Vidin

Vidin
Vidin; Видин
	Baba Vida Castle
	; Coat of arms
	; Coat of arms
	Location of Vidin Province in Bulgaria
	Vidin Location of Vidin
	Coordinates: 43°59′N 22°52′E / 43.983°N 22.867°ECoordinates: 43°59′N 22°52′E / 43.983°N 22.867°E
Country	Bulgaria
Province; (Oblast)	Vidin
	Government
• Mayor	Gergo Gergov
	Area
• City	63.218 km2 (24.409 sq mi)
Elevation	34 m (112 ft)
	Population (Census February 2011)
• City	48,071
• Density	760/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
• Urban	63,257
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal Code	3700
Area code(s)	094
Website	Official website

For the Romanian village, see Jupâneşti.

Vidin ( Bulgarian: Видин, archaically spelled as Widdin in English) is a port town on the southern bank of the Danube in northwestern Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Serbia and Romania, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as of the Metropolitan of Vidin (since 870).

An agricultural and trade centre, Vidin has a fertile hinterland renowned for its wines.

Geography [edit]

Vidin is the westernmost important Bulgarian Danube port and is situated on one of the southernmost sections of the river. A ferryboat complex, linking Vidin with Calafat on the opposite side of the river, is located 2 km from the town. The complex is to be replaced by the Vidin-Calafat Bridge in spring 2012.

History [edit]

Vidin emerged at the place of an old Celtic settlement known as Dunonia. The name itself meant "fortified hill" with the typically Celtic dun found frequently in Celtic place names.^[2] The settlement evolved into an Roman fortified town called Bononia. The town grew into one of the important centres of the province of Upper Moesia, encompassing the territory of modern northwestern Bulgaria and eastern Serbia.

When Slavs settled in the area, they called the town Badin or Bdin, where the modern name comes from.

The central streets of Vidin

Orthodox Cathedral of St Dimitar (St Dimitrius)

Vidin's main landmark, the Baba Vida fortress, was built in the period from the 10th to the 14th century. In the Middle Ages Vidin used to be an important Bulgarian city, a bishop seat and capital of a large province. Between 971 and 976 the town was the center of Samuil's possessions while his brothers ruled to the south. In 1003 Vidin was seized by Basil II after an eight-month siege because of the betrayal of the local bishop. Its importance once again rose during the Second Bulgarian Empire (1185–1422) and its despots were influential figures in the Empire and were on several occasions chosen for Emperors. From the mid 13th century it was ruled by the Shishman family. In 1356, Bulgarian Tsar Ivan Alexander isolated Vidin from the Bulgarian monarchy and appointed his son Ivan Stratsimir (1356–1396) as absolute ruler of Vidin's new city-state - the Tsardom of Vidin (Bdin / Badin).

Hungarian occupation of Vidin [edit]

Main article: Hungarian occupation of Vidin

In 1365, the Tsardom of Vidin was occupied by Magyar crusaders. Under Hungarian rule, the city became known as Bodony, but the occupation was short-lived. In 1369, a united Slavic Bulgarian empire drove out the Hungarian military, but in 1393 the whole of Bulgaria, along with the rest of the surrounding region, fell to the Ottoman Empire. This brought an end to Bulgaria's medieval state empire.

The Ottomans [edit]

Modern rule [edit]

During the Serbo-Bulgarian War (1885), the town was besieged by a Serbian army. Although vastly outnumbered, the Bulgarians were victorious.

Climate [edit]

Vidin has a temperature continental climate. In the winter months, Inversions are very common. The average annual temperature is 11,2C.

Climate data for Vidin, Bulgaria(1931-1970), records 1926-1970
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	18.5 (65.3)	21.5 (70.7)	28 (82)	32 (90)	36.5 (97.7)	38.8 (101.8)	40.8 (105.4)	41 (106)	40.5 (104.9)	32 (90)	26 (79)	20.2 (68.4)	41 (106)
Average high °C (°F)	1.2 (34.2)	4.6 (40.3)	10.4 (50.7)	18.3 (64.9)	23.7 (74.7)	27.5 (81.5)	30.1 (86.2)	29.8 (85.6)	25.4 (77.7)	17.9 (64.2)	9.8 (49.6)	4 (39)	16.9 (62.4)
Daily mean °C (°F)	−2.2 (28)	0.4 (32.7)	5.1 (41.2)	12.1 (53.8)	17.2 (63)	20.7 (69.3)	22.9 (73.2)	22 (72)	17.9 (64.2)	11.6 (52.9)	6 (43)	0.7 (33.3)	11.2 (52.2)
Average low °C (°F)	−6 (21)	−3.7 (25.3)	0.2 (32.4)	5.9 (42.6)	10.6 (51.1)	14 (57)	15.5 (59.9)	14.5 (58.1)	11 (52)	6.1 (43)	2.5 (36.5)	−2.5 (27.5)	5.7 (42.3)
Record low °C (°F)	−32.5 (−26.5)	−30.9 (−23.6)	−26.6 (−15.9)	−5.5 (22.1)	−0.1 (31.8)	5.1 (41.2)	7.6 (45.7)	5.5 (41.9)	−0.3 (31.5)	−5.5 (22.1)	−13.6 (7.5)	−24.5 (−12.1)	−32.5 (−26.5)
Rainfall mm (inches)	41 (1.61)	37 (1.46)	40 (1.57)	51 (2.01)	64 (2.52)	69 (2.72)	47 (1.85)	38 (1.5)	36 (1.42)	49 (1.93)	56 (2.2)	53 (2.09)	581 (22.87)
Source: Stringmeteo.com^[3]

Population [edit]

Vidin is the 20th town by population in Bulgaria, but serious demographic problems have been experienced in the area during the last two decades. The number of the residents of the city reached its peak in the period 1988-1991 when exceeded 65,000.^[4] As of February 2011, the town has a population of 47,138 inhabitants.^[1] The following table presents the change of the population after 1887.

Vidin
Year	1887	1910	1934	1946	1956	1965	1975	1985	1992	2001	2011
Population	14,772	16,450	18,465	18,481	23,932	36,981	53,179	62,541	62,666	57,395	48,071
	Highest number 68,164 in 1991
Sources: National Statistical Institute,^[1]^[4]^[5] „citypopulation.de“,^[6] „pop-stat.mashke.org“,^[7] Bulgarian Academy of Sciences^[8]

Ethnic, linguistic and religious composition [edit]

According to the latest 2011 census data, the individuals declared their ethnic identity were distributed as follows:^[9]^[10]

Bulgarians: 40,550 (91.8%)
Gypsies: 3,335 (7.5%)
Turks: 60 (0.1%)
Others: 199 (0.4%)
Indefinable: 280 (0.6%)
- Undeclared: 3,647 (7.6%)

Total: 48,071

There is a large concentration of Gypsies within the city limits as the Gypsies are 3,335 in the city and 3,753 in the municipality, while the Bulgarian elements are 40,550 in the city and 54,546 in the municipality.

Tourism [edit]

The Vidin Synagogue, deserted after Jewish immigration to Israel

Vidin boasts two well-preserved medieval fortresses, Baba Vida and Kaleto, as well as many old Orthodox churches such as St Pantaleimon, St Petka (both 17th century), and St Greatmartyr Dimitar (Dimitrius) (19th century), The Vidin Synagogue (1894), the Osman Pazvantoğlu mosque and library, the late 18th-century Turkish ruler of northwestern Bulgaria, the Krastata Kazarma of 1798, and a number of old Renaissance buildings.

Another tourist attraction in the Vidin area is the town of Belogradchik, famous for its unique and impressive rock formations, the Belogradchik Rocks and the medieval Belogradchik Fortress and also the nearby Magura Cave with its beautiful prehistoric cave paintings.

Transportation [edit]

Danube Bridge II at Vidin

In Vidin is a Border-station to neighboring Romania via the Danube river. At the moment it is operated by ferryboats, crossing the river every 1/2 hour with only 5 trucks. Ticket price is EUR 50,-- per truck and EUR 12,-- per car. This border point is expected to increase its attraction with the Danube Bridge 2. It is under construction at the moment and shall start operation in 2013.

Landmarks [edit]

Close to the town lies a powerful mediumwave broadcasting station (since 1973) whose signals can be easily received throughout Europe. It works on 576 kHz and on 1224 kHz with a power of 500 kW each. For transmission on 576 kHz a 259 metres tall guyed mast equipped with a cage antenna at its lower part is used. The transmission of 576 kHz Radio Hristo Botev is put on hold for now, because of the world financial crisis and it is unknown when it will resume broadcasting. Powerful FM transmitter on 88.2 MHz provides good coverage for Hristo Botev radio. Only 1224 kHz Radio Bulgaria remains atm. For the transmission on 1224 kHz 4 guyed masts, insulated against ground, which are each equipped with a cage antenna are used, which allows a switchable directional pattern.