Sofia

Sofia София
National Assembly Square in central Sofia Eagles' Bridge detail
Flag Coat of arms
Motto(s):  Расте, но не старее (Grows but Does not Age)
Sofia Position of Sofia in Bulgaria
Coordinates: 42°42′N 23°20′E
Country	Bulgaria
Province	Sofia-Capital
Settled by Thracians	7th century BC
Government
• Mayor of Sofia	Yordanka Fandakova (GERB)
Area
• City	1.349 km2 (0.521 sq mi)
Elevation	550 m (1,800 ft)
Population  (Census 2011 (City and Urban), Forecast for 2012 (Metro))
• City	1,270,284
• Density	944/km2 (2,440/sq mi)
• Urban	1,359,520
• Metro	1,380,000 (Metro area) 1,495,000 (Metro region)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code	1000
Area code(s)	(+359) 02
Website	www.Sofia.bg

Sofia is the capital and the largest city of Republic of Bulgaria. It has 1.3 million people. It is the 15th largest city of the European Union. Sofia is in the west of Bulgaria.

Sofia is one of the oldest capital cities in Europe; the history of Sofia dates back to the 8th century BC.

Many of the major universities, cultural institutions, and businesses of Bulgaria are concentrated in Sofia.

At 550 m (1,800 ft) above sea level, Sofia is the third highest capital in Europe (after the Andorran capital Andorra la Vella and the Spanish capital Madrid). It has a humid continental climate (Dfb in the Köppen climate classification).

Other websites

Media related to Sofia at Wikimedia Commons

• Sofia complete accommodation guide Archived 2007-10-12 at the Wayback Machine