Any observer of the contemporary world knows that much will change in a decade. This has been particularly true in the states of the former socialist bloc, and nowhere more so than in the Balkans. Bulgaria has naturally not been exempt from this process. Since the first edition of this book the country endured a serious social and political crisis after which it has rebuilt its economic foundations and made huge strides towards integration into the Euro-Atlantic structures. With entry into the EU the country also enters an entirely new chapter in its history, one in which it will be bound more tightly than ever in its past to the other states of Europe. How this monumental change affects the country and its people will be for future histories to relate.

Since the first appearance of this book friends, colleagues, and well-wishers previously unknown to me have helped me with constructive comments and suggestions for any future edition. I would like to thank them all but would also like to mention in particular Professor Martin Minchev of the University of Calgary, Canada. In the years between the publication of the original edition and now, other students have arrived in Oxford and enriched the university and my own life. In addition to those named in the original version I would like to express my thanks also to Teodora Parveva, Dimitûr Bechev, Patricia Curtis, Tressa Gipe, Ivana Gogova, Milena Grizo, Dimitrina Mihaylova, Yavor Siderov, and Matthew Tejada.