Lost in Plovdiv

Within settlements, large public spaces have always existed and played an important role. Originally, they were the crossroads of major trade routes where goods were exchanged and contacts made, and today they are accepted as the main reference point when we want to find our way or gather a larger group of people.

We have collected for you the most popular and important squares in the city under the hills, and we leave it up to you to add those in the neighborhoods.

Central Square

The development of the place around the Central Post Office in the square began after the end of the First Exhibition in 1892, for which the garden and the space around it were created. At first it was called Tsar Simeon, and after 09.09.1944 it was called Central Square.

At the end of the 1960s, its major cementing began, and a little later, when Drazha Valcheva was the secretary of the District Committee of the party, the pavement was laid, which is remembered by the people of Plovdiv as "Drazha's tiles".

In the 1970s and 1980s, during the complete reconstruction of the place and the streets around it, it became clear that under the square and the adjacent space was the central square of the ancient city - the Forum of Philippopolis. After the expansion of the post office, the square was paved with expensive limestone slabs from Vratsa, which were replaced during the last reconstruction in 2019.

In recent years, this part of our city has turned into an impressive open-air museum and a favorite place of Plovdiv residents and guests of the city.

Stefan Stambolov Square

It occupies the space in front of the Plovdiv Municipality building, also known as Kopchetata (the Buttons) because of the specific shape of the seats on it.

In antiquity, Roman baths existed in the area of the square, the remains of which were discovered in the 1930s. During the Ottoman period, the Aladzha Mosque (Colored Mosque) was erected on the site.

През 1997 г. по време на управлението на пловдивския кмет Спас Гърневски е взето решение площадът да носи името на Стефан Стамболов и тогава е построен и паметника на държавника.

In 1997, during the administration of Plovdiv mayor Spas Gurnevski, it was decided that the square should bear the name of Stefan Stambolov, and then the statesman’s monument was built.

Roman Stadium Square

Roman Stadium Square is known among the locals by the name Dzhumayata, which, however, was never its official name. Its previous names are Ainal Megdan (Moon Square), Alexander Stamboliyski, Knyaz Boris and November 19.

Seven streets intersect in the square. Here was the first phaeton piazza, then the first taxis gathered here. The first bus lines passed through it, and later the first trolleybuses in Plovdiv.

In 1977, there was a project by architect Lyuba Velcheva for exhibiting the uncovered part of the stadium and the first conservation by architect Vera Kolarova. The square has officially had its name since 2012.

Saedinenie Square

It is dedicated to the Unification of Bulgaria and was built in connection with the 100th anniversary of the event. It is located in the immediate vicinity of Main Street and Shesti Septemvri Boulevard.

In 1925, volunteer societies from all over the country gathered in Plovdiv and solemnly laid the foundation stone of the future monument of the Unification at Thursday Market, but the project failed.

It was only at the end of November 1984 that the decision was made to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Unification at the national level and the city of Plovdiv was chosen as the center of the celebrations. This necessitated the construction of a monument and its placement in a suitable place. The location of the Plovdiv market was chosen for this. In nine months, the market was moved and the monument was constructed, the work of the sculptor Velichko Minekov and the architect Lozan Lozanov. The monument is placed in the center of the square, which is called Saedinenie. Both were opened on 19.09.1985.

Kocho Chistemenski Square

It is located in the Marasha district and occupies the space between General Danail Nikolaev Street and Shesti Septemvri Boulevard, near the current Eccoplexx cinema. At the beginning of the century, a monument to the prominent revolutionary, who is believed to have repeatedly sheltered the Apostle, was placed on it. There is also a bomb shelter nearby built under the supervision of German engineers and with the participation of German soldiers for the Plovdiv citizens of the area during the Second World War.

22 Septemvri Square/Grape Market

In the past, there was an old Turkish homestead and a market on this site, from which the name of the neighborhood originates. The old Turkish name of the square is known - Emish market (Yemiş pazar - Fruit market), and the chiflik was called Gül bahçe.

During socialism, the square was called Vela Blagoeva. In the local consciousness, however, the place remains "Grozdovia". In the 1930s, due to its proximity to the new Ruski boulevard, the Plovdiv bus station was formed here, which functioned until the South and North Bus Stations were built.

From September 22, 2008, in honor of the Independence of Bulgaria, the square took the name 22 September. In addition to it, he also acquired a new symbol - the Column of Independence.

Wheat Market Square/Shahbazyan

Zhiten Pazar (Wheat Market) is a small square in the Shesti Septemvri Boulevard and Tsar Ivan Shishman Street area. It is the eastern entry point of Old Plovdiv and bears the name of the market located in this place in the late 1950s. Before 1989, the square was called Shahbazyan, and it has remained so in the minds of the natives of Plovdiv to this day.