Bulgarian History Research Articles

Приносът на Ясуо Кинбара в проучването и популяризирането на българската история в Япония

Приносът на Ясуо Кинбара в проучването и популяризирането на българската история в Япония

The Chronicle of the Council of Constance of 1414–1418: An Underrated Source of Bulgarian History after the Fall under Ottoman Rule

The Chronicle of the Council of Constance of 1414–1418: An Underrated Source of Bulgarian History after the Fall under Ottoman Rule

. ДЖИЗИЕ ПЛАТЦИ В КАЗА ЕСКИ ДЖУМА (ТЪРГОВИЩЕ) ПРЕЗ XIX ВЕК (ПО ДАННИ НА ОСМАНСКИ РЕГИСТРИ)

The possibility of using archival documents, including those from the archives in the Republic of Turkey, allows various studies and analyzes to be carried out, which shed light on Bulgarian history, and can be used in the field of cultural studies, sociology, and linguistics. The ledgers undoubtedly represent historical sources extremely rich in business and economic data. Under Ottoman Sharia law, non-Muslims living within the country were identified as dhimmis and a tax called djizie was collected from them. The Ottoman registers contain data on djizie tax payers and thanks to them it is possible to obtain information about the non-Muslim population and the economic status of the settlement. The present study is based on the data obtained from the nufus, temettuat and djizie registers of Eski Djuma (Targovishte), which are kept in the Ottoman Archives in Istanbul.

The Bulgarian Land Forces in the Cold War

During the Cold War, information in Western open sources about Bulgarian Land Forces’ war plans, organisation, and order of battle was absent or very general, until the last years of the 1980s. Yet there is much more information now available after 30 years, and this is a very valid topic for research. Bulgaria was drawn into Soviet war planning for the elimination of capitalism. Bulgaria’s planned part in this was helping to seize the Turkish Straits, either with or without the use of tactical nuclear weapons. It now appears that there would have been two Fronts advancing in this area, one predominantly Soviet Odessa Military District forces to seize the Turkish Straits, and the other more heavily Bulgarian in composition attacking towards central Greece. Both would have been supported by tactical air forces and, if the circumstances dictated, nuclear weapons. Later, with the commitment of strategic reserves, it was hoped to develop the offensive in depth towards the Syrian border. The forces formed to carry this mission out were reorganized repeatedly from 1945-55, as the Communist Party tightened its control over the country. The organisation of the Land Forces was much more settled after the early 1960s. Bulgarian history will be better served by more open debate over these issues.

“Bulgaria on three seas!”: An example of regression as a defense mechanism experienced by a large‐group in a response to its national inferiority complex

Abstract“Bulgaria on three seas” is a commonly used phrase in Bulgaria. It is used on national celebration days, around government election days, in populist campaigns, on TV shows, on social media, at folkloric concerts and gatherings and in simple everyday conversations. The phrase signifies a specific golden century of Bulgarian history characterized by the fact that Bulgaria reaches the Black, White and Adriatic seas. Today, the phrase is regularly used by Bulgarians when they talk about their country. This glorious time is also used as part of the political and public rhetoric where ideology has nationalistic character. It is present during political public debates about the country's reactions to both its past and its future. The phrase “Bulgaria on three seas” lifts the national spirit during moments of struggle. And all that raises questions about why Bulgarians constantly refer to this part of their history and what this regressive behavior demonstrates. This article aims to provide a psychological explanation, combining the concepts of regression (going back to the past), denial of the present and national inferiority complex (perceived helplessness and weakness) in order to analyze how a nation could respond to its own feelings of national group inferiority. It explains how regression is a response to one's own feelings of inferiority and it contributes to the studies of large‐group psychology established by Vamik Volkan by offering an alternative explanation. The work demonstrates that regression is the Bulgarian way of dealing with its own inferiority complexes when in denial about what is happening in the present. This takes place when group identity (or an aspect of it) is questioned. The article also provides a pathway to further exploration of how other nations deal with similar experiences.

A Broad Vision of Bulgarian History in the First Half of the Twentieth Century

A Broad Vision of Bulgarian History in the First Half of the Twentieth Century

Ingredients of Change: The History and Culture of Food in Modern Bulgaria by Mary C. Neuberger (review)

Reviewed by: Ingredients of Change: The History and Culture of Food in Modern Bulgaria by Mary C. Neuberger Darra Goldstein Neuberger, Mary C. Ingredients of Change: The History and Culture of Food in Modern Bulgaria. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY and London, 2022. x + 231 pp. Illustrations. Notes. Select bibliography. Index. $125.00; $27.95; $18.99 (e-book). Mary C. Neuberger's new book, Ingredients of Change: The History and Culture of Food in Modern Bulgaria, begins with a confession: 'I came to love the Balkans first and foremost via food' (p. 1). In five chapters devoted to foodstuffs that form the basis of the Bulgarian diet (bread, meat, yogurt, tomatoes and peppers, and wine), this deft study explores the interplay of political and social ideologies, theories of nutrition, and economic issues through the lens of food, focusing on the period of Communist rule between 1944 and 1989. As in the Soviet Union, to which Bulgaria's Communist party looked for guidance, the focus was on socalled rational consumption, devised as a scientific counterpoint to traditional patterns of eating that had been, at least for Bulgaria's Christian community, defined by the prescribed feast and fast days of the Orthodox Church. In the years following World War Two, there was great concern about the amount of bread and lack of protein in the typical Bulgarian diet. Thus, the government pushed to increase meat production, a goal that involved both the agricultural and industrial sectors of the economy. This aim had to do not just with improving the nation's health, but also with a vaguer idea of 'progress' defined in terms of Western consumer values. Considering their country's fertile soil and long history of excellent gardening practices, many advocates saw Bulgaria as being especially well poised to enter onto the world economic stage and not be confined to selling produce solely within the Eastern bloc. [End Page 173] But it proved difficult to countervail centuries of ingrained eating habits and to create a national cuisine that would be distinct from the culinary practices that had influenced the Bulgarian kitchen under Ottoman rule. Neuberger explains how the flavourful tomatoes and peppers that Bulgaria is known for today were appropriated for nationalist aims; rather astonishingly, by the 1960s this small country was 'the top source of tomatoes and tomato products in the world' (p. 116). She further documents how the government encouraged a move away from traditional sheep and goat herding to the raising of more economically productive cows and eventually pigs — a striking evolution in a country where pork had been a minor provision due to the large Muslim population. The book usefully discusses the tensions between the Communist Party goal of greater meat eating among the populace and the activism of countercultural movements like the Bialo Bratstvo (White Brotherhood), which espoused vegetarianism and traced its ideas all the way back to Thrace — a convenient parallel narrative for Bulgarian history that looked to Western as opposed to Eastern influences on Bulgarian food culture. With its cogent analysis of the forces that transformed the Bulgarian diet over the course of the twentieth century, Ingredients of Change is an important contribution to the literature on Eastern European foodways. And yet, the promise of the book — the 'color, flavor, and texture' (p. 1) of Bulgarian food introduced at the very beginning — remains unfulfilled. Although we gain a good understanding of certain emblematic Bulgarian ingredients, we are left with little sense of the country's cuisine. Cuisine is far more than simply ingredients: it is a multifaceted concept that embraces the dishes made from various ingredients as well as the techniques used to prepare them; the way the table is laid; the rituals of mealtime; and much more. Cuisine also involves an understanding of taste. Bulgarian yogurt is indeed extraordinary, but here it is presented as simultaneously 'gamy' and possessing a 'delicate bacterial flora and flavor' (p. 87). We learn about the advent of 'pork plenty' (p. 69), but the ways in which pork was used in the kitchen are barely discussed. The Bulgarians are particularly inventive in the art of meat preservation by means of salting and air-drying. The...

Medieval Bulgaria in Polish Historiography after 1989

Polish-Bulgarian relations have a centuries-old history, and medieval Bulgarian history has been widely present in Polish research and publications throughout the 20th century. However, the deep crisis processes that started in the early 1980s, the massive activity of the Solidarity trade union in Poland, and the events of the 1980s marked the beginning of a new period in Polish research and, accordingly, in Polish-Bulgarian relations and contacts. The main task of the paper is to present and analyze studies and publications on medieval Bulgarian history over the decades following the fall of communist rule, in the context of complete liberalization of political, scientific, and cultural life in Polish society. Are there any traditional topics that continue to develop after 1989? Are there new topics and problems in Polish studies and publications on Bulgarian history that emerged in the decades of transition after 1989? Are there any new Polish research centres and schools working in the field of the Bulgarian Middle Ages that appeared in the last three decades? Despite the transition and difficulties of the 1980s and 1990s in Polish society and for Polish historians, the analysis demonstrates a strong and lasting interest in medieval Bulgarian history in Polish historiography at the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st centuries. Finally, the author expresses hope that, despite the vicissitudes and challenges facing the two nations in today’s globalizing world, this interest in the medieval Bulgarian past will persist in the coming decades.

“Bulgarian” Sites in Germany: People, Commemorations, and National Memory

Many monuments and places related to historical events and people connected with Bulgarian history can be found throughout Western Europe (and beyond). They are often the result of the wish of Bulgarians to commemorate prominent figures in Bulgarian history. Such sites, depending on the visitors and the commemorative practices performed there, are perceived as national memorials or as religious sites. At the same time, they contribute to the preservation of Bulgarian national memory and cultural heritage beyond Bulgaria’s borders. The text will explore “Bulgarian” sites (memorial plaques, chapels, and other places) in various locations in Germany, including Heidelberg, Ellwangen, Regensburg, Reichenau, and others, with a focus on the visits Bulgarians organise and the commemorative and religious practices they perform on-site.

LANGUAGE FASHION IN THE ANTHROPONYMICON OF BURGAS

The research is dedicated to the fashionable anthroponyms chosen by the citizens of Burgas for naming their children in the period 1996–2018. It was found that some of the personal names that were considered fashionable in the late twentieth century today are not sufficiently liked and are no longer considered prestigious. As a result of the observations, we concluded that the taste of society is changing rapidly, and in the recent years of this century names associated with Bulgarian history, unisex names, and especially those of foreign origin are coming into fashion. The research established that, as a new and fashionable trend in the Burgas anthroponymicon, non-affixation derivation of patronymics is getting more and more popular.

Battered by Geopolitical Winds, Bulgaria Struggles to Restart Much Needed Reforms

Battered by Geopolitical Winds, Bulgaria Struggles to Restart Much Needed Reforms

Information Retrieval System of Bulgarian Revival Books in the Service of Libraries

The article presents the methodology and the results of the project “Digitalization of the repertoire of books from the Bulgarian Revival (1801-1878)” funded by the Bulgarian National Science Fund and coordinated by the University of Library Studies and Information Technologies. During Bulgaria's national Revival in the 19th century, printed books were published in Bulgarian language for the first time since the beginning of the occupation by the Ottoman Empire. As printing presses were forbidden in the Bulgarian speaking areas at that time, the books were printed in a huge geographical area: from Moscow to New York. With the implementation of the project the books of this period are compiled in one comprehensive online bibliography for the first time. The new information retrieval system applies innovative methodology of Geographic Information Systems which visualizes bibliographic information and allows its utilization by means of topographic indexes. The entries are also linked with the existing digitized full-texts of Bulgarian libraries and museums. The project’s final product (http://books.unibit.bg/) will stimulate the interest of international humanitarian scientists on Bulgarian history, culture, and literature and will significantly improve the conditions for the preparation and conduct of research in the field of the Bulgarian Revival literature, literary and cultural history. At the same time, the information retrieval system will assist librarians in their daily work. With the project “Digitalization of the repertoire of books from the Bulgarian Revival (1801-1878)” a solid ground was built for future collaborations in this very special field, the digitization of rare printed books, which requires a high level of specialized knowledge and skills.

Administrative Renaming and the Memory for Plovdiv Urban Space during XX Century

In this paper are presented the main and little-known street and other urban areas’ name changes in Plovdiv during the XX century. Attention is also paid to the background from the late Ottoman period. The renaming actions implemented by the central or local authorities usually lead to partial or complete loss of historical memory, regardless of the policy, purpose and ideology. Most seriously were affected the names from the time of the Ottoman rule but there were more cases throughout the Bulgarian national history.

On the Issue of Bulgarian Public Holidays

The festive calendar is a reflection of the understandings, values and history of a people and country, a sign to the next generations about the difficulties and victories of the past, an example of what they should value, what they should not forget and what they should learn from. Until the establishment of the Third Bulgarian State, the holiday calendar of the Bulgarian society consisted primarily of religious and traditional holidays, which were preserved as a main component of the holiday calendar even after the Liberation. To them are added holidays related to the monarchical institution, as well as important historical events for the Bulgarian people. Generally, public holidays are the designated important dates and non-working days in our annual national calendar, and the national holiday should be the most important day among them. Such an occasion is undoubtedly the adoption of the first democratic Bulgarian Constitution on April 16, 1879, which should not just be a day in Bulgarian history, but a national holiday of the Bulgarian state. If we respect the Bulgarian institutions, statehood and independence, we must give due importance and respect to this date.

ИМА ЛИ „ПОМАШКИ ГОВОР“ В БЪЛГАРИЯ? ВТОРА ЧАСТ / IS THERE A POMAK DIALECT IN BULGARIA? SECOND PART

The paper presents a critical look at a study by Emel Balakchi dedicated to the Bulgarian Rhodope dialects and addresses her attempt to regard the Rhodope dialects as Pomak dialects, while ignoring the presence of a native Bulgarian Christian population in the Rhodopes. Numerous examples reveal the author’s lack of scientific competence and objectivity in presenting the characteristic features of the Bulgarian Rhodope dialects. Keywords: Bulgarian dialectology, Rhodope dialects, historical grammar of the Bulgarian language, Pomak dialects, Bulgarian history

Conservation and Restoration of Molybdobulls from the Fund of the Archaeological Museum "Veliki Preslav"

Archaeological Museum "Veliki Preslav" has over 110 years of history. It was founded as part of the Archaeological Society "Ticha" on October 26, 1906 and lasted in this form until 1949. Then the museum was provided with a large building next to the church monument "St.St. Cyril and Methodius", not far from the Preslav Palace. In 1981, the museum was moved in a new purpose-built building, where it still welcomes history lovers from around the world. At the permanent exhibition you can see epigraphic monuments that testify to the spread of literature, as well as examples of artistic crafts, showing the rise of the Bulgarian state. The most striking examples of this are the Preslav golden treasure and objects of the Preslav white clay pottery. More than 35,000 objects are stored in the museum funds, 1700 of which are presented in the exposition hall. The most significant Preslav samples have been included in dozens of international exhibitions, in hundreds of scientific publications, film and media productions. Today Veliki Preslav has its own archaeological museum with a magnificent exposition, visited annually by tens of thousands of Bulgarian and foreign tourists. The museum's collections most fully present the phenomenon of the Golden Age and illustrate the place of Simeon's capital as a leading center of Slavic writing, art and art crafts in Southeast Europe in the ninth and tenth centuries. More than 570 sphragistic monuments are stored in the museum's fund. For most of them there is accurate information about their location, which makes them full sources for Bulgarian history from IX - XI century. In 1978, a team of archaeologists led by Ivanka Akrabova-Zhandova, exploring the area in the southeastern part of the inner city of Preslav, discovered a building with massive foundations and preserved squares of construction, which plan resembles a pagan temple or shrine. As a result of the excavations, which continued in the following years, more than 500 molybdobulls, 250 lead cores and three molds for their casting have been discovered. These findings testify to the administrative nature of the building, in which not only the correspondence was stored, but it was also sent. Therefore, we are talking about an chancellery that served the local Byzantine strategists. Thanks to the seals found there, we found the names of 17 strategists of Preslav in the period 971-1059. The molybdobulls also present the names of persons who wrote to the local strategist. Almost all social groups in the empire are represented - from the emperor himself to the common spatary. In 2019, 50 lead seals were included in the exhibition "At the Gates of the Royal Court. Treasures of Veliki Preslav", which was opened at the Archaeological Museum in Sofia. In 2020, the project "Conservation and restoration of molybdobulls from the Strategy in Great Preslav" was completed. This project was implemented by the Archaeological Museum "Veliki Preslav" in partnership with National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. 100 of the most affected molybdobulls have undergone conservation and restoration. Restoration activities are a necessary step that must be carried out before the digitalization of the sphragistic fund.

Information on the Bulgarian History in the IX – XI Centuries, Reflected in the Russian Chronograph

Object of the present research is the Russian chronograph, an extensive chronicle in which the history of the Slavs is described as part of the world. The information about the Bulgarians occupies an important place. The data about the Bulgarian history in the 9th – 11th c. is taken from Slavic translations of Byzantine chronicles and from some Russian historical works, most notably from the Bulgarian additions to the Manasses Chronicle. This article seeks to answer the question of how productive the Chronograph is as a historical source. Unpublished editions and copies of the Chronograph were also used for the purposes of the research. The method of comparative analysis shows that although some of the information is found in earlier Russian historical texts, different points of view are presented in the Russian chronograph. The chronograph contains rich information about Bulgarian history, part of which remains out of scientific interest. It is valuable for science and can be productively used as a source for Bulgarian medieval history.

A Bulgarian Student in Early XX Century Ukraine: Study, Lifestyle and Challenges

The paper discusses the life of Konstantin Nikolov, a Bulgarian from the town of Gorna Oryahovitsa, during his study at the Kyiv Institute of Commerce (1909 – 1915). The very “insignificance” of this person allows for some wider generalizations, given the fact that precisely such people best reflect the society as a whole. For this reason, the study of ordinary people’s biographies has become an important focus of modern historiography. Nikolov’s student years illustrate some aspects of contemporary Bulgarian history and exemplify the experience of Bulgarian students in the Russian Empire before and during the World War I. The present study is based on archive materials previously untapped by scholars. It also involves some documents relative to Svitozar Drahomanov, who was of Ukrainian origin but spent his childhood in Bulgaria and studied at the Kyiv Institute of Commerce along with Nikolov, as well as documents regarding a trip to Bulgaria by Czesław Madej, another student of the same institute. The study demonstrates that archives of different Kyiv-based higher educational institutions should be explored for more valuable materials regarding Bulgarian born students, which may help draw a fuller picture of Bulgarian-Ukrainian relations in the field of education and culture. This, in turn, will contribute to a deeper understanding of the history of Ukrainian higher education in the early 20th century. It will also provide a wider perspective on the phenomenon of Bulgarians studying abroad before and during the World War I, including the life situations of the students during this period which proved crucial for the whole European civilization.

Аристократ на духа. Щрихи към творческия портрет на проф. д.и.н. Андрей Пантев

In the article an attempt for a creative and civic portrait of the most popular Bulgarian historian and one of our most respected intellectuals – Prof. DSc. Andrey Pantev (hist.), is made. The stages of his construction as a scientist are characterized. The unusual breadth of his research interests, extending to the new and modern Bulgarian, Balkan, European and world history, is outlined. His unusual style of restoring the past stands out. It is understood in his specific creative laboratory. On this basis, his elegant difference among colleagues from the professional guild is shown. Special attention is paid to his civic position before and after the beginning of the democratic renewal of the country, as well as his fascinating and artistic stay in the public space and his bright presence in the development of the new Bulgarian parliamentarism. Professor Andrey Pantev is shown as a gifted modern historian, an original scientist with his contributions in other fields of science, a prominent public figure and one of the greatest intellectuals of modern Bulgaria, as a true aristocrat of the spirit of European and world greatness.

Град Ихрит във „Вселенската история“ на Асохик и възникването на сакралния ореол около средновековния Охрид

Stepanos Taronetsi (Steven of Taron), better known as Asoghik, completed his Universal History in 1004. This work made him the most prominent Armenian historian of the 11th century. It is known in Bulgaria because of Asoghik’s information about the Armenian origin of the Bulgarian Tsar Samuel. However, the following passage, related to Bulgarian history, has gone unnoticed by scholars: “Justianos, 37 years... He was overthrown by his army for insignificant reasons and fled to Khakan, the king of the Khazars, married his daughter and took the city of Ihrit as an inheritance, and with the help of the Khazar troops returned to reign in Constantinople and established himself on the throne of his kingdom. Then he built the great and famous Hagia Sophia Church.” Ihrit is the city of Ohrid in the present-day Republic of North Macedonia. A careful analysis of the passage shows that the episode of Justinian II’s reascension (685–695; 705–711) to the Byzantine throne with the help of the Bulgarians (the Khazars at Asoghik) was automatically attached to the reign of Justinian I (527–565) by the Armenian historian. Or rather, this insertion was already made in the earlier source used by Asoghik. The fact that Asoghik mentions Ohrid during the reign of Justinian I falls within the context of the propaganda efforts of the Ohrid Archbishopric (Archbishopric of Bulgaria) to derive its origins directly from the famous Archbishopric of Justiniana Prima, founded in 535 by Emperor Justinian I. The aim was to create a sacred aureola around the Ohrid Archbishopric and subsequently to neutralize the Constantinople Patriarchate’s attempts to subdue it and even to put an end to its existence. However, Asoghik’s account preceded the Ohrid Archbishopric’s efforts by a century. Nevertheless, the mention of Ohrid in Asoghik’s work is not a late interpolation of a scribe, but it fits perfectly into a statement of the Byzantine historian Nicephorus Gregoras, suggesting that the first steps in presenting Ohrid as an ancient ecclesiastical center, identical to Justiniana Prima, were made around 972, shortly after the seat of the Bulgarian Patriarchate had been transferred from Moesia to Macedonia.