Ahtopol

Quality 0.50 · 2 views · Updated 2 months ago

title: "Ahtopol" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["towns-in-bulgaria", "seaside-resorts-in-bulgaria", "populated-places-in-burgas-province", "populated-coastal-places-in-bulgaria", "athenian-colonies"] topic_path: "general/towns-in-bulgaria" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahtopol" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Ahtopol
native_name	Ахтопол
native_name_lang	bg
settlement_type	Town
image_skyline	Ahtopol-boats-Joyradost.jpg
image_caption	Ahtopol's Port
pushpin_map	Bulgaria
pushpin_relief	Yes
pushpin_map_caption	Location of Ahtopol within Bulgaria
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Bulgaria
subdivision_type1	Province
subdivision_name1	Burgas
subdivision_type2	Municipality
subdivision_name2	Tsarevo
leader_party	GERB
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	Stanislav Georgiev Dimitrov
unit_pref	Metric
area_total_km2	28704
elevation_m	0
population_as_of	2022
population_total	1286
population_density_km2	auto
timezone1	EET
utc_offset1	+2
timezone1_DST	EEST
utc_offset1_DST	+3
postal_code_type	Postal Code
postal_code	8280
area_code	0590
website
::

Geography

Location

It is located on a headland in the southeastern part of Burgas Province and is close to the border with European Turkey. It is the southernmost town on the Bulgarian coast. Ahtopol lies within Strandzha Nature Park.

Climate

Ahtopol has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfa) bordering with a mediterranean climate (Csa) with limited continental effects. ::data[format=table]

Ay	Düşük Sıcaklık (°C)	Yüksek Sıcaklık (°C)	Düşük Sıcaklık (°C)	Yüksek Sıcaklık (°C)
Ocak	1.6	6.9	1.6	8.5
Şubat	2.3	7.9	2.3	10.2
Mart	4.2	8.1	4.2	12.3
Nisan	7.8	7.7	7.8	15.5
Mayıs	13.5	8	13.5	21.5
Haziran	17.8	7.9	17.8	25.7
Temmuz	20.1	7.9	20.1	28
Ağustos	20.2	8	20.2	28.2
Eylül	16.7	7.4	16.7	24.1
Ekim	12.1	7.4	12.1	19.5
Kasım	8	6.6	8	14.6
Aralık	3.3	7.4	3.3	10.7
::

Climate chart - link to Weather atlas: https://www.weather-atlas.com/en/bulgaria/ahtopol-climate#temperature

The climate is suitable for subtropical crops and fruits: fig, olive, kiwi, bay laurel, and cork oak.; Many exotic and ornamental plants thrive in this climate: Washingtonia filifera, Butia capitata, and Trachycarpus palms are grown in private plots, Japanese hardy bananas and bamboo, Mediterranean cypress, maritime pines, and Atlas cedar are cultivated all around the town and vicinity. Ahtopol has the largest plantation of persimmon and pomegranate in the country.

Places of interests:

Botanical garden 'Serafimov' - village of Velika;

Botanical living collection - Georgi Bachvarov - village of Varvara;

Private Botanical garden - Dr. Gaidurkov - village of Sinemorets;

History

The town lies on the site of an ancient Thracian settlement, with the earliest traces of human settlement dating to the Neolithic. It was probably colonized by the Ancient Greeks around 440-430 BC. According to researchers the city was founded by Athenians. The Romans called it Peronticus, while the Byzantine leader Agathon reconstructed the town after barbarian invasions and possibly gave it his own name, Agathopolis (). According to other sources, it was named thus as early as 323 BC. Another name it bore anciently was Aulaiouteichos or Alaeouteichos. Arab geographer al-Idrisi mentions Ahtopol in his memoirs as a remarkable hub and famous city.

In the Middle Ages, the town frequently changed hands between the Byzantine Empire and the Bulgarian Empire. Medieval sources mention Ahtopol as a lively merchant port where many Byzantine, Italian and other ships arrived. With the invasion of the Ottoman troops at the end of the 14th century, the town was called Ahtenbolu. The town ultimately fell under Ottoman rule as late as 1453. An Ottoman tax register of 1498 lists 158 Christian families in Ahtopol, most of which have Greek names but others evidently Slavic (Bulgarian). In 1898, Ahtopol was a town of 410 houses, of which 300 Greek and 110 Bulgarian. In the 19th century, it was still a thriving centre of fishery and overseas trade, with many locals owning their own ships and selling goods all around the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. Viticulture was also well-developed.

Ahtopol has been burnt down and devastated by sea pirates (often the Caucasian Lazi) many times, with the most recent fire being in 1918, when the town was almost destroyed. Remains of the town's fortress (reaching up to 8 m in height and 3.5 m in width), the 12th-century monastery of St Yani and a fountain with a carved horseman are the only traces left from ancient times. Another landmark is the Church of the Ascension from 1796. Ahtopol was a kaza centre in Kırkkilise sanjak of Edirne Vilayet between 1878 and 1912 as "Ahtabolu" (Ahtopol was referred as Agathoupolis in reference page). Also, Evliya Çelebi passed from here in 1663 and referred as "Ahtabolu" in 6th volume (English of "6. Cilt") of Seyahatname.

After the Balkan Wars, when the area was ceded to Bulgaria by the Ottoman Empire, the town's predominantly Greek population gradually moved to Greece and was replaced by Bulgarian refugees, mostly from Eastern Thrace, specifically Bunarhisar (150 families). The Greek name of the town was Achtòpolis, Αχτοπολις or Agathùpolis, Αγαθουπολις.

Rocketry

From 1984 to 1990 28 soundings rockets of the Soviet type M-100 were launched near Ahtopol at 42°5'8"N 27°57'17"E. https://web.archive.org/web/20161228030112/http://astronautix.com/a/akhtopol.html

Honour

Ahtopol Peak in Antarctica is named after the town.

Notable people

professor Kosta Dimitrov Pergelov (1921 – 2007), economist
Doctor Georgi Atanasov Kasabaliev (1937-2003) Medical Doctor

References

"Век. месечен архив Бг".
"Век. месечен архив Бг".
"Месечни Известия".
"Времето София » 15.05.2020".
"Времето София » 05.11.2021".
"Browser Check Page".
"Browser Check Page".
"FTP link".
"Weather Sofia – Daily Weather History| freemeteo.bg".
"Weather Sofia – Daily Weather History| freemeteo.bg".
"Weather Sofia – Daily Weather History| freemeteo.bg".
"Weather Sofia – Daily Weather History| freemeteo.bg".
"Sofia, Bulgaria - Detailed climate information and monthly weather forecast".
[https://www.persee.fr/doc/ista_0000-0000_2005_act_979_1_2129 The foundation of Agathopolis/Alaeouteichos and the Athenian Black Sea policy in the 5th century BC - Jan G. de Boer, p.178]
[https://books.google.com/books?id=aQLEB9vikZ8C Pont-Euxin Et Polis: Polis Hellenis Et Polis Barbaron : Actes Du Xe Symposium de Vani, 23-26 Septembre 2002 : Hommage À Otar Lordkipanidzé Et Pierre Lévêque]
{{Cite Barrington. 22
"Ahtopol".
"Thracee 7".
http://www.balkanpazar.org/rumeli_evliyacelebi.asp {{Webarchive. link. (2018-04-16 Evliya Çelebi's Route (In Turkish))

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::