Veliko Tarnovo ( Велико Търново, also transliterated as Veliko Turnovo ), meaning Great Thorny City in Old Bulgarian, is a mountain city located in the north of Bulgaria. It has often been called the " City of the Tsars ", as it was historically the capital of the Bulgarian political entities. It is located around a major bend in the Yantra River that carved steep hillsides on which the Old Town is built. The Old Town is separated into 3 hills: Tsarevets, Trapezitsa, and Sveta Gora, while the New Town spills out into a flatter region to the west of the hills. : P70 : P8