Strazhitsa (Bulgarian:Стражица, pronounced [ˈstraʒit͡sə]; also transliterated Stražica, Strazhitza, etc.) is a town in northeastern Bulgaria, part of Veliko Tarnovo Province. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Strazhitsa Municipality, which lies in the eastern part of the Province. The town is located in the central Danubian Plain, not far from the Balkan Mountains, 45 kilometres northeast of the provincial capital of Veliko Tarnovo. As of December 2009, it has a population of 5,170 inhabitants.