Bulgaria Geography - 2021

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Location

Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Romania and Turkey

Geographic coordinates

43 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references

Europe

Area

total: 110,879 sq km

land: 108,489 sq km

water: 2,390 sq km

Area - comparative

almost identical in size to Virginia; slightly larger than Tennessee

Area comparison map

Land boundaries

total: 1,806 km

border countries (5): Greece 472 km, Macedonia 162 km, Romania 605 km, Serbia 344 km, Turkey 223 km

Coastline

354 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate

temperate; cold, damp winters; hot, dry summers

Terrain

mostly mountains with lowlands in north and southeast

Elevation

highest point: Musala 2,925 m

lowest point: Black Sea 0 m

mean elevation: 472 m

Natural resources

bauxite, copper, lead, zinc, coal, timber, arable land

Land use

agricultural land: 46.9% (2018 est.)

arable land: 29.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 1.5% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 15.5% (2018 est.)

forest: 36.7% (2018 est.)

other: 16.4% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

1,020 sq km (2012)

Total renewable water resources

21.3 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)

Population distribution

a fairly even distribution throughout most of the country, with urban areas attracting larger populations

Natural hazards

earthquakes; landslides

Environment - international agreements

party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Dumping-London Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 2006, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note

strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia

NOTE: The information regarding Bulgaria on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Bulgaria 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Bulgaria 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.