Bulgarians
Bulgarians ( bg, българи, Bǎlgari, ) are a nation and South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and the rest of Southeast Europe.
Etymology
Bulgarians derive their ethnonym from the Bulgars. Their name is not completely unders ...
in Ukraine make up the fifth biggest minority in the country and primarily reside in southern Ukraine. Bulgarians make up a significant minority of the
Odesa Oblast
Odesa Oblast ( uk, Оде́ська о́бласть, translit=Odeska oblast), also referred to as Odeshchyna ( uk, Оде́щина) is an oblast (province) of southwestern Ukraine, located along the northern coast of the Black Sea. Its administ ...
, especially the city of
Bolhrad.
Location and number
In
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
, the number of Bulgarians is estimated at over 140,000 (the
2001 Ukrainian Census
The Ukrainian Census of 2001 is to date the only census of the population of independent Ukraine. It was conducted by the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine on 5 December 2001, twelve years after the last Soviet Union census in 1989. counted a total of 204,600 Bulgarians which includes an undetermined number of more recent emigrants). Bulgarians comprise the majority in
Bolhrad District and are prevalent in the district of
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak ( Bulgarian and Ukrainian: Буджак; ro, Bugeac; Gagauz and Turkish: ''Bucak''), historically part of Bessarabia until 1812, is a historical region in Ukraine and Moldova. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube ...
in the Odesa Oblast and throughout the southern part of the country. Many Bulgarians have moved to
Odesa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrati ...
, the regional capital in recent years.
The Ukrainian Oblasts with the highest number of Bulgarians are:
*
Odesa
Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrati ...
: 150,700 (6.1%)
*
Zaporizhzhia
Zaporizhzhia ( uk, Запоріжжя) or Zaporozhye (russian: Запорожье) is a city in southeast Ukraine, situated on the banks of the Dnieper River. It is the administrative centre of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Zaporizhzhia has a populat ...
: 27,800 (1.4%)
*
Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv ( uk, Миколаїв, ) is a city and municipality in Southern Ukraine, the administrative center of the Mykolaiv Oblast. Mykolaiv city, which provides Ukraine with access to the Black Sea, is the location of the most downriver brid ...
: 5,600 (0.4%)
*
Donetsk
Donetsk ( , ; uk, Донецьк, translit=Donets'k ; russian: Донецк ), formerly known as Aleksandrovka, Yuzivka (or Hughesovka), Stalin and Stalino (see also: cities' alternative names), is an industrial city in eastern Ukraine loca ...
: 4,800 (0.1%)
History
The modern population of Bulgarians settled in the region at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th century, at the time of feudal sedition in the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
and after the
Russo-Turkish Wars
The Russo-Turkish wars (or Ottoman–Russian wars) were a series of twelve wars fought between the Russian Empire and the Ottoman Empire between the 16th and 20th centuries. It was one of the longest series of military conflicts in European histo ...
. Particularly significant waves of emigration began after the
Russo-Turkish Wars of 1806–1812 and
1828–1829. The settlers came primarily from what is now eastern
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
, but many were also descendants of Bulgarians of the western part of the country that had moved east in and before the 18th century. Among the Bulgarians that emigrated were also a handful of
Albanians who also had settled in eastern Bulgaria some time ago.
After arriving, the Bulgarians founded their own towns, such as
Bolhrad (1819) and
Comrat
Comrat ( ro, Comrat, ; gag, Komrat, Russian and bg, Комрат, Komrat) is a city and municipality in Moldova and the capital of the autonomous region of Gagauzia. It is located in the south of the country, on the Ialpug River. In 2014, Com ...
, and around 64 villages. In 1856, after the
Treaty of Paris Treaty of Paris may refer to one of many treaties signed in Paris, France:
Treaties
1200s and 1300s
* Treaty of Paris (1229), which ended the Albigensian Crusade
* Treaty of Paris (1259), between Henry III of England and Louis IX of France
* Trea ...
, the region of
Bessarabia was divided with the southwestern parts, including Bolhrad,
Izmail
Izmail (, , translit. ''Izmail,'' formerly Тучков ("Tuchkov"); ro, Ismail or ''Smil''; pl, Izmaił, bg, Исмаил) is a city and municipality on the Danube river in Odesa Oblast in south-western Ukraine. It serves as the administra ...
and
Kiliia
Kiliia or Kilia ( uk, Кілія́, translit=Kiliia, ; ro, Chilia Nouă) is a town in Izmail Raion, Odesa Oblast of southwestern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Kiliia urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Kiliia is located in ...
, incorporated into
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistr ...
(since 1861 –
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...
), and the northeastern ones, centered on
Comrat
Comrat ( ro, Comrat, ; gag, Komrat, Russian and bg, Комрат, Komrat) is a city and municipality in Moldova and the capital of the autonomous region of Gagauzia. It is located in the south of the country, on the Ialpug River. In 2014, Com ...
, remaining in the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. A Bulgarian
gymnasium (school) was founded in Bolhrad on 28 June 1858, which had a significant effect on the development of Bulgarian education and culture and was the first modern Bulgarian gymnasium.
In 1861, 20,000 Bulgarians from the Romanian part of Bessarabia moved to
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, where they were given land in
Taurida Governorate
The Taurida Governorate (russian: Тавріическая губернія, modern spelling , ; crh, script=Latn, Tavrida guberniyası, ) or the Government of Taurida, was a historical governorate of the Russian Empire. It included the Crime ...
to replace the
Nogais
The Nogais ( Nogai: Ногай, , Ногайлар, ) are a Turkic ethnic group who live in the North Caucasus region. Most are found in Northern Dagestan and Stavropol Krai, as well as in Karachay-Cherkessia and Astrakhan Oblast; some als ...
who had left what was formerly territory of the
Crimean Khanate
The Crimean Khanate ( crh, , or ), officially the Great Horde and Desht-i Kipchak () and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary ( la, Tartaria Minor), was a Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the long ...
. Those settlers founded another Bulgarian community—the
Tauridan Bulgarians.
After the whole region was incorporated once again into the Russian Empire in 1878, the process of
Russification grew stronger, as many Bulgarian intellectuals returned to the newly established
Principality of Bulgaria to help set up the Bulgarian state. The Russian Empire deprived the Bulgarian minority of the rights earned during Romanian control.
The whole of Bessarabia was ceded to Romania in 1918 after the
Russian Revolution and the collapse of the Russian Empire. In contrast with the previous period of Romanian control, most cultural and educational rights of the Bulgarian minority were taken away which led to cases of armed resistance such as the
Tatarbunary Uprising
The Tatarbunary Uprising ( ro, Răscoala de la Tatarbunar) was a Bolshevik-inspired and Soviet-backed peasant revolt that took place on 15–18 September 1924, in and around the town of Tatarbunary (''Tatar-Bunar'' or ''Tatarbunar'') in Budjak ...
of 1924.
The
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union that enabled those powers to partition Poland between them. The pact was signed in Moscow on 23 August 1939 by German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ri ...
of 1939 led to the
June 1940 Soviet ultimatum, the invasion and annexation of Bessarabia by the Soviet Union. Although an officially accepted minority under Soviet rule, the local Bulgarians lost some features of their cultural identity.
A movement of national revival began in the 1980s, with the publication of Bulgarian newspapers, establishment of cultural and educational associations, and the introduction of Bulgarian into the local schools, accelerating after the
dissolution of the Soviet Union and primarily offered as an elective, but later as a compulsory subject. The
Association of Bulgarians in Ukraine was founded in 1993.
During the
full-scale Russian invasion in Ukraine that began on February 24, 2022, a large part of the territories with a compact Bulgarian population were occupied by the Russian army, and in the occupied parts of the
Zaporizhzhia Oblast
Zaporizhzhia Oblast ( uk, Запорі́зька о́бласть, translit=Zaporizka oblast), also referred to as Zaporizhzhia ( uk, Запорі́жжя, links=no), is an oblast (province) of southeast Ukraine. Its capital is Zaporizhzhia. The ...
, the occupation authorities forbade the study of the
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian (, ; bg, label=none, български, bălgarski, ) is an Eastern South Slavic language spoken in Southeastern Europe, primarily in Bulgaria. It is the language of the Bulgarians.
Along with the closely related Macedonian l ...
and closed Bulgarian Sunday
school
A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...
s and centers, and their agricultural production has been forcibly bought at a pittance, and many of them are at risk of
starvation.
Кремъл забрани изучаването на български език в Запорожка област
/ref>
Notable Bulgarians from Ukraine
* Dimitar Agura Dimitar Agura.
Dimitar Dimitrov Agura ( bg, Димитър Димитров Агура; 26 October 1849 – 11 October 1911) was a Bulgarian historian, one of the first professors of history at Sofia University and a rector of the university.
Agu ...
, historian
* Petar Draganov
Pyotr Danilovich Draganov (russian: Пётр Данилович Драганов; bg, Петър Драганов; mk, Петар Драганов; – February 7, 1928) was a Russian philologist and slavist.
Biography
Draganov was born in Ko ...
, philologist
* Grisha Filipov, communist politician, Prime Minister of Bulgaria
* Dimitar Grekov
Dimitar Panayotov Grekov () (14 September 1847 – 7 May 1901) was a leading Bulgarian liberal politician who also served as Prime Minister.
A native of Bolgrad in Bessarabia (now Bolhrad, Ukraine), Grekov was educated at a French legal ...
, politician and public figure, Prime Minister of Bulgaria
* Kirill Kovaldzhi (on father's side), Russian poet and translator
* Aleksandar Malinov
Aleksandar Pavlov Malinov ( bg, Александър Павлов Малинов) (3 May 1867 – 20 March 1938) was a leading Bulgarian politician who served as Prime Minister on three occasions. He was born in Pandakli, Bessarabia (presen ...
, politician and public figure, three times Prime Minister of Bulgaria
* Ruslan Maynov, actor and musician
* Danail Nikolaev, military figure
* Ivan Plachkov, politician, two times Minister of Energy of Ukraine
* Aleksandar Teodorov-Balan
Aleksandar Stoyanov Teodorov-Balan ( bg, Александър Стоянов Теодоров-Балан; 27 October 1859 – 12 February 1959) was a Bulgarian linguist, historian and bibliographer.
Balan was born in the village of Kubey in th ...
, linguist, first rector of Sofia University
Sofia University, "St. Kliment Ohridski" at the University of Sofia, ( bg, Софийски университет „Св. Климент Охридски“, ''Sofijski universitet „Sv. Kliment Ohridski“'') is the oldest higher education i ...
* Nikolay Paslar
Nikolay Ivanovich Paslar ( bg, Николай Иванович Паслар; born June 12, 1980, in Taraclia, Moldavian SSR) is an amateur Bulgarian freestyle wrestler, who competed in the men's middleweight category. Considered as one of Bulgar ...
, freestyle wrestler
Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling originated from Great Britain and the United States. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games. American high school and men's college wrestling i ...
References
* Grek, Ivan and Nikolay Chervenkov. ''Българите в Украйна и Молдова. Минало и настояще (Balgarite v Ukrayna i Moldova. Minalo i nastoyashte)'', Sofia, 1993.
* Navakov, Saveliy Z. ''Социально-экономическое развитие болгарских и гагаузких сел Южной Бесарабии (1857–1918) (Sotsial'no-ekonomicheskoe razvitie bolgarskikh i gagauzkikh sel Yuzhnoy Besarabii (1857–1918))'', Chişinău, 2004.
* ''Rodolyubets'' Almanach, volumes 1—6, (Sofia, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004).
See also
* Bulgaria–Ukraine relations
* Bessarabian Bulgarians
The Bessarabian Bulgarians ( bg, бесарабски българи, ''besarabski bǎlgari'', ro, bulgari basarabeni, uk, бесарабські болгари, ''bessarabski bolháry'') are a Bulgarian minority group of the historical region ...
{{Bulgarian diaspora
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
Ethnic groups in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...