Sofia Gubaidulina in Sortavala, 1981

Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina, (Russian: Софи́я Асгатовна Губайду́лина, Tatar Cyrillic: София Әсгать кызы Гобәйдуллина, Latin: Sofia Äsğät qızı Ğöbäydullina)^[1] (born October 24, 1931) is a Russian composer of half Russian, half Tatar ethnicity.

Gubaidulina's music is marked by the use of unusual instrumental combinations. In Erwartung combines percussion (bongos, güiros, temple blocks, cymbals and tam-tams among others), bayan and saxophone quartet.

Career[link]

Gubaidulina was born in Chistopol, in the Tatar ASSR. She studied composition and piano at the Kazan Conservatory, graduating in 1954. In Moscow she undertook further studies at the Conservatory with Nikolay Peyko until 1959, and then with Shebalin until 1963. She was awarded with Stalin-fellowship.^[2] Her music was deemed "irresponsible" during her studies in Soviet Russia, due to its exploration of alternative tunings. She was supported, however, by Dmitri Shostakovich, who in evaluating her final examination encouraged her to continue down her "mistaken path".^[3] However, she was allowed to express her modernism in various scores she composed for documentary films, including the 1968 production, On Submarine Scooters, a 70mm film shot in the unique Kinopanorama widescreen format.

In the mid-1970s Gubaidulina founded Astreja, a folk-instrument improvisation group with fellow composers Viktor Suslin and Vyacheslav Artyomov. In 1979, she was blacklisted as one of the "Khrennikov's Seven" at the Sixth Congress of the Union of Soviet Composers for unapproved participation in some festivals of Soviet music in the West.

Gubaidulina became better known abroad during the early 1980s through Gidon Kremer's championing of her violin concerto Offertorium. She later composed an homage to T. S. Eliot, using the text from the poet's Four Quartets. In 2000, Gubaidulina, along with Tan Dun, Osvaldo Golijov, and Wolfgang Rihm, was commissioned by the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart project to write a piece for the Passion 2000 project in commemoration of Johann Sebastian Bach. Her contribution was the Johannes-Passion. In 2002 she followed this by the Johannes-Ostern ("Easter according to John"), commissioned by Hannover Rundfunk. The two works together form a "diptych" on the death and resurrection of Christ, her largest work to date. Invited by Walter Fink, she was the 13th composer featured in the annual Komponistenporträt of the Rheingau Musik Festival in 2003, the first female composer of the series. Her work The Light at the End preceded Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in the 2005 proms. In 2007 her second violin concerto In Tempus Praesens was performed at the Lucerne Festival by Anne-Sophie Mutter. Its creation has been depicted in Jan Schmidt-Garre's film Sophia - Biography of a Violin Concerto.

Since 1992, Gubaidulina has lived in Hamburg, Germany.^[4] She is a member of the musical academies in Frankfurt, Hamburg and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music.

Aesthetic[link]

For Gubaidulina, music was an escape from the socio-political atmosphere of Soviet Russia.^[5] For this reason, she associated music with human transcendence and mystical spiritualism, which manifests itself as a longing inside the soul of humanity to locate its true being, a longing she continually tries to capture in her works.^[6] These abstract religious and mystical associations are concretized in Gubaidulina's compositions in various ways. Gubaidulina is a convinced Russian-Orthodox believer.^[7] The influence of electronic music and improvisational techniques is exemplified in her unusual combination of contrasting elements, novel instrumentation, and the use of traditional Russian folk instruments in her solo and chamber works, such as De profundis for bayan, Et expecto- Sonata for bayan, and In croce for cello and organ or bayan. The koto, a traditional Japanese instrument is featured in her work In the Shadow of the Tree, in which one solo player performs three different instrument—Koto, Bass Koto, and Chang. The Canticle of the Sun is a cello concerto/choral hybrid, dedicated to Rostropovich. The use of the lowest possible registers on the cello opens new possibilities for the instrument while the limited use of chorus also adds a mystical ambience to the work.

Another influence of improvisation techniques can be found in her fascination with percussion instruments. She associates the indeterminate nature of percussive timbres with the mystical longing and the potential freedom of human transcendence.^[8]

She was also preoccupied by experimentation with non-traditional methods of sound production, and as already mentioned, with unusual combinations of instruments, i.e. Concerto for Bassoon and Low Strings (1975), Detto- I – Sonata for Organ and Percussion (1978), The Garden of Joy and Sorrow for Flute, Harp and Viola (1980), and Descensio for 3 Trombones, 3 Percussionists, Harp, Harpsichord/Celesta and Celesta/Piano (1981).^[9]

Gubaidulina notes that the two composers to whom she experiences a constant devotion are J.S. Bach and Webern. Among some non-musical influences of considerable import are Carl Jung (Swiss thinker and founder of analytical psychology) and Nikolai Aleksandrovich Berdiaev (Russian religious philosopher, whose works were forbidden in USSR, but nevertheless found and studied by the composer).^[10]

Style[link]

A profoundly religious person, Gubaidulina defines “re-ligio” as re-legato or as restoration of the connection between oneself and the Absolute.^[8] She finds this re-connection through the artistic process and has developed a number of musical symbols to express her ideals. She does it through narrower means of intervallic and rhythmic relationship within the primary material of her works, by seeking to discover the depth and mysticism of the sound, as well as on a larger scale, through carefully thought architecture of musical form.^[11]

	"Betrayal, denial, flagellation, condemnation" noicon Extract from her Johannes Passion
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Melodically, Gubaidulina’s is characterized by the frequent use of intense chromatic motives rather than long melodic phrases. She often treats musical space as a means of attaining unity with the divine—a direct line to God—concretely manifest by the lack of striation in pitch space. She achieves this through the use of micro-chromaticism (i.e., quarter tones) and frequent glissandi, exemplifying the lack of “steps” to the divine. This notion is furthered by her extreme dichotomy characterized by chromatic space vs. diatonic space viewed as symbols of darkness vs. light and human/mundane vs. divine/heavenly.^[12] Finally, the use of short motivic segments allows her to create a musical narrative that is seemingly open-ended and disjunct rather than smooth.

Harmonically, Gubaidulina’s music resists traditional tonal centers and triadic structures in favor of pitch clusters and intervallic design arising from the contrapuntal interaction between melodic voices.^[13] For example, in the Cello Concerto Detto-2 (1972) she notes that a strict and progressive intervallic process occurs, in which the opening section utilizes successively wider intervals that become narrower toward the last section.^[14] Rhythmically, Gubaidulina places significant stress on the fact that temporal ratios should not be limited to local figuration; rather, the temporality of the musical form should be the defining feature of rhythmic character. As Gerard McBurney states:

In conversation she is most keen to stress that she cannot accept the idea (a frequent post-serial one) of rhythm or duration as the material of a piece. . . . To her, rhythm is nowadays a generating principle as, for instance, the cadence was to tonal composers of the Classical period; it therefore cannot be the surface material of a work. . . . [S]he expresses her impatience with Messiaen, whose use of rhythmic modes to generate local imagery, she feels, restricts the effectiveness of rhythm as an underlying formal level of the music.^[15]

To this end, Gubaidulina often devises durational ratios in order to create the temporal forms for her compositions. Specifically, she is prone to utilizing elements of the Fibonacci sequence or the Golden Ratio, in which each succeeding element is equal to the sum of the two preceding elements (i.e., 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, etc.). This numerical layout represents the balanced nature in her music through a sense of cell multiplication between live and non-live substances. She firmly believes that this abstract theory is the foundation of her personal musical expression. The “Golden Ratio “between the sections are always marked by some musical event, and composer explores her fantasy fully in articulating this moments.

The first work in which Gubaidulina experiments with this concept of proportionality is Perceptions for Soprano, Baritone, and Seven String Instruments (1981, rev. 1983–86). The 12th movement, “Montys Tod” (Monty’s Death), uses the Fibonacci series in its rhythmical structure with the number of quarter notes in individual episodes corresponding to numbers from Fibonacci series.^[16]

In the early 1980s, she began to use the Fibonacci sequence as a way of structuring the form of the work. The sequence was especially appealing because it provides a basis for composition while still allowing the form to "breathe".^{[clarification needed]} It plays a prominent role in such pieces as Perception, Im Anfang war der Rhythmus, Quasi hoketus and the symphony Stimmen... Verstummen...). Later the Lucas and Evangelist series, sequences derived from that of Fibonacci, were added to her repertoire.

Piano music[link]

Gubaidulina’s entire piano output belongs to her earlier compositional period and consists of the following works: Chaconne (1962), Piano Sonata (1965), Musical Toys (1968), Toccata-Troncata (1971), Invention (1974) and Piano Concerto “Introitus” (1978). Some of the titles reveal her interest in baroque genres and the influence of J.S. Bach.

The Piano Sonata is dedicated to Henrietta Mirvis, a pianist greatly admired by the composer. The work follows the classical formal structure in 3 movements: Allegro (Sonata form), Adagio, and Allegretto. Four motives (pitch sets) are utilized throughout the entire sonata, which also constitute the cyclical elements upon which the rhetoric of the piece is constructed. Each motive is given a particular name: “spring”, “struggle”, “consolation,” and “faith.”

There are two elements in the primary thematic complex of the first movement: (1) a “swing” theme, characterized by syncopation and dotted rhythms and (2) a chord progression, juxtaposing minor and major seconds over an ostinato pattern in the left hand. The slower secondary theme introduces a melodic element associated with the ostinato element of the previous theme. In the development section, these sets are explored melodically, while the dotted rhythm figure gains even more importance. In the recapitulation, the chord progression of the first thematic complex is brought to the higher registers, preparing the coda based on secondary theme cantabile element, which gradually broadens. The second movement shifts to a different expressive world. A simple ternary form with a cadenza–AB (cadenza) A, the B section represents an acoustic departure as the chromatic figurations in the left hand, originating in section A, are muted. In the cadenza the performer improvises within a framework given by the composer, inviting a deeper exploration of the secrets of sound. It consists of two alternating elements– open-sounding strings, stroke by fingers, with no pitch determination, and muted articulation of the strings in the bass register—separated by rests marked with fermatas. The third movement is constructed of 7 episodes, in which there is a continuous liberation of energy accumulated during the previous movement.

Musical expression in this work is achieved through a variety of means. Rhythm is a very important element in the construction of the work, articulating a distinct rhetoric, as well as in the development of the musical material. Exploration of a wide range of sounds, within the possibilities of the instrument, involving both traditional and nontraditional methods of sound productions are another important mean.

Some examples of the nontraditional sounds produced are a glissando performed with a bamboo stick on the piano pegs against a cluster performed on the keyboard, placing the bamboo stick on vibrating strings, plucking the strings, glissando along the strings using fingernail, touching the strings creating a muted effect.

Two distinct aspects of the sonata—the driving force and the meditative state—can be seen through the architecture of the work as portraying the image of the cross. The first movement is related to the “horizontal” line, which symbolizes human experience while the second movement reflects the “vertical” line, which represents man’s striving for full realization in the Divine. The meeting point of these two lines in music happens at the end of second movement, and that reflects transformation of the human being at crossing this two dimensions. The third movement “celebrates the newly obtained freedom of the spirit”.^[17]

Awards and recognition[link]

Gubaidulina has received the Prix de Monaco (1987), the Premio Franco Abbiati (1991), the Heidelberger Künstlerinnenpreis (1991), the Russian State Prize (1992), the Koussevitzky International Record Award (in 1989 and 1994), the Ludwig-Spohr-Preis der Stadt Braunschweig (1995), the Kulturpreis des Kreises Pinneberg (1997), the Praemium Imperiale in Japan (1998), the Sonning Award in Denmark (1999), the Preis der Stiftung Bibel und Kultur (1999), the Goethe-Medaille der Stadt Weimar (2001), the Moscow „Silenzio“-Preis (2001), den Polar-Musikpreis (2002), the Polar Music Prize in Sweden (2002), the Great Distinguished Service Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (2002), the Living Composer Prize of the Cannes Classical Awards in 2003, Europäischen Kulturpreis (2005), the Russian cultural Prize „Triumph“ (2007), the Bachpreis der Freien und Hansestadt Hamburg (2007) and the Honour Prize of the Moscow Regiment and the International Council of Russian Compatriots "The Compatriot of the Year -- 2007". In 2011 she was awarded a "Doctor of Humane Letters" honorary degree from University of Chicago.

In 2001 she became Honour Professor of the Kazan Conservatory, in 2004, she was elected as a foreign honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, in 2009, she became Dr. honoris causa of the Yale University.

Works[link]

Orchestral[link]

• Stimmen... Verstummen... symphony in twelve movements (1986)
• The Unasked Answer (Antwort ohne Frage) collage for three orchestras (1989)
• Stufen for orchestra (1992)
• Figures of Time (Фигуры времени) for large orchestra (1994)
• The Rider on the White Horse for large orchestra and organ (2002)
• The Light of the End (Свет конца) for large orchestra (2003)
• Feast During a Plague for large orchestra (2006)

Concertante[link]

• Concerto for bassoon and low strings (1975)
• Introitus concerto for piano and chamber orchestra (1978)
• Offertorium (Жертвоприношение) concerto for violin and orchestra (1980, rev. 1982, 1986)
• And: The Feast is in Full Procession (И: Празднество в разгаре) for violoncello and orchestra (1993)
• Music for Flute, Strings, and Percussion (1994)
• Impromptu for flute (flute and alto flute), violin, and strings (1996)
• Concerto for viola and orchestra (1996)
• The Canticle of the Sun of St Francis of Assisi for cello, chamber choir and percussion (1997)
• Two Paths: A Dedication to Mary and Martha for two viola solo and orchestra (1998)
• Im Schatten des Baumes (В тени под деревом) for koto, bass koto, zheng, and orchestra (1998)
• Under the Sign of Scorpio variants on six hexachords for bayan and large orchestra (2003)
• ...The Deceitful Face of Hope and Despair for flute and orchestra (2005)
• In Tempus Praesens concerto for violin and orchestra (2007)
• Glorious Percussion concerto for percussion and orchestra (2008)
• Fachwerk, concerto for bayan, percussion and strings (2009)

Vocal/Choral[link]

• Phacelia, vocal cycle for soprano and orchestra based on Mikhail Prishvin's poem (1956)
• Night in Memphis, cantata for mezzo-soprano, orchestra and male choir on tape (1968)
• Rubaijat, cantata for baryton and chamber ensemble (1969)
• Hour of the Soul poem by Marina Tsvetaeva for large wind orchestra and mezzo-soprano/contralto (1974), for percussion, mezzo-soprano, and large orchestra (1976)
• Perception for soprano, baritone (speaking voices) and 7 string instruments (1981, rev. 1983, 1986)
• Hommage à Marina Tsvetayeva for a capella choir (1984)
• Hommage à T.S. Eliot for sopran and octet (1987)
• Jauchzt vor Gott for mixed choir and organ (1989)
• Alleluja for mixed chorus, boy soprano, organ and large orchestra (1990)
• Aus dem Studenbuch on a text of Rainer Maria Rilke for cello, orchestra, male choir, and a woman speaker (1991)
• Lauda for alto, tenor, baritone, narrator, mixed choir, and large orchestra (1991)
• Jetzt immer Schnee (Теперь всегда снега) on verses of Gennadi Aigi for chamber ensemble and chamber choir (1993)
• Galgenlieder à 3 fifteen pieces for mezzo-soprano, percussion, and contrabass (1996)
• Galgenlieder à 5 fourteen pieces for mezzo-soprano, flute, percussion, bayan, and contrabass (1996)
• Johannes-Passion for soprano, tenor, baritone, bass, two mixed choirs, organ, and large orchestra (2000)
• Johannes-Ostern for soprano, tenor, baritone, bass, two mixed choirs, organ, and large orchestra (2001)

Chamber/Ensemble[link]

• Quintet for piano, two violins, viola, and violoncello (1957)
• Piano Sonata (1965)
• Musical Toys fourteen piano pieces for children (1969)
• Vivente - Non Vivente for electronics (1970)
• Concordanza for chamber ensemble (1971)
• String Quartet No. 1 (1971)
• Ten Preludes for solo cello (1974)
• Rumore e silenzio for percussion and harpsichord (1974)
• Sonata for double bass and piano (1975)
• Hell und Dunkel for organ (1976)
• Two Ballads for two trumpets and piano (1976)
• Trio for three trumpets (1976)
• Lied ohne Worte for trumpet and piano (1977)
• Duo sonata for two bassoons (1977)
• Lamento for tuba and piano (1977)
• Misterioso for 7 percussionists (1977)
• In Croce for cello and organ (1979), for bayan and cello (1991)
• Jubilatio for 4 percussionists (1979)
• Garten von Freuden und Traurigkeiten for flute, viola, harp and narrator (1980)
• Descensio for 3 trombones, 3 percussionists, harp, harpsichord and piano (1981)
• Rejoice, sonata for violin and cello (1981)
• Sieben Worte for cello, bayan, and strings (1982)
• Quasi hoquetus for viola, bassoon, and piano (1984)
• String Quartet No. 2 (1987)
• String Quartet No. 3 (1987)
• String Trio (1988)
• Hörst Du uns, Luigi? Schau mal, welchen Tanz eine einfache Holzrassel für Dich vollführt (Слышишь ты нас, Луиджи? Вот танец, который танцует для тебя обыкновенная деревянная трещотка) for six percussionists (1991)
• Gerade und ungerade (Чет и нечет) for seven percussionists, including cymbalom (1991)
• Silenzio for bayan, violin, and cello (1991)
• Tartarische Tanz for bayan and two contrabass (1992)
• Dancer on a Tightrope (Der Seiltänzer) for violin and string piano (1993)
• Meditation über den Bach-Choral "Vor deinen Thron tret' ich hiermit" for harpsichord, two violins, viola, cello, and contrabass (1993)
• Рано утром перед пробуждением for three 17-string Japanese bass kotos and four 13-string Japanese kotos (1993)
• Allegro Rustico: Klänge des Waldes for flute and piano (1993)
• String Quartet No. 4 with tape (1993)
• In Erwartung (В ожидании) for saxophone quartet and six percussionists (1994)
• Ein Engel for alto and double bass (1994)
• Aus der Visionen der Hildegard von Bingen for alto (1994)
• Quaternion for cello quartet (1996)
• Ritorno perpetuo for harpsichord (1997)
• Risonanza for three trumpets, four trombones, organ, and six strings (2001)
• Reflections on the theme B-A-C-H for string quartet (2002)
• Mirage: The Dancing Sun for eight violoncelli (2002)
• On the Edge of Abyss for seven violoncelli and two waterphones (2002)
• Verwandlung (Transformation) for trombone, saxophone quartet, violoncello, double bass, and tam-tam (2004)
• The Lyre of Orpheus for violin, percussion, and strings (2006)
• Ravvedimento for cello and quartet of guitars (2007)
• Pentimento, an arrangement of 'Ravvedimento' for double-bass and three guitars (2007)
• Repentance, an arrangement of 'Ravvedimento' for cello, double-bass and three guitars (2008)
• Labyrinth, for 12 celli (2011)

Film scores[link]

• Adventures of Mowgli (1967–1971)
• The Cat Who Walked by Herself (1988)

A more complete list of her scores for animated films may be found on her profile at Animator.ru.

Discography[link]

• The Canticle of the Sun (1997) and Music for Flute, Strings, and Percussion (1994). The first performed by cellist and conductor Mstislav Rostropovich and London Voices conducted by Ryusuke Numajiri, the second by flutist Emmanuel Pahud and the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rostropovich. Gubaidulina attended the recording of both pieces.
• Johannes-Passion (2000). Performed by Natalia Korneva, Soprano; Viktor Lutsiuk, Tenor; Fedor Mozhaev, Baritone; Genady Bezzubenkov, Bass; St. Petersburg Chamber Choir (dir. Nikolai Kornev); Choir of the Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg (dir. Andrei Petrenko); Orchestra of the Mariinsky Theatre St. Petersburg conducted by Valery Gergiev. World premiere recorded live at the European Music Festival in Stuttgart, 01.09.2000.

References[link]

1. ^ (Tatar) "Гобәйдуллина, София". Tatar Encyclopedia. Kazan: Tatarstan Republic Academy of Sciences Institution of the Tatar Encyclopaedia. 2002. 
2. ^ V. Kholopova. Kompozitor Al'fred Shnitke )Composer Alfred Schnittke), Publishing House "Arkaim", 2003, p. 40 (http://yanko.lib.ru/books/music/schnittke-holopova.htm#_Toc40655895
3. ^ "Sofia Gubaidulina: Johnnespassion". theomniscientmussel.com. Retrieved on 06 September, 2008.
4. ^ Sax, Mule & Co, Jean-Pierre Thiollet, H & D, Paris 2004. 129
5. ^ Quoted in Composer to Composer: Conversations About Music, ed. by Josiah Fisk (St. Leonards, NSW, Australia: Allen & Unwin, 1993), 460
6. ^ Vera Lukomsky, "'The Eucharist in my fantasy': Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina", Tempo, New Series No. 206 (Sept. 1998):33
7. ^ http://viperson.ru/wind.php?ID=277118&soch=1; http://www.biografija.ru/show_bio.aspx?ID=30870
8. ^ ^{a b} Vera Lukomsky (Sept. 1998): 33.
9. ^ Vera Lukomsky (Sept. 1998): 34.
10. ^ Vera Lukomsky, "'Hearing the subconscious: Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina'", Tempo, New Series, No. 20 (July 1999):27
11. ^ See Vera Lukomsky,”‘Hearing the subconscious’: Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina,” 27–31.
12. ^ Sofia Gubaidulina and Vera Lukomsky, “My Desire is Always to Rebel, to Swim Against the Stream”, Perspectives of New Music 36, no. 1 (Winter 1998): 5–41, citation on p. 11. See also Hakobian, 287.^{[citation needed]}
13. ^ Claire Polin, “The Composer as Seer, but Not Prophet,” Tempo 190 (Sept. 1994): 15–16.
14. ^ Vera Lukomsky, “‘The Eucharist in my fantasy’: Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina,” 34.
15. ^ Gerard McBurney, “Encountering Gubaidulina,” The Musical Times 129, no. 1741 (March 1988): 123.
16. ^ Vera Lukomsky, ”‘Hearing the subconscious’: Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina”, 29
17. ^ The preceding analysis is taken from Ivana Ćojbašić, “The ‘Piano Sonata’ of Sofia Gubaidulina: Formal Analysis and Some Interpretation Issues," Organizacija 15 (2000): 103–117. For a more detailed discussion, see Ćojbašić ‘s dissertation: “Content and Musical Language in the ‘Piano Sonata’ of Sofia Gubaidulina,” DMA diss., University of North Texas, 1998.

External links[link]

• Classical.net: Sofia Gubaidulina
• Schirmer: Sofia Gubaidulina
• Hans Sikorski: Sofia Gubaidulina
• (French) A biography of Sofia Gubaidulina, from IRCAM's website.
• Sofia Gubaidulina on the Official site of the Moscow Regiment
• Sofia Gubaidulina on the Site "Krugosvet"
• Interview with Sofia Gubaidulina by Bruce Duffie, April 18, 1997
• [1] Fachwerk, 2009

Sofia София
From top left: Tsarigradsko shose, National Assembly Square, Sofia University rectorate, National Palace of Culture detail, Mall of Sofia, Ivan Vazov National Theatre, Holy Sophia Church, Eagles' Bridge detail
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Расте, но не старее  (Bulgarian) Raste, no ne staree  (transliteration) "Grows, but does not age"[1]
Sofia Position of Sofia in Bulgaria
Coordinates: 42°42′N 23°20′E / 42.7°N 23.333°E / 42.7; 23.333Coordinates: 42°42′N 23°20′E / 42.7°N 23.333°E / 42.7; 23.333
Country	Bulgaria
Province	Sofia-Capital
Settled by Thracians	7th century BC
Government
• Mayor of Sofia	Yordanka Fandakova (GERB)
Area
• City	492 km2 (190 sq mi)
• Urban	1,344 km2 (519 sq mi)
• Metro	3,424.2 km2 (1,322.1 sq mi)
Elevation	550 m (1,800 ft)
Population (City and Municipal - 2011 Census[2][3] Metropolitan - 2012 Estimate[4])
• City	1,204,685
• Density	2,448/km2 (6,340/sq mi)
• Municipality	1,291,591
• Metro	1,378,000 (Metro area) 1,495,000 (Metro region)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code	1000
Area code(s)	(+359) 02
Website	www.Sofia.bg

Sofia (Bulgarian: София, pronounced [ˈsɔfijɐ] ( listen)) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 15th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.2 million people.^[2] It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.

Prehistoric settlements were excavated in the centre of the present city, near the royal palace, as well as in outer districts Slatina and Obelya.^[5] The well-preserved town walls (especially their substructures) date back before the 7th century BC, when Thracians established their city around a mineral spring, which exists to the present day. Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence. Its ancient name, Serdika or Serdica, derives from the local Celtic tribe of the serdi who inhabited the region since the 1st century BC. Serdica was a Roman capital during the tetrarchic system of government.^[6] During the Middle Ages, it was one of the major commercial centres of the Bulgarian Empire, along with Tarnovo. Sofia's population remained small until 1879, when it was declared a capital of the Principality of Bulgaria after the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule.

Sofia has been ranked by GaWC as a beta- world city.^[7] Many of the major universities, cultural institutions, and businesses of Bulgaria are concentrated in Sofia.^[8]

Names[link]

Sofia was first mentioned in the sources as Yavor Nechev in relation to Marcus Licinius Crassus' campaigns in 59 BC. The name Serdica or Sardica (Σερδική, Σαρδική) was popular in Latin, Ancient Greek and Byzantine Greek sources from Antiquity and the Middle Ages; it was related to the local Celtic^[9] tribe of the Serdi. The name was last used in the 19th century in a Bulgarian text, Service and hagiography of Saint George the New of Sofia: ВЪ САРДАКІИ. Another of Sofia's names, Triaditsa (Τριάδιτζα), was mentioned in Greek medieval sources. The Bulgarian name Sredets (СРѢДЄЦЪ), which is related to среда sreda (middle), first appeared in the 11th-century Vision of Daniel and was widely used in the Middle Ages. The current name Sofia was first used in the 14th-century Vitosha Charter of Bulgarian tsar Ivan Shishman or in a Ragusan merchant's notes of 1376; it refers to the famous Holy Sophia Church, an ancient church in the city named after the Christian concept of the Holy Wisdom. Although Sredets remained in use until the late 18th century, Sofia gradually overcame the Slavic name in popularity.^[10] During the Ottoman rule it was called Sofya by the Turkish conquerors of Bulgaria.

The city's name is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the 'o', in contrast with the tendency of foreigners to place the stress on 'i'. Interestingly, the female given name "Sofia" is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the 'i'.

Geography[link]

Sofia's development as a significant settlement owes much to its central position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the northern foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by mountains on all sides. The valley is the largest in the country with territory of 1,186 square kilometres (458 sq mi) and average altitude of 550 metres (1,800 ft). Three mountain passes lead to the city, which have been key roads since antiquity, connecting the Adriatic Sea and Central Europe with the Black and Aegean Seas. A number of low rivers cross the city, including the Vladaiska and the Perlovska. The Iskar River in its upper course flows near eastern Sofia. The city is known for its numerous mineral and thermal springs. Artificial and dam lakes were built in the last century.

It is located 130 kilometres (81 mi) northwest of Plovdiv,^[11] Bulgaria's second largest city, 340 kilometres (210 mi) west of Burgas^[11] and 380 kilometres (240 mi) west of Varna,^[11] Bulgaria's major port-cities on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast. The city is situated at less than 200 kilometres (120 mi) from the borders with three countries: 55 kilometres (34 mi) from Kalotina on the Serbian border, 113 kilometres (70 mi) from Gyueshevo on the frontier with the Republic of Macedonia and 183 kilometres (114 mi) from the Greek border at Kulata.

The city has an area of 1344 km².^[12]

Climate[link]

Sofia has a continental climate with long, cold winters and relatively short mild summers. It is one of the coldest cities in Bulgaria with an annual temperature of 10.0 °C (50.0 °F). Annual clear days vary from 39 to 68, while annual rainy or stormy days vary from 141 to 185.^[13]

Winters are cold and snowy. The coldest months are January and February, when the temperature usually drops down to −10 °C (14 °F) - −15 °C (5 °F) through nights and sometimes it doesn't exceed 0 °C (32 °F) even during the day. The lowest temperature - −31.2 °C (−24.2 °F) was recorded during the winter of 1893. Summers are warm, at times hot. The warmest months are July and August, when temperatures vary from 10 °C (50 °F) to 15 °C (59 °F) during the night and rise to 25 °C (77 °F) - 30 °C (86 °F) through the day. Sofia generally remains cooler than other parts of Bulgaria, due to the high altitude of the valley in which it is situated. Thunderstorms often occur during the summer season. The city receives around 570 millimetres (22 in) annual precipitation with summer maximum and winter minimum.

History[link]

Antiquity[link]

Interior of the ancient Holy Sophia Church which gave its name to the city

Sofia was originally a Thracian settlement called Serdica, or Sardica, possibly named after the Celtic tribe Serdi.^[9] For a short period during the 4th century BC, the city was ruled by Philip of Macedon and his son Alexander the Great. Around BC 29, Serdica was conquered by the Romans. It became a municipium, or centre of an administrative region, during the reign of Emperor Trajan (98–117) and was renamed Ulpia Serdica. It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made by Ptolemy (around 100 AD). Serdica (Sardica) expanded, as turrets, protective walls, public baths, administrative and cult buildings, a civic basilica, an amphitheatre – the City Council (Boulé), a large Forum, a big Circus (Theatre), etc. were built.

When Emperor Diocletian divided the province of Dacia into Dacia Ripensis (at the banks of the Danube) and Dacia Mediterranea, Serdica became the capital of Dacia Mediterranea. The city subsequently expanded for a century and a half, it became a significant political and economical centre, moreso — it became one of the first Roman cities where Christianity was recognized as an official religion (Еmperor Galerius). In 343 AD, the Council of Sardica was held in the city, in a church located where the current 6th century Church of Saint Sophia was later built.

The city was destroyed in the 447 invasion of the Huns. It was rebuilt by Byzantine Emperor Justinian I and for a while called Triaditsa or Sredets by the slavonic tribes. During the reign of Justinian it flourished, being surrounded with great fortress walls whose remnants can still be seen today.

Middle Ages and Ottoman rule[link]

Sofia first became part of the First Bulgarian Empire during the reign of Khan Krum in 809, after a long siege.^[16] Afterwards, it was known by the Bulgarian name "Sredets" and grew into an important fortress and administrative centre. After the fall of North-eastern Bulgaria under John I Tzimiskes' armies in 971, the Bulgarian Patriarch Damyan chose Sofia for his seat in the next year. After a number of unsuccessful sieges, the city fell to the Byzantine Empire in 1018, but once again was incorporated into the restored Bulgarian Empire at the time of Tsar Ivan Asen I.

From the 12th to the 14th century, Sofia was a thriving centre of trade and crafts. It is possible that it had been called by the common population Sofia (meaning "wisdom" in Ancient Greek) about 1376 after the church of Saint Sophia. However, in different testimonies it was called both "Sofia" and "Sredets" until the end of the 19th century. In 1382, Sofia was seized by the Ottoman Empire in the course of the Bulgarian-Ottoman Wars after a long siege.

Sofia in mid-19th century

After the failed crusade of Władysław III of Poland in 1443 towards Sofia, the city's Christian elite was annihilated and the city became the capital of the Ottoman province (beylerbeylik) of Rumelia for more than four centuries, which encouraged many Turks to settle there. In the 16th century, Sofia's urban layout and appearance began to exhibit a clear Ottoman style, with many mosques, fountains and hamams (bathhouses). During that time the town had a population of around 7,000.

The town was seized for several weeks by Bulgarian hayduts in 1599. In 1610 the Vatican established the See of Sofia for Catholics of Rumelia, which existed until 1715 when most Catholics had emigrated.^[17] In the 16th century there were 126 Jewish households, and there has been a synagogue in Sofia since 967. The town was the center of Sofya Eyalet (1826–1864).

After 1878[link]

A 1908 plan of the city

Sofia was taken by Russian forces on January 4, 1878, during the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–78, and became the capital of the autonomous Principality of Bulgaria in 1879, which became the Kingdom of Bulgaria in 1908. It was proposed as a capital by Marin Drinov and was accepted as such on 3 April 1879. After the Liberation War, the new name "Sofia" replaced the old one ("Sredets"). Quite some time after 1878 there was a strong will, expressed by Bulgarian committees, to keep the name Sredets, but the Russian administration accepted Sofia.^{[citation needed]} By the time of its liberation the population of the city was 11,649.^[18] For a few decades after the liberation the city experienced large population growth mainly from other regions of the country.

During World War II, Sofia was bombed by Allied aircraft in late 1943 and early 1944. As a consequence of the invasion of the Soviet Red Army, Bulgaria's government, which was allied with Germany, was overthrown.

The transformations of Bulgaria into a People's Republic in 1946 and Republic of Bulgaria marked significant changes in the city's appearance. The population of Sofia expanded rapidly due to migration from the country. Whole new residential areas were built in the outskirts of the city, like Druzhba, Mladost and Lyulin.

Cityscape[link]

Districts[link]

Mall of Sofia in Vazrazhdane

Politically, administratively and economically, Bulgaria is a highly centralized state, making Sofia a national administrative unit of its own right. It should not to be confused with Sofia Province, which surrounds but does not include the city itself. Besides the city proper, the 24 districts of Sofia encompass three other towns and 34 villages.^[19] Each of them has its own district mayor who is elected in a popular election.^[19] The head of the Sofia Municipality is its mayor. The assembly members are chosen every four years. The current mayor of Sofia is Yordanka Fandakova.

The following are some of the most culturally and economically significant districts:

• Oborishte is in the very center of the city, where most landmarks and administrative edifices are located. It is known for its predominantly neo-Renaissance and Viennese architecture, extensive green belts and yellow cobblestones.
• Sredets neighbours Oborishte and shares some of its specific architecture. It is the site of Borisova gradina (Gardens of Boris) and the Vasil Levski National Stadium.
• Vazrazhdane is an economically active district where many trade centres and banks, along with some light industry manufacturing companies, are located. One of its main boulevards is Marie Louise Boulevard, the site of the Central Sofia Market Hall, TZUM and St Nedelya Church.
• Mladost is one of the most modern and fast developing areas in Sofia. It's also one of the largest districts in terms of population (second only to Lyulin) with its 110,000 inhabitants. It is generally poor in landmarks and administrative institutions, but it concentrates the headquarters of numerous domestic and international companies, large-scale department stores, official vehicle dealerships, and Business Park Sofia at its southern end. The architecture is a combination of Socialist-era apartment blocks, industrial enterprises and new buildings, most of which were constructed after 2004. Mladost has excellent transport connections to all remaining districts of Sofia.
• Vitosha is located on the foot of Vitosha Mountain. It holds a key location as it is the site where the Sofia ring road and Bulgaria Boulevard cross. Luxury estates and villa complexes dominate in Vitosha district. It has good connections to both the city centre and the nearby mountain resorts. Boyana is the site of the presidential residence, the Nu Boyana Film studios, the National Historical Museum and the Boyana Church.

Architecture[link]

The outlook of Sofia combines a wide range of arhitectural styles, some of which are hardly compatible. These vary from Christian Roman architecture and medieval Bulgar fortresses to Neoclassicism and prefabricated Socialist-era apartment blocks (panelki). A number of ancient Roman, Byzantine and medieval Bulgarian buildings are preserved in the centre of the city. These include the 10th century Boyana Church (a World Heritage Site), the 4th century Rotunda of St. George, the walls of the Serdica fortress and the partially preserved Amphitheatre of Serdica.

Architectural styles in Sofia

The St. George Rotunda; some remains of Serdica can be seen in the foreground   The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and the yellow cobblestones in Oborishte   The Largo, an example of Stalinist architecture   Business Park Sofia   SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library building designed by Vasilyov-Tsolov

After the Liberation War, knyaz Alexander Battenberg invited architects from Austria–Hungary to shape the new capital's architectural appearance.^[20] Among the architects invited to work in Bulgaria were Friedrich Grünanger, Adolf Václav Kolář, Viktor Rumpelmayer and others, who designed the most important public buildings needed by the newly-reestablished Bulgarian government, as well as numerous houses for the country's elite.^[20] Later, many foreign-educated Bulgarian architects also contributed. The architecture of Sofia's centre is thus a combination of Neo-Baroque, Neo-Rococo, Neo-Renaissance and Neoclassicism, with the Vienna Secession also later playing an important part, but it is mostly typically Central European.

After the Second World War and the establishment of a Communist government in Bulgaria in 1944, the architectural line was substantially altered. Stalinist Gothic public buildings emerged in the centre, notably the spacious government complex around The Largo, Vasil Levski Stadium, the Cyril and Methodius National Library and others. As the city grew outwards, the then-new neighbourhoods were dominated by many concrete tower blocks, prefabricated panel apartment buildings and examples of Brutalist architecture.

After the abolition of Communism in 1989, Sofia has witnessed the construction of whole business districts and neighbourhoods, as well as modern skryscraper-like glass-fronted office buildings, but also top-class residential neighbourhoods. Capital Fort Business Center will be the first skyscraper in Bulgaria with its 126 m and 36 floors. However, the end of the old administration and centrally planned system also paved the way for chaotic and unrestrained construction, which continues to the present day.

Green areas[link]

Borisova gradina, one of the biggest parks of the city.

The city has an extensive green belt, and almost all streets have a greenway of century-old trees. The only exception are some of the neighbourhoods constructed after 2000, which are densely built-up and often lack green spaces. There are four principal parks – Borisova gradina in the city centre and the Southern, Western and Northern parks. Several other smaller parks, among which the City Garden and the Doctors' Garden, are located in central Sofia. The Vitosha Nature Park (the oldest national park in the Balkans ^[21]), which includes a large portion of Vitosha mountain, covers an area of almost 270 km² and lies entirely within the city limits.^[22] Many of the city's residents take weekly hikes up the mountain, and most do so at least a couple of times a year. There are bungalows as well as several ski slopes on Vitosha, allowing locals to take full advantage of the countryside and of the mountains without having to leave the city.

Culture[link]

Arts and entertainment[link]

Ivan Vazov National Theatre

Sofia concentrates the majority of Bulgaria's leading performing arts troupes. Theatre is by far the most popular form of performing art, and theatrical venues are among the most visited, second only to cinemas. The oldest such institution is the Ivan Vazov National Theatre, which performs mainly classical plays and is situated in the very centre of the city. A large number of smaller theatres, such as the Sfumato Theatrical Workshop, show both classical and modern plays.

The National Opera and Ballet is a combined opera and ballet collective, established in 1891. However, it did not begin performances on a regular basis until 1909. Some of Bulgaria's most famous operatic singers, such as Nicolai Ghiaurov and Ghena Dimitrova, have made their first appearances on the stage of the National Opera and Ballet. Bulgaria Hall and Hall 1 of the National Palace of Culture regularly hold classical concerts, performed both by foreign orchestras and the Sofia Philharmonic. The city has played host to many world-famous musical acts including Sting, Elton John, Madonna, George Michael, Tiesto, Kylie Minogue, Depeche Mode, Rammstein, Rihanna and Roxette.

The National Opera and Ballet

Visual arts expositions are also of interest. The National Art Gallery holds a collection of works mostly by Bulgarian authors, while the National Gallery for Foreign Art displays exclusively foreign art, mostly from India, Africa, China and Europe. Its collections encompass diverse cultural items such as Ashanti Empire sculptures, Buddhist art, Dutch Golden Age painting, works by Albrecht Dürer, Jean-Baptiste Greuze and Auguste Rodin, among others. The crypt of the Alexander Nevsky cathedral holds a collection of Eastern Orthodox icons from the 9th to the 19th century.

Cinema is the most popular form of entertainment. In recent years, cinematic venues have been concentrating in trade centres and malls, and independent halls have been closed. Mall of Sofia holds one of the largest IMAX cinemas in Europe. Most films are American productions, although European and domestic films are increasingly shown. Odeon (not part of the Odeon Cinemas chain) shows exclusively European and independent American films, as well as 20th century classics. Bulgaria's once thriving film industry, concentrated in the Boyana Film studios, has suffered a period of decay after 1990. A relative revival of the industry began after 2001. After the acquisition of Boyana Film by Nu Image, several moderately successful productions have been shot in and around Sofia, such as The Contract, The Black Dahlia, Hitman and Conan the Barbarian. The Nu Boyana Film studios have also hosted some of the scenes for The Expendables 2.

The city houses many cultural institutes such as the Russian Cultural Institute, the Polish Cultural Institute, the Hungarian Institute, the Czech and the Slovak Cultural Institutes, the Italian Cultural Institute, the French Cultural Institute, Goethe Institut, British Council, Instituto Cervantes, and the Open Society Institute, which regularly organise temporary expositions of visual, sound and literary works by artists from their respective countries.

Some of the biggest telecommunications companies, TV and radio stations, newspapers, magazines, and web portals are based in Sofia, including the Bulgarian National Television, bTV and Nova TV. Top-circulation newspapers include 24 Chasa, Trud and Kapital Daily.

Tourism[link]

The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

Sofia is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Bulgaria alongside coastal and mountain resorts. Among its highlights is the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, one of the symbols of Bulgaria, constructed in the late 19th century. It occupies an area of 3,170 square metres (34,100 sq ft) and can hold 10,000 people. The city is also known for the Boyana Church, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library houses the largest national collection of books and documents (1,714,211 books and some 6 million other documents^[23]) and is Bulgaria's oldest cultural institute.

Sofia holds Bulgaria's largest museum collections, which attract tourists and students for practical studies. The National Historical Museum in Boyana district has a vast collection of more than 650,000 historical items dating from Prehistory to the modern era, although only 10,000 of them are permanently displayed due to the lack of space.^[24] Smaller collections of items related mostly to the history of Sofia are in the National Archaeological Museum, a former mosque located between the edifices of the National Bank and the Presidency. Two natural sciences museums — the Natural History Museum and the Earth and Man — display minerals, animal species (alive and taxidermic) and rare materials. The Ethnographic Museum and the National Museum of Military History are other places of interest, holding large collections of Bulgarian folk costumes and armaments, respectively.

Vitosha Boulevard, also called Vitoshka, has numerous fashion boutiques and luxury goods stores. Sofia's geographic location, in the foothills of the weekend retreat Vitosha mountain, further adds to the city's specific atmosphere.

Sports[link]

A moment from the Eternal derby of Bulgarian football - CSKA (red) against Levski (blue) in February 2011

A large number of sports clubs are based in the city. During the Communist era most sports clubs concentrated on all-round sporting development, therefore CSKA, Levski and Slavia are dominant not only in football, but in many other team sports as well. Basketball and volleyball also have strong traditions in Sofia. A notable local basketball team is twice European Champions Cup finalist Lukoil Akademik. The Bulgarian Volleyball Federation is the world's second-oldest, and it was an exhibition tournament organised by the BVF in Sofia that convinced the International Olympic Committee to include volleyball as an olympic sport in 1957.^[25] Tennis is increasingly popular in the city. Currently there are some ten^[26] tennis court complexes within the city including the one founded by former WTA top-ten athlete Magdalena Maleeva.^[27]

Sofia applied to host the Winter Olympic Games in 1992 and in 1994, coming 2nd and 3rd respectively. The city was also an applicant for the 2014 Winter Olympics, but was not selected as candidate. In addition, Sofia hosted Eurobasket 1957 and the 1961 and 1977 Summer Universiades, as well as the 1983 and 1989 winter editions. In 2012, it will host the FIVB World League finals.

The city is home to a number of large sports venues, including the 43,000-seat Vasil Levski National Stadium which hosts international football matches, and Lokomotiv Stadium, the main venue for outdoor musical concerts. Armeets Arena holds many indoor events and has a capacity of up to 19,000 people depending on its use. The venue was inaugurated on July 30, 2011, and the first event it hosted was a friendly volleyball match between Bulgaria and Serbia. There are two ice skating complexes — the Winter Palace of Sports with a capacity of 4,000 and the Slavia Winter Stadium with a capacity of 2,000, both containing two rinks each.^[28] A velodrome with 5,000 seats in the city's central park is currently undergoing renovation.^[29] There are also various other sports complexes in the city which belong to institutions other than football clubs, such as those of the National Sports Academy, the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, or those of different universities. There are more than fifteen swimming complexes in the city, most of them outdoor.^[30] Nearly all of these were constructed as competition venues and therefore have seating facilities for several hundred people.

There are two golf courses just to the east of Sofia — in Elin Pelin (St Sofia club) and in Ihtiman (Air Sofia club), and a horseriding club (St George club).

Demographics[link]

The construction boom in Sofia lasted until 2009 and saw the construction of many new apartment buildings, such as this one in Borovo.

According to 2011 data,^[2] the city has a population of 1,204,685 and the whole Capital Municipality of 1,291,591.^[3]

The ratio of women per 1,000 men was 1,102. The birth rate per 1000 people was 12.3 per mille and steadily increasing in the last 5 years, the death rate reaching 12.1 per mille and decreasing. The natural growth rate during 2009 was 0.2 per mille, the first positive growth rate in nearly 20 years. The considerable immigration to the capital from poorer regions of the country, as well as urbanisation, are among the other reasons for the increase in Sofia's population. 4.8 people of every one thousand were wedded in 2009 (only heterosexual marriage is possible in Bulgaria) and the infant mortality rate was 5.6 per 1,000, down from 18.9 in 1980.

According to the 2001 census, Sofia's population was made up of 96% ethnic Bulgarians; among minority communities, nearly 18,000 (1.5%) officially identified themselves as Roma,^[31] 6,000 as Turkish, 3,000 as Russian, 1,700 as Armenian, and 1,200 as Greek.^[32]

The unemployment is lower than in other parts of the country — 2.45% of the active population in 1999 and declining, compared to 7.25% for the whole of Bulgaria as of 1 July 2007.^[33] The large share of unemployed people with higher education, 27% as compared to 7% for the whole country, is a characteristic feature of the capital.

Sofia was declared capital in 1879. One year later, in 1880, it was the fifth-largest city in the country after Plovdiv, Varna, Ruse and Shumen. Plovdiv remained the most populous Bulgarian town until 1892 when Sofia took the lead.

Economy[link]

Business Park Sofia

Sofia is the economic heart of Bulgaria and home to most major Bulgarian and international companies operating in the country, as well as the Bulgarian National Bank and the Bulgarian Stock Exchange. With a GDP (PPP) per capita of $30,534, a nominal of $15,757 and a PPS GDP per capita of the city and its surrounding Yugozapaden NUTS II planning region of $24,647 in 2009,^[34][35][36] the capital is the centre of the national economy. This places Sofia's GDP (PPP) per capita at 103% of the EU average, well above the country's average of 44%. In 2008, the average per capita monthly income was 4,572 leva ($3,479),^[37] substantially higher than the current national average wage of 752 leva ($502).^[38] The strongest sectors of the city's economy in terms of annual production are manufacturing ($5.5 bln.), metallurgy ($1.84 bln.), electricity, gas and water supply ($1.6 bln.) and food and beverages ($778 mln.).^[39]

The largest shoping mall in the Balkans

After World War II and the era of industrialisation under socialism, the city and its surrounding areas expanded rapidly and became the most heavily industrialised region of the country.^[40] The influx of workers from other parts of the country became so intense that a restriction policy was imposed, and residing in the capital was only possible after obtaining Sofianite citizenship.^[40] However, after the political changes in 1989, this kind of citizenship was removed.

Increasingly, Sofia is becoming an outsourcing destination for multinational companies, among them IBM, Hewlett-Packard, SAP, Siemens, Software AG.^{[citation needed]} Bulgaria Air, the national airline of Bulgaria, has its head office on the grounds of Sofia Airport.^[41]

Up until 2007 Sofia experienced rapid economic growth. In 2008, apartment prices increased dramatically, with a growth rate of 30%.^[42] In 2009, prices fell by 26%.^[43]

Transport and infrastructure[link]

Public bus near Sofia Airport

With its developing infrastructure and strategic location, Sofia is a major hub for international railway and automobile transport. Three of the ten Trans-European Transport Corridors cross the city: 4, 8 and 10. All major types of transport (except water) are represented in the city. It is home to eight railway stations,^[44] the biggest of which is the Central Railway Station. Just next to it is the new Central Bus Station.^[45] A number of other bus stations allow interurban and international trips from different parts of the city. The Sofia Airport with its new second terminal, finished in 2006, ^[46] handled some 3.47 million passengers in 2011. ^[47]

Public transport is well-developed with bus (2380 km network^[48]), tram (308 km network^[49]) and trolleybus (193 km network^[50]) lines running in all areas of the city,^{[51] [52]} although some of the vehicles are in a poor condition. The Sofia Metro became operational in 1998, and now has one line and 16 stations.^[53] As of 2012, the system has 21 kilometers of track. Six new stations were opened in 2009 and two more in April 2012. Construction works on the extension of the first line are underway and it is expected to reach the airport by 2014. A second line with 11 stations is under construction with a guaranteed completion date in autumn 2012. A third line is currently in the early stages of planning. ^[53] The master plan for the Sofia Metro includes three lines with a total of 47 stations.^[53] In recent years the marshrutka, a private passenger van, began serving fixed routes and proved an efficient and popular means of transport by being faster than public transport but cheaper than taxis. As of 2005 these vans numbered 368 and serviced 48 lines around the city and suburbs.^[44] There are some 6,000 licensed taxi cabs operating in the city and another 2,000 operating somewhat illegally. ^[54] Low fares in comparison with other European countries, make taxis affordable and popular among a big part of the city population.

Tsarigradsko shose, one of the busiest boulevards in Sofia

Private automobile ownership has grown rapidly in the 1990s; more than 1,000,000 cars were registered in Sofia after 2002. The city has the 5th-highest number of automobiles per capita in the European Union at 546.4 vehicles per 1,000 people.^[55] The municipality was known for minor and cosmetic repairs and many streets are in a poor condition. This is noticeably changing in the past years. There are different boulevards and streets in the city with a higher amount of traffic than others. These include Tsarigradsko shose, Cherni Vrah, Bulgaria, Slivnitsa and Todor Aleksandrov boulevards, as well as the city's ring road, where long chains of cars are formed at peak hours and traffic jams occur regularly.^[56] Consequently traffic and air pollution problems have become more severe and receive regular criticism in local media. The extension of the underground system is hoped to alleviate the city's immense traffic problems. As per recent statistics, the last enlargement of the underground system has eleviated the air pollution in the city by 20 % and lowered the traffic accidents by 15 %.^{[citation needed]}

Sofia has a unique, very large combined heat and power (CHP) plant. Virtually the entire city (900,000 households and 5,900 companies) is centrally heated, using residual heat from electricity generation (3,000 MW) and gas- and oil-fired heating furnaces; total heat capacity is 4,640 MW. The heat distribution piping network is 900 km long and comprises 14,000 substations and 10,000 heated buildings.

Education[link]

Students practicing with electronic devices at the Technical University of Sofia

There are 16 universities in Sofia. The Saint Clement of Ohrid University of Sofia, often regarded as the most prestigious university of Bulgaria, was founded in 1888 and expanded in the 1950s.^[57] The university's edifice was constructed between 1924 and 1934 with the financial support of brothers Evlogi Georgiev and Hristo Georgiev.^[58] The university enrolls 14,000 students annually.

Other leading higher education establishments are the National Academy of Arts, the Technical University of Sofia, Sofia Medical University, Rakovski Defence and Staff College, and New Bulgarian University.

Secondary education institutions are numerous and include vocational and language schools. The "elite" secondary language schools provide education in a selected foreign language. These include the 91st German Language School, 164th Spanish Language School, First English Language School, and 9th French Language School. Some of them provide a language certificate upon graduation, while the 9th French Language School has exchange programs with a number of lycées in France and Switzerland, such as the Parisian Collège-lycée Jacques-Decour. The American College of Sofia was founded in 1860 and often regarded as the oldest American academic institution outside the United States.^[59]

Other institutions of national significance, such as the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BAS) and the SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library are located in Sofia. BAS is the centrepiece of scientific research in Bulgaria, employing more than 4,500 scientists in various institutes, including the Bulgarian Space Agency.

Notable residents[link]

See also: Category:People from Sofia

Kristalina Georgieva, European commissioner

Matey Kaziyski, volleyball player

Simeon II, former Tsar of Bulgaria and former Prime Minister of Bulgaria

Notable people born in Sofia:

• Galerius (ca. 260-311), Roman emperor^{[citation needed][60]}
• Georgi Asparuhov (1943–1971), football player
• Michael Bar-Zohar (b. 1938), historian, former Knesset member
• Irina Bokova (b. 1952), politician, current director-general of UNESCO
• Boris III (1894–1943), Tsar of Bulgaria
• Laura Chukanov (b. 1986), model, Miss Utah USA 2009, Miss USA 2009 (3rd runner-up)
• Cyril (1901–1971), Patriarch of Bulgaria
• Albena Denkova (b. 1974), ice dancer, World Championship gold, silver, bronze
• Nina Dobrev, (b. 1989), actress
• Itzhak Fintzi (b. 1933), actor
• Kristalina Georgieva (b. 1953), politician, European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response in the second college of the Barroso Commission.
• Maria Gigova (b. 1947), three times rhythmic gymnastics World champion
• Assen Jordanoff (1896–1967), Bulgarian-American aviation pioneer
• Matey Kaziyski (b. 1984), volleyball player
• Ivan Kostov (b. 1953), politician, former prime minister of Bulgaria
• Ivet Lalova (b. 1983), athlete, fastest female white sprinter in the world
• Shmuel Levi (1884-1966), Israeli painter
• Borislav Mikhailov (b. 1963), football player and Bulgarian Football Union president, member of the executive committee of UEFA
• Moni Moshonov (b. 1951), Israeli actor, comedian and theater director.
• Stoyanka Mutafova (b. 1922), actress
• Valeri Petrov (b. 1920), writer
• Evgenia Radanova (b. 1977), ice skater
• Anna-Maria Ravnopolska-Dean (b. 1960), harpist
• Simeon II (b. 1937), former Tsar of Bulgaria and former Prime Minister of Bulgaria
• Antoaneta Stefanova (b. 1979), chess player and Women's World Chess Champion
• Tzvetan Todorov (b. 1939), philosopher and writer
• Alexis Weissenberg (1929-2012), pianist
• Lyudmila Zhivkova (1942–1981), art historian and politician

International relations[link]

Twin towns — Sister cities[link]

Sofia is twinned with: