl to say: "As you evaluate the series, Dennis Rodman won two basketball games. We controlled Dennis Rodman for four games. But Game 2 and tonight, he was the reason they were successful." His two games with 11 offensive rebounds each tied the NBA Finals record of Elvin Hayes.

In the 1996–97 NBA season, Rodman won his sixth rebounding title en bloc with 16.7 boards per game, along with 5.7 points per game, but failed to rank another All-Defensive Team call-up. However, he made more headlines for his notorious behavior: on January 15, 1997, he was involved in another incident during a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. After tripping over cameraman Eugene Amos, Rodman kicked Amos in the groin. Though he was not assessed a technical foul at the time, he ultimately paid Amos a $200,000 settlement, the league suspended Rodman for 11 games without pay, thus he effectively lost $1 million. Missing another three games to suspensions, often getting technical fouls early in games and missing an additional 13 matches due to knee problems, Rodman was not as effective in the 1997 NBA Playoffs, in which the Bulls reached the 1997 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz. There, he struggled to slow down Jazz power forward Karl Malone, but did his share to complete the six-game Bulls victory.

It was during this time that Rodman seriously took up his hobby of professional wrestling: he appeared in World Championship Wrestling as a member of nWo with his friend Hulk Hogan. His first match was at the July 1997 Bash at the Beach event where he teamed with Hogan in a loss to Lex Luger and The Giant.

The regular season of the 1997–98 NBA season ended with Rodman winning his seventh consecutive rebounding title with 15.0 boards per game, along with 4.7 points per game. He grabbed 20 or more rebounds 11 times, among them a 29-board outburst against the Atlanta Hawks and 15 offensive boards (along with ten defensive) versus the Los Angeles Clippers. Led by the aging Jordan and Rodman (respectively 35 and 37 years old), the Bulls reached the 1998 NBA Finals, again versus the Jazz. After playing strong defense on Karl Malone in the first three games, he caused major consternation when he left his team prior to Game Four to go wrestling with Hulk Hogan. He was fined $20,000, but it was not even ten percent of what he earned with this stint. However, Rodman’s on-court performance remained top-notch, again shutting down Malone in Game Four until the latter scored 39 points in a Jazz Game Five win, bringing the series to 3–2 from the Bulls perspective. In Game Six, Jordan hit the decisive basket after a memorable drive on Jazz forward Bryon Russell, the Bulls won their third title en bloc and Rodman his fifth ring.

In the off-season, Rodman and Malone squared off again, this time in WCW wrestling at the July 1998 edition of ’’Bash at the Beach’’. He fought alongside Hulk Hogan, and Malone tagged along with Diamond Dallas Page. In a poorly-received match, the two power forwards exchanged "rudimentary headlocks, slams and clotheslines" for 23 minutes.

Rodman garnered as much publicity for his public antics as he did for his basketball playing. He dated Madonna and claimed she tried to conceive a child with him. Shortly after, Rodman famously wore a wedding dress to promote his autobiography ''Bad As I Wanna Be'', claimed that he was bisexual and that he was "marrying himself".

Twilight years

After the 1997–98 NBA season, the Bulls started a massive rebuilding phase, largely at the behest of then-general manager Jerry Krause. Head coach Phil Jackson and several members of the team left via free agency or retirement, including Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Steve Kerr and Jud Buechler. Rodman was released by the Bulls on January 21, 1999, before the start of the lockout-shortened 1998-99 NBA season. With his sister acting as his agent at the time Rodman joined the Los Angeles Lakers, for a pro-rated salary for the remainder of the 1998–99 season. With the Lakers he only played in 23 games and was released. In the 1999–2000 NBA season, the then 38 year old power forward was signed by the Dallas Mavericks, meaning that Rodman returned to the place where he grew up. For the Mavericks, he played 12 games, was ejected twice and alienated the franchise with his erratic behavior until he was waived again; Dallas guard Steve Nash commented that Rodman "never wanted to be [a Maverick]" and therefore was unmotivated.

NBA career statistics

	Led the league
Bold	Denotes career highs

Averages

|- | align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit Pistons | 77 || 1 || 15.0 || .545 || .000 || .587 || 4.3 || .7 || .5 || .6 || 6.5 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit Pistons | 82 || 32 || 26.2 || .561 || .294 || .535 || 8.7 || 1.3 || .9 || .5 || 11.6 |- | align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA" | † | align="left" | Detroit Pistons |bgcolor="CFECEC"|82 || 8 || 26.9 || bgcolor="CFECEC"| .595 || .231 || .626 || 9.4 || 1.2 || .7 || .9 || 9.0 |- | align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA" | † | align="left" | Detroit Pistons |bgcolor="CFECEC"| 82 || 43 || 29.0 || .581 || .111 || .654 || 9.7 || .9 || .6 || .7 || 8.8 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit Pistons |bgcolor="CFECEC"| 82 || 77 || 33.5 || .493 || .200 || .631 || 12.5 || 1.0 || .8 || .7 || 8.2 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit Pistons | 82 || 80 || 40.3 || .539 || .317 || .600 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 18.7 || 2.3 || .8 || .9 || 9.8 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit Pistons | 62 || 55 || 38.9 || .427 || .205 || .534 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 18.3 || 1.6 || .8 || .7 || 7.5 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | San Antonio Spurs | 79 || 51 || 37.8 || .534 || .208 || .520 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 17.3 || 2.3 || .7 || .4 || 4.7 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | San Antonio Spurs | 49 || 26 || 32.0 || .571 || .000 || .676 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 16.8 || 2.0 || .6 || .5 || 7.1 |- | align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA" | † | align="left" | Chicago Bulls | 64 || 57 || 32.6 || .480 || .111 || .528 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 14.9 || 2.5 || .6 || .4 || 5.5 |- | align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA" | † | align="left" | Chicago Bulls | 55 || 54 || 35.4 || .448 || .263 || .568 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 16.1 || 3.1 || .6 || .3 || 5.7 |- | align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA" | † | align="left" | Chicago Bulls | 80 || 66 || 35.7 || .431 || .174 || .550 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 15.0 || 2.9 || .6 || .2 || 4.7 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Los Angeles Lakers | 23 || 11 || 28.6 || .348 || .000 || .436 || 11.2 || 1.3 || .4 || .5 || 2.1 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Dallas Mavericks | 12 || 12 || 32.4 || .387 || .000 || .714 || 14.3 || 1.2 || .2 || .1 || 2.8 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" colspan=2| Career | 911 || 573 || 31.7 || .521 || .231 || .584 || 13.1 || 1.8 || .7 || .6 || 7.3 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" colspan=2| Playoffs | 169 || 89 || 28.3 || .490 || .149 || .540 || 9.9 || 1.2 || .6 || .6 || 6.4 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" | All-Star | align="left" | 1990, 1992 | 2 || 0 || 18.0 || .364 || — || — || 8.5 || .5 || .5 || .5 || 4.0

Post-NBA years

After his NBA career, Rodman took a long break from basketball and concentrated on his film career and on wrestling. In 1999, he fought "Macho Man" Randy Savage at Road Wild 1999 in which Savage shoved him in a portable toilet and eventually won the match. On July 30, 2000 for the i-Generation Superstars of Wrestling pay-per-view event, he fought against i-Generation Champion Curt Hennig. The event was subtitled ''Rodman Downunder''. Rodman refrained from wrestling at the top level, but instead became Commissioner of the Lingerie Football League in 2005.

After a longer hiatus, Rodman returned to play basketball for the Long Beach Jam of the newly-formed American Basketball Association during the 2003–04 season, with hopes of being called up to the NBA midseason. In the following 2004–05 season, he signed with the ABA's Orange County Crush and the following season with the league's Tijuana Dragons. The return to the NBA never materialized, but on January 26, 2006, it was announced that Rodman had signed a one-game "experiment" deal for the UK basketball team Brighton Bears of the British Basketball League to play Guildford Heat on January 28, and went on to play three games for the Bears. In spring 2006, he played two exhibition games in the Philippines along with NBA ex-stars Darryl Dawkins, Kevin Willis, Calvin Murphy, Otis Birdsong and Alex English. On April 27, they defeated a team of former Philippine Basketball Association stars in Mandaue City, Cebu and Rodman scored five points and grabbed 18 rebounds. On May 1, 2006, Rodman's team played their second game and lost to the Philippine national basketball team 110–102 at the Araneta Coliseum, where he scored three points and recorded 16 rebounds.

In 2005, Rodman made two visits in Finland. At first, he was present at Sonkajärvi in July in a wife-carrying contest. However, he resigned from the contest due to health problems. In November, he played one match for Torpan Pojat of the Finland's basketball league, Korisliiga.

That same year, Rodman published his second autobiography ''I Should Be Dead By Now'' and promoted this by sitting in a coffin.

On April 4, 2011, it was announced that Rodman would be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Awards, records and achievements

Legacy

	Active NBA player
	Enshrined for the Basketball Hall of Fame

Top career rebounding averages since 1973

! Player	! Height	! Minutes per game	! Offensive rebounds	! Defensive rebounds	! Total rebounds	! Games played	! Rebounds per game
		31.7	4,329	7,625	11,954	911	13.1
		36.0	2,066	5,221	7,287	567	12.9
		33.9	6,731	9,481	16,212	1,329	12.2
		36.7	4,260	8,286	12,546	1,073	11.7
		35.8	3,182	8,831	12,013	1,053	11.4

Top rebounding seasons since 1973

!Season	!Player	!Team	!Rebounds per game
		Detroit Pistons	18.7
		Detroit Pistons	18.3
		Capital Bullets	18.1
		Houston Rockets	17.6
		San Antonio Spurs	17.3
		Los Angeles Lakers	16.9
		San Antonio Spurs	16.8
		Chicago Bulls	16.1

From the beginning of his career Rodman was known for his defensive hustle, which was later accompanied by his rebounding prowess. In Detroit, he was mainly played as a small forward, and his usual assignment was to neutralize the opponent's best player; Rodman was so versatile that he could guard centers, forwards or guards equally well and won two NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards. From 1991 on, he established himself as one of the best rebounders of all time, averaging at least 15 boards per game in six of the next seven years. Playing power forward as member of the Spurs and the Bulls, he had a historical outburst in the 1996 NBA Finals: he twice snared 11 offensive rebounds, equalling an all-time NBA record. In addition, his personal best 34-rebound game on is the third best board-grabbing performance since the season, topped only by a 35-rebound game by Charles Oakley on and a 37-rebound game by Moses Malone on .

On offense, Rodman's output was mediocre. He averaged 11.6 points a game in his sophomore season, but his point average steadily dropped: in the three championship seasons with the Bulls, he averaged five points per game and connected on less than half of his field goal attempts. His free throw shooting (lifetime average: .584) was considered a big liability: on , Bubba Wells of the Dallas Mavericks committed six intentional fouls against him in only three minutes, setting a record for the fastest foul out in NBA history. This was Dallas coach Don Nelson's early version of what would later develop into the famous "Hack-a-Shaq" method that would be implemented against Shaquille O'Neal and other poor free throw shooters. The intention was to force him to attempt free throws, which in theory would mean frequent misses and easy ball possession without giving up too many points. However, this plan backfired, as Rodman hit nine of these 12 attempts.

In 14 NBA seasons, Rodman played in 911 games, scored 6,683 points and grabbed 11,954 rebounds, translating to 7.3 points and 13.1 rebounds per game in only 31.7 minutes played per game. NBA.com lauds Rodman as "arguably the best rebounding forward in NBA history and one of the most recognized athletes in the world" but adds "enigmatic and individualistic, Rodman has caught the public eye for his ever-changing hair color, tattoos and unorthodox lifestyle". On the hardwood, he was recognized as one of the most successful defensive players ever, winning the NBA championship five times in six NBA Finals appearances (1989, 1990, 1996–8; only loss 1988), being crowned NBA Defensive Player of the Year twice (1990, 1991) and making seven NBA All-Defensive First Teams (1989–93, 1995, 1996) and NBA All-Defensive Second Teams (1994). He additionally made two All-NBA Third Teams (1992, 1995), two NBA All-Star Teams (1990, 1992) and won seven rebounding crowns (1992–98) and finally led the league once in field goal percentage (1989). However, he was recognized as the prototype bizarre player, stunning basketball fans with his artificial hair colors, numerous tattoos and body piercings, multiple verbal and physical assaults versus officials, frequent ejections, and his tumultuous private life. He was ranked #48 on the 2009 revision of SLAM Magazine's Top 50 Players of All-time.

Media appearances

In 1996, Rodman had his own MTV reality talk show called ''The Rodman World Tour'', which featured him in a series of odd-ball situations. This show was produced by Patrick Byrnes and written by Tom Cohen and Matt Price. A year later, he made his feature film debut in the action film ''Double Team'' alongside Jean-Claude Van Damme. The film was critically panned and his performance earned him three Golden Raspberry Awards: Worst New Star, Worst Supporting Actor and Worst Screen Couple (shared with Van Damme). Rodman starred in ''Simon Sez'', a 1999 action/comedy and co-starred with Tom Berenger in a 2000 action film about skydiving titled ''Cutaway''. In 1998, he joined the cast of the syndicated TV show ''Special Ops Force'', playing 'Deke' Reynolds, a flamboyant but skilled ex-Army helo pilot and demolitions expert.

In 2005, Rodman, a long-time vegetarian, became the first man to pose naked for PETA's advertisement campaign "Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur".

Since then he has appeared in few acting roles outside of playing himself. Rodman voiced Zack, a character resembling him, in ''Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball''. He has made an appearance in an episode of ''3rd Rock from the Sun'' playing the character of himself, except being a fellow alien with the Solomon family. He also appeared in several reality soaps: in January 2006, Rodman appeared on the fourth version of ''Celebrity Big Brother'' in the UK, and on July 26, 2006, in the UK series ''Love Island'' as a houseguest contracted to stay for a week. Finally, he appeared on the show ''Celebrity Mole'' on ABC. He wound up winning the $222,000 grand prize. Rodman was the winner of Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling title defeating other challengers such as Butterbean and Dustin Diamond.

In 2008, Rodman joined as a spokesman for a sports website OPENSports.com, the brainchild of Mike Levy founder and former CEO of CBS Sportsline.com. Rodman also writes a blog and occasionally answers members' questions for OPEN Sports.

In 2009, he appeared as a contestant on ''Celebrity Apprentice''. Throughout the season, each celebrity raised money for a charity of their choice; Rodman selected the Court Appointed Special Advocates of New Orleans. He was the fifth contestant eliminated, on March 29, 2009.

Personal life

Rodman has cited Pearl Jam as his favorite band and befriended them in the mid-1990s. During their No Code Tour, on September 26, 1996, he briefly came onstage to the excitement of the crowd and gave frontman Eddie Vedder a piggyback ride. Rodman later received a Walkman carved with Vedder's initials and containing the concert recording. He has since cited this as one of his most thrilling experiences and claimed, "If it wasn't for Pearl Jam, my life would be a hell of a lot less fulfilling." Not long after, Rodman also gave his unworn #69 Lakers jersey to Eddie Vedder, and he cited Pearl Jam song lyrics in his 1996 autobiography, ''Bad As I Wanna Be''. In ''I Should Be Dead By Now'', Rodman said that he had found a new favorite band in Rascal Flatts.

Marriages

Rodman married Annie Bakes, the mother of his four year old daughter Alexis, in September 1992. Bakes divorced him in December 1993. The divorce left Rodman traumatized.

Rodman married model Carmen Electra in November 1998 at the Little Chapel of the Flowers in Las Vegas, Nevada. Electra filed for divorce in April 1999.

In 1999 Rodman met Michelle Moyer, who became his new girlfriend. Together, Rodman and Moyer had a son, D.J. (born 2000) and a daughter, Trinity (born 2001). Moyer and Rodman married in 2003 on his 42nd birthday.

Alcohol issues

Rodman entered an outpatient rehab center in Florida in May 2008. In May 2009, his behavior on ''Celebrity Apprentice'' led to an intervention which included Phil Jackson as well as Rodman's family and other friends. Rodman initially refused to enter rehabilitation because he wanted to attend the ''Celebrity Apprentice'' reunion show. In 2009, Rodman agreed to appear on the third season of ''Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew''. Rodman remained a patient at the Pasadena Recovery Center for the 21-day treatment cycle. A week after completion he entered a sober-living facility in the Hollywood Hills, which was filmed for the second season of Sober House. During episode seven of Sober House, Rodman was shown being reunited with his mother Shirley, from whom he had been estranged for seven years. During this same visit Shirley also met Rodman's two children for the first time. On January 10, 2010, on the same day that Celebrity Rehab premiered, Rodman was removed from an Orange County, California restaurant for disruptive behavior

Legal troubles

On November 5, 1999, Rodman and his then-wife, Carmen Electra, were charged with misdemeanors after police were notified of a domestic disturbance. Each posted $2,500 in bail and were released with a temporary restraining order placed on them.

In December 1999 Rodman was arrested for drunken driving and driving without a valid license. In July 2000, Rodman pled guilty to both charges and was ordered to pay $2,000 in fines and was required to attend a three-month treatment program.

He was arrested in 2002 for interfering with police investigating a code violation at a restaurant he owned; the charges were eventually dropped.

After settling down in Newport Beach, California, the police appeared over 70 times at his home because of loud parties.

In early 2003, Rodman was arrested and charged with domestic violence at his home in Newport Beach for allegedly assaulting his then-fiancee.

In April 2004, Rodman pled nolo contendere to drunken driving in Las Vegas and was fined $1,000 and served 30 days of home detention.

On April 30, 2008, Rodman was arrested following a domestic violence incident at a Los Angeles hotel. On June 24, 2008, he pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor spousal battery charges and was sentenced to one year of domestic violence counseling and three years probation. He received 45 hours of community service, which were to involve some physical labor activities.

Books

See also

List of career achievements by Dennis Rodman

List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association season rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association players with most rebounds in a game

References

External links

Dennis Rodman Hall of Fame speech

Dennis Rodman player profile at NBA.com

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