Bulgarisation ( bg, българизация), also known as Bulgarianisation ( bg, побългаряване) is the spread of

Bulgarian culture A number of ancient civilizations, including the Thracians, ancient Greeks, Scythians, Celts, ancient Romans, Goths (Ostrogoths and Visigoths), Slavs (East and West Slavs), Varangians and the Bulgars have left their mark on the culture, histo ...

beyond the

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

ethnic space.

History

A number of government policies are considered to be examples of Bulgarisation, including the attempt of the former communist leadership in the 1980s to assimilate a Turkish population of

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 Macedon ...

. During the Communist period of Bulgarian history, the Turkish minority (mainly across Bulgaria's east) of the country were forced to change their names from Turkish or Arabic to Bulgarian in 1984, during

Todor Zhivkov Todor Hristov Zhivkov ( bg, Тодор Христов Живков ; 7 September 1911 – 5 August 1998) was a Bulgarian communist statesman who served as the ''de facto'' leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB) from 1954 until 1989 ...

's rule. Back then, as well as nowadays, the supporters of this policy refer to it as the "

Revival Process The Revival Process or the Process of Rebirth ( bg, Възродителен процес, Vazroditelen protses) refers to a policy of forced assimilation practiced by the socialist Bulgarian government in the 1980s. The policy involved the ethni ...

", while critics call it "the so-called Vǎzroditelen process". Turkish culture and language as well as Islamic beliefs were also suppressed. The argument was that the Turkish population of Bulgaria were allegedly Bulgarians

forced to convert to Islam ''Forced'' is a Single-player video game, single-player and Cooperative video game, co-op action role-playing game developed by Betadwarf, BetaDwarf, released in October 2013 for Windows, OS X and Linux through the Steam (service), Steam platform ...

during the

Ottoman rule Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to: Governments and dynasties * Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924 * Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...

.Briefing: Bulgaria's Muslims: From Communist assimilation to tentative recognition
, ''

Islamic Human Rights Commission The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) is a non-profit organisation based in London. Its stated mission is to "work with different organisations from Muslim and non-Muslim backgrounds, to campaign for justice for all peoples regardless of ...

'' This project met forceful resistance in the form of large-scale protests, international pressure and cases of terrorism. After the end of Communist rule, people were free to revert to previous names or adopt the names they wished, Arabic/Turkish or other. Some people continued using both names. Bulgarisation has also affected the

Romanians in Bulgaria The Romanians in Bulgaria ( ro, români or ; bg, румънци, ''rumŭntsi'', or , ''vlasi''), are a Romanian ethnic minority in Bulgaria. In the country, Romanians live in several northern regions, mostly along the Danube. This includes a ...

, who are largely assimilated.CERCETĂRI ETNOGRAFICE LA ROMÂNII DINTRE KOZLODUI ȘI ȘIȘTOV
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References

Cultural assimilation Slavicization Human rights in Bulgaria Islam in Bulgaria + Pomaks {{slavic-lang-stub Bulgarian irredentism

History

See also

References