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Kamenitza

Kamenitza

Kamenitza (Bulgarian: Каменица) is a peak in Pirin Mountain in Bulgaria. It is also the name of the best-selling Bulgarian beer, produced in the city of Plovdiv. Established in 1881 and currently owned by InBev, the brewery has a wide variety of lager and dark beers. Kamenitza is a sponsor of the Bulgarian football team. Category:Brewers and breweries

Bulgarian language

Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Southern branch of the Slavic languages.

History

The development of the Bulgarian language may be divided into several historical periods. The prehistoric period (essentially proto-Slavic) occurred between the Slavonic invasion of the eastern Balkans and the mission of St. Cyril and St. Methodius to Great Moravia in the 860s. Old Bulgarian (9th to 11th century, also referred to as Old Church Slavonic) was the language used by St. Cyril, St. Methodius and their disciples to translate the Bible and other liturgical literature from Greek. Middle Bulgarian (12th to 15th century) was a language of rich literary activity and major innovations. Modern Bulgarian dates from the 16th century onwards; the present-day written language was standardized on the basis of the 19th-century Bulgarian vernacular. The historical development of the Bulgarian language can be described as a transition from a highly synthetic language (Old Bulgarian) to a typical analytic language (Modern Bulgarian) with Middle Bulgarian as a midpoint in this transition. Fewer than 20 words remain in Bulgarian from the language of the Bulgars, the Central Asian people who moved into present-day Bulgaria and eventually adopted the local Slavic language. The Bolgar language, a member of the Turkic language family or the Iranian language family (Pamir languages), is otherwise unrelated to Bulgarian. Old Bulgarian was the first Slavic language attested in writing. As Slavic linguistic unity lasted into late antiquity, in the oldest manuscripts this language was initially referred to as языкъ словяньскъ, "the Slavic language". In the Middle Bulgarian period this name was gradually replaced by the name языкъ блъгарьскъ, the "Bulgarian language". In some cases, the name языкъ блъгарьскъ was used not only with regard to the contemporary Middle Bulgarian language of the copyist but also to the period of Old Bulgarian and even to the mission of St. Cyril and St. Methodius in Great Moravia. A most notable example of anachronism is the Service of St. Cyril from Skopje (Скопски миней), a 13th century Middle Bulgarian manuscript from northern Macedonia according to which St. Cyril preached with "Bulgarian" books among the Moravian Slavs. The first mention of the language as the "Bulgarian language" instead of the "Slavonic language" comes in the work of the Greek clergy of the Bulgarian Archbishopric of Ohrid in the 11th century, for example in the Greek hagiography of Saint Clement of Ohrid by Theophylact of Ohrid (late 11th century). During the Middle Bulgarian period, the language underwent dramatic changes, losing the Old Slavonic case system, but preserving the rich verb system (while the development was exactly the opposite in most other Slavic languages) and developing a definite article. It was influenced by its non-Slavic neighbours in the Balkan linguistic union (mostly gramatically) and later also by the Turkish language, which had a dominant position in the Ottoman empire (mostly lexically). As a national revival occurred towards the end of the period of Ottoman rule (mostly during the 19th century), a modern Bulgarian literary language gradually emerged which drew heavily on Russian and Church Slavonic/Old Bulgarian and which later reduced the number of Turkish and other Balkanic loans. Modern Bulgarian was based essentially on the Eastern dialects of the language, but its pronunciation is in many respects a compromise between East and West Bulgarian (see especially the phonetic sections below).

General characteristics

Bulgarian demonstrates several linguistic innovations that set it apart from other Slavic languages, such as the elimination of noun declension, the development of a suffixed definite article (possibly inherited from the Bulgar language), the lack of a verb infinitive, and the retention and further development of the proto-Slavic verb system. There are various verb forms to express nonwitnessed, retold, and doubtful action. Bulgarian is part of the Balkan linguistic union, which also includes the closely related Macedonian, Greek, Romanian, Albanian and some Serbian dialects. Most of these languages share some of the above-mentioned characteristics (e.g., definite article, infinitive loss, complicated verb system) and many more. The "nonwitnessed action" verb forms, pertaining to a mood known as renarrative mood, have been attributed to Turkish influences by most Bulgarian linguists. Morphohologically, they are obviously related to the perfect tenses, which are known in Bulgarian linguistic tradition as preliminary (предварителни) tenses.

Alphabet

In 886 AD, Bulgaria adopted the Glagolitic alphabet which was devised by the Byzantine missionaries Saint Cyril and Methodius in the 850s. The Glagolitic alphabet was gradually superseded in the following centuries by the Cyrillic alphabet, which was developed around the Preslav Literary School in the beginning of the 10th century. Most of the letters in the Cyrillic alphabet were borrowed from the Greek alphabet; those which had no Greek equivalents, however, represent simplified Glagolitic letters. Under the influence of printed books from Russia, the Russian "civil script" of Peter I (see Reforms of Russian orthography) replaced the old Middle Bulgarian/Church Slavonic script at the end of the 18th century. Several Cyrillic alphabets with 28 to 44 letters were used in the beginning and the middle of the 19th century during the efforts on the codification of Modern Bulgarian until an alphabet with 32 letters, proposed by Marin Drinov, gained prominence in the 1870s. The alphabet of Marin Drinov was used until the orthographic reform of 1945 when the letters yat called "double e"), and yus were removed from the alphabet. The present Bulgarian alphabet has 30 letters. The following table gives the letters of the Bulgarian alphabet, along with IPA values for the sound of each letter: 1 softens consonants before 'o' Most letters in the Bulgarian alphabet stand for one specific sound and that sound only. Three letters stand for the single expression of combinations of sounds, namely щ (sht), ю (yu), and я (ya). Two sounds do not have separate letters assigned to them, but are expressed by the combination of two letters, namely дж (like j in Jack) and дз (dz). The letter ь is not pronounced, but it softens (palatalizes) any preceding consonant before the letter о. For questions regarding the transliteration of Bulgarian into English (Romanization), see the article Transliteration of Bulgarian into English.

Phonetics

Vowels

The Bulgarian vowel system consists of the following six vowels: The Bulgarian vowels may be grouped in three pairs according to their backness: front, central and back. All vowels are relatively lax, as in most other Slavic languages, and unlike the tense vowels, for example, in the Germanic languages. Unstressed vowels tend to be shorter and weaker compared to their stressed counterparts, the corresponding pairs of open and closed vowels approaching each other with a tendency to merge, although the coalescence is not always complete. The variation of the norm seems to be socially conditioned: on the one hand, the relative absence of reduction is intuitively associated with certain types of low-status (provincial, especially West Bulgarian, or Romani-influenced) speech; on the other hand the awareness of the distinctions is naturally perceived as a sign of literacy and education. The merger is, at least in nondialectal pronunciation, totally accomplished for and in all positions (except, occasionally and for some speakers, in a syllable immediately preceding another ). Unstressed also tends to be pronounced like (the difference is either minimal or nonexistent in pre-stress position and totally absent after stress), but the status of that coalescence is less clear, perhaps because post-stress is not very common in the first place. The considerable reduction of notwithstanding, similar coalescence of and is not allowed in formal speech and is definitely regarded as a provincial (East Bulgarian) feature; rather, unstressed and above all post-stress might occasionally approach a more front form of .

Semivowels

Bulgarian possesses one semivowel: , equivalent to the English in yes. The always immediately precedes or follows a vowel. The semivowel is most usually expressed graphically by the letter й, as, for example, in най /naj/ ("most") and тролей ("trolleybus"). The letters ю and я are, however, also used, for example, ютия /jutija/ "(flat) iron". After a consonant, ю and я signify a palatalized consonant rather than a semivowel: бял / "white".

Consonants

Bulgarian has a total of 33 consonant phonemes (see table below). Three additional phonemes can also be found ([], and ), but only in foreign proper names such as Хюстън /n/ ("Houston"), Дзержински /dzεrinski/ ("Dzerzhinsky"), and Ядзя /a/, the Polish name "Jadzia". They are, however, normally not considered part of the phonetic inventory of the Bulgarian language. According to the criterion of sonority, the Bulgarian consonants may be divided into 16 pairs (voiced<>voiceless). The only consonant without a counterpart is the voiceless velar fricative [x]. The contrast 'voiced vs. voiceless' is neutralized in word-final position, where all consonants are pronounced as voiceless (as in most Slavic languages, German, etc.); this neutralization is, however, not reflected in the spelling.

Hard and palatalized consonants

The Bulgarian consonants б , в , г , д , з , к , л , м , н , п , р , с , т , ф , ц can have both a normal, "hard" pronunciation, as well as a "soft", palatalized one. The hard and the palatalized consonants are considered separate phonemes in Bulgarian. The consonants ж , ш , ч and дж do not have palatalized variants, which is probably connected with the fact that they have arisen historically through palatalization in common Slavic. These consonants may be realized with different grades of hardness or softness, depending on speaker and dialect; a relatively neutral realization is perceived as standard. The softness of the palatalized consonants is always indicated in writing in Bulgarian. A consonant is palatalized if:
- it is followed by the soft sign ь;
- it is followed by the letters я or ю ; (я and ю are used in all other cases to represent the semivowel /j/ before /a/ and /u/.) Even though palatalized consonants are phonemes in Bulgarian, they may in some cases be positionally conditioned, hence redundant. In Eastern Bulgarian dialects, consonants are always allophonically palatalized before the vowels and . This is not the case in correct Standard Bulgarian, but that form of the language does have similar allophonic alternations. Thus, к , г and х tend to be palatalized before and , and the realization of the phoneme л varies along the same principles: it is velarized in all positions, except before the vowels and . The normal, non-velarized realization is traditionally (and incorrectly) called 'soft l', even though it is not palatalized (and thus isn’t identical to the signalled by the letters ь, я and ю). In many Western Bulgarian dialects, as well as in the neighbouring Serbian language, this 'pseudo-soft' realization does not exist and the nonpalatalized is always velarized regardless of the quality of the following vowels.

Palatalization

During the palatalization of most hard consonants (the bilabial, labiodental and alveolar ones), the middle part of the tongue is lifted towards the palatum, resulting in the formation of a second articulatory centre whereby the specific palatal "clang" of the soft consonants is achieved. The articulation of alveolars , and , however, usually does not follow that rule; the palatal clang is achieved by moving the place of articulation further back towards the palatum so that , and are actually alveopalatal (postalvelolar) consonants. Soft and ( and , respectively) are articulated not on the velum but on the palatum and are considered palatal consonants.

Table of Bulgarian consonants

Word stress

Bulgarian word stress is dynamic. Stressed syllables are louder and longer than unstressed ones. Stress is also free and mobile, it may fall on any syllable of a polysyllabic word and its position may vary in inflection and derivation, for example, мъж // ("man"), мъжът // ("the man"). Bulgarian stress is also distinctive: for example, в'ълна // ("wool") and вълн'а // ("wave") are only differentiated by stress.

Morphology and grammar

The parts of speech in Bulgarian are divided in 10 different types, which are categorized in two broad classes: mutable and immutable. The difference is that mutable parts of speech vary grammatically, whereas the immutable ones do not change, regardless of their use. The five classes of mutables are: nouns, adjectives, numerals, pronouns and verbs. Syntactically, the first four of these form the group of the noun or the nominal group. The immutables are: adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, particles and interjections. Verbs and adverbs form the group of the verb or the verbal group.

Nominal morphology

Nouns, adjectives and pronouns are inflected for grammatical gender, number, case (to a very limited extent) and definiteness in Bulgarian. Adjectives and adjectival pronouns agree with nouns in number and gender.

Nominal inflection

Gender
There are three grammatical genders in Bulgarian: masculine, feminine and neuter. The gender of the noun can largely be determined according to its ending. The vast majority of Bulgarian nouns ending in a consonant (zero ending) are masculine (for example, град “city”, син “son”, мъж “man”). Feminine nouns include almost all nouns that have the endings –а/–я (жена “woman”, дъщеря “daughter”, улица “street”), a large group of nouns with zero ending expressing quality, degree or an abstraction, including all nouns ending on –ост/–ест (мъдрост “wisdom”, низост “vileness”, прелест "loveliness", болест "sickness", любов “love”), and another, much smaller group of irregular nouns with zero ending which define tangible objects or concepts (кръв “blood”, кост “bone”, вечер “evening”). Nouns ending in –е, –о are almost exclusively neuter (дете “child”, езеро “lake”). The same regards a limited number of loan words ending in –и, –у, and –ю (цунами "tsunami", табу "taboo", меню "menu"). Plural nouns do not have gender.
Number
Two numbers are distinguished in Bulgarian — singular and plural. The most typical plural ending for feminine nouns is –и, which is appended to the word upon dropping the singular ending –а/–я. Plural forms of neutral and masculine nouns use a variety of suffixes, the most typical of which are –а, –я (both require dropping of the singular endings –е/–о) and –та for neutral nouns and –е, –и and –ове for masculine nouns. Exceptions, irregular declension and alternative plural forms are, however, very common for all three genders. Masculine nouns use a separate count form with cardinal numbers, which stems from the proto-Slavonic dual: двама/трима ученика (two/three students) versus тези ученици (these students); cf. feminine две/три/тези жени (two/three/these women) and neuter две/три/тези деца (two/three/these children). However, a recently developed language norm requires that count forms should only be used with masculine nouns that do not denote persons. Thus, двама/трима ученици is perceived as more correct than двама/трима ученика, while the distinction is retained in cases such as два/три молива (two/three pencils) versus тези моливи (these pencils).
Case
The complex proto-Slavonic case system is almost completely dissolved in modern Bulgarian. Vestiges are well preserved only in the personal pronouns and the masculine personal interrogative pronoun кой (“who”), which have nominative, accusative and dative forms. Vocative forms are still in use for masculine and feminine nouns (however, not for neuter ones), but endings in masculine nouns are determined solely according to the stem-final consonant of the noun. In all other cases, the proto-Slavonic case system has been replaced by prepositional and other syntactic constructions.
Definiteness (article)
The disappearance of the case declension might be connected with the development of the category of definiteness in Bulgarian. The posfixed definite article, which displaced Slavic case inflexions, was probably inherited from Old Bulgar and spread to other Balkan languages such as Albanian and Romanian. In modern Bulgarian, definiteness is expressed by a definite article which is postfixed to the noun (indefinite: човек, “man”; definite: човекът, “the man”) or the first nominal constituent of definite noun phrases (indefinite: добър човек, “a good man”; definite: добрият човек, “the good man”), much like in the Scandinavian languages or Romanian. There are four singular definite articles: –ът/–ят (“– /–”) for masculine nouns that are grammatical subjects, –а/–я for masculine nouns that are grammatical objects, –та for feminine nouns, and –то for neuter nouns. The two masculine definite articles may also be considered as two grammatical forms of the same article. The plural definite articles are –те for masculine and feminine nouns, and –тa for neuter nouns. When postfixed to adjectives the definite articles are –ят/–я for masculine, –та for feminine, –то for neuter, and –те for plural nouns.

Adjective and numeral inflection

Both groups agree in gender and number with the noun they are appended to. They may also take up the definite article as explained above.

Pronouns

Pronouns may vary in gender, number, definiteness and are the only parts of speech that have retained case inflexions. Three cases are exhibited by some groups of pronouns, nominative, accusative and dative, although dative is often substituted by accusative constructions. The distinguishable types of pronouns include the following: personal, relative, reflexive, interrogative, negative, indefinitive, summative and possessive.

Verbal morphology and grammar

Bulgarian adverbs coincide with the neuter singular form of the corresponding adjectives and are only syntactically distinguishable from the latter. Verb forms, however, vary in aspect, mood, tense, person, number and sometimes gender and voice.

Finite verbal forms

Finite verbal forms are simple or compound and agree with subjects in person (first, second and third) and number (singular, plural) in Bulgarian. In addition to that, past compound forms using participles vary in gender (masculine, feminine, neuter) and voice (active and passive) as well as aspect (perfective/aorist and imperfective).
Aspect
Bulgarian verbs express lexical aspect: perfective verbs signify the completion of the action of the verb and form past aorist tenses; imperfective ones are neutral with regard to it and form past imperfect tenses. Most Bulgarian verbs can be grouped in perfective-imperfective pairs (imperfective<>perfective: идвам<>дойда “come”, пристигам<>пристигна “arrive”). Perfective verbs can be usually formed from imperfective ones by suffixation or prefixation, but the resultant verb often deviates in meaning from the original. In the pair examples above, aspect is stem-specific and therefore there is no difference in meaning. In Bulgarian, there is also grammatical aspect. Three grammatical aspects are distinguishable: neutral, perfect and pluperfect. The neutral aspect comprises the three simple tenses and the future tense. The pluperfect aspect is manifest in tenses that use double or triple auxiliary "be" participles like the past pluperfect subjunctive. Perfect tenses use a single auxilliary "be".
Mood
In addition to the four moods (наклонения ) shared by most other European languages - indicative (изявително), imperative (повелително), subjunctive (подчинително) and conditional (условно) - in Bulgarian there is one more to describe past unwitnessed events - the renarrative (преизказно) mood.
Tense
There are three grammatically distinctive positions in time — present, past and future — which combine with aspect and mood to produce a number of formations. Normally, in grammar books these formations are viewed as separate tenses — i. e. "past imperfect tense" would mean that the verb is in past tense, in the imperfective aspect, and in the indicative mood (since no other mood is shown). There are more than 30 different tenses across Bulgarian's two aspects and five moods. In the indicative mood, there are three simple tenses:
- present tense is a temporally unmarked simple form made up of the verbal stem of and a complex suffix composed of the vowel /e/, /i/ or /a/ and the person/number ending (пристигам "I arrive/I am arriving"); only imperfective verbs can stand in the present indicative tense independently;
- past imperfect tense is a simple verb form used to express an action which is contemporaneous or subordinate to other past actions; it is made up of an imperfective verbal stem and the person/number ending (пристигаx "I was arriving");
- past aorist tense is a simple form used to express a temporarily independent, specific past action; it is made up of a perfective verbal stem and the person/number ending (пристигнах "I arrived"); In the indicative there are also the following compound tenses:
- future tense is a compound form made of the particle ще and present tense (ще уча "I will study"); negation is expressed by the construction няма да and present tense (няма да уча "I will not study");
- past future tense is a compound form used to express an action which was to be completed in the past but was future as regards another past action; it is made up of the past imperfect tense of the verb ща "will, want", the particle да "to" and the present tense of the verb (щях да уча "I was going to study");
- present perfect tense is a compound form used to express an action which was completed in the past but is relevant for or related to the present; it is made up of the present tense of the verb съм "be" and the past participle (съм учил "I have studied");
- past perfect tense is a compound form used to express an action which was completed in the past and is relative to another past action; it is made up of the past tense of the verb съм "be" and the past participle (бях учил "I had studied");
- future perfect tense is a compound form used to express an action which is to take place in the future before another future action; it is made up of the future tense of the verb съм "be" and the past participle (ще съм учил "I will have studied");
- past future perfect tense is a compound form used to express a past action which is future with respect to a past action which itself is prior to another past action; it is made up of the past future of ща "will, want", the particle да "to", the present tense of the verb съм "be" and the past participle of the verb (щях да съм учил "I would have studied"). The four perfect tenses above can all vary in aspect depending on the aspect of the main-verb participle; they are in fact pairs of imperfective and perfective tenses. Verbs in tenses using past participles also vary in voice and gender. There is only one simple tense in the imperative mood - the present - and there are simple forms only for the second person using the suffixes -и/-й for singular and -ете/-йте for plural; e.g., уча "to study": учи, sg., учете, pl.; играя "to play": играй, играйте. There are compound imperative forms for all persons and numbers in the present compound imperative (да играе) and the present perfect compound imperative (да е играл). The conditional mood consists of five compound tenses, most of which are not grammatically distinguishable. The present, future and past conditional use a special past form of the stem би- (“be”) and the past participle (бих учил, “I would study”). The past future conditional and the past future perfect conditional coincide in form with the respective indicative tenses. The subjunctive mood is rarely documented as a separate verb form in Bulgarian but nevertheless it is used regularly. The most common form, often mistaken for the present tense, is the present subjunctive ((пo-добре) да отидa "I had better go"). The difference between the present indicative and the present subjunctive tense is that the subjunctive can be formed by both perfective and imperfective verbs. It has completely replaced the infinitive and the supine from complex expressions (see below). It is also employed to express opinion about possible future events. The past perfect subjunctive ((пo-добре) да бях отишъл, "I had better gone") refers to possible events in the past, which did not take place, and the present pluperfect subjunctive (да съм бил отишъл), which may be used about both past and future events arousing feelings of incontinence, suspicion, etc. and is impossible to translate in English. The past pluperfect subjunctive is by far the strangest form (бил съм бил отишъл) and the reason why the subjunctive in Bulgarian is sometimes also called the dubitative. The renarrative mood has five tenses. Two of them are simple - past aorist renarrative and past imperfect renarrative - and are formed by the past participles of perfective and imperfective verbs, respectively. There are also three compound tenses - past future renarrative, past future perfect renarrative and past perfect renarrative. All these tenses' forms are gender-specific in the singular and exist only in the third person.

Non-finite verbal forms

The proto-Slavonic infinitive and supine have been replaced by phrases with да (“to”) and present subjunctive tense (искам да уча, “I want to study”). Bulgarian has the following participles:
- the present active participle (сегашно деятелно причастие) is formed from imperfective stems with the addition of the suffixes –ащ/–ещ/–ящ (укриващ, “concealing”) and is used only attributively;
- the present passive participle (сегашно страдателно причастие) is formed by the addition of the suffix -н to imperfective stems (укриван, “(being) concealed”);
- the past active aorist participle (минало свършено деятелно причастие) is formed by the addition of the suffix –л– to perfective stems (укрил, “concealed”);
- the past active imperfect participle (минало несвършено деятелно причастие) is formed by the addition of the suffixes –ел/–ал/–ял to imperfective stems (укривал, “(been) concealing”); it is used only in renarrative (renarrated) mood and is a Bulgarian innovation;
- the past passive participle (минало страдателно причастие) is formed from aorist stems with the addition of the suffixes –(е)н–/–т– (укрит, "(been) concealed"); it is used predicatively and attributively;
- the adverbial participle (деепричастие) is formed from imperfective present stems with the suffix –(е)йки (укривайки, “while concealing”), relates an action contemporaneous with and subordinate to the main verb and is originally a Western Bulgarian form.

Lexis

Most of the word-stock in Modern Bulgarian consists of derivations of reflexes of some 2,000 words inherited from proto-Slavonic through the mediation of Old and Middle Bulgarian. The influence of the old Bolgar language is otherwise relatively insignificant, and a negligible number of words of presumably Bulgar origin have survived in Modern Bulgarian (20 at best according to most estimates, though some scholars will have that number increased up to 200). Thus, the native lexical terms in Bulgarian (both from proto-Slavonic and from the Bulgar language) account for 70% to 75% of the word-stock of the language. The remaining 25% to 30% are loanwords from a number of languages, as well as derivations of such words. The languages which have contributed most to Bulgarian are Latin and Greek (mostly international terminology), and to a lesser extent French and Russian. The numerous loanwords from Turkish (and, via Turkish, from Arabic and Persian) which were adopted into Bulgarian during the long period of Ottoman rule have to a great extent been substituted with native terms or borrowings from other languages. As in much of the rest of the world, English has had the greatest influence over Bulgarian over recent decades.

Syntax

Colloquial Bulgarian employs clitic doubling, mostly for emphatic purposes. For example: :Аз го дадох подаръка на майка ми :(lit. "I gave it the present to my mother") :Аз й го дадох подаръка на майка ми :(lit. "I gave her it the present to my mother") The phenomenon is practically obligatory in the case of inversion signalling information structure: :Подаръка (й) го дадох на майка ми :(lit. "The present (to her) it I-gave to my mother") :На майка ми й (го) дадох подаръка :(lit. "To my mother to her (it) I-gave the present"). In a noncolloquial context, however, no clitic doubling is allowed. Bulgarian grammars usually do not treat this phenomenon extensively.

Common Bulgarian expressions


- Здравей (zdravéi) — Hello
- Здрасти (zdrásti) — Hi
- Добро утро (dobró útro) — Good morning
- Добър ден (dóbər dén) — Good day
- Добър вечер (dóbər vécher) — Good evening
- Лека нощ (léka nósht) — Good night
- Довиждане (dovízhdane) — Good-bye
- Чао (chao) (informal) - Bye
- Как си? (kák si) (informal) — How are you?
- Как сте? (kák sté) (formal, and also plural form) - How are you?
- Да (dá) - Yes
- Не (né) - No
- Може би (mózhé bí) - Maybe
- Какво правиш? (kakvó právish) (informal) — What are you doing?
- Какво правите? (kakvó právite) (formal, and also plural form) - What are you doing?
- Добре съм (dobré səm) — I’m fine
- Всичко най-хубаво (vsíchko nai-húbavo) — All the best
- Поздрави (pózdravi) — Regards
- Благодаря (blagodaryə́) (formal and informal) — Thank you
- Мерси (mersi) (informal) - Thank you
- Моля (mólia) — Please
- Извинете! (izvinéte) (formal) — Excuse me!
- Извинявай! (izviniávai) (informal) — Sorry!
- Колко е часът? (kólko e chasə́t) — What’s the time?
- Говорите ли ...? (govórite li...) — Do you speak ...? :...английски (anglíski) — English :...български (bə́lgarski) — Bulgarian :...китайски (kitáiski) — Chinese :...френски (frénski) — French :...немски (némski) — German :...гръцки (grə́tski) — Greek :...италиански (italiánski) — Italian :...японски (iapónski) — Japanese :...корейски (koréiski) — Korean :...латински (latínski) — Latin :...испански (ispánski) — Spanish
- Ще се видим скоро (shté sé vídim skóro) - We'll see each other soon
- Ще се видим утре (shté sé vídim útre) - We'll see each other tomorrow

See also


- Common phrases in Bulgarian
- Transliteration of Bulgarian into English
- Balkan linguistic union

External links


- [http://www.easybulgarian.com/ The Bulgarian Language Online Course — Free Samples — audio — includes Romantic Phrases]
- [http://www.sprachprofi.de.vu/english/bul.htm Free online resources for learners]
- [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=BLG Ethnologue report for Bulgarian]
- [http://sa.dir.bg/ Bulgarian-English-Bulgarian dictionary] from [http://sa.dir.bg/sa.htm SA Dictionary]
- [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/definition/Bulgarian-english/ Bulgarian–English Dictionary]: from [http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org Webster’s Online Dictionary] — the Rosetta Edition.
- [http://webtrance.skycode.com/online.asp Online English–Bulgarian machine translation]
- [http://www.bulgaria-map.com Bulgarian Business information]
- Category:South Slavic languages Category:Languages of Bulgaria Category:Languages of the Republic of Macedonia ko:불가리아어 ja:ブルガリア語 th:ภาษาบัลแกเรีย

Pirin

The Pirin Mountains (Bulgarian: Пирин) are a mountain range in southwest Bulgaria, with Vihren (2,914 m high) the highest peak, situated at . The range extends about 40 km northwest-southeast, and about 25 km wide. Most of the range is protected in a national park, the Pirin National Park. The Pirin is noted for its rich flora and fauna. Much of the area is forested, with the best conifer woods in Bulgaria, holding important populations of the Balkan endemic species Macedonian Pine, Bosnian Pine and Bulgarian Fir. Animals include the Wolf and the Brown Bear. The town of Bansko, an important tourism and winter sports centre, is situated on the northeast slopes of the Pirin mountains. The town of Razlog lies in a valley between the Pirin to the south, and the Rila mountains to the north. Peaks in the Pirin Mountains:
- Vihren
- Kamenitza Category:Mountains of Bulgaria Category:Mountain ranges of Europe

Bulgaria

The Republic of Bulgaria (Bulgarian: Република България) is a republic in the southeast of Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the east, Greece and Turkey to the south, Serbia and Montenegro and the Republic of Macedonia to the west, and Romania to the north along the river Danube. It is one of Europe's oldest countries.

History

Main article: History of Bulgaria In the late 7th century a branch of the Bulgars led by Khan Asparuh migrated into the northern Balkans, where they merged with the local Slavic populaton and possibly remnants of the Thracian population to form the first Bulgarian state in 681 AD. This was the first Slavic nation-state in history. The Bulgarian empire was a significant European power in the 9th and the 10th century, while fighting with the Byzantine Empire for the control of the Balkans. The Bulgarian state was crushed by an assault by the Rus in 969 and completely subdued by a determined Byzantine assault under Basil II in 1018. It was re-established in 1185 and continued to be an important power in the European south-east for two more centuries by fighting to assert its place in the region with the Byzantine Empire, crushing the Crusader states in Greece, as well as Hungary. By the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Empire. A liberation attempt by the Polish-Hungarian forces under the rule of Wladislaus III of Poland was clashed in 1444 in the battle of Varna. An autonomous Bulgarian principality comprising Moesia and the region of Sofia was established in 1878 following the Russo-Turkish War, 1877-78. After uniting with Eastern Rumelia in 1885, the principality was proclaimed a fully independent kingdom in 1908. During 1912 and 1913 it became involved in the Balkan Wars, a series of conflicts with its neighbours, during which Bulgarian territory varied in size. During World War I and later World War II, Bulgaria found itself fighting on the losing side. Despite that fact, Bulgaria saved the lives of its own 50,000 Jews from the Nazi death camps by refusing to comply with a 31 August 1943 resolution, which demanded their deportation to Auschwitz. Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence after World War II and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1989, when Bulgaria again held multiparty elections. Bulgaria joined NATO on 29 March, 2004 and is set to join the European Union on 1 January, 2007 after signing the Treaty of Accession on 25 April 2005.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Bulgaria

Executive

Politics of Bulgaria The president of Bulgaria (Georgi Purvanov since 22 January 2002) is directly elected for a 5-year term with the right to one re-election. The president serves as the head of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. The president is the head of the Consultative Council for National Security and while unable to initiate legislation, the President can return a bill for further debate, though parliament can overturn the president's veto with a simple majority vote. The Council of Ministers is chaired by the Prime Minister (Sergey Stanishev since 17 August 2005), and is the principal body of the Executive Branch and presently consists of 20 ministers. The Prime Minister is nominated by the largest parliamentary group and is given a mandate by the President to form a cabinet. The current governmental coalition is made of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), National Movement Simeon II (NMS), and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (representing mainly the Turkish minority).

Legislative

The Bulgarian unicameral parliament, the National Assembly or Narodno Sabranie, consists of 240 deputies who are elected for 4-year-term stretches by popular vote. The votes are for party or coalition lists of candidates for each of the twenty-eight administrative divisions. A party or coalition must garner a minimum of 4% of the vote in order to enter parliament. Parliament is responsible for enactment of laws, approval of the budget, scheduling of presidential elections, selection and dismissal of the prime minister and other ministers, declaration of war, deployment of troops outside of Bulgaria, and ratification of international treaties and agreements. The last elections took place on June 2005. The next elections are planned for summer 2009.

Judiciary

The Bulgarian judicial system consists of regional, district and appeal courts, as well as a Supreme Court of Cassation. In addition, there is a Supreme Administrative Court and a system of military courts. The Presidents of the Supreme Court of Cassation, Supreme Administrative Court and the Prosecutor General are elected by a qualified majority of two thirds from all the members of the Supreme Judicial Council and are appointed by the President of the Republic. The Supreme Juicial Council is in charge of the self-administration and organisation of the Judiciary. The Constitutional Court is in charge of reviewing the constitutionality of laws and statutes brought before it, as well as the compliance of these laws with international treaties that the Government has signed. Parliament elects the 12 members of the Constitutional Court by a two-thirds majority, the members serve a nine-year term.

Regional and local government

The territory of the Republic of Bulgaria is divided into regions and municipalities. In all Bulgaria has 28 regions, each headed by a regional governor appointed by the government. In addition, there are 263 municipalties.

Regions

Main article: Regions of Bulgaria Regions of Bulgaria Since 1999 Bulgaria consists of 28 regions (oblasti, singular - oblast), after having been subdivided into 9 provinces since 1987. All are named after the regional capital, with the national capital itself forming a separate region:

Geography

Main article: Geography of Bulgaria Geography of Bulgaria Bulgaria is comprised of portions of the classical regions of Thrace, Moesia, and Macedonia. The southwest of the country is mountainous, containing the highest point of the Balkan Peninsula, peak Musala at 2,925 m, and the range of the Balkan mountains runs west-east through the middle of the country, north of the famous Rose Valley. Hilly country and plains are found in the southeast, along the Black Sea coast in the east, and along Bulgaria's main river, the Danube in the north. Other major rivers include the Struma and the Maritsa river in the south. The Bulgarian climate is temperate, with cold, damp winters and hot, dry summers. The Balkan peninsula derives its name from the Balkan or Stara Planina mountain range which runs through the center of Bulgaria into eastern Serbia. See also:
- List of cities in Bulgaria
- Rivers of Bulgaria
- Reservoirs and dams in Bulgaria

Economy

Main article: Economy of Bulgaria Bulgaria's economy contracted dramatically after 1989 with the loss of the market of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) member states, to which the Bulgarian economy had been closely tied. The standard of living fell by about 40%, but it regained pre-1990 levels in June 2004. In addition, UN sanctions against Yugoslavia and Iraq took a heavy toll on the Bulgarian economy. The first signs of recovery emerged in 1994 when the GDP grew and inflation fell. During 1996, however, the economy collapsed due to lack of international economic support and an unstable banking system. Since 1997 the country has been on the path to recovery, with GDP growing at a 4-5% rate, increasing FDI, macroeconomic stability and EU membership set for 2007. The former government, elected in 2001, pledged to maintain the fundamental economic policy objectives adopted by its predecessor in 1997, i.e., retaining the Currency Board, practicing sound financial policies, accelerating privatisation, and pursuing structural reforms. Economic forecasts for 2005 and 2006 predict continued growth in the Bulgarian economy. The annual year-on-year GDP growth for 2005 and 2006 is expected to total 5,3% and 6,0%, respectively. Industrial output for 2005 is forecast to rise by 11,9% year-on-year, and for 2006 - by 15,2% year-on-year. Unemployment for 2005 is projected at 11,5% and for 2006 - at under 10%. On April 25, 2005 Bulgaria signed the Treaty of Accession with the European Union and is set to join the bloc in 2007.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Bulgaria According to the 2001 census, Bulgaria's population is mainly ethnic Bulgarian (83.9%), with two sizable minorities in the form of Turks (9.4%) and Roma (4.7%). Of the remaining 2.0%, 0.9% are distributed among some forty smaller minorities, the most numerous of which are the Armenians, Russians, Vlachs, Crimean Tatars, Karakachans, Macedonian Slavs and Jews; the people who have not declared their ethnicity are 1.1% of the total population. 84.8% of the Bulgarian population speak Bulgarian, a member of the Slavic languages, as mother-language. Bulgarian is the only official language, but other languages are spoken, corresponding closely to ethnic breakdown. Most Bulgarians (82.6%) are at least nominally a member of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the national Eastern Orthodox church. Other religious denominations include Islam (12.2%), Roman Catholicism (0.6%), various Protestant denominations (0.5%), with other denominations, atheists and undeclared numbering ca. 4.1%.

Culture

Main article: Culture of Bulgaria
- List of famous Bulgarians
- Bulgarian customs
- Music of Bulgaria
- Bulgarian dances
- Bulgarian cuisine

Religion

Most citizens of Bulgaria are at least nominally members of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church founded in 870 AD (autocephalous since 927). The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is the independent national church of Bulgaria like the other national branches of Eastern Orthodoxy and is considered an inseparable element of Bulgarian national consciousness. The church has been abolished, or rather reduced to a subordinate position within the Greek Orthodox Church, twice during the periods of Byzantine (1018-1185) and Ottoman (1396-1878) domination but has been revived every time as a symbol of Bulgarian statehood. In 2001, the Bulgarian Orthodox Church had a total of 6,552,000 members in Bulgaria (82.6% of the population). However many younger people raised during the 45 years of communist rule are not religious even though they formally may be members of the church. communist Despite the dominant position of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church in Bulgarian cultural life, a number of Bulgarian citizens belong to other religious denominations, most notably Islam, Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Islam came to Bulgaria at the end of the 14th century after the conquest of the country by the Ottomans. It gradually gained ascendancy throughout the 15th and 16th centuries by introduction of Turkish colonists and (usually forceful) conversion of Bulgarians and at the time of the Liberation (1878) not less than 40% of the population of the country was Muslim. The percentage has been greatly reduced since then, mostly due to emigration. In 2001, there were 967,000 Muslims in Bulgaria (12.2% of the population). In the 16th and the 17th century missionaries from Rome converted the Bulgarian Paulicians in the districts of Plovdiv and Svishtov to Roman Catholicism. Their descendants form nowadays the bulk of Bulgarian Catholics whose number stood at 44,000 in 2001. Protestantism was introduced in Bulgaria by missionaries from the United States in 1857. Missionary work continued throughout the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. In 2001, there were some 42,000 Protestants in Bulgaria.
- Bulgarian Orthodox Church
- Roman Catholicism in Bulgaria
- Protestantism in Bulgaria
- Islam in Bulgaria
- Judaism

National parks

Bulgaria has over 10 major national parks and many reservation areas.
- [http://www.centralbalkannationalpark.org/en/ Central Balkan National Park]
- Golden Sands National Park
- [http://www.pirin-np.com/English/pirin-np_E.htm Pirin National Park]
- [http://www.rhodope.net/ Rhodope National Park]
- [http://www.rilanationalpark.org/en/ Rila National Park]
- Roussenski Lom National Park
- Sinite Kamani National Park
- Shoumen Plateau National Park
- [http://www.staraplanina.org/index.php Stara Planina (Balkan Mountains)]
- [http://www.discoverstrandja.com/index.htm Strandja National Park]
- [http://www.picturesofbulgaria.com/article/vitosha_national_park.html Vitosha National Park]
- Vratchansky Balkan National Park

Additional Resources


- [http://www.bulgariannationalparks.org/en/ Bulgarian National Parks]
- [http://www.greenbalkans.org/index_en.html Green Balkans]

Miscellaneous topics


- The Ten Lies of Macedonism]
- [[Communications in Bulgaria]]
- [[Foreign relations of Bulgaria
- Military of Bulgaria
- Public holidays in Bulgaria
- Reporters without borders world-wide press freedom index 2004: ranked 36 out of 167 countries
- Tourism in Bulgaria
- Transportation in Bulgaria
- Bulgarian law Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.

Further reading


- A Concise History of Bulgaria RJ Crampton
- Beyond Hitler's Grasp: The Heroic Rescue of Bulgaria's Jews Michael Bar-Zohar
- Blue Guide: Bulgaria James Pettifer
- Crown of Thorns : The Reign of King Boris III of Bulgaria, 1918-1943 Stephane Groueff
- The Fragility of Goodness: Why Bulgaria's Jews Survived the Holocaust Tzvetan Todorov
- Lonely Planet World Guide: Bulgaria Paul Greenway
- Music of Bulgaria Timothy Rice
- The Rough Guide To Bulgaria Jonathan Bousfield
- Voices from the Gulag: Life and Death in Communist Bulgaria Tzvetan Todorov
- The Iron Fist-inside the Bulgarian secret archives Alexenia Dimitrova

External links

Official


- [http://www.government.bg/fce/index.shtml?s=001&p=0023 Council of Ministers] - Official Governmental Site
- [http://www.bulgaria.bg/EN/default.htm Diplomatic missions of Republic of Bulgaria abroad] - Diplomatic missions of Republic of Bulgaria abroad
- [http://www.eypbulgaria.org/ European Youth Parliament - Bulgaria]
- [http://www.president.bg/en/index.php President.bg] - Official Presidential Site
- [http://www.parliament.bg/?lng=en Narodno Sabranie] - Official Parliamentary Site
- [http://www.minfin.government.bg/?language=english Ministry of Finance of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.mvr.bg/en/ Ministry of Interior of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.mtc.government.bg/indexe.htm Ministry of Transport and Communications of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.culture.government.bg/index.html?l=en Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.mi.government.bg/eng/ Ministry of Economy of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.doe.bg/cgi-bin/i.pl?l=2 Ministry of Energy and Energy Resources of Bulgaria]
- [http://www2.moew.government.bg/index_e.html Ministry of Environment and Water of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.mfa.government.bg/index.php?newlang=eng Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.mod.bg/en/index.html Ministry of Defense of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.bnr.bg/RadioBulgaria/Emission_English/ National Radio] - Official Radio Site

English language Bulgarian media


- [http://www.questbulgaria.com Quest Bulgaria Magazine (monthly)]
- [http://www.bnr.bg/en/ Radio Bulgaria – the world service of the Bulgarian National Radio]
- [http://news.dnevnik.bg Dnevnik]
- [http://www.focus-fen.net Focus English News]
- [http://novinite.com/ Sofia News Agency]
- [http://www.standartnews.com Standart (daily)]
- [http://www.sofiaecho.com The Sofia Echo (weekly)]

Other


- [http://www.expatfocus.com/expatriate-bulgaria Expat Focus guide to Bulgaria]
- [http://www.bulgarian-villa.com Bulgarian Building Projects]
- [http://get.info.bg Bulgaria Info Site - regions, maps, FAQ]
- [http://www.kirildouhalov.net Art, history and music of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.picturesofbulgaria.com Pictures of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.pbase.com/ngruev/bulgaria/ More Pictures of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.greatestcities.com/Europe/Bulgaria.html Map, Info and Pictures of Bulgaria and Cities]
- [http://www.balcanica.org/history/maps.html Historical maps of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.bulgarianmonastery.com Bulgarian Monasteries]
- [http://www.blackseaestates.net/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabindex=5&tabid=12, Picture Gallery of Bulgaria]
- [http://www.bulgarianfinearts.com Paintings by Bulgarian authors]
- [http://www.worldwide-tax.com/bulgaria/indexbulgaria.asp Bulgaria economy and business indicators] Bulgaria key Data on Taxes and Income Tax. ---- Volga Bulgaria is also a historic state that existed in 10-14th centuries around the confluence of Volga and Kama. Category:Republics Category:Black Sea countries roa-rup:Vurgarii zh-min-nan:Bulgariya ko:불가리아 ms:Bulgaria ja:ブルガリア simple:Bulgaria th:ประเทศบัลแกเรีย fiu-vro:Bulgaaria

Beer

Beer, generically, is an alcoholic beverage produced through the fermentation of sugars suspended in an aqueous medium, and which is not distilled after fermentation. The unfermented sugar solution, called wort, is obtained from steeping, or "mashing," malted grains, usually barley. Alcoholic beverages made from the fermentation of sugars derived from non-grain sources — fruit juices or honey, for example — are generally not called "beer," despite being produced by the same yeast-based biochemical reaction. The process of beer production is called brewing. Because the ingredients used to make beer differ from place to place, beer characteristics such as taste and color vary widely, and consequently its style or classification.

History

style, Belgium.]] Beer is one of the oldest beverages humans have produced, dating back to at least the 5th millennium BC and recorded in the written history of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. As almost any substance containing certain sugars can naturally undergo fermentation, it is probable that beer-like beverages were independently invented among various cultures throughout the world. Chemical tests of ancient pottery jars reveal that beer was (like wine) produced about 7,000 years ago in what is today Iran, and was one of the first-known biological engineering tasks where the biological process of fermentation is used in a process. In Mesopotamia, the oldest evidence of beer is believed to be a 6,000-year-old Sumerian tablet depicting people drinking a beverage through reed straws from a communal vessel (bowl). Beer is also mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh, and a 3900-year-old Sumerian poem honoring the patron goddess of brewing, Ninkasi, contains the oldest surviving beer recipe, describing the production of beer from barley via bread. Beer became vital to all the grain-growing civilizations of classical Western antiquity, especially Egypt and Mesopotamia. Beer was important to early Romans, but during Republican times wine displaced beer as the preferred alcoholic beverage. Beer became a beverage considered fit only for barbarians; Tacitus wrote disparagingly of the beer brewed by the Germanic peoples of his day. Thracians were also known to consume beer made from rye, even since the 5th century BC, as Hellanicos of Lesbos says in operas. Their name for beer was brutos, or brytos. The addition of hops to beer for bittering, preservation, and aroma is a relatively recent innovation: in the Middle Ages many other mixtures of herbs were often employed in beer prior to hops. These mixtures are often referred to as gruit. Hops were cultivated in France as early as the 800s; the oldest surviving written record of the use of hops in beer is in 1067 by well-known writer Abbess Hildegard of Bingen: "If one intends to make beer from oats, it is prepared with hops." In Europe, beer largely remained a homemaker's activity, made in the home in medieval times. By the 14th and 15th centuries, beermaking was gradually changing from a family-oriented activity to an artisan one, with pubs and monasteries brewing their own beer for mass consumption. In 15th century England, an unhopped beer would have been known as an ale, while the use of hops would make it a beer. Hopped beer was imported to England from the Netherlands as early as 1400 in Winchester, and hops were being planted on the island by 1428. The popularity of hops was at first mixed — the Brewers Company of London went so far as to state "no hops, herbs, or other like thing be put into any ale or liquore wherof ale shall be made — but only liquor (water), malt, and yeast." However, by the 16th century, "ale" had come to refer to any strong beer, and all ales and beers were hopped. 16th century In 1516, William IV, Duke of Bavaria, adopted the Reinheitsgebot (purity law), perhaps the oldest food regulation still in use today. The Gebot ordered that the ingredients of beer be restricted to water, barley, and hops, with yeast added after Louis Pasteur's discovery in 1857. The Bavarian law was applied throughout Germany as part of the 1871 German unification as the German Empire under Otto von Bismarck, and has since been updated to reflect modern trends in beer brewing. To this day, the Gebot is considered a mark of purity in beers, although this is controversial. Most beers until relatively recent times were what are now called ales. Lagers were discovered by accident in the 16th century after beer was stored in cool caverns for long periods; they have since largely outpaced ales in terms of volume. With the invention of the steam engine in 1765, industrialization of beer became a reality. Further innovations in the brewing process came about with the introduction of the thermometer and hydrometer in the 19th century, which allowed brewmasters to increase efficiency and attenuation. Prior to the late 18th century, malt was primarily dried over fires made from wood, charcoal, or straw, and after 1600, from coke. In general, none of these early malts would have been well shielded from the smoke involved in the kilning process, and consequently, early beers would have had a smoky component to their flavors; evidence indicates that maltsters and brewers constantly tried to minimize the smokiness of the finished beer. The invention of the drum roaster in 1817 by Daniel Wheeler allowed for the creation of very dark, roasted malts, contributing to the flavour of porters and stouts. The discovery of yeast's role in fermentation in 1857 by Louis Pasteur gave brewmasters methods to prevent the souring of beer by undesirable microorganisms. In 1953, New Zealander Morton W Coutts developed the technique of continuous fermentation. Morton patented his process which revolutionised the industry through reducing a typical four-month long brewing process to less than 24 hours. His process is still used by many of the world's major breweries today, including Guinness. Today, the brewing industry is a huge global business, consisting mostly of conglomerates formed out of a multitude of smaller producers. While beer is generally an alcoholic beverage, some varieties exist, originating in the Western world, which undergo a process to remove most of the alcohol, producing what is called non-alcoholic beer.

Etymology

Of the two terms, beer and ale, the latter is the older in English. It is believed to come directly from the proto-Indo European root
- alu-, through Germanic
- aluth- ([http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE14.html]). The same word is the stem for Finnish olut, Estonian õlu, Danish øl and Latvian/Lithuanian alus. Beer, on the other hand, is considered to come from the Latin verb bibere (to drink, [http://www.bartleby.com/61/69/B0156900.html]). Old English sources distinguish between "ale" and "beer," but do not define what was meant by "beer" during that period, although there is some speculation that it refers to what would now be called cider, the alcoholic form. The Old English form of "beer" disappeared shortly after the Norman Conquest, and the word re-entered English centuries later, in exclusive reference to hopped malt beverages. The beverage is termed "cerveza", or a derivative, in the various dialects of Spanish and Portuguese, from Latin cerevisia. Most other Western European (and even some Eastern European) languages use a form similar to the English "beer." The Common Slavic
- pivo, literally "beverage", is the word for beer in most Slavic languages, with minor phonetic variations.

Mythology

The Finnish epic Kalevala, collected in written form in the 19th century but based on oral traditions many centuries old, devotes more lines to the origin of beer and brewing than it does to the origin of mankind. The British Drinking song "Beer, Beer Beer" ([http://www.mickeymulligan.com/The%20Music/songbook.htm#Beer,%20Beer,%20Beer]) attributes the invention of beer to the presumably fictional Charlie Mopps: : A long time ago, way back in history
: When all there was to drink was nothin' but cups of tea,
: Along came a man by the name of Charlie Mopps
: And he invented the wonderful drink, and he made it out of hops.
: ... The mythical Flemish king Gambrinus (from Jan Primus (John I)), is sometimes credited with the invention of beer. According to Czech legend, deity Radegast, god of mutuality, invented beer.

Ingredients

:See also Brewing The main ingredients of beer are water, malted barley, hops and yeast. Other ingredients, such as flavouring or sources of sugar, are called adjuncts and are commonly used; common adjuncts are corn and rice. These starches convert in the mashing process to easily fermentable sugars that serve to increase the alcohol content of beer while adding little body or flavor. Major American breweries use relatively high percentages of adjuncts in order to produce very light-bodied beer at 4-5% alcohol by volume.

Water

Because beer is composed mainly of water, the source of the water and its characteristics have an important effect on the character of the beer. Many beer styles were influenced or even determined by the characteristics of the water in the region. Although the effect of, and interactions between, various dissolved minerals in brewing water is complex, as a general rule, hard water is more suited to dark styles such as stouts or porters, while very soft water is more suited for brewing light-colored beers, such as pilsners.

Malt

Among malts, barley malt is the most widely used owing to its high amylase content, a digestive enzyme which facilitates the breakdown of the starch into sugars. However, depending on what can be cultivated locally, other malted and unmalted grains are also commonly used, including wheat, rice, oats, and rye, and less frequently, maize and sorghum. Malt is formed from grain by soaking it in water, allowing it to start to germinate, and then drying the germinated grain in a kiln. Malting the grain produces the enzymes that will eventually convert the starches in the grain into fermentable sugars. Different roasting times and temperatures are used to produce different colors of malt from the same grain. Darker malts will produce darker beers. In most cases, two or more types of malt are combined when making modern beers.

Hops

Hops have been used as a bittering agent in beer since the seventeenth century. Hops contain several characteristics very favorable to beer: (a) hops contribute a bitterness that balances the sweetness of the malt, (b) hops also contribute aromas which range from flowery to citrus to herbal, (c) hops have an antibiotic effect that favours the activity of brewer's yeast over less desirable microorganisms and (d) the use of hops aids in "head retention", the length of time that foamy head created by the beer's carbonation agent will last. The bitterness of commercially-brewed beers is measured on the International Bitterness Units scale. While hops plants are grown by farmers all around the world in many different varieties, there is no major commercial use for hops other than in beer.

Yeast

Yeast is a microorganism that is responsible for fermentation. A specific strain of yeast is chosen depending on which type of beer is being produced, the two main strains being ale yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and lager yeast (Saccharomyces uvarum), with many other variations available depending on the style of beer being brewed. Yeast will metabolise the sugars extracted from the grains, and produce alcohol and carbon dioxide as a result. Before yeast's functions were understood, all fermentations were conducted using wild yeast; although a few styles such as lambics still rely on this ancient method, most modern fermentations are conducted using pure yeast cultures. On average, beer's alcohol content is between 4% and 6% alcohol by volume, although it can be as low as 2% and as high as 14% under ordinary circumstances and several brewers claim to make beers that are upwards of 20%.

Clarifying agent

Some brewers add one or more clarifying agents to beer that are not required to be published as ingredients. Common examples of these include Isinglass finings, obtained from swimbladders of fish; kappa carrageenan, derived from seaweed; Irish moss, a type of red alga; and gelatin. Since these ingredients may be derived from animals, those concerned with the use or consumption of animal products should obtain specific details of the filtration process from the brewer.

The brewing process

:For a full explanation see Brewing Though the process of brewing beer is complex and varies considerably, the basic stages that are consistent are outlined below. There may be additional filtration steps between stages. # Mashing: The first phase of brewing, in which the malted grains are ground and soaked in warm water in order to create a malt extract. The mash is held at constant temperature long enough for enzymes to convert starches into fermentable sugars. # Sparging: Water is filtered through the mash to dissolve the sugars. The darker, sugar-heavy liquid is called the wort. # Boiling: The wort is boiled along with any remaining ingredients (excluding yeast), to remove excess water and kill any bacteria. The hops (whole or pelleted) are added, or a hop extract is used. # Fermentation: The yeast is added (or "pitched") and the beer is left to ferment. After primary fermentation, the beer may be allowed a second fermentation, which allows further settling of yeast and other particulate matter "trub" which may have been introduced earlier in the process. Some brewers may skip the secondary fermentation and simply filter off the yeast. # Packaging: At this point, the beer contains alcohol, but not much carbon dioxide. The brewer has a few options to increase carbon dioxide levels. The most common approach by large-scale brewers is force carbonation, via the direct addition of CO2 gas to the keg or bottle. Smaller-scale or more classicly-minded brewers will add extra ("priming") sugar or a small amount of newly fermenting wort ("kräusen") to the final vessel, resulting in a short refermentation known as "cask-" or "bottle conditioning".

Packaging and presentation

keg] After brewing, the beer is usually a finished product. At this point the beer is kegged, casked, bottled, or canned. Unpasteurized beers containing live yeasts may be stored much like wine for further conditioning in aging barrels to allow further fermentation and development of secondary flavors. A long conditioning period is common for Belgian ales and cask-conditioned real ales. It is not uncommon for strong beers to be aged a year or more. The conditions of serving have an enormous impact on a drinker's experience. The most important factor is temperature: colder temperatures inhibit the chemical senses of the tongue and throat, which prevent the drinker from fully experiencing the beer. Conversely, beer served too warm may have the opposite problem: strong beers in particular may taste overly alcoholic and harsh, while lighter beers may seem flat and unappealing. Every style has an ideal serving temperature. Besides temperature, choosing an appropriate container is also important. While casual drinkers of beer often drink straight from the bottle or can, serious beer drinkers always pour their beer into a glass before imbibing. Drinking out of a bottle severely inhibits aromas picked up by the nose, which are as important as the flavours picked up by the mouth. So whether on tap or from a bottle, the beer is first poured into a glass, mug, or stein. As with wine, there are specialized styles of glassware for each style of beer, and some brands of beer even produce glassware intended for their own beers. While any glass is preferable to a bottle, aficionados claim that the shape of the glass influences the perception of the aroma and the way in which the beer settles, similar to claims by drinkers of brandy or cognac. It is important to note that beer glasses should remain just that, beer only glasses. Glass is a porous material, trapping fats and oils within itself. When these oils come in contact with beer there is a significant reduction in the amount of head (foam) that is found on the beer, and the bubbles will tend to stick to the side of the glass rather than rising to the surface as normal. This is the same reaction as would happen if you found yourself with too much foam and used the oil from your brow to dissolve it. cognac)]] Lastly, the pouring process is important to a beer's presentation. The rate of flow from the tap or other serving vessel, tilt of the glass, and position of the pour (in the center or down the side) into the glass all influence the end result, such as the size and longevity of the head, lacing (the pattern left by the head as it moves down the glass as the beer is drunk), and turbulence of the beer and its release of carbonation. Heavily carbonated beers such as German pilsners or weissbiers may need settling time before serving. Some stouts and British ales, most famously Guinness, are served from a "nitrogen tap". This tap uses a nitrogen/carbon dioxide mixture, rather than standard carbon dioxide, in order to obtain a creamier mouthfeel. These beers will be leisurely poured in two stages, with a pause to allow settling. In an attempt to simulate this process at home, Guinness introduced the widget can in 1991; recently, Guinness has expanded the concept with the "draft in a bottle" system. Real ales have their own packaging requirements: These beers specifically are unfiltered and unpasteurized, and are typically served with a beer engine. A beer engine is simply a tall handpump that is used to transfer beer from keg to tap. Because shelf life is shorter, publicans may be required to perform additional duties regarding managing inventory and beer quality. For most bottle-conditioned beer styles, it is recommended that you pour slowly at a low angle, without glugging, leaving behind the undesirable yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle. There are certain styles (notably hefeweizen) where some people do prefer to add the yeast back in, to add mouthfeel.

Varieties of beer

: Main article: Beer style There are many different types of beer, each of which is said to belong to a particular style. A beer's style is a label that describes the overall flavour and often the origin of a beer, according to a system that has evolved by trial and error over many centuries. A major component of determining the type of beer is the yeast used in the fermentation process. Most beer styles fall into one of two large families: ale, using top-fermenting yeast, or lager, using bottom-fermenting yeast. Beers that blend the characteristics of ales and lagers are referred to as hybrids. Alcoholic beverages made from the fermentation of sugars derived from non-grain sources are generally not called "beer," despite being produced by the same yeast-based biochemical reaction. Fermented honey is called mead, fermented apple juice is called cider, fermented pear juice is called perry, and fermented grape juice is called wine

Ale

: Main article: Ale An ale is any beer that is brewed using only top-fermenting yeasts, and is typically fermented at higher temperatures than lager beer (15–23°C, 60–75°F). Ale yeasts at these temperatures produce significant amounts of esters and other secondary flavor and aroma products, and the result is a flavourful beer with a slightly "flowery" or "fruity" aroma resembling but not limited to apple, pear, pineapple, grass, hay, banana, plum or prune. Stylistic differences among ales are more varied than those found among lagers, and many ale styles are difficult to categorize.

Lager

: Main article: Lager Lagers are the most commonly-consumed category of beer in the world. They are of Central European origin, taking their name from the German lagern ("to store"). Lager yeast is a bottom-fermenting yeast, and typically undergoes primary fermentation at 7-12°C (45-55°F) (the "fermentation phase"), and then is given a long secondary fermentation at 0-4°C (30-40°F) (the "lagering phase"). During the secondary stage, the lager clears and mellows. The cooler conditions also inhibit the natural production of esters and other byproducts, resulting in a "crisper" tasting beer. Modern methods of producing lager were pioneered by Gabriel Sedlmayr the Younger, who perfected dark brown lagers at the Spaten Brewery in Bavaria, and Anton Dreher, who began brewing a lager, probably of amber-red color, in Vienna in 1840–1841. With modern improved fermentation control, most lager breweries use only short periods of cold storage, typically 1–3 weeks. Most of today's lager is based on the Pilsner style, pioneered in 1842 in the town of Plzeň, in the Czech Republic. The modern Pilsner lager is light in colour and high in carbonation, with a strong hop flavour and an alcohol content of 3–6% by volume. The Pilsner Urquell or Heineken brands of beer are typical examples of pilsner beer.

Spontaneous fermentation

:Main article: Lambic These are beers which use wild yeasts, rather than cultivated ones. All beer before the cultivation of yeast in the 19th century were closer to this style, characterised by their sour flavours.

Hybrid beers

Hybrid or mixed style beers use modern techniques and materials instead of, or in addition to, traditional aspects of brewing. Although there is some variation among sources, mixed beers generally fall into the following categories:
- Fruit beers and vegetable beers are mixed with some kind of fermentable fruit or vegetable adjunct during the fermentation process, providing obvious yet harmonious qualities.
- Herb and spiced beers add herbs or spices derived from roots, seeds, fruits, vegetables or flowers instead of, or in addition to hops.
- Wood-aged beers are any traditional or experimental beer that has been aged in a wooden barrel or have been in contact with wood (in the form of chips, cubes or "beans") for a period of time (Oak is the most common). Oftentimes, the barrel or wood will be treated first with some variety of spirit or other alcoholic beverage--usage of bourbon, scotch and sherry are common.
- Smoked beers are any beer whose malt has been smoked. A smoky aroma and flavour is usually present. The most traditional examples of this style are the Rauchbiers of Bamberg, Germany. However, many brewers outside of Germany--most notably American craft brewers--have been adding smoked malt to porters, Scotch ale and a variety of other styles.
- Specialty beers are a catch-all category used to describe any beers brewed using unusual fermentable sugars, grains and starches.

Beer around the world

Main article Beer and nationality

Africa


- African beer
- South African beer

Americas


- American beer
- Brazilian beer
- Canadian beer
- Costa Rican beer
- Mexican beer
- Nicaraguan beer
- Venezuelan beer

Asia


- Chinese beer
- Israeli beer
- Indian beer
- Japanese beer
- Korean beer
- Pakistani beer
- Syrian beer
- Singaporean Beer
- Taiwanese beer
- Thai beer
- Tibetan beer

Australasia


- Australian beer
- New Zealand beer
- Samoan beer

Europe


- Albanian beer
- Austrian beer
- Belgian beer
- Bulgarian beer
- Czech beer
- Danish beer
- Dutch beer
- French beer
- German beer
- Hungarian beer
- Irish beer
- Italian beer
- Lithuanian beer
- Macedonian beer
- Norwegian beer
- Polish beer
- Romanian beer
- Serbian beer
- Spanish beer
- Swiss beer
- Turkish beer
- Beer in the United Kingdom
  - English beer
  - Scottish beer
  - Welsh beer

Related beverages


- Africa: Hundreds of local drinks made from millet, sorghum, and other available starch crops.
- Andes, South America: Chicha, an Andean beverage made from germinated maize.
- Bhutan, Nepal, Tibet and Sikkim: Chhaang, a popular semi-fermented rice/millet drink in the eastern Himalaya.
- China: Jiǔ, primarily grain-based fermented drinks.
- Finland: Sahti, a traditional Finnish beer.
- Japan: Sake, a primarily rice-based fermented drink, similar in many respects to Chinese jiǔ.
- Korea: Soju
- Mexico: Pulque, an indigenous beer made from the fermented sap of the agave plant.
- Russia/Ukraine: Kvass, a fermented non-alcoholic or mildly alcoholic beverage.
- Various regions: Rye beer, mead (made from water and honey), cider (made from apple juice)

See also


- Beer riots in Bavaria
- Brewery
- Brewing
- Microbrew
- Craft beer
- Homebrewing
- Lager Beer Riot
- List of breweries and :Category:Brewers and breweries
- List of commercial brands of beer and :Category:Brands of beer.
- Vores Øl - open source beer
- Iran Aragh sagi
- History of alcohol

External links


- [http://www.beeradvocate.com BeerAdvocate]
- [http://www.ratebeer.com RateBeer.com]

References


- The Complete Guide to World Beer, Roger Protz. ISBN 1844428656.
- [http://www.roadshow.org/html/resources/scientists/coutts/article.html Morton Coutts's Continuous Fermentation System], from [http://www.roadshow.org/ The National Science-Technology Roadshow Trust website] Category:Alcoholic beverages
- Category:World cuisine Category:Herbal & fungal drugs/medicines als:Bier ko:맥주 ja:ビール simple:Beer th:เบียร์

Plovdiv

Plovdiv (Bulgarian: Пловдив) is the second-largest city in Bulgaria, with population of 345 000 citizens.

History

Plovdiv is one of the oldest cities of Europe, being older than Rome, Athens and Constantinople. The first traces of civilization at the place date from the Mycenaean period. Known at the time as a Thracian fortified settlement named Eumolpia, in 342 BCE it was conquered by Philip II of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great, who renamed it Philippopolis. It was later independent under the Greeks, until it was incorporated into the Roman Empire, under which it was called Thrimontium (City of Three Hills) and served as capital of the province of Thrace. Thrimontium was an important crossroad for the Roman Empire. "Via Militaris", the biggest military path in the Balkan Peninsula, passed through. It was one of the most glorious moments in the history of the city. It spread beyond the three hills, and numerous public buildings, shrines,public bathrooms,theatres. Many ruins from Roman times can still be seen in the city. Although Slavs settled in the area around the middle of the 6th century, it became part of the Bulgarian state for the first time in 815. In the following centuries, control of the settlement changed from Bulgarian to Byzantine numerous times, before it was conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1364. The name Plovdiv first appears in the 15th century and is derived from one of the city's ancient names, Pulpudeva, known to the Slavs first as Puldin (Пълдин). Under Ottoman rule, Plovdiv was a center of the Bulgarian national movement in Eastern Rumelia. While the city was liberated from the Ottomans during the Battle of Plovdiv in 1878, it was not originally part of the newly established Principality of Bulgaria. Instead it was the capital of the semi-independent Region of Eastern Rumelia, until that area finally joined Bulgaria in 1885 after the Unification of Bulgaria. Under communist rule since the end of World War II, Plovdiv was the center of that country's democracy movement, which finally overthrew the pro-Soviet regime in 1989. Plovdiv hosted specialized exhibitions of the World's Fair three times (1981, 1985, and 1991).

Economy

Plovdiv is the center of the important Thracian agricultural region and food processing is the most important industry. The city also produces machinery, textiles, and chemicals.

Sights


- The Old Town
- Forthress walls and gate
- Ancient Theatre
- Ancient Odeon
- Roman Stadium
- Roman Forum
- Roman Aqueduct
- Eyrene Mosaic
- Ancient Synagogue
- Constantine and Helena Church
- Sahat Tepe hill and clock tower
- Nebet Tepe hill complex
- Dzhumaya Mosque
- Imaret Mosque
- Old Turkish Bath (now an art gallery)
- Virgin Mary Church
- St. Petka Church
- St. Marina Church
- St. Ludovic Catholic Cathedral
- Gothic Evangelist Church
- Tsar Simeon's Garden and The Singing Fountains
- Main Street
- International Fair of Plovdiv
- The Rowing Canal (sports and recreation park)

Sports

Plovdiv is famous for its football teams. Botev Plovdiv was founded in 1912, and is named after one of the most ardent Bulgarian poets and revolutioneers, Hristo Botev. The city has another popular football club, Lokomotiv Plovdiv, founded in 1936. They played in the UEFA Cup 2005-06, being eliminated in the first round by Bolton Wanderers. Both teams are a regular fixture in the top Bulgarian league, and are famous for their productive youth academies. The rivalry between them is considered to be even more fierce than the one between Levski and CSKA of Sofia.

Notable citizens of Plovdiv


- Hristo Stoitchkov, footballer
- Jordan Jovtchev, gymnast
- Milen Dobrev, weigh