Chiprovtsi Municipality

Chiprovtsi Municipality (Bulgarian: Община Чипровци) is a small frontier municipality (obshtina) in Montana Province, Northwestern Bulgaria, located on the northern slopes of western Stara Planina mountain and the area of the so-called Fore-Balkan. It is named after its administrative centre - the town of Chiprovtsi. In the southwest, the municipality borders on Republic of Serbia.

Chiprovtsi Municipality
Община Чипровци
Municipality
Chiprovtsi Municipality within Bulgaria and Montana Province.
Chiprovtsi Municipality within Bulgaria and Montana Province.
Coordinates: 43°23′N 22°50′E
Country Bulgaria
Province (Oblast)Montana
Admin. centre (Obshtinski tsentar)Chiprovtsi
Area
 • Total286.8 km2 (110.7 sq mi)
Population
 (Census February 2011)[1]
 • Total3,657
 • Density13/km2 (33/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

The area embraces a territory of 286.8 km2 with a population of 3,657 inhabitants, as of February 2011.[1]

Settlements

Chiprovtsi Municipality includes the following 10 places (towns are shown in bold):

Town/Village Cyrillic Population[2][3][4]
(December 2009)
Chiprovtsi Чипровци 1,871
Belimel Белимел 252
Chelyustnitsa Челюстница 81
Gorna Kovachitsa Горна Ковачица 118
Gorna Luka Горна Лука 185
Martinovo Мартиново 312
Mitrovtsi Митровци 115
Prevala Превала 411
Ravna Равна 47
Zhelezna Железна 327
Total 3,719

Geography

Chiprovtsi Municipality is located in the western part of Montana Province. The municipality has an area of 286.9 square kilometres (110.8 sq mi), which is 7.89% of the provinces' territory and 0.26% of that of Bulgaria. To the east, Chiprovtsi municipality borders Montana and Georgi Damyanovo municipalities of the same province; its southern neighbour is also Georgi Damyanovo. To the west are the Serbian border and Chuprene municipality of Vidin Province and to the north is Ruzhintsi municipality of Vidin Province.[5] Besides the town, the municipality includes nine villages, namely Belimel, Chelyustnitsa, Gorna Kovachitsa, Gorna Luka, Martinovo, Mitrovtsi, Prevala, Ravna and Zhelezna.[6] The town lies 155 km (96 mi) from the Bulgarian capital Sofia, 35 km (22 mi) from the provincial capital Montana, 44 km (27 mi) from Berkovitsa and 18 km (11 mi) from the national border of Bulgaria and Serbia; the nearest Serbian municipality is Surdulica.[5]

Chiprovtsi municipality falls in the humid continental climate climate zone, with a slight mountain influence. The average year-round temperature is 9.7 °C (49.5 °F); the average monthly temperature is −1 to 0 °C (30 to 32 °F) in January and 20 °C (68 °F) in July. The average yearly precipitation is 776–816 millimetres. The spring is short and rainy, while the summer is generally hot and dry. In the winter, the area is subject to a strong northeastern wind and a temperature inversion in the valleys.[7]

Of the 38 rivers and rivulets that flow across the municipality, the most important are the Ogosta and the Prevalska. There is a water reservoir near Martinovo and a hydroelectric plant at Zhelezna. There are no mineral springs in the municipality. Chiprovtsi municipality is home to 1,250 species of plants, including a large number of herbs and deciduous trees; some of the trees are 150–300 years old.[7]

Of the municipality's area of 286.9 km2 (110.8 sq mi), 50.51% or 144.9 km2 (55.9 sq mi) are covered by forests, 42.73% or 122.6 km2 (47.3 sq mi) constitute arable land and 5.71% or 16.4 km2 (6.3 sq mi) are urban areas. The remaining 1.05% are composed of water areas, mines and infrastructure.[8]

Demographics
Further information: Demographics of Bulgaria

On 31 July 2005, Chiprovtsi municipality's population was 4,810; 2,375 people were from the town itself—1,167 men and 1,208 women. By June 2008, the town's population had declined to 2,122.[9] According to 2005 data, the largest village in the municipality is Prevala with a population of 585; the smallest is Ravna with 68. The ethnic composition of the municipality is homogeneous; 4,722 people or 99.21% identify themselves as Bulgarians and 38 people or 0.79% as Roma. Of the Roma, three quarters live in the Barzan neighbourhood of Martinovo and arrived from around Asenovgrad, the rest are residents of Chelyustnitsa and descend from Berkovitsa.[10]

Since 1956, the municipality has experienced population ageing and rural depopulation, as many people have migrated to larger cities such as Montana, Vidin, Vratsa and Sofia. The ratio of urban to rural population is 49.37% to 50.63%, indicating an almost equal distribution between the town of Chiprovtsi and the surrounding villages.[10] As of 2005, the unemployment in the municipality is 23.5%,[11] much higher than the Bulgarian average of 7.75% according to 2007 data.[12]

Population structure and dynamics of Chiprovtsi municipality 1934–2004[13]
Place 1934 1946 1956 1965 1976 1985 1992 1999 2000 2001 2002 2004 2017
Belimel1470143215601347867657532406380372339206215
Chelyustnitsa6265874833932792001511321291151059870
Chiprovtsi2,8313,1353,5174,1343,3993,2363,0892,6662,5852,3912,4872,3751,594
Gorna Kovachitsa791736607545461322257181186190170160123
Gorna Luka1,022992903776579464388306293280274251174
Martinovo8548908821,3301,058710613458440417433410226
Mitrovtsi971965800580989312241191178162160143151
Prevala1,5991,7191,5291,3911,2011,042911759713594635565369
Ravna3483602762111531121068383757568n/a
Zhelezna9129739251,056762623560481461434434414263
Total 11,42411,77911,48211,7629,1487,6786,8175,6635,4485,0305,1164,8103,219

Since 2004 the population of the municipality has declined: 2005 = 4,198, 2007 = 3,955, 2009 = 3,719, 2011 = 3,657[14][15][16][17][1][18] The population declined further to 3,219 people at the end of 2017.

Religion

According to the latest Bulgarian census of 2011, the religious composition, among those who answered the optional question on religious identification, was the following:

Religious composition of Chiprovtsi Municipality [19]
Orthodox Christianity
 
 84.7%
Catholicism
 
 0.6%
Protestantism
 
 0.1%
Islam
 
 0.0%
No religion
 
 2.2%
Prefer not to answer, others and indefinable
 
 12.4%

Governance

The municipal government consists of a mayor (kmet), a deputy mayor and a secretary.[20] Since 2007, the municipality has been governed by Zaharin Ivanov Zamfirov of Bulgarian Agrarian People's Union "Aleksandar Stamboliyski" who won the municipal elections with 1,615 votes or 62.67% against Antoaneta Todorova Kostova of the Bulgarian Socialist Party who amassed 962 votes or 37.33%. Two villages in the municipality are eligible to elect their own mayor, Prevala and Zhelezna.[21]

The municipal administration is divided into two branches, the common and specialized administration. The common administration is further divided into the "Information Services" and "Financial-economical Activities and Handling of Property" departments; the specialized administration includes the "Planning and Distribution of the Budget" and "Territorial and Village Planning and Building" departments. The municipality has no separate court or prosecutor's office and is instead serviced by the Montana provincial court and office. The local police station is subordinate to the one in Montana. There is a Municipal Land Commission, part of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and a Municipal Social Service. The Municipal Land Commission takes care of land and forest distribution and the Municipal Social Service oversees financial aid and supports the disabled.[20]

See also

References
  1. (in Bulgarian)National Statistical Institute - Census 2011 Archived April 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  2. (in English) Bulgarian National Statistical Institute - Bulgarian towns in 2009 Archived November 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  3. (in English) Bulgarian National Statistical Institute - Bulgarian villages under 1000 inhabitants - December 2009
  4. (in English) Bulgarian National Statistical Institute - Bulgarian Settlements 1000-5000 inhabitants - December 2009
  5. Общински план за развитие, p. 6.
  6. "ОБЩИНА ЧИПРОВЦИ—Състояние на Регистрите за РАЖДАНЕ към 31.12.2007 г" (in Bulgarian). Главна дирекция "Гражданска регистрация и административно обслужване". 2007.
  7. Общински план за развитие, pp. 9–12.
  8. Общински план за развитие, p. 13.
  9. "Таблица на населението по постоянен и настоящ адрес" (in Bulgarian). Главна дирекция "Гражданска регистрация и административно обслужване". 2008-06-16. Retrieved 2008-09-12.
  10. Общински план за развитие, pp. 14–16.
  11. Общински план за развитие, p. 22.
  12. "Равнището на безработица през декември е 6.91%" (in Bulgarian). Агенция по заетостта. 2008-01-22. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
  13. "Динамика и структура на населението на община Чипровци през периода 1934 – 2005 година", Общински план за развитие, p. 17.
  14. (in English) Bulgarian National Statistical Institute - Bulgarian provinces and municipalities in 2009 Archived November 13, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  15. (in Bulgarian)National Statistical Institute - Municipalities population 1985
  16. (in Bulgarian)National Statistical Institute - Municipalities population 1992
  17. (in English)National Statistical Institute - Census 2001
  18. „pop-stat.mashke.org“
  19. "Religious composition of Bulgaria 2011". pop-stat.mashke.org.
  20. "Municipal Services". Official site of Chiprovtzi. Archived from the original on 2007-05-10. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
  21. "Окончателни резултати: кмет на община Чипровци" (in Bulgarian). Местни избори 2007: Централна избирателна комисия. Archived from the original on 2007-11-09. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
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