Balkans
Sign in to saveThe Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whole of Bulgaria. The Balkan Peninsula is bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the northwest, the Ionian Sea in the southwest, the Aegean Sea in the south, the Turkish straits in the east, and the Black Sea in the northeast. The northern border of the peninsula is variously defined. The highest point of the Balkans is Musala, , in the Rila mountain ran
AI overview
The Balkans is a geographical region in southeastern Europe named after the Balkan Mountains, bordered by multiple seas including the Adriatic, Ionian, Aegean, and Black Sea. The region matters because it occupies a strategically important position connecting Europe with the eastern Mediterranean and Turkey, and it encompasses diverse countries with distinct histories and cultures.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Peninsulas.image_name
- Geographic map of Balkan Peninsula.svg
- Peninsulas.image_caption
- Geographical map of the Balkan Peninsula
- Peninsulas.image_alt
- The Balkan Peninsula according to Prof. R. J. Crampton
- Peninsulas.mapframe zoom
- 4
- Peninsulas.location
- Southeastern Europe
- Peninsulas.highest_mount
- Musala (Bulgaria)
- Peninsulas.elevation_m
- 2925
- Peninsulas.country
- See below
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
36 sectionsContents
- Name
- Etymology
- Historical names and meaning
- From antiquity to the early Middle Ages
- Late Middle Ages and Ottoman period
- Evolution of meaning in the 19th and 20th centuries
- Southeast Europe
- Current
- Definitions and boundaries
- Balkan Peninsula
- Balkans
- Western Balkans
- Criticism as geographical definition
- Nature and natural resources
- History and geopolitical significance
- Antiquity
- Middle Ages and Early modern period
- Recent history
- World wars
- Cold War
- Post–Cold War
- Economy
- Regional organizations
- Statistics
- Demographics
- Religion
- Languages
- Urbanization
- Time zones
- Culture
- Historiography
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Further reading
- External links
The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whole of Bulgaria. The Balkan Peninsula is bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the northwest, the Ionian Sea in the southwest, the Aegean Sea in the south, the Turkish straits in the east, and the Black Sea in the northeast. The northern border of the peninsula is variously defined. The highest point of the Balkans is Musala, , in the Rila mountain range, Bulgaria.
The concept of the Balkan Peninsula was created by the German geographer August Zeune in 1808, who mistakenly considered the Balkan Mountains the dominant mountain system of southeastern Europe spanning from the Adriatic Sea to the Black Sea. In the 19th century the term Balkan Peninsula was a synonym for Rumelia, the parts of Europe that were provinces of the Ottoman Empire at the time. It had a geopolitical rather than a geographical definition, which was further promoted during the creation of Yugoslavia in the early 20th century. The definition of the Balkan Peninsula's natural borders does not coincide with the technical definition of a peninsula; hence modern geographers reject the idea of a Balkan Peninsula, while historical scholars usually discuss the Balkans as a region. The term has acquired a stigmatized and pejorative meaning related to the process of Balkanization. The region may alternatively be referred to as Southeast Europe.