Geography - note:

strategic location near Turkish Straits; controls key land routes from Europe to Middle East and Asia

People
Bulgaria

Population:

7,262,675 (July 2008 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 13.8% (male 514,238/female 489,608) 15-64 years: 68.6% (male 2,449,812/female 2,532,845) 65 years and over: 17.6% (male 520,962/female 755,210) (2008 est.)

Median age:

total: 41.1 years male: 38.9 years female: 43.4 years (2008 est.)

Population growth rate: