The city extends from the land-connected Matey (Матей) island and the mouth of Rusenski Lom on the west to Srabcheto (Сръбчето) hill on the east.

Sarabair (саръбаир, from Turkish Sarıbayır meaning "Yellow Slope") hill is to the south of the city and is 159 m (521.65 ft) high.

Scholars suggest that the city on the river bank derived its present name from the Finnish root ruskea meaning "blonde", or *ru- ("river", "stream") or from the Cherven fortress, meaning "red", through the root rous, which is present in many Slavic languages.

In the 13th and 14th centuries, during the time of the Second Bulgarian Empire, a fortified settlement called Rusi, first mentioned in 1380, emerged near the ruins of the earlier Roman town.

Other theories include settlement by people from the Rus era; a connection to the village of Rusokastro in Burgas Province; an unattested tribe of Getae with a name such as Riusi, or; the pagan festival of Rosalia.

[4] The city emerged from a Neolithic settlement of the 3rd to 2nd millennium BCE, when pottery, fishing, agriculture, and hunting developed.

Excavations have revealed several layers, suggesting that the place was attacked by neighbouring tribes and suffered from natural disasters.

The fort was on the main road between Singidunum (modern Belgrade) and the Danube Delta and was destroyed in the 6th century by Avar and Slavic raids.

Hungarian historian Felix Philipp Kanitz was the first to identify Sexaginta Prista with Ruse, but the Škorpil brothers demonstrated the link later through studying inscriptions, coins, graves, and objects of daily life.

An inscription from the reign of Diocletian proves that the city was rebuilt as a praesidium (a large fortification) after it was destroyed by the Goths in 250 CE.

It later grew into one of the most important Ottoman towns on the Danube and an administrative centre of Tuna Vilayet, which extended from Varna and Tulcea to Sofia and Niš.

After knyaz Alexander Battenberg's 1886 abdication, and as a reaction to the regentship's course led by prime minister Stefan Stambolov, a group of Russophile (pro-Russian) military officers revolted in Ruse.

The riot was violently crushed, and 13 of the leaders were quickly sentenced to death and executed near the city, which caused much public discontent.

Decades later, in 1934, local citizens raised funds and built a monument at the place where the Russophile officers were executed.

Between World War I and II, after Southern Dobruja was lost to Romania, the economic significance of the city decreased.

So did the population: Ruse was no longer the second-largest city in Bulgaria (after former East Rumelian capital Plovdiv), being quickly surpassed by Sofia and Varna.

The return of Southern Dobrudja to Bulgaria in September 1940 fostered good conditions for the restoration of the city's leading role.

Engineering, chemical, and light industries expanded; a large harbor was built, and the city became a university centre.

The first informal organization in Bulgaria under the communist regime was established here - The Public Committee for Environmental Protection of Ruse, which provoked the first nationwide demonstrations and strongly influenced the change to democracy.

[22] Like other post-socialist regimes in eastern Europe, Bulgaria found the transition to capitalism rather painful and not as easy as expected.

The urban economics were positively influenced by the 2007's accession of Bulgaria and Romania in the European Union, which allowed deeper cross-border cooperation.

In 2012 the Rousse Regional Historical Museum completed a project, which allowed the rehabilitation and display of the remains of the Roman city Sexaginta Prista.

A safer and more efficient navigation in the inland waterways was accomplished with a new structure – the river information system BulRIS.

Dohodno zdanie, an imposing Neoclassical edifice in the city centre convincingly won the National competition "Emblematic building of the year" in 2014.

The Arena Ruse sports hall with more than 5100 seats opened on 23 July 2015 nearly 40 years after initial construction efforts began.

Most of the sights of the city are located at the center of Ruse (museums, architectural landmarks, the theater, the opera, hotels, restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops).

Noted for its rich culture, Ruse hosts a philharmonic orchestra, the Rousse State Opera (founded in 1949) and the "Sava Ognianov" theater.

During spring and autumn, daytime temperatures vary between 17 and 22 °C (63 and 72 °F), and precipitation during this time tends to be higher than in summer, with more frequent yet milder periods of rain.

After the opening of the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal which covers 3,500 km (2,175 mi) and connects 13 European countries with Asia via the Black Sea, the river becomes the longest inland waterway on the planet.

[32]According to the latest 2011 census data, the individuals declared their ethnic identity were distributed as follows:[32][36] According to the first census in 1883, the ethnic composition was as follows:[37] Total: 26,156 Ruse is twinned with:[41] Ruse Peak (800 m) on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after the city.