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Kyustendil

Coordinates: 42°17′N 22°41′E / 42.283°N 22.683°E / 42.283; 22.683
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42°17′N 22°41′E / 42.283°N 22.683°E / 42.283; 22.683

Kyustendil
Кюстендил
Coat of arms of Kyustendil
Coat of arms
CountryBulgaria
Province
(Oblast)		Kyustendil
Government
 • MayorPetar Paunov
Area
 • City
18.72 km2 (7.23 sq mi)
Elevation
554 m (1,818 ft)
Population
 (Census February 2011)
 • City
44,532
 • Density2,400/km2 (6,200/sq mi)
 • Urban
60,681
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal Code
2500
Area code078
License plateKH

Kyustendil (Template:Lang-bg) is a town in the far west of Bulgaria, the capital of Kyustendil Province. Kyustendil is situated in the southern part of the Kyustendil Valley, 90 km southwest of Sofia, 130 km northeast of Skopje and 243 km north of Thessaloniki.

Etymology

The city was named after the last Christian lord of the surrounding region, Constantine Dragash. The ancient name of the town, Pautalia (a town of springs) is Thracian

Geography

Kyustendil is a national balneological resort at an altitude of 500 metres. There are more than 40 mineral springs in the town. The waters have a high content of sulfite compounds. These are used for the treatment of the locomotory system, gynecological and other kinds of diseases. The resort region includes several baths, balneological complexes and others.

Kyustendil is located at the foot of the Osogovo mountain, on both banks of the Banska River and is a well-known centre of balneology and fruit growing. The town is 90 kilometres southwest of Sofia, 69 km northwest of Blagoevgrad and 22 km from the border with the Republic of Macedonia and Serbia. The fortress was built by the Romans. Thermae, basilicas, floor mosaics have been uncovered.[1]

Religion

Kyustendil today belongs to the Sofia diocese in regards of church-administrative structure. The city is the center of the vicarage and the Kyustendil Eparchy. In the past, Kyustendil was the seat of the diocese, that latter was closed in 1884. The majority of the urban population profess the Orthodox faith today, there are several Christian denominations associated with Protestantism and a small Jewish community. During Ottoman rule Kyustendil had mostly Turkish population profess Islam but of the many mosques of the time, are now saved only two. Today the city has only Christian churches operating.

Climate

Kyustendil has a continental climate with Mediterranean influence (mostly along the Struma river). The average annual temperature is 11,3 ° C. The highest average temperature in July (22 ° C) and lowest in January (0 ° C). The annual temperature range is 22° C. It is relatively large and is an indicator of the predominant continental nature of the climate. Summers are warm and long, winters are short and cool (only 30 days and air temperature 0 ° C), spring comes early and stays steady after the first days of March and the autumn is long, warm and sunny while maintaining stable until the end of November. Rainfall is moderate - average 624 mm, and there is snow on average 30-35 days in winter. Due to moderately severe cloudy and hazy low (average 22 days per year) duration of sunshine is significant - about 2,400 hours per year. The second half of the summer and early autumn in the town are the sunniest of the year, and the cloud cover is mostly in the winter months. Humidity is moderate. It varies between 65 and 70%, and is relatively low in the summer months (especially in August). Kyustendil valley is characterized by low windiness, spring being the most windy season and autumn the most quiet. The average annual wind speed is 1.4 m / sec. During the winter and spring months in the city appears warm and gusty wind "foehn", which causes sudden warming of time. The temperature regime is characterized by some special features. Winter temperature inversions occur, and in the summer as a result of overheating of the daily maximum air temperatures rise to 35-37 ° C. Summer nights are mild with temperatures in the range of 14-18 ° C. The lowest temperature in the city is measured in January at -27 ° C, and the highest - in August at +42.4 ° C.


Climate data for Kyustendil, Bulgaria (1994-)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 4.8
(40.6) 		7.9
(46.2) 		13.1
(55.6) 		17.8
(64.0) 		23
(73) 		26.8
(80.2) 		29.7
(85.5) 		30
(86) 		24.8
(76.6) 		19
(66) 		11.9
(53.4) 		5.3
(41.5) 		17.8
(64.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) −0.3
(31.5) 		1.6
(34.9) 		6.3
(43.3) 		11
(52) 		16
(61) 		18.7
(65.7) 		22.1
(71.8) 		22
(72) 		17.4
(63.3) 		11.5
(52.7) 		5.5
(41.9) 		1
(34) 		11.2
(52.2)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −4.3
(24.3) 		−3.3
(26.1) 		0.4
(32.7) 		4.8
(40.6) 		9.2
(48.6) 		12.4
(54.3) 		14.4
(57.9) 		14
(57) 		10
(50) 		5.3
(41.5) 		0.5
(32.9) 		−2.9
(26.8) 		5.1
(41.2)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 48
(1.9) 		45
(1.8) 		42
(1.7) 		52
(2.0) 		68
(2.7) 		65
(2.6) 		54
(2.1) 		36
(1.4) 		38
(1.5) 		59
(2.3) 		62
(2.4) 		55
(2.2) 		624
(24.6)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) 8 8 7 8 8 7 5 5 5 6 7 12 87
Average snowy days 11.1 8.6 2.6 0.4 0 0 0 0 0 0.1 1.6 9 33.4
Mean monthly sunshine hours 105 120 151 183 225 273 317 303 255 213 134 112 2,391
Source: Stringmeteo.com[2]


History

A Thracian settlement was founded at the place of the modern town in the 5th-4th centuries BC and the Romans developed it into an important stronghold, balneological resort and trade junction called Pautalia in the 1st century AD. Many Thracian and Roman objects are exhibited in the city's Regional History Museum, most notably an impressive numismatic collection.

The Hisarlaka fortress was built in the 4th century and the town was mentioned under the Slavic name of Velbazhd (Велбъжд, meaning "camel")[1] in a 1019 charter by the Byzantine Emperor Basil II. It became a major religious and administrative centre.

Medieval Principality of Velbazhd

During the reign of Kaloyan of Bulgaria, the town became part of the Second Bulgarian Empire, acquiring its modern name in the 16th century, named after local feudal lord Konstantin Dragash (ruled from 1379 to 1395).[1] In 1330 the Battle of Velbazhd took place in the vicinity of the town. After that war, the city came under Serbian rule, which lasted between 1330-1355. About 1355 Velbazhd and its region were included in the semi-independent feudal Velbazhd principality of Despot Deyan. In 1372 the Turks conquered the town. It was known as Köstendil under Ottoman rule. The name Köstendil was derived from Constantine Dragas' name. The city was a sanjak centre initially in Rumelia province, after that in the Bitola and Niš vilayets. It was a kaza centre in the Sofia sanjak of Danube Province until the creation of the Principality of Bulgaria in 1878.

The residents of Kyustendil took an active part in the Bulgarian National Revival and crafts and trade flourished. The town was liberated from Ottoman rule on 29 January 1878.

Population

Ethnic linguistic and religious composition

According to the latest 2011 census data, people who chose to declare their ethnic identity were distributed as follows:[3][4]

  • Bulgarians: 36,732 (86.7%)
  • Roma: 5,179 (12.2%)
  • Turks: 21 (0.0%)
  • Others: 143 (0.3%)
  • Indefinable: 296 (0.7%)
    • Undeclared: 2,161 (4.9%)

Total: 44,532

Roma people are mainly concentrated within the town limits. In the mean time, about a fourth of Bulgarians live in the surrounding villages, also part of the Municipality of Kyustendil.

Honours

Kyustendil Ridge in Graham Land, Antarctica is named after the city,[5] and Pautalia Glacier on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Pautalia (its Thracian ancestor settlement).[6]

Notable people

References

  1. ^ a b c Adrian Room, "Placenames of the World" ISBN 0-7864-2248-3 McFarland & Company (2005)
  2. ^ [1], Stringmeteo.com Retrieved May 4, 2013.
  3. ^ Template:Bg icon Population on 01.02.2011 by provinces, municipalities, settlements and age; National Statistical Institute
  4. ^ Population by province, municipality, settlement and ethnic identification, by 01.02.2011; Bulgarian National Statistical Institute Template:Bg icon
  5. ^ Kyustendil Ridge. SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer.
  6. ^ Pautalia Glacier. SCAR Composite Antarctic Gazetteer.


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