Pirin National Park

Pirin National Park covers most of the Pirin Mountains in southwestern Bulgaria and is one of the country's three national parks, alongside Rila and Central Balkan. Pirin National Park is part of UNESCO's World Cultural and Natural Heritage.
It was established as Vihren People's Park on 8 November 1962 to protect the forests in the mountain's highest areas. In 1974, by an order of the Ministry of Forests, it was renamed Pirin People's Park and its area was considerably enlarged. In 1998 it gained national park status following the adoption of the Republic of Bulgaria's Protected Areas Act.
Pirin National Park covers 40,332.4 hectares and borders the municipalities of Gotse Delchev, Bansko, Razlog, Simitli, Kresna, Strumyani and Sandanski. Two nature reserves lie within the park: Bayuvi Dupki–Dzhindzhiritsa and Yulen. Bayuvi Dupki–Dzhindzhiritsa is one of Bulgaria's oldest reserves and forms part of UNESCO's network of biosphere reserves. In 1983 the park was designated an area of global significance in Europe.
The name "Pirin" derives from the ancient Slavic god Perun, dating from when the Slavs settled in the mountain in ancient times.