
It had a geopolitical rather than a geographical definition, which was further promoted during the creation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in the early 20th century. The term Balkan Peninsula was a synonym for Rumelia in the 19th century, the European provinces of the Ottoman Empire. The concept of the Balkan Peninsula was created by the German geographer August Zeune in 1808, who mistakenly considered the Balkan Mountains the dominant mountain system of Southeast Europe spanning from the Adriatic Sea to the Black Sea. The highest point of the Balkans is Mount Musala, 2,925 metres (9,596 ft), in the Rila mountain range, Bulgaria. The northern border of the peninsula is variously defined.

The Balkan Peninsula is bordered by the Adriatic Sea in the northwest, the Ionian Sea in the southwest, the Aegean Sea in the south, the Turkish Straits in the east, and the Black Sea in the northeast. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the whole of Bulgaria. The Balkans ( / ˈ b ɔː l k ən z/ BAWL-kənz), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographic area in Southeast Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. 60 million (45 million only the peninsula's part)
