Rhodopes in the context of "Arda (Maritsa)"

Northern Thrace or North Thrace (Bulgarian: Северна Тракия, Severna Trakiya; Turkish: Kuzey Trakya; Greek: Βόρεια Θράκη), also called Bulgarian Thrace, constitutes the northern and largest part of the historical region of Thrace. It is located in Southern Bulgaria and includes the territory south of the Balkan Mountains and east of the Mesta River, bordering Western Thrace and East Thrace in the south, and the Black Sea in the east. It encompasses Sredna Gora, the Upper Thracian Plain, and 90% of the Rhodopes.

The climate ranges from subtropical to transitional continental and mountainous. The highest temperature recorded in Bulgaria occurred here: it was 45.2 °C (113.4 °F; 318.3 K) at Sadovo in 1916. The main rivers of the region are the Maritsa and its tributaries. Notable cities include Plovdiv, Burgas, Stara Zagora, Sliven, Haskovo, Yambol, Pazardzhik, Asenovgrad, Kardzhali, Dimitrovgrad, Kazanlak and Smolyan. Northern Thrace has an area of 42,073 km.

Southern Bulgaria (Bulgarian: Южна България, Yuzhna Balgariya) is the southern half of the territory of Bulgaria, located to the south of the main ridge of the Balkan Mountains which conventionally separates the country into a northern and a southern part. Besides the Balkan Mountains, Southern Bulgaria borders Serbia to the west, North Macedonia to the southwest, Greece to the south, Turkey to the southeast and the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast to the east.

Geographically, the terrain in Southern Bulgaria is much more varied than that of the north, with the Upper Thracian Plain stretching in the east, while the south and west are dominated by some of Bulgaria's highest mountains such as Rila, Pirin and the Rhodopes, as well as smaller and/or lower mountains and valleys in the west, such as Vitosha, Belasitsa, Osogovo, the Sofia Valley, the Sub-Balkan valleys and the Kraishte region. Southern Bulgaria covers an area of 62,414 square kilometres and has a population of 5,085,872 as of 2009 (63% of Bulgaria's entire population), with a population density of 81.5 people per km. The three largest cities are the national capital Sofia, the largest city in Thrace, Plovdiv, and the major Black Sea port of Burgas.

42°15′N 26°0′E / 42.250°N 26.000°E / 42.250; 26.000

The Upper Thracian Plain (Bulgarian: Горнотракийска низина, Gornotrakiyska nizina) constitutes the northern part of the historical region of Thrace. It is located in southern Bulgaria, between Sredna Gora mountains to the north and west, a secondary mountain chain parallel to the main Balkan Mountains; the Rhodopes, Sakar and Strandzha to the south; and the Black Sea to the east. A fertile agricultural region, the Upper Thracian Plain proper has an area of 16,032 square kilometres (6,190 sq mi) and an average elevation of 168 metres (551 ft). The plain is part of Northern Thrace. The climate is transitional continental. The highest temperature recorded in Bulgaria occurred here: it was 45.2 °C (113.4 °F) at Sadovo in 1916. The precipitation is 550 millimetres (22 in) a year. Important rivers are the Maritsa and its tributaries, Arda, Tundzha, Stryama, Topolnitsa, and Vacha. Important cities include Plovdiv, Burgas, Stara Zagora, Pazardzhik, Asenovgrad, Haskovo, Yambol and Sliven.

Alexius Slav (Bulgarian: Алексий Слав, Greek: Ἀλέξιος Σθλαῦος; fl. 1208–28) was a Bulgarian nobleman (bolyarin), a member of the Asen dynasty, and a nephew of the first three Asen brothers. He was first probably the governor of the Rhodopes domain of the Second Bulgarian Empire, and then an autocrat in these lands.

He was first mentioned as one of the nobles disputing Tsar Boril's ascension to the Bulgarian throne. He married the daughter of Latin Emperor Henry of Flanders in November 1208, leaving the Bulgarian capital of Veliko Tarnovo and establishing himself as an independent ruler over the largest part of the Rhodope Mountains. Alexius Slav became a vassal of Henry after the Bulgarian defeat near Plovdiv. Henry promised to support his aspirations for the Bulgarian throne and awarded Alexius Slav the title of despot.

The Muslim Bulgarians (Bulgarian: Българи-мохамедани, romanized: Bǎlgari-mohamedani, lit. 'Bulgarian Mohammedans', as of recently also Българи-мюсюлмани, Bǎlgari-mjusjulmani, locally called Pomak, ahryan, poganets, marvak, or poturnak) are Bulgarians who follow the faith of Islam. They are generally thought to be the descendants of the indigenous Slavs who converted to Islam during Ottoman rule. Most scholars have agreed that the Bulgarian Muslims are a "religious group of Bulgarian Slavs who speak Bulgarian as their mother tongue and do not understand Turkish, but whose religion and customs are Islamic". Bulgarian Muslims live mostly in the Rhodopes – Smolyan Province, the southern part of the Pazardzhik and Kardzhali Provinces and the eastern part of the Blagoevgrad Province in Southern Bulgaria. They also live in a group of villages in the Lovech Province in Northern Bulgaria. The name Pomak is pejorative in Bulgarian and is resented by most members of the community, The name adopted and used instead of Pomak is Bulgarian Muslims.

Bulgarian Muslims do not represent a homogenous community and have a multitude of ethnic and religious identities. A clear majority of them (127,350 according to the latest census in 2001) declare themselves to be ethnic Bulgarians of Islamic faith. However, a significant percentage, in particular in the Central and Eastern Rhodopes (the Smolyan and Kardzhali Province) are strongly religious and have preserved the Muslim name system, customs and clothing, the Smolyan Province, which is largely populated by Bulgarian Muslims (approximately 117,000 or 71% of the population according to the Ministry of Interior in 1989). According to the 2001 census, 43 municipalities out of 262 have a Muslim majority. There were five municipalities with a Muslim population over 90 percent: Chernoochene (96.8 percent) has the highest share of Muslims, followed by Venets (95.9 percent), Satovcha (91.3 percent), Ruen (90.9 percent) and Kaolinovo (90.0 percent)(122,806 or 87.7%) and that only 58,758 people or 41.9% of the population of the province declared to profess Islam in 2001.

41°37′N 24°23′E / 41.61°N 24.38°E / 41.61; 24.38

Devil's Throat Cave, or Dyavolsko Garlo (Bulgarian: Дяволското гърло [ˈdʲavoɫskoto ˈɡɤrɫo]), is located in the western Rhodopes close to the village of Gyovren in Bulgaria, near its border with Greece. A popular tourist attraction, Devil's Throat branches from Trigrad Gorge.

Chepelare (Bulgarian: Чепеларе [tʃɛpɛˈɫarɛ]) is the principal town in Chepelare Municipality, part of Smolyan Province in Southern Bulgaria. It is situated in the central part of the Rhodopes, on the banks of Chepelare River. Chepelare is a popular winter resort with one of the longest ski runs in Southeastern Europe. It is located near Pamporovo, one of the biggest Bulgarian ski resorts. As of December 2009, the town had a population of 5,412.

The town is known for the only ski and snowboard factory in the Balkan peninsula. The factory cooperates with the ski brand Atomic Skis. Chepelare is also the birthplace of biathlete Ekaterina Dafovska, Bulgaria's only Winter Olympics gold medal winner. The local Sports School provides good conditions for young winter athletes.