 Stambolovo lies in the Eastern Rhodope Mountains, not far from the Upper Thracian Plain and 22 kilometres from the provincial capital of Haskovo.The area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity, with Thracians, Romans, Byzantines, Bulgarians and Ottomans playing important roles in the area's history.Until 1906, the village was known as "Eller"; it was renamed after noted Bulgarian politician and Prime Minister of Bulgaria Stefan Stambolov (1854–1895).