Kawarna
| Kawarna (Каварна) | |||||
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| Basic data | |||||
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| State : |
 Bulgaria
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| Oblast : | Dobrich | ||||
| Residents : | 10,767 (December 31, 2018) | ||||
| Coordinates : | 43 ° 26 ' N , 28 ° 20' E | ||||
| Height : | 121 m | ||||
| Postal code : | 9650 | ||||
| Telephone code : | (+359) 0570 | ||||
| License plate : | TX | ||||
| administration | |||||
| Mayor : | Nina Stavreva | ||||
| Ruling party : | E.G | ||||
| Website : | www.kavarna.bg | ||||
Kawarna ( Bulgarian Каварна ) is a city and a holiday resort on the northern Bulgarian Black Sea coast . It is located in the south Dobruja , in the easternmost part of the Bulgarian Danube Plain on the E87 in Dobrich Oblast and is the administrative center of the municipality of the same name Kawarna. The city is located 64 km north of Varna and 50 km southeast of Dobrich . Kawarna has about 11,000 inhabitants.
The city is 2 km from the sea and is located on a high plateau of the Dobruja. Kawarna Beach ( 43 ° 24 ′ 48 ″ N , 28 ° 21 ′ 23 ″ E ) and some residential and industrial areas are three kilometers south of the city center . They lie like an arena that opens south to a small bay with an artificially raised sandy beach. The west side of the bay is powered by a 110 m high limestone, the cape Tschirakman (bulg. Нос Чиракман , 43 ° 24 '44 " N , 28 ° 20' 56" O ) is limited. The cape is right on the harbor. Besides the beach there is a small marina and a fishing base in the bay. A small river flows into the bay, the last part it flows from the city 2 km through a strip of forest to the beach. This forest strip is known as the "Valley of Goldammer " ( Bulgarian Долината на авлигите ; Dolinata na awligite), respectively.
geography
Kawarna is halfway between Balchik in the west (15 km) and Cape Kaliakra in the southeast (13 km). The small Black Sea holiday resort Rusalka is 14 km further east. As in all of Dobruja, the land there is flat. The coast of the municipality of Kawarna is 42 km long. Much of it consists of cliffs, which are highly endangered by coastal erosion.
| Гурково (Gurkovo Village) | Могилище (Mogilishte on Highway 296) | Раковски (Rakovski Village) |
| Балчик ( Balchik on E 87) |
.svg)
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Хаджи Димитър (Hadzhi Dimitar on E 87) |
| Божурец (seaside resort Bozhurets and Thracian Cliffs) | Каварна (Kawarna harbor and beach) | Нос Калиакра ( Cape Kaliakra ) |
In the 1st century BC A strong earthquake largely destroyed Cape Tschirakman there. The then much larger cape sank into the sea together with part of the Greek colony located there. At that time the cape extended a long way further south into the sea. The subsequent coastal erosion has largely eroded it. Today only a few remains of Cape Tschirakman are difficult to access. On the plateau of today's cape still stand the ruins of a former fortress with the associated moat, the church and a necropolis. Archaeological excavations are still being carried out there, and the area off the coast is being archaeologically explored ( underwater archeology ). Today Cape Chirakman drops steeply to the sea.
There are numerous water sources in the region and mineral water is also industrially bottled there.
etymology
After the Bulgarians conquered the region in the 7th century, the ancient Greek name Krounoi for the neighboring city (today Balchik ) was replaced by the similar-sounding Bulgarian name Karvuna (Karwuna). The name Despotat Karwuna (or Despotat Dobrudscha ) referred to the city of Karwuna (now Balchik). The similarity of the name of today's city Kawarna with the name Karwuna led some local researchers to equate both. However, the archaeological and historical facts do not support this thesis.
The current name Kawarna was first mentioned in writing in the early 15th century. It may have been phonetically influenced by the city names Karvuna (now Balchik) and Varna.
history
Antiquity
The region was uninterrupted from the 3rd millennium BC. Populated until the middle of the 17th century. Kawarna was founded in the 5th century BC. Founded by Greek colonists who came from Mesambria (now Nessebar ) - also a Greek colony. They founded the colony Bisone (also written Byzone or Bizone) on the plateau of Cape Tschirakman. There were plenty of springs and, as in the whole of Dobruja, fertile soil.
During the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC Scythians settled in the region and the city played an important mediating role between the Thracian settlements of the region, the resident Greek colonists and the traders from the islands of Rhodes , from the cities of Herakleia Pontike and Sinop , from Egypt and other regions.
Because of the rocky cliffs, the area was unsuitable for building quay walls , but the region nevertheless attracted shipping trade from the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, because a lot of high-quality grain, especially wheat , was produced and traded there in the Dobruja .
In the second half of the 1st century BC A part of the village sank during a devastating earthquake in the Black Sea. In this earthquake, the end of Cape Tschirakman broke off and also dragged some of the residents with it to their death. In the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, however, the settlement flourished again.
An archaeological underwater expedition off Kawarna led by Asen Emilow Salkin, the director of the city's historical museum, found out in 2005 that the Roman city of Bisone (now Kawarna) even sank twice with its residential areas in the sea. The found stones and parts of the walls that had been found under water testified to this. These finds were dated to the 2nd century AD. According to Asen Salkin, the residential area that sank the second time had nothing to do with that of the earthquake in the 1st century BC. To do this submerged residential area, which had been described by the Greek geographer Strabon and the Roman geographer Pomponius Mela .
The underwater finds also testify that between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, the sea level fell by 4 m and then rose again. The cause was probably a tectonic uplift of the region and later a very rapid decline again, which then flooded the lower coastal areas of Bison, so that they are now under water. The Romanian archaeologist Banu found in 1973 that the sea level of the Black Sea on the coast of Dobruja was at times 4 m lower than it is today. The drop in sea levels began in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD and then rose again to today's levels. This explains the remains of settlements found off today's Black Sea coast.
During the Roman times, the city was rebuilt under the same name and experienced a heyday, to which the port also contributed. The ancient Roman road Via Pontica also ran over Bisone.
middle Ages
In the 7th century AD, the Bulgarians immigrating from the north under Khan Asparuch destroyed the Byzantine city and later founded the settlement of Karwuna (today Balchik ) as a new settlement in their first Bulgarian empire .
In the late Middle Ages, the settlement continued to grow and was exposed to attacks by the Tatars. In the 14th century, under the despots Balik and Dobrotiza, the city became part of the Dobruja despotate , which had de facto left the Second Bulgarian Empire of the Terter Dynasty ( House Terter ). In the 14th century, Karwuna (now Balchik) and Kaliakra were the two most important cities of the Dobruja despotate.
According to other sources, the medieval Christian town of Karwuna, with its grain port, is today's Kawarna and the name was changed in the 15th century. A Turkish bath , a bridge, drinking fountain, churches and numerous inscriptions have been preserved in Kawarna from this period .
The Ottoman Turks almost completely destroyed the city in 1397. It was then abandoned by its residents, but repopulated in the 17th century.
In ancient times and in the Middle Ages, the city was an economic and cultural center, as evidenced by the remains of the fortress wall, an early Christian basilica, a medieval church and public buildings.
Coins from various historical periods were found in the region, as well as gold jewelery, a Thracian gold treasure (not to be confused with the famous gold treasure of Panagyurishte )
Modern times
Between the 15th and 19th centuries, the town was known as Kawarna as a Christian settlement and grain export port. The remains of a Turkish bath, a medieval necropolis, fountains, a Christian church and many inscriptions date from this period.
The priest monk ( Hieromonachos ) Jewstatij Rilsky ( Евстатий Рилски ) founded the first Bulgarian school ( Bulgarian monastery school ) in Kawarna in 1868 .
During the Russo-Ottoman War (1877-1878) the Christian residents of the city, Bulgarians and Gagauz alike, rose up against the irregular Ottoman troops ( Başı Bozuk ) and against the Circassian troops fighting for the Ottomans . The uprising was put down and the city completely burned down by the Turks.
The Tschitalischte Saglasie was founded in 1890.
After gaining independence from the Ottoman Empire, the city belonged to the Principality of Bulgaria . Kawarna has experienced rapid growth as an economic and cultural center since the beginning of the 20th century.
From 1913 to 1940 the city belonged to Romania, as the South Dobruja, which previously belonged to Bulgaria , was annexed by Romania (in the Bucharest Peace Treaty ) after the Second Balkan War . The local Bulgarian population partially resisted the Romanian authorities while they belonged to Romania. This resistance was also bundled in the Inner Dobrujani Revolutionary Organization from 1923 to 1940 . With the Treaty of Craiova , southern Dobruja and with it Kawarna were ceded back to Bulgaria in 1940.
Since 2005, the city has given its name to Kavarna Cove , a bay on Livingston Island in Antarctica.
economy
Agriculture is the largest and most important source of income for the city and municipality of Kawarna.
On the abundant, fertile soils, mainly grain, animal feed and technical crops (especially sunflowers) are grown, there is also some cattle breeding, wine and fruit growing.
Another source of income is fishing. The edible snails Rapana venosa , which immigrated to the Black Sea, were caught there by trawling until recently . The snails are now industrially bred in sea farms, since trawling was recently banned in Bulgaria to prevent further damage to the seabed with its flora and fauna.
The largest industrial company in Kawarna is Kamash Kavarna Aktiengesellschaft , which manufactures excavators and loading equipment. The company is owned by the Italian Chamber of Industry. 85 people are employed in the plant.
Another larger company in Kawarna is Kalazerka (Bulgarian Калацерка - Каварна) - a furniture manufacturer. Another three companies manufacture aluminum and PVC window frames. There is a company for bottling mineral water (Izvor Aktiengesellschaft) and some sewing and knitting companies.
The Kawarna wind farm has numerous wind turbines with a total capacity of over 350 megawatts, making them leaders in Bulgaria.
The Dobruja coal basin (Bulgarian Добруджански басейн) is estimated at 1.2 billion tons. It is north of Kawarna and Balchik. This coal has a high calorific value of approx. 25-29.3 MJ / kg and is located at a depth of 1500 to 2700 meters. Over 60 coal seams were found. The exploitation is made more difficult by five water horizons. This coal is very suitable for coking .
In 2008, the British exploration company Melrose Resources discovered a natural gas deposit near Kawarna with an estimated 2.4 billion m². The natural gas reservoir is located off the coast of Balgarewo , 5 km east of Kawarna.
The gas supply in Kawarna is provided by this natural gas deposit directly off the coast of the neighboring village of Balgarewo and will last for many years to come. The conversion to gas took place in Kawarna from 1996. All public buildings in Kawarna are heated with gas. 80% of private households are also connected to the gas network. The natural gas supply is provided by Kawarna Gas , a joint venture between Neft i gas , Tasi and the Kawarna municipality. The annual gas consumption of Kawarna is 3 million m³.
As early as the 1950s, geological explorations revealed oil deposits in the region of Kawarna and Shabla .
tourism
From the 1960s, the Bulgarian state travel agency Balkantourist ( Bulgarian Балкантурист) built holiday and recreational facilities on the coast of Kawarna. This included a campsite , a cottage settlement , a multi-story beach restaurant and a few smaller restaurants . The campsite was mainly used by tourists from the GDR , the ČSSR , Poland and Hungary . In the very simple bungalow houses, in which there were only two beds, young people from the GDR found their accommodation. This 14-day trips including flight to Varna and the full board ( full board ) as well as trips to Albena , after the palace gardens of Balchik and Kaliakra had Jugendtourist organized and provided favorable 625-M. This price also included pocket money in Bulgarian currency.
The city places its hopes in the development of tourism as it is located directly on the Black Sea. Currently, however, the beach of Kawarna consists only of a narrow, artificially raised strip of sand. The competition against the established “bed castles” of Albena (30 km southwest), Golden Sands (40 km southwest) and Sweti Konstantin and Elena (43 km southwest) is tough. These have a much nicer beach, are closer to Varna International Airport and have had a well-developed tourist infrastructure since 1960/70.
The development of golf tourism is also pursued as a strategy. There are three golf courses in the immediate vicinity of Kawarna:
- “Thracian Cliffs” golf course (Bulgarian Тракийски скали / Trakijski skali), 18-hole golf course , designed by Gary Player . The huge complex also includes a marina , luxury apartments and guest villas.
- Black Sea Rama Golf & Country Club, 18-hole golf course designed by Gary Player
- "Kaliakra Golf and Sea complex"
The Black Sea coast in the vicinity of Kawarna has so far only been little developed for upscale tourism. The visitors are mostly individual tourists looking for relaxation away from the tourist crowds.
In recent years, however, the northern Bulgarian Black Sea coast, which also includes Kawarna, has been intensively expanded with holiday complexes and holiday homes, as investors see great development potential here. Especially in and around Kawarna, Bulgarian, Bulgarian-Swedish, Bulgarian-British and Bulgarian-French companies are very active in the construction of holiday homes, holiday and hotel complexes.
Culture
Rock festival
Another strategy to attract additional tourists to Kawarna is the Kawarna Rock Festival, which also extends the tourist season.
Since 2006 the municipality of Kawarna has organized the heavy metal , hard rock and rock 'n' roll festival Kavarna Rock Festival (Bulgarian Каварна Рок Фест) every summer, until 2009 under the name Kaliakra Rock Festival , organized in the Kaliakra Stadium of Kawarna ( 43 ° 25 ′ 41 ″ N , 28 ° 19 ′ 51 ″ E ). World famous bands perform there. Outside of this festival, on the initiative of Mayor Zonko Zonew, who was nicknamed “Rock Mayor”, internationally known bands regularly perform in Kawarna, following the economical principle of inviting groups that are currently attending a concert in the neighboring countries of Bulgaria have given in order to keep travel costs as low as possible; or he tries to finance the concerts through sponsors. The Kawarna Rock Festival successfully competes with the “Sofia Rock” Festival and “ Spirit of Burgas ” (since 2008) and has become a significant economic factor for the small town of Kawarna.
On July 21, 2005 Deep Purple played in Kawarna. On August 27, 2005, the German heavy metal band Accept had their last appearance in Kawarna. Other well-known musicians who have performed in Kawarna were the Scorpions , Axel Rudi Pell , Gamma Ray , Masterplan and Destruction .
In 2006 there were further concerts with metal bands, pop and dance music. In September the Russian-Bulgarian pop star Filipp Kirkorow performed in Kawarna. Black Sabbath , John Lawton , Manowar , Motörhead , Robert Plant and Ronnie James Dio performed at the concerts from June 28 to July 1, 2007 . The 2008 rock festival took place in August, and Manowar performed again - with a five-hour world record attempt for the longest heavy metal concert. On the following two days, Alice Cooper, Slayer and In Flames performed with their concerts. At the Rock Festival 2009 from July 3rd to 5th, Mötley Crüe led through the rock festival, which included the Scorpions, Blind Guardian and Dream Theater . In recognition of the festival sponsor, the 2009 rock festival was named Kaliakra Harley-Davidson Rock Festival .
In 2010 a memorial for Ronnie James Dio was inaugurated in Kawarna .
Attractions
A residential building was built on the site of the burned down monastery school, which today serves as a folklore museum.
The archaeological site of Jailata is 17 km east of the city .
literature
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Population by towns and sex. In: nsi.bg. Republic of Bulgaria - National Statistical Institute (NSI), April 12, 2019, accessed May 5, 2019 .
- ↑ AC Banu: Observaţii şi măsurători asupra oscilaţiilor actuale şi seculare ale apelor Mării Negre la ţărmul românesc. (Romanian for: observations and measurements of the current and long-term oscillating changes in altitude of the water of the Black Sea on the Romanian coast over the centuries. ) Hidrobiologica, Volume 2; Bucharest 1961
- ↑ http://www.kamasch.com/indexgm.htm