1.
Moldova
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Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova (Romanian, Republica Moldova, listen, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. In 1856, southern Bessarabia was returned to Moldavia, but Russian rule was restored over the whole of the region in 1878, Bessarabia remained a province of the Russian Empire until 1917, when during the Russian Revolution it became an autonomous and then nominally independent Moldavian Democratic Republic. In 1918, following a vote of its assembly, Bessarabia united with the Kingdom of Romania, the decision was disputed by Soviet Russia, which in 1924, created within the Ukrainian SSR, on a territory east of Bessarabia, a so-called Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1940, as a consequence of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Romania was compelled to cede Bessarabia to the Soviet Union, the Soviets decided to split the region between a newly established Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Ukrainian SSR. The Moldavian SSR included two-thirds of the territory of Bessarabia, on 27 August 1991, as part of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Moldavian SSR declared independence and took the name Moldova. The current Constitution of Moldova was adopted in 1994, the strip of the Moldovan territory on the east bank of the Dniester river has been under the de facto control of the breakaway government of Transnistria since 1990. Its economy is the poorest in Europe in per capita terms, Moldova is a parliamentary republic with a president as head of state and a prime minister as head of government. The name Moldova derives from the Moldova River, the valley of this served as a political centre at the time of the foundation of the Principality of Moldavia in 1359. The origin of the name of the river remains unclear, the dogs name, given to the river, extended to the Principality. For a short time in the 1990s, at the founding of the Commonwealth of Independent States, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country began to use the Romanian name, Moldova. Officially, the name Republic of Moldova is designated by the United Nations, in 2010, Oldowan flint tools were discovered at Bayraki that are 800, 000–1.2 million years old. This demonstrates that humans were present in Moldova during the early Paleolithic era. The inhabitants of this civilization, which lasted roughly from 5500 to 2750 BC, practiced agriculture, raised livestock, hunted, in antiquity, Moldovas territory was inhabited by Dacian tribes. Between the 1st and 7th centuries AD, the south was intermittently under the Roman, and then Byzantine Empires. The Principality of Moldavia, established in 1359, was bounded by the Carpathian Mountains in the west, the Dniester River in the east, and the Danube River and Black Sea to the south. Its territory comprised the territory of the Republic of Moldova, the eastern eight counties of Romania. Like the present-day republic and Romanias north-eastern region, it was known to the locals as Moldova, Moldavia was invaded repeatedly by Crimean Tatars and, beginning in the 15th century, by the Turks. In 1538, the principality became a tributary to the Ottoman Empire, the title used in the document of 6 July 1600 was The King of the country of Romania, Ardeal and of all of Moldavia
2.
Romania
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Romania is a sovereign state located in Southeastern Europe. It borders the Black Sea, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Hungary, Serbia and it has an area of 238,391 square kilometres and a temperate-continental climate. With over 19 million inhabitants, the country is the member state of the European Union. Its capital and largest city, Bucharest, is the sixth-largest city in the EU, the River Danube, Europes second-longest river, rises in Germany and flows in a general southeast direction for 2,857 km, coursing through ten countries before emptying into Romanias Danube Delta. The Carpathian Mountains, which cross Romania from the north to the southwest are marked by one of their tallest peaks, Moldoveanu, modern Romania was formed in 1859 through a personal union of the Danubian Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia. The new state, officially named Romania since 1866, gained independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1877, at the end of World War I, Transylvania, Bukovina and Bessarabia united with the sovereign Kingdom of Romania. Romania lost several territories, of which Northern Transylvania was regained after the war, following the war, Romania became a socialist republic and member of the Warsaw Pact. After the 1989 Revolution, Romania began a transition back towards democracy and it has been a member of NATO since 2004, and part of the European Union since 2007. A strong majority of the population identify themselves as Eastern Orthodox Christians and are speakers of Romanian. The cultural history of Romania is often referred to when dealing with artists, musicians, inventors. For similar reasons, Romania has been the subject of notable tourist attractions, Romania derives from the Latin romanus, meaning citizen of Rome. The first known use of the appellation was attested in the 16th century by Italian humanists travelling in Transylvania, Moldavia, after the abolition of serfdom in 1746, the word rumân gradually fell out of use and the spelling stabilised to the form român. Tudor Vladimirescu, a leader of the early 19th century. The use of the name Romania to refer to the homeland of all Romanians—its modern-day meaning—was first documented in the early 19th century. The name has been officially in use since 11 December 1861, in English, the name of the country was formerly spelt Rumania or Roumania. Romania became the predominant spelling around 1975, Romania is also the official English-language spelling used by the Romanian government. The Neolithic-Age Cucuteni area in northeastern Romania was the region of the earliest European civilization. Evidence from this and other sites indicates that the Cucuteni-Trypillian culture extracted salt from salt-laden spring water through the process of briquetage
3.
Bulgaria
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Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, with a territory of 110,994 square kilometres, Bulgaria is Europes 16th-largest country. Organised prehistoric cultures began developing on current Bulgarian lands during the Neolithic period and its ancient history saw the presence of the Thracians, Greeks, Persians, Celts, Romans, Goths, Alans and Huns. With the downfall of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1396, its territories came under Ottoman rule for five centuries. The Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78 led to the formation of the Third Bulgarian State, the following years saw several conflicts with its neighbours, which prompted Bulgaria to align with Germany in both world wars. In 1946 it became a one-party socialist state as part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc, in December 1989 the ruling Communist Party allowed multi-party elections, which subsequently led to Bulgarias transition into a democracy and a market-based economy. Bulgarias population of 7.2 million people is predominantly urbanised, most commercial and cultural activities are centred on the capital and largest city, Sofia. The strongest sectors of the economy are industry, power engineering. The countrys current political structure dates to the adoption of a constitution in 1991. Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic with a high degree of political, administrative. Human activity in the lands of modern Bulgaria can be traced back to the Paleolithic, animal bones incised with man-made markings from Kozarnika cave are assumed to be the earliest examples of symbolic behaviour in humans. Organised prehistoric societies in Bulgarian lands include the Neolithic Hamangia culture, Vinča culture, the latter is credited with inventing gold working and exploitation. Some of these first gold smelters produced the coins, weapons and jewellery of the Varna Necropolis treasure and this site also offers insights for understanding the social hierarchy of the earliest European societies. Thracians, one of the three primary groups of modern Bulgarians, began appearing in the region during the Iron Age. In the late 6th century BC, the Persians conquered most of present-day Bulgaria, and kept it until 479 BC. After the division of the Roman Empire in the 5th century the area fell under Byzantine control, by this time, Christianity had already spread in the region. A small Gothic community in Nicopolis ad Istrum produced the first Germanic language book in the 4th century, the first Christian monastery in Europe was established around the same time by Saint Athanasius in central Bulgaria. From the 6th century the easternmost South Slavs gradually settled in the region, in 680 Bulgar tribes under the leadership of Asparukh moved south across the Danube and settled in the area between the lower Danube and the Balkan, establishing their capital at Pliska
4.
Sofia
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Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. The city has a population of 1.26 million, while 1.68 million people live in its metropolitan area, the city is located at the foot of Vitosha Mountain in the western part of the country, within less than 50 kilometres drive from the Serbian border. Its location in the centre of the Balkan peninsula means that it is the midway between the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea, whereas the Aegean Sea is the closest to it, Sofia has been an area of human habitation since at least 7000 BC. Being Bulgarias primate city, Sofia is a hometown of many of the local universities, cultural institutions. Sofia is one of the top 10 best places for business in the world. Sofia is Europes most affordable capital to visit as of 2013, for the longest time the city possessed a Thracian name, derived from the tribe Serdi, who were either of Thracian, Celtic, or mixed Thracian-Celtic origin. It seems that the first written mention of Serdica was made during his reign, during the Romans civitas Serdenisium was mentioned the brightest city of the Serdi in official inscriptions. The city was major throughout the past ever since Antiquity, when Roman emperor Constantine the Great referred to it as my Rome, other names given to Sofia, such as Serdonpolis and Triaditza, were mentioned by Byzantine Greek sources or coins. The Slavic name Sredets, which is related to middle and to the citys earliest name, the city was called Atralissa by the Arab traveller Idrisi and Strelisa, Stralitsa or Stralitsion by the Crusaders. The name Sofia comes from the Saint Sofia Church, as opposed to the prevailing Slavic etymology among Bulgarian cities and towns. It is ultimately derived from the Egyptian Kemetic word sbÅ, meaning star, door, teaching and wisdom and this was a tradition of collection of wise literature, shared between Mediterranean cultures, which was called sophia in Greek. In these documents the city is called Sofia, but at the time the region and the citys inhabitants are still called Sredecheski. The city became popular to the Ottomans by the name Sofya. In 1879 there was a dispute about what the name of the new Bulgarian capital should be, the citys name is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the o, in contrast with the tendency of foreigners to place the stress on i. The female given name Sofia is pronounced by Bulgarians with a stress on the i, Sofia has an area of 492 km2, while Sofia City Province has an area of 1344 km2. Sofias development as a significant settlement owes much to its position in the Balkans. It is situated in western Bulgaria, at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the Sofia Valley that is surrounded by the Balkan mountains to the north. The valley has an altitude of 550 metres
5.
Bulgarian Socialist Party
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The Bulgarian Socialist Party, known as the Centenarian, is a social-democratic political party in Bulgaria and successor to the Bulgarian Communist Party. The BSP is a member of the Party of European Socialists and it is the leading component of the Coalition for Bulgaria centre-left coalition. The party was formed after the changes of 1989, when the Communist Party abandoned Marxism–Leninism. The party formed a government after the Constitutional Assembly elections of 1990, a non-partisan government led by Dimitar Popov took over until the next elections in October 1991. In the aftermath the party was confined to opposition, as part of the Democratic Left coalition, it helped form a new government in 1995, headed by BSP leader Zhan Videnov as Prime Minister. Its term ended at the end of 1996, after the country entered into a spiral of hyperinflation, large-scale demonstrations in the cities and a general strike prevented the formation of a new socialist government. In 2001, party chairman Georgi Parvanov was elected President of Bulgaria on the second round, Parvanov resigned as party chairman and was succeeded by Sergei Stanishev. The cabinet was headed by the minister and BSP chairman Sergei Stanishev. In 2006, Georgi Parvanov was reelected president in a landslide, in 2007, Bulgaria joined the European Union. Later, the triple-coalition lost millions of Euros of European financial aid in the wake of allegations of political corruption. The cabinet was unable to react to the encroaching world economic crisis. In the 2009 parliamentary elections, the BSP was defeated by the new conservative party GERB, obtaining 37 out of 240 parliamentary seats, in the 2013 parliamentary elections the party took 26. 6% of the votes, second behind GERB with 30. 5%. Nevertheless, the candidate for prime minister, Plamen Oresharski, and his proposed government were elected with the parliament support of the BSP. The appointment of the media mogul Delyan Peevski as head of the state security agency DANS. Demonstrations urging the government to step down continued until the government resigned in July of the following year, the following is a summary of BSPs results in legislative elections for the Bulgarian National Assembly
6.
Lovech
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Lovech is a city in north-central Bulgaria. It is the centre of the Lovech Province and of the subordinate Lovech Municipality. The city is located about 150 kilometres northeast from the city of Sofia. Near Lovech are the towns of Pleven, Troyan and Teteven, the name is possibly derived from the Slavic root lov, hunting + the Slavic suffix -ech. Lovech is situated in the Forebalkan area of northern Bulgaria, on sides of the river Osam, and unifies both mountainous and plain relief. In the northwest the relief gradually changes to the plains of the neighbouring Pleven Province, the average altitude of Lovech is about 200 m above mean sea level. The highest point of the town is Akbair Hill at 450 m, in Stratesh Park, the highest place in the town, there are a great number of lilac bushes, easily seen from the whole town, which are a wonderful view in the spring. Due to this, Lovech is well known as the town of the lilacs, according to the census, held in February,2011, Lovech is populated by 36,600 inhabitants within city limits. In the 1880s the population of Lovech numbered about 7,000, following the census of 1926 Professor Anastas Ishirkov noted the homogeneity of the population which is 95% of Bulgarian origin. Lovech is one of the oldest towns in Bulgaria, traces of human activities from very ancient times were found in the region, mainly in the caves near the town. The reason was the location between the mountains and the flat country, and the presence of a river. The first inhabitants of the town were the Thracian tribe of the Meldi and they founded their capital, called Melta, in the area, which was situated at the place of todays neighbourhood and architecture reserve Varosha. Parts of this road are to be seen in the territory of Lovech today, in the 12th century Lovech was a great trade centre and one of the most famous towns in Bulgaria. In the 17th century Lovech was once again an important trade centre and one of the richest towns in Bulgaria and he was arrested by the Turkish military in a village near Lovech called Kakrina and later hanged in Sofia. The biggest museum of Vasil Levski in Bulgaria containing many items such as notebooks, clothes. Between 1872 and 1874, the Bulgarian master-builder Nikola Fichev, known also as Kolyu Ficheto, built the famous Covered Bridge over the river Osam, the bridge was burned out in 1925, but rebuilt in 1931. Now it connects the new and the old part of the town and its full of cafes, small restaurants, during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78, an important battle was held at Lovech, known as the Battle of Lovcha. The war and several plagues and migrations in Wallachia drastically reduced the population, there was a substantial number of victims from the Bulgarian population
7.
Svishtov
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Svishtov is a town in northern Bulgaria, located in Veliko Tarnovo Province on the right bank of the Danube river opposite the Romanian town of Zimnicea. It is the centre of the homonymous Svishtov Municipality. With a population of 35,923 inhabitants, as of December 2009, Svishtov is situated in northern central Bulgaria on the right bank of the Danube river in its southernmost point, across from Zimnicea, Romania. The town lies 237 kilometres north-east of the capital Sofia, and 251 kilometres west of the major Black Sea port of Varna, other important cities in the region are Pleven 80 kilometres away, and Ruse 90 kilometres away. The port of Svishtov is the southernmost harbour on the Danube and it is served around the clock by the Svishtov-Zimnich ferry — a regular operation Ro-ro ferryboat across the Danube between Svishtov and Zimnicea. Svishtov is identified with the Roman colony Novae mentioned by Ptolemy, the emperor Vespasian sent the legion I Italica here 70 AD and Novae served as the legions base for centuries. Novae served as a base of operations for Roman campaigns against Barbarian tribes including Trajans Dacian Wars, the legion was also responsible for bridge construction over the Danube. The colony of Novae was the residence of St. Lupus of Novae, for a short time the place was the main city for the Ostrogoths of Theodoric the Great. With roast turkeys, chickens, and all other delicacies of the season on the bill of fare of the restaurants in the town. On 4 March 1977, Svishtov suffered major damage in the Vrancea earthquake. Svishtov Cove in Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named for the town of Svishtov, Svishtov has a humid subtropical climate with considerable continental influences. The summer lasts five months, from May to September, winters start in early December and last until March. The origins of the name Svishtov can be found in its old Bulgarian variation Sveshtniy, deriving from the word svesht/svyasht and this was due to the existence of a lighthouse in the city. The previous name Sistova was first mentioned in the treaty after the Austro-Turkish War in 1791 and this name was chosen instead of the Turkish word Zigit. During the Ottoman rule of Bulgaria the town was known as Ziștovi. The main religion in Svishtov is Eastern Orthodox Christianity, there is also a small group of Roman Catholics that have migrated from the surrounding villages of Oresh, Dragomirovo and the town of Belene, and small group of Muslims. The mayor of Svishtov Municipality is Gencho Bozhinov Genchev, the D. A. Tsenov Academy of Economics were established in 1936 with decree-Law signed by Boris III. Since then Svishtov became an academician town, state commercial high school Dimitar Hadjivasilev is the first vocational school in Bulgaria
8.
Troyan Monastery
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The Monastery of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God or, as it is more commonly called, the Troyan Monastery is the third largest monastery in Bulgaria. It is located in the part of the country in the Balkan mountains and was founded no later than the end of the 16th century. The monastery is situated on the banks of the Cherni Osam near Oreshak, a village 10 km from Troyan in Lovech Province, the main church of the monastery was reconstructed near the end of Ottoman rule during the Bulgarian National Revival period by a master-builder called Konstantin in 1835. Many of the moral and social experiments of art at the time such as Doomsday, one highly controversial move by Zograph was to paint his image around one of the windows in the back of the church. The iconostasis in the church is a wood carving dating to 1839. The Troyan Monastery is also, since the 17th century, the home of one of the holiest icons in Bulgarian Orthodoxy, many people make a pilgrimage to this monastery on St. Georges Day because of an icon of St. George in the main church. The room, in which Bulgarian revolutionary Vassil Levski was hiding and meeting with other revolutionaries during the Ottoman period is a museum, Troyan Monastery Travel Bulgaria, Troyan Monastery Troyan Monastery Троянски манастир - Bulgarian & English The legend about Three-Handed Virgin icon
9.
Slivovitz
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Šljivovica, Slivovitza, Schlivowitz, or Slivovitsa is a fruit brandy made from damson plums, often referred to as plum brandy. Slivovitz is produced in Central and South-East Europe both commercially and privately, primary producers are in Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia. In the Balkans, Slivovitz is considered a kind of Rakia, in Hungaria Pálinka and in the Czech Republic and Slovakia Pálenka, for example, Czech meruňka apricot → meruňkovice apricot brandy, broskev peach → broskvovice peach brandy. The primary producers are Bosnia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, during the production process, the plums and their ground kernels are crushed and pressed, yeast, starch, and sugar may be added to the juice. The mixture is allowed to ferment. There may be one or more stages, depending on the desired final product or region of production. Some producers have obtained a Hechsher certifying that it is kosher for Passover, imitation slivovitz is made by flavouring spirits with prune juice and artificial oil of bitter almonds. In Bulgaria, the Troyan plum brandy has been distilled in the Troyan Monastery by the monks since the founding of the monastery in the 14th century, the original recipe included 40 herbs, and was passed through the centuries from abbot to abbot. In 1894 the Monasterys brandy was presented at a competition in Antwerp, Belgium. It is considered best distilled to a level between 39 and 41 degrees. Some celebrities who have tasted Troyan plum brandy are Pope John Paul II, patriarch Maxim of Bulgaria celebrated his 95th birthday in 2009 in the Sofia Metropolitanate with Troyan plum brandy. In cooperation with the Bulgarian government, the Czech distillery Rudolf Jelinek protected the brands Troyanska slivova, however, the Czechs reduced the alcohol content to pay less duty. The production of Vinprom-Troyan is mainly for export, for the past 18 years, Troyan has a special holiday, The Festival of Plum. This holiday is celebrated at the end of September in Troyan, the plum has always been an essential produce in this region. Since the beginning of the 20th century plums have been made into marmalades, pesto, dried prunes and it is primarily produced in the southern and eastern provinces of Moravia and in Vysočina, where the country retains its rural character. The production was introduced by immigrants from the Balkans since the 16th century. Although illegal, traditional home distilleries still exist, the majority of production moved to certified local community-owned distilleries to prevent errors during the distillation process. It also allows state authorities to collect their respective taxes based on the proof of the product, however there are tax-reliefs for private, the usual proof of private-produced slivovice is over 50% of alcohol in the final product, commercially available mass-produced drinks are mostly lower proof
10.
Tangra Mountains
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Tangra Mountains form the principal mountain range of Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. The range had been nameless until 2001, when it was named after the Bulgar god Tangra, the mountain is divided in three principal ridges, Friesland Ridge in the west, Levski Ridge in the centre, and Delchev Ridge in the east. Camp Academia in the foothills of Zograf Peak is the perfect gateway to central Tangra Mountains via Catalunyan Saddle to the south. Catalunyan Saddle was occupied by a bivouac of the Tangra 2004/05 Exploration team on 14–16 December 2004, Friesland Ridge is 15.5 km long from Botev Point in the southwest to Shipka Saddle to the northeast. The summit Mount Friesland rises to exactly 1700 m and it was accurately measured by GPS in December 2003 by the Omega Foundation expedition led by Damien Gildea, which made the second ascent of Mount Friesland. Other main peaks are St. Boris, Simeon, St. Cyril, Lyaskovets, Presian Ridge, St. Methodius, Academia, and Zograf. Levski Ridge is 8 km long between Shipka Saddle to the west and Devin Saddle to the east, and 8 km wide between Cherepish Ridge to the north and Christoff Cliff to the south. The summit Great Needle Peak rises to 1680 m, and was first ascended and GPS-surveyed by the Bulgarian mountaineers Doychin Boyanov, Nikolay Petkov, other main peaks are Levski, St. Ivan Rilski Col, Helmet, Serdica, Vihren, Ongal, and Plovdiv. Other first ascents, Ongal Peak and Komini Peak by L. Ivanov from Camp Academia on 21 December 2004, Delchev Ridge is 10 km long between Devin Saddle to the west and Renier Point to the east. The summit Delchev Peak rises to 940 m, other peaks are Ruse, Asen, Peter, Kuber, Elena, Spartacus, Yavorov. British mapping of the mountains in 1968, Spanish mapping in 1991, Omega Foundation mapping in 2004, Bulgarian mapping in 2005 and 2009 from topographic surveys in 1995/96, S. Soccol, D. Gildea and J. Bath. Antarctica, Livingston Island and Greenwich Island, South Shetland Islands, sofia, Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria,2005. Antarctica, Livingston Island and Greenwich, Robert, Snow and Smith Islands, Antarctica, Livingston Island and Smith Island. 2003 – Omega Livingston Island GPS Expedition, Livingston Island, Climb Magazine, Issue 14, Kettering, UK, April 2006, pp. 89–91. General Geography and History of Livingston Island, in, Bulgarian Antarctic Research, A Synthesis. Sofia, St. Kliment Ohridski University Press,2015, mountaineering in Antarctica, complete guide, Travel guide. ISBN 978-2-51103-136-0 Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria Tangra 2004/05 Expedition Expedition Omega Livingston 2003, Antarctic Mountains, Climbing in Antarctica This article includes information from the Antarctic Place-names Commission of Bulgaria which is used with permission
11.
South Shetland Islands
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The South Shetland Islands are a group of Antarctic islands, lying about 120 kilometres north of the Antarctic Peninsula, with a total area of 3,687 square kilometres. By the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the islands sovereignty is neither recognized nor disputed by the signatories, the islands have been claimed by the United Kingdom since 1908 and have been part of the British Antarctic Territory since 1962. They are also claimed by the governments of Chile and by Argentina, several countries maintain research stations on the islands. Most of them are situated on King George Island, benefitting from the airfield of the Chilean base Eduardo Frei, there are sixteen research stations to date in different parts of the islands, with Chilean stations being the greatest in number. Research is often a shared duty of nations, with the Chilean-United States Shirreff Base being one example, the Dutchman Dirck Gerritsz in 1599, or the Spaniard Gabriel de Castilla in 1603, supposedly sailed south of the Drake Passage in the South Shetland Islands area. In 1818 Juan Pedro de Aguirre obtained permission from the Buenos Aires authorities to establish a base for sealing on some of the islands near the South Pole. Thus Livingston Island became the first land discovered south of the 60th southern latitude. Smith revisited the South Shetlands, landed on King George Island on 16 October 1819, meanwhile, the Spanish Navy ship San Telmo sank in September 1819 whilst trying to go through the Drake Passage. Parts of her wreckage were found months later by sealers on the north coast of Livingston Island. From December 1819 to January 1820, the islands were surveyed and mapped by Lieutenant Edward Bransfield on board the Williams, the discovery of the islands attracted British and American sealers. The first sealing ship to operate in the area was the brig Espirito Santo, the ship arrived at Rugged Island off Livingston Island, where its British crew landed on Christmas Day 1819, and claimed the islands for King George III. A narrative of the events was published by the master, Joseph Herring. The Espirito Santo was followed from the Falkland Islands by the American brig Hersilia, commanded by Captain James Sheffield, having circumnavigated the Antarctic continent, the Russian Antarctic expedition of Fabian von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Lazarev arrived at the South Shetlands in January 1821. The Russians surveyed the islands and named them, landing on both King George Island and Elephant Island, the name New South Britain was used briefly, but was soon changed to South Shetland Islands. The name South Shetland Islands is now established in international usage, both island groups lie at a similar distance from the South Pole and North Pole respectively, but the South Shetlands are much colder. Seal hunting and whaling was conducted on the islands during the 19th, from 1908 the islands were governed as part of the Falkland Islands Dependency, but they have only been occupied since the establishment of a scientific research station in 1944. The archipelago, together with the nearby Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia, is a popular tourist destination during the austral summer. As a group of islands, the South Shetland Islands are located at 62°0′S 58°0′W and they are within the region 61° 00–63°37 South, 53° 83–62°83 West
Vigneux-sur-Seine, France
Dojran, Macedonia
Ellwangen, Germany
Maryina Horka, Belarus
Forlì, Italy
