Bulgaria
Culture Name
Bulgarian
Alternative Name
Bulgar, from the Bulgarian bu'lgar (Bulgarian person). In English, "Bulgar" is usually used only for the central Asian ancestors of the modern Bulgarians.
Orientation
Identification
The names "Bulgar", and "Bulgarian" most likely derive from a Turkic verb meaning "to mix." Ethnic Bulgarians trace their ancestry to the merging of Bulgars (or Proto-Bulgarians), a central Asian Turkic people, and Slavs, a central European people, beginning in the seventh century C.E. in what is now northeastern Bulgaria. Besides ethnic Bulgarians, there are several ethnic minorities, the most numerous being Turks and Gypsies, with smaller numbers of Armenians, Jews, and others.
The dominant national culture is that of the ethnic Bulgarians, and there is little sense of shared national culture among the three main ethnic groups. Turks usually do not self-identify as Bulgarians, whereas Gypsies often do. Both groups are generally considered outsiders by ethnic Bulgarians, in contrast to the more assimilated minorities such as Jews and Armenians. Nevertheless, since all citizens participate in the national economy and polity, a shared national bureaucratic-political culture does exist, both shaped by and shaping the cultural practices of the constituent ethnic groups.
Location And Geography
Bulgaria is located on the Balkan Peninsula in southeastern Europe. It is bordered on the east by the Black Sea, on the north by Romania and the Danube River, on the south by Greece and Turkey, and on the west by Macedonia and Serbia. The landscape consists of mountains, foothills, and plains. One-third of the territory is forested, and one-third is more than 2,000 feet (600 meters) above sea level. Major mountain ranges include Rila, Pirin, Balkan (Stara Planina), and Rhodope. For geographic reasons, Sofia was named the capital in 1879, after Bulgaria gained independence. Situated in an upland basin near the western border, Sofia was on the crossroads of major trade routes between the Aegean Sea and the Danube and between Turkey and central Europe. It also offered easy access to Macedonian lands, which were not part of the new Bulgarian state. Regional cultural variation sometimes reflects occupational specialization associated with local environmental conditions (e.g., fishing, animal husbandry), along with the influence of other cultural groups.
Demography
Bulgaria's population was 8,230,371 on December 31, 1998. The population increased gradually for most of the twentieth century, but has decreased by more than 700,000 people since 1988. This decline stems from out-migration and falling birthrates during the uncertain postsocialist period. About 68 percent of Bulgaria's population lives in urban areas, compared to 25 percent in 1946. In 1992, 86 percent of the population self-identified as ethnically Bulgarian, 9 percent as Turkish, and 4 percent as Roma (Gypsy). Smaller groups include Russians, Armenians, Vlachs, Karakachans, Greeks, Tatars, and Jews. The 1992 census did not include a category for Pomaks (Bulgarian Muslims), who are often identified as one of Bulgaria's four main ethnic groups and constitute an estimated 3 percent of the population. Through emigration, ethnic Turks have decreased as a share of the population since Bulgaria's 1878 independence. During the socialist period, ethnicity data were not made public, and there were efforts to assimilate Muslim minorities. This makes discussion of historical trends difficult, and some people may have self-identified on the census differently than they might in other contexts.
Linguistic Affiliation
The national language is Bulgarian, a South Slavic language of the Indo-European language family, which uses the Cyrillic script. Bulgarian is very closely related to Macedonian, the two languages being largely mutually intelligible, and to Serbo-Croatian. Much vocabulary has been borrowed from Russian, Greek, and Turkish, and the latter two have had a strong influence on Bulgarian grammar. Bulgarian has two main dialectal variants, eastern and western, and also local dialects. National education and media are fostering homogenization of the language, particularly in urban settings.
The Turkish minorities speak Turkish, a Turko-Altaic language. Gypsies speak Romany, an Indic language of the Indo-European language family. Many Gypsies also speak Turkish, and some speak Romanian. Bulgarian is necessary for interaction with the authorities and in commerce, and is the medium of instruction in schools, though minorities are entitled to be taught their mother tongue. The national media use Bulgarian, while some radio broadcasts and print media are available in Turkish.
Symbolism
The Bulgarian nation is symbolized in the coat of arms, which has at its center a crowned lion, a symbol of independence dating to the medieval Bulgarian state. During the state socialist period, the crown (a symbol of monarchy) was replaced by a star. After the fall of state socialism in 1989 the crown was replaced following a seven-year debate. The flag, a tricolor of horizontal stripes (from top: white, green, red), while a visible national emblem, is not so vested with specific meaning.
Among the most potent symbols of Bulgarian national identity are several key historical events: the founding of the Bulgarian states in 681 and 1878; the partition of Bulgaria in the Treaty of Berlin (1878); the union with Eastern Rumelia (an autonomous Ottoman province created by the partition) in 1885; the successful defense against Serbian encroachment in 1885; and territorial gains, losses, and humiliation in the Balkan wars (1912–1913) and World War I (1914–1918). Symbols of incompleteness and loss serve as powerful rallying points for national unity.
Images of the peasant, the merchant, the craftsman and entrepreneur, the teacher, and the nationalist revolutionary vie with each other in literature and folklore as icons of the true Bulgarian spirit, which incorporates qualities ranging from honesty and industry to resourcefulness and cunning.
National Identity
Bulgarian national identity is premised on the understanding that the Bulgarian nation (people) was formed with a distinctive ethnic identity during the Middle Ages (from a mix of Slavic, Bulgar, and other ethnicities). This identity, preserved throughout Ottoman rule, formed the basis for an independent nation-state. The history of the struggle for a Bulgarian state provides key symbols of national identity. Another premise is that ethnic and territorial boundaries should overlap. This has led at times to territorial conflicts with neighboring states. Moreover, this renders ambivalent the status of minorities, since they do not share the same ethnic and historical ties to the Bulgarian lands and state.
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