Bulgaria Has 2 Million-strong Diaspora - Foreign Service

The US city of Chicago is home of the largest Bulgarian community in North America. Photo by Eurochicago.com

Bulgarians living abroad are 2 036 092, according to official information of Bulgarian diplomatic representations across the globe.

The data had been provided to the Association of Bulgarians with Experience and Education Abroad, the largest, private TV channel bTV reported Monday.

According to it, the Bulgarian diaspora is the most numerous in neighboring Turkey, where there are half million people from Bulgaria, followed by neighboring Greece and the US with 300 000 each. Spain, the UK, Italy, Germany, Canada, Macedonia and Cyprus are also among the top ten.

At the other end of the ranking are Afghanistan with 2 Bulgarians, Mongolia with 6, and Uzbekistan with 8.

80 000 Bulgarian youth are currently studying in colleges abroad with the ranking topped by the UK, where in the last 3 years their number has tripled.

Data from the National Statistics Institute, NSI, reveals than the number of those returning to their homeland shows an increasing trend after 2006 – 46% of those returning after a long stay aboard are with high school education and 34% have college degrees.

From those returning home, the most are from Russia, Spain, Germany and Greece.

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