Kardzhali Municipality
# Kardzhali Municipality

Kardzhali Municipality is a municipality in Kardzhali Province, Bulgaria. Its administrative centre is Kardzhali.

## Demography

### Ethnic groups

According to the 2011 census, the municipality of Kardzhali was mostly inhabited by ethnic Turks (55.5%) and ethnic Bulgarians (40.5%), with Romani people, others and undeclared comprising the rest of the population.

Ethnic groups in Kardzhali Municipality (2011 census) :

| Ethnic group | Ethnic group | Percentage | Percentage |
| - | - | - | - |
| Bulgarians | Bulgarians | 40.5% | 40.5% |
| Turks | Turks | 55.5% | 55.5% |
| Romani | Romani | 1.7% | 1.7% |
| others and indefinable | others and indefinable | 2.3% | 2.3% |

### Vital statistics

The municipality of Kardzhali has a slightly higher birth rate than the Bulgarian average, while its death rate is significantly lower. The municipality has favourable demographic indicators compared to the rest of Kardzhali Province and Bulgaria as whole.

| | Population | Live births | Deaths | Natural growth | Birth rate (‰) | Death rate (‰) | Natural growth rate (‰) |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2000 | 76,903 | 794 | 673 | 121 | 10.3 | 8.8 | 1.6 |
| 2001 | 69,845 | 739 | 661 | 78 | 10.6 | 9.5 | 1.1 |
| 2002 | 69,694 | 649 | 676 | -27 | 9.3 | 9.7 | -0.4 |
| 2003 | 69,274 | 697 | 758 | -61 | 10.1 | 10.9 | -0.9 |
| 2004 | 68,956 | 743 | 760 | -17 | 10.8 | 11.0 | -0.2 |
| 2005 | 68,789 | 740 | 741 | -1 | 10.8 | 10.8 | -0.0 |
| 2006 | 68,676 | 794 | 677 | 117 | 11.6 | 9.9 | 1.7 |
| 2007 | 68,740 | 812 | 736 | 76 | 11.8 | 10.7 | 1.1 |
| 2008 | 68,814 | 811 | 784 | 27 | 11.8 | 11.4 | 0.4 |
| 2009 | 68,535 | 827 | 729 | 98 | 12.1 | 10.5 | 1.4 |
| 2010 | 68,406 | 810 | 691 | 119 | 11.8 | 10.1 | 1.7 |
| 2011 | 67,336 | 745 | 760 | -15 | 11.1 | 11.3 | -0.2 |
| 2012 | 67,257 | 746 | 727 | 19 | 11.1 | 10.8 | 0.3 |
| 2013 | 67,288 | 683 | 742 | -59 | 10.2 | 11.0 | -0.9 |
| 2014 | 67,794 | 743 | 733 | 10 | 11.0 | 10.8 | 0.1 |
| 2015 | 67,619 | 690 | 765 | -75 | 10.2 | 11.3 | -1.1 |
| 2016 | 67,667 | 723 | 797 | -74 | 10.7 | 11.8 | -1.1 |
| 2017 | 67,871 | 677 | 807 | -130 | 10.0 | 11.9 | -1.9 |
| 2018 | 68,727 | 683 | 787 | -104 | 9.9 | 11.5 | -1.5 |

### Religion

According to the latest Bulgarian census of 2011, the religious composition, among those who answered the optional question on religious identification, was the following:

Religious composition of Kardzhali Municipality

Orthodox Christianity

37.1%

Catholicism

0.3%

Protestantism

0.3%

Islam

52.8%

No religion

1.5%

Prefer not to answer, others and indefinable

8.0% :

A majority of the population of Kardzhali Municipality identify themselves as Muslims. At the 2011 census, 52.8% of respondents identified as believers of Islam, mostly ethnic Turks and a small Pomak population. The Bulgarian minority is mostly Orthodox Christian belonging to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (37.1%).

