Bessarabian Bulgarians
Encyclopedia
The Bessarabian Bulgarians are a Bulgarian
minority group of the historical region of Bessarabia
, inhabiting parts of present-day Ukraine
(Odessa Oblast
) and Moldova
.
, the number of Bessarabian Bulgarians is estimated at over 129,000 in Budjak
(in the Odessa Oblast
in the southern part of the country), and 75,000 elsewhere (mostly in other parts of Southern Ukraine), according to the 2001 Ukrainian Census
, which counted a total of 204,600 Bulgarians in Ukraine.
Bulgarians are a majority in Bolhrad
District (45,600 of its 75,000 inhabitants), but they also inhabit other districts of Budjak
: Arciz - 20,200 of the 51,700, Tarutino - 17,000 of the 45,200, Izmail - 14,100 of the 54,700, and Sarata - 10,000 of the 49,900. There are also 8,600 Bulgarians in the city of Izmayil (85,100 total population).
Outside Budjak, Odessa
has many Bulgarians have moved there in recent years. The city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky is about 4% Bulgarian, making them the third-largest ethnicity there.
(excluding the region of Transnistria), concentrated mostly in the southern parts — chiefly in Taraclia district. In the census held in November 2004 in Transnistria, 3,164 (3.16%) Bulgarians have been counted in Tighina
and surroundings and further 10,515 (2.39%) on the Eastern bank of the river Dnestr.
29,447 Bulgarians live in the cities (and represent 2.26% of the urban dwellers), and 36,215 live in the countryside (1.74% of the rural inhabitants). 90.60% of ethnic Bulgarians were born in Moldova (the national average is 94.6%), 5,968 (9.09%) in other countries that were once in the Soviet Union (the national average is 5.16%), and 199 (0.30%) were born elsewhere.
In Moldova (and likely Ukraine too, although statistics are not available here), the Bulgarians tend to use their native Bulgarian in rural areas, and Russian (instead of the majority language Romanian) in cities and towns. 53,178 or 80.99% of ethnic Bulgarians declared Bulgarian language
as native (69.23% in urban areas, and 90.55% in rural ones), 2,766 or 4.21% of them declared Romanian language
as native (4.91% in urban areas, and 3.64% in rural ones), 9,134 or 13.91% of them declared Russian language
as native (25.08% in urban areas, and 4.83% in rural ones), and 584 or 0.89% of them declared another language as native (0.78% in urban areas, and 0.98% in rural ones).
35,808 or 54.53% of ethnic Bulgarians declared Bulgarian language
as first language in daily use (36.81% in urban areas, and 68.95% in rural ones), 5,698 or 8.68% of them declared Moldovan language
/Romanian language
as first (7.93% in urban areas, and 9.29% in rural ones), 23,259 or 35.42% of them declared Russian language
as first (54.45% in urban areas, and 19.95% in rural ones), and 897 or 1.37% of them declared another first language (0.81% in urban areas, and 1.81% in rural ones).
Bessarabian Bulgarians represent 28,293, or 65.56% of the population of the Taraclia district. There are also Bulgarians in Chişinău
(8,868, or 1.2%), Găgăuzia
(8,013, or 5.1%), Cahul district (5,816, or 4.9%), Leova district (3,804, or 7.4%), and Cantemir district (3,736, or 6.2%). The share of ethnic Bulgarians in Transnistria
is 10,515 (2.39%), of which 2,450 (1.55%) in Tiraspol
, and 7,323 (8.44%) in Slobozia sub-district (which contains the village of Parcani). There are alse 3,001 (3.09%) Bulgarians in the city of Tighina
, and 342 in 3 suburbs. In total, there are 79,520 (2.02%) Bulgarians in Moldova, including Transnistria.
Bessarabian Bulgarians represent a majority in one city of Moldova, Taraclia
(10,732 Bulgarians, or 78%) and in 8 communes in the country:
, and after the Russo-Turkish Wars of the period. Particularly strong waves of emigration emerged after the Russo-Turkish Wars of 1806–1812 and 1828-1829. The settlers came primarily from what is now eastern Bulgaria
, 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 to Bessarabia were also a handful of Albanians
who also had settled in eastern Bulgaria some time before.
When during the Russian-Ottoman Wars, Russian Armies were reaching and crossing Danube
, some local Bulgarians supported them. These people where compromised in the eyes of the Ottomans and therefore had a better chance moving to the Russian Empire. The Russian Propaganda also worked to convince Bulgarians to settle in areas recently conquered by them, from which Tatars were removed. Bulgarian settled not only in Bessarabia, but also in the Kherson region.
For the first time, Bulgarian and Gagauzian refugees in Bessarabia are mentioned in 1769. The 1817 census found Bulgarians in 12 Bessarabian villages in the valleys of the Ialpug and Lunga River
s (Creeks): 482 Bulgarian and Gagauzian families and 38 Romanian families in these 12 villages. The leader of the Bulgarians and Gagauzians was a man referred to as Copceac. Seven of the 12 villages were Gagauzian ( Baurci
, Beşalma
, Ceadîr-Lunga
, Chessău, Dezghingea
, Gaidar
, and Tomai
), and 5 were Bulgarian.
After arriving in Bessarabia, Bulgarians and Gagauzians founded their own towns, such as Bolhrad
(1819) and Comrat
, and around 64 (according to some sources) or 43 (according to other sources) villages. In 1856, after the Treaty of Paris
, two counties of southern Bessarabia, Cahul County
and Ismail County, revereted back to the Principality of Moldavia (since 1861 — Kingdom of Romania
). That included the cities of including Bolgrad, Ismail
and Chilia
. Gaguzian settlements centred around Comrat
, however, remained in the Russian Empire
. A Bulgarian high school (gymnasium), the Bolhrad High School
, was founded in Bolgrad (Bolhrad) on June 28, 1858 by the Moldavian authorities of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, which had a positive effect on the development of Bulgarian education and culture, and is in fact the first modern Bulgarian gymnasium.
In 1861, 20,000 Bulgarians from the Romanian part of Bessarabia moved to Russia
, where they were given land in Taurida Governorate
to replace the Nogais
who had left what was formerly territory of the Crimean Khanate
. Those settlers founded another Bulgarian community — the Tauridan Bulgarians.
After the whole region of Bessarabia was re-incorporated again by the Russia Empire in 1878, the process of Russification
grew stronger, as many Bulgarian intellectuals returned to newly established Principality of Bulgaria
to help set up the Bulgarian state. The Bulgarian minority was deprived of the rights earned during the Romanian control.
The whole of Bessarabia united
with Romania in April 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 not returned.
During the Tatarbunar Uprising of 1924, when Soviets unsuccessfully tried to overthrow the Romanian administration in southern Bessarabia
, many Bulgarians (alongside local Moldovans (Romanians), and Bessarabian Germans) sided with Romanian authorities, as pointed out by Gheorghe Tătărescu
in the report given on behalf of the Ministry of the Interior to the Romanian Parliament in 1925.
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
of 1939 led to an Soviet ultimatum in June 1940, the invasion of Soviet forces into Bessarabia, and its inclusion into the Soviet Union. Although being an officially accepted minority under Soviet rule, the Bessarabian Bulgarians lost some features of their cultural identity in the period.
A movement of national revival originated in the 1980s, with Bulgarian newspapers being published, cultural and educational associations being established, and Bulgarian
being introduced into the local schools especially after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
: first only as an optional, but later as a compulsory subject. The Association of Bulgarians in Ukraine was founded in 1993, and the Taraclia State University, co-funded by the Bulgarian state, was established in the largely Bulgarian-populated Moldovan town of Taraclia
in 2004. The languages of education at the university are Bulgarian and Romanian
.
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
minority group of the historical region of Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
, inhabiting parts of present-day Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
(Odessa Oblast
Odessa Oblast
Odesa Oblast, also written as Odessa Oblast , is the southernmost and largest oblast of south-western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Odessa.-History:...
) and Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
.
Location and number
Modern Ukraine
In UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, the number of Bessarabian Bulgarians is estimated at over 129,000 in Budjak
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak is a historical region in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube and Dniester rivers this multiethnic region was the southern part of Bessarabia...
(in the Odessa Oblast
Odessa Oblast
Odesa Oblast, also written as Odessa Oblast , is the southernmost and largest oblast of south-western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Odessa.-History:...
in the southern part of the country), and 75,000 elsewhere (mostly in other parts of Southern Ukraine), according to the 2001 Ukrainian Census
Ukrainian Census (2001)
The first Ukrainian Census was carried out by State Statistics Committee of Ukraine on 5 December 2001, twelve years after the last Soviet Union census in 1989....
, which counted a total of 204,600 Bulgarians in Ukraine.
Bulgarians are a majority in Bolhrad
Bolhrad
Bolhrad sometimes known as Bolgrad is a small city in Odessa Oblast of south-western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Bolhrad Raion , and is located at around ....
District (45,600 of its 75,000 inhabitants), but they also inhabit other districts of Budjak
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak is a historical region in the Odessa Oblast of Ukraine. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube and Dniester rivers this multiethnic region was the southern part of Bessarabia...
: Arciz - 20,200 of the 51,700, Tarutino - 17,000 of the 45,200, Izmail - 14,100 of the 54,700, and Sarata - 10,000 of the 49,900. There are also 8,600 Bulgarians in the city of Izmayil (85,100 total population).
Outside Budjak, Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
has many Bulgarians have moved there in recent years. The city of Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky is about 4% Bulgarian, making them the third-largest ethnicity there.
Modern Moldova
The results of the census held in October 2004, there are 65,072 Bessarabian Bulgarians (1.95% of the population) in MoldovaMoldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
(excluding the region of Transnistria), concentrated mostly in the southern parts — chiefly in Taraclia district. In the census held in November 2004 in Transnistria, 3,164 (3.16%) Bulgarians have been counted in Tighina
Tighina
Bender or Bendery, also known as Tighina is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under de facto control of the unrecognized Transnistria Republic since 1992...
and surroundings and further 10,515 (2.39%) on the Eastern bank of the river Dnestr.
29,447 Bulgarians live in the cities (and represent 2.26% of the urban dwellers), and 36,215 live in the countryside (1.74% of the rural inhabitants). 90.60% of ethnic Bulgarians were born in Moldova (the national average is 94.6%), 5,968 (9.09%) in other countries that were once in the Soviet Union (the national average is 5.16%), and 199 (0.30%) were born elsewhere.
In Moldova (and likely Ukraine too, although statistics are not available here), the Bulgarians tend to use their native Bulgarian in rural areas, and Russian (instead of the majority language Romanian) in cities and towns. 53,178 or 80.99% of ethnic Bulgarians declared Bulgarian language
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
as native (69.23% in urban areas, and 90.55% in rural ones), 2,766 or 4.21% of them declared Romanian language
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
as native (4.91% in urban areas, and 3.64% in rural ones), 9,134 or 13.91% of them declared Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
as native (25.08% in urban areas, and 4.83% in rural ones), and 584 or 0.89% of them declared another language as native (0.78% in urban areas, and 0.98% in rural ones).
35,808 or 54.53% of ethnic Bulgarians declared Bulgarian language
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
as first language in daily use (36.81% in urban areas, and 68.95% in rural ones), 5,698 or 8.68% of them declared Moldovan language
Moldovan language
Moldovan is one of the names of the Romanian language as spoken in the Republic of Moldova, where it is official. The spoken language of Moldova is closer to the dialects of Romanian spoken in northeastern Romania, and the two countries share the same literary standard...
/Romanian language
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
as first (7.93% in urban areas, and 9.29% in rural ones), 23,259 or 35.42% of them declared Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
as first (54.45% in urban areas, and 19.95% in rural ones), and 897 or 1.37% of them declared another first language (0.81% in urban areas, and 1.81% in rural ones).
Bessarabian Bulgarians represent 28,293, or 65.56% of the population of the Taraclia district. There are also Bulgarians in Chişinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
(8,868, or 1.2%), Găgăuzia
Gagauzia
Gagauzia , formally known as the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Găgăuzia , is an autonomous region of...
(8,013, or 5.1%), Cahul district (5,816, or 4.9%), Leova district (3,804, or 7.4%), and Cantemir district (3,736, or 6.2%). The share of ethnic Bulgarians in Transnistria
Transnistria
Transnistria is a breakaway territory located mostly on a strip of land between the Dniester River and the eastern Moldovan border to Ukraine...
is 10,515 (2.39%), of which 2,450 (1.55%) in Tiraspol
Tiraspol
Tiraspol is the second largest city in Moldova and is the capital and administrative centre of the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic . The city is located on the eastern bank of the Dniester River...
, and 7,323 (8.44%) in Slobozia sub-district (which contains the village of Parcani). There are alse 3,001 (3.09%) Bulgarians in the city of Tighina
Tighina
Bender or Bendery, also known as Tighina is a city within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova under de facto control of the unrecognized Transnistria Republic since 1992...
, and 342 in 3 suburbs. In total, there are 79,520 (2.02%) Bulgarians in Moldova, including Transnistria.
Bessarabian Bulgarians represent a majority in one city of Moldova, Taraclia
Taraclia
Taraclia is a city in south-eastern Moldova. It is the capital of Taraclia District. 28,293 of its 43,154 inhabitants are ethnic Bulgarians.The Taraclia State University, co-funded by Bulgaria and Moldova, was established in 2004...
(10,732 Bulgarians, or 78%) and in 8 communes in the country:
- TvardiţaTvardiţaTvardiţa is a commune in Taraclia district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Tvardiţa. The village was founded following the Russo-Turkish War by Bulgarian refugees from Tvarditsa, a town just south of the Balkan Mountains, and the surrounding region...
(Tvarditsa, Tvarditca), Taraclia district (5,396 of 5,882 inhabitants, 91.7%) - CortenCorten, TaracliaCorten is a commune in Taraclia district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Corten....
, Taraclia district (3,036 of 3,407 inhabitants, 87.5%) - ColibabovcaColibabovcaColibabovca is a commune in Leova district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Colibabovca....
, Leova district (934 of 1,142 inhabitants, 81.8%) - CairacliaCairacliaCairaclia is a commune in Taraclia district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Cairaclia....
, Taraclia district (1,733 of 2,124 inhabitants, 81.6%) - StoianovcaStoianovcaStoianovca is a commune in Cantemir district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Stoianovca.It is also a border crossing between Moldova and Romania....
, Cantemir district (1,055 of 1,372 inhabitants, 76.9%) - Valea PerjeiValea PerjeiValea Perjei may refer to:*Valea Perjei, Cimişlia, Moldova*Valea Perjei, Taraclia, Moldova...
, Taraclia district (3,792 of 4,986 inhabitants, 76%) - VozneseniVozneseniVozneseni is a commune in Leova district, Moldova. It is composed of three villages: Vozneseni, Troian and Troiţa....
, Leova district (985 of 1,396 inhabitants, 70.5%) - ParcaniParcaniParcani is a large commune and village in the Slobozia sub-district of Transnitria, a de facto independent entity within the internationally recognized borders of Moldova. The village has a population of around 10,500, of whom 95% are ethnic Bulgarians . The first Bulgarian colonists arrived in...
, Transnistria territorial unit, cca. 60%, exact data unknown
History
The modern population of Bessarabian Bulgarians settled in the region of southern Bessarabia at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries, at the time of feudal sedition in the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and after the Russo-Turkish Wars of the period. Particularly strong waves of emigration emerged after the Russo-Turkish Wars of 1806–1812 and 1828-1829. The settlers came primarily from what is now eastern Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, 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 to Bessarabia were also a handful of Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
who also had settled in eastern Bulgaria some time before.
When during the Russian-Ottoman Wars, Russian Armies were reaching and crossing Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
, some local Bulgarians supported them. These people where compromised in the eyes of the Ottomans and therefore had a better chance moving to the Russian Empire. The Russian Propaganda also worked to convince Bulgarians to settle in areas recently conquered by them, from which Tatars were removed. Bulgarian settled not only in Bessarabia, but also in the Kherson region.
For the first time, Bulgarian and Gagauzian refugees in Bessarabia are mentioned in 1769. The 1817 census found Bulgarians in 12 Bessarabian villages in the valleys of the Ialpug and Lunga River
Lunga River
The Lunga River is the name of two rivers in Zambia: a tributary of the Kafue River and also a tributary of the Kabompo River. Both the Kafue and the Kabompo are themselves tributaries of the Zambezi....
s (Creeks): 482 Bulgarian and Gagauzian families and 38 Romanian families in these 12 villages. The leader of the Bulgarians and Gagauzians was a man referred to as Copceac. Seven of the 12 villages were Gagauzian ( Baurci
Baurci
Baurci is a commune and village in Moldova, located in the autonomous territorial unit Gagauzia, west of the city of Ceadâr-Lunga. This is the third largest village in Gagauzia, after Congaz and Copceac...
, Beşalma
Beşalma
Beşalma is a commune and village in the Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova. The 2004 census listed the commune as having a population of 4,441 people. Gagauz total 4,293. Minorities included 44 Moldovans, 37 Ukrainians, 33 Russians, 25 Bulgarians and 5 Roma....
, Ceadîr-Lunga
Ceadîr-Lunga
Ceadîr-Lunga is a city in Gagauzia, Moldova. The city's population is 19,401, of which 14,294 Gagauzians, 1,552 Russians, 1,510 Bulgarians, 734 Moldovans, 951 Ukrainians, 166 Gypsies, 8 Poles, 7 Jews, and 179 other/undeclared. It is twinned with Serpukhov, Russia....
, Chessău, Dezghingea
Dezghingea
Dezghingea is a commune and village in the Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova. The 2004 census listed the commune as having a population of 5,252 people. Gagauz total 4,963. Minorities included 158 Moldovans, 67 Russians, 33 Ukrainians, 14 Bulgarians and 2 Poles.Its...
, Gaidar
Gaidar, Gagauzia
Gaidar is a commune and village in the Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova. The 2004 census listed the commune as having a population of 4,525 people. Gagauz total 4,368. Minorities included 32 Moldovans, 47 Russians, 25 Ukrainians, 37 Bulgarians and 12 Roma....
, and Tomai
Tomai
Tomai may refer to several places in Moldova:*Tomai, a commune in Gagauzia*Tomai, a commune in Leova district...
), and 5 were Bulgarian.
After arriving in Bessarabia, Bulgarians and Gagauzians founded their own towns, such as Bolhrad
Bolhrad
Bolhrad sometimes known as Bolgrad is a small city in Odessa Oblast of south-western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Bolhrad Raion , and is located at around ....
(1819) and Comrat
Comrat
Comrat is a city in Moldova and the capital of the autonomous region of Gagauzia. It is located at , in the south of the country, on the Ialpug River. In 2004, Comrat's population was 23,429, of which the vast majority are Gagauzians.The name is of Turkic and Nogai origin...
, and around 64 (according to some sources) or 43 (according to other sources) villages. In 1856, after the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1856)
The Treaty of Paris of 1856 settled the Crimean War between Russia and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the British Empire, Second French Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The treaty, signed on March 30, 1856 at the Congress of Paris, made the Black Sea neutral territory, closing it to all...
, two counties of southern Bessarabia, Cahul County
Cahul County
Cahul County was a county of Bessarabia. In the Middle Ages, its territory belonged to the Fălciu County, but after the annexation of Bessarabia by the Russian Empire in 1812 it became a county by itself.- History :...
and Ismail County, revereted back to the Principality of Moldavia (since 1861 — Kingdom of Romania
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania was the Romanian state based on a form of parliamentary monarchy between 13 March 1881 and 30 December 1947, specified by the first three Constitutions of Romania...
). That included the cities of including Bolgrad, Ismail
Ismail
Ismail may refer to:*Ismail , people with the name*Ishmael, the English name of Ismail*Ismael Village, in Sangcharak District at Sar-e Pol Province of Afghanistan...
and Chilia
Chilia
Chilia may refer to:* Kiliya, Ukraine* Chilia, a village in Bârgăuani Commune, Neamţ County, Romania* Chilia, a village in Făgeţelu Commune, Olt County, Romania* Chilia, a village in Homoroade Commune, Satu Mare County, Romania...
. Gaguzian settlements centred around Comrat
Comrat
Comrat is a city in Moldova and the capital of the autonomous region of Gagauzia. It is located at , in the south of the country, on the Ialpug River. In 2004, Comrat's population was 23,429, of which the vast majority are Gagauzians.The name is of Turkic and Nogai origin...
, however, remained in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. A Bulgarian high school (gymnasium), the Bolhrad High School
Bolhrad High School
The Georgi Sava Rakovski Bolhrad High School ; , Bolgradskaya gimnaziya imeni G. S. Rakovskogo is a gymnasium in Bolhrad, Odessa Oblast, southwestern Ukraine...
, was founded in Bolgrad (Bolhrad) on June 28, 1858 by the Moldavian authorities of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, which had a positive effect on the development of Bulgarian education and culture, and is in fact the first modern Bulgarian gymnasium.
In 1861, 20,000 Bulgarians from the Romanian part of Bessarabia moved to Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, where they were given land in Taurida Governorate
Taurida Governorate
The Taurida Governorate or Government of Taurida was a historical governorate of the Russian Empire. It included the Crimean peninsula and the mainland between the lower Dnieper River and the coasts of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov It was formed after the defunct Taurida Oblast in was abolished in...
to replace the Nogais
Nogais
The Nogai people are a Turkic ethnic group in Southern Russia: northern Dagestan and Stavropol Krai, as well as in Karachay-Cherkessia and the Astrakhan Oblast; undefined number live in Chechnya...
who had left what was formerly territory of the Crimean Khanate
Crimean Khanate
Crimean Khanate, or Khanate of Crimea , was a state ruled by Crimean Tatars from 1441 to 1783. Its native name was . Its khans were the patrilineal descendants of Toqa Temür, the thirteenth son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan...
. Those settlers founded another Bulgarian community — the Tauridan Bulgarians.
After the whole region of Bessarabia was re-incorporated again by the Russia Empire in 1878, the process of Russification
Russification
Russification is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attributes by non-Russian communities...
grew stronger, as many Bulgarian intellectuals returned to newly established Principality of Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
to help set up the Bulgarian state. The Bulgarian minority was deprived of the rights earned during the Romanian control.
The whole of Bessarabia united
Union of Bessarabia with Romania
On , the Sfatul Ţării, or National Council, of Bessarabia proclaimed union with the Kingdom of Romania.-Governorate of Bessarabia:The 1812 Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empires provided for Russian annexation of the eastern half of the territory of the Principality...
with Romania in April 1918, after the Russian Revolution
Russian Revolution of 1917
The Russian Revolution is the collective term for a series of revolutions in Russia in 1917, which destroyed the Tsarist autocracy and led to the creation of the Soviet Union. The Tsar was deposed and replaced by a provisional government in the first revolution of February 1917...
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 not returned.
During the Tatarbunar Uprising of 1924, when Soviets unsuccessfully tried to overthrow the Romanian administration in southern Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
, many Bulgarians (alongside local Moldovans (Romanians), and Bessarabian Germans) sided with Romanian authorities, as pointed out by Gheorghe Tătărescu
Gheorghe Tatarescu
Gheorghe I. Tătărescu was a Romanian politician who served twice as Prime Minister of Romania , three times as Minister of Foreign Affairs , and once as Minister of War...
in the report given on behalf of the Ministry of the Interior to the Romanian Parliament in 1925.
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, named after the Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov and the German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop, was an agreement officially titled the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Soviet Union and signed in Moscow in the late hours of 23 August 1939...
of 1939 led to an Soviet ultimatum in June 1940, the invasion of Soviet forces into Bessarabia, and its inclusion into the Soviet Union. Although being an officially accepted minority under Soviet rule, the Bessarabian Bulgarians lost some features of their cultural identity in the period.
A movement of national revival originated in the 1980s, with Bulgarian newspapers being published, cultural and educational associations being established, and Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
being introduced into the local schools especially after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
: first only as an optional, but later as a compulsory subject. The Association of Bulgarians in Ukraine was founded in 1993, and the Taraclia State University, co-funded by the Bulgarian state, was established in the largely Bulgarian-populated Moldovan town of Taraclia
Taraclia
Taraclia is a city in south-eastern Moldova. It is the capital of Taraclia District. 28,293 of its 43,154 inhabitants are ethnic Bulgarians.The Taraclia State University, co-funded by Bulgaria and Moldova, was established in 2004...
in 2004. The languages of education at the university are Bulgarian and Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
.
Notable Bessarabian Bulgarians
- Georgi TodorovGeorgi Todorov (general)Georgi Stoyanov Todorov was a Bulgarian General who fought in the Russo-Turkish War , Serbo-Bulgarian War , Balkan Wars and First World War .-Biography:At the age of 19 he volunteered in the Bulgarian Corps during the Russo-Turkish...
, military figure, general - Dimitar AguraDimitar AguraDimitar Dimitrov Agura was a Bulgarian historian, one of the first professors of history at Sofia University and a rector of the university.Agura was born to a Bessarabian Bulgarian family in Chushmelia, Bessarabia, then part of the Romania . He started his education in Bolgrad and finished the...
, historian - Petar DraganovPetar DraganovPetar Draganov was a Russian philologist and slavist.- Biography :Drganov was born in Komrat, Russian Empire in 1857. In ethnic sense he was a Bulgarian born in Bessarabia. Draganov studied history and philology at the University of Sankt Petersburg...
, philologist - Dimitar GrekovDimitar GrekovDimitar Panayotov Grekov was a leading Bulgarian liberal politician who also served as Prime Minister.A native of Bolgrad in Bessarabia , Grekov was educated at a French legal school....
, politician and public figure, Prime Minister of Bulgaria - Ivan KolevIvan Kolev (general)Ivan Kolev Stoyanov was a Bulgarian lieutenant general and distinguished cavalry commander during World War I.-Biography:...
, general - Kirill Kovaldzhi (on father's side), Russian poet and translator
- Aleksandar MalinovAleksandar MalinovAleksandar Pavlov Malinov was a leading Bulgarian politician who served as Prime Minister on three occasions. He was born in Pandakli, Bessarabia in a family of Bessarabian Bulgarians....
, politician and public figure, three times Prime Minister of Bulgaria - Ruslan MaynovRuslan MaynovRuslan Maynov is a Bulgarian actor and pop folk singer of Bessarabian Bulgarian origin.Maynov was born in Izmail in the region of Bessarabia, Ukrainian SSR to a Bulgarian family. He moved to Bulgaria in 1994; he graduated from NATFIZ in 1998 and started working with Slavi Trifonov on his TV...
, actor and musician - Danail NikolaevDanail NikolaevDanail Tsonev Nikolaev , was a Bulgarian officer and Minister of War on the eve of the Balkan wars. He was the first person to attain the highest rank in the Bulgarian military, General of the infantry...
, military figure, known as "The Patriarch of the Bulgarian army" - Olimpi Panov, military figure
- Ivan Shishman, painter
- Vasile TarlevVasile TarlevVasile Petru Tarlev is a Moldovan politician, and was Prime Minister of Moldova from 2001 until 2008.- Biography :He studied engineering and became a member of assorted economic councils...
, economist, Moldovan politician, Prime Minister of MoldovaPrime Minister of MoldovaThe Prime Minister of Moldova is Moldova's head of government. The prime minister is formally appointed by the President and exercises executive power along with the cabinet subject to parliamentary support.-Moldavian Democratic Republic :... - Aleksandar Teodorov-BalanAleksandar Teodorov-BalanAleksandar Stoyanov Teodorov-Balan was a Bulgarian linguist, historian and bibliographer.Balan was born in the Bessarabian village of Kubey, today Chervonoarmiyske near Bolhrad in Odessa Oblast, Ukraine , to a Bulgarian family. The general Georgi Todorov was his brother...
, linguist, first rector of Sofia UniversitySofia UniversityThe St. Clement of Ohrid University of Sofia or Sofia University is the oldest higher education institution in Bulgaria, founded on 1 October 1888... - Arkadiy Tsopa, freestyle wrestler
- Nikolay Paslar, freestyle wrestlerFreestyle wrestlingFreestyle wrestling is a style of amateur wrestling that is practised throughout the world. Along with Greco-Roman, it is one of the two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic games. It is, along with track and field, one of the oldest organized sports in history...
- Yona Tukuser, painter , http://www.tukuser.com/