Krste Misirkov
Encyclopedia
Krste Petkov Misirkov (born 18 November 1874 in Postol, Ottoman Empire
(today Pella, Greece); died 26 July 1926 in Sofia
, Kingdom of Bulgaria
) was a philologist, slavist, historian, ethnographer, publicist
author of the first book and scientific magazine in Macedonian, where he for the first time outlined the principles of the literary Macedonian language
. He was named the greatest Macedonian
of the 20th century.
His writings are central to the issue of the existence of a Macedonian nation
distinct from the Bulgarian nation
. He published one book, one magazine and over thirty articles. However, at different points in his life, Misirkov expressed conflicting statements about the ethnicity of the Slavic population living in Macedonia
, including his own ethnicity, calling them Bulgarians, Macedonians or Macedonian Bulgarians respectively. As a result, both his ethnic attachment and legacy remains a matter of dispute among some historians from Bulgaria and Macedonia.
, Ottoman Empire
. He started his elementary education in the local Greek school, where he was studying until the sixth grade elementary school, but the bad financial situation of his family could not support his further education at that point and he left the school. At that period Serbian propaganda began to promote its variant of "Macedonism" and to recruit young people in order to "Serbianize" them. After some period without proper education, Misirkov applied and was granted a scholarship by the Serbia
n association "St. Sava".
Misirkov spent some time in Serbia, where he was studying in Serbian
, and soon after he realized that the propaganda was the main goal of the Serbian association. That politics practiced by the association, forced the Misirkov and the other Macedonian students to participate in a students' revolt against the association. As a result of that, Misirkov and other companions moved from Belgrade
to Sofia
. Since he faced up with similar situation in Bulgaria, i.e. another propaganda, Misirkov again went to Serbia to continue his education, but without any success because he was rejected by the "St. Sava" association. Since he was willing to get higher education, he was forced, by a chain of events, to enroll a theological school for teachers. Similar to the association "St. Sava", this school as well had its own propagandistic goals and that resulted in another revolt of the students. As a result of it, the school stopped working and the students were sent throughout Serbia. Misirkov was sent to Šabac
, where he finished the last, fourth, class of secondary education, but this time in the local gymnasium. In both, Serbia and Bulgaria, Misirkov and his friend were treated as Serbians or Bulgarians in order to be accepted in the educational system. After the gymnasium, even though he graduated, Misirkov enrolled in another secondary school for teachers in Belgrade, where he graduated in 1895. During this time, particularly in 1893, Misirkov founded an association of students called "Vardar". Its charter included, among other things, the aim of studying and spreading a knowledge of their country as regards its geographical, ethnographic and historical aspects and the cardinal principle of its program was that Macedonia should belong to the Macedonians. In other words, the students were not satisfied by the Serbianization of the Macedonians. This idea was inspired by the Macedonians in Sophia called "Lozari
". However, the Serbs were opposed to this thesis of the young Macedonians, so their society did not last very long and it was disbanded in 1895. Afterwards he was appointed as a Serbian teacher in Pristina
. Misirkov refused and left for Odessa
to continue his studies.
His educational qualifications obtained in Belgrade were not recognized in Russia
. Misirkov had to study from the very beginning in the Seminary at Poltava
. In 1897 he was able to enter the Petersburg University. Here he entered at first the Bulgarian Students Association. Misirkov carried out here his first scholarly lecture on the ethnography and history of the Balkan Peninsula before the members of the Russian Imperial Geographical Society
. In 1901, he moved to the University of Odessa. Of great importance to Misirkov was the founding of the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society in Petersburg. Its creation was influenced by the Macedonian Club founded in Belgrade. After the Club was closed, its chief founders left for the Russian capital, where they organized the new Macedonian Society. This foundation in 1902 became the most important Macedonian institution abroad. In the same year this Society sent a special Memorandum to the Great Powers, in which the Macedonian Question was examined from the national point of view. It was proposed also Macedonian literary language to be codified. The question was also examined of establishing a Macedonian Church under the Ohrid Archbishopric
. The aim of this Memorandum was that the Macedonians should be recognized as a separate nation and that Macedonia should be granted full autonomy within the Ottoman Empire
.
Later Misirkov abandoned the University and left for Ottoman Macedonia. Facing financial obstacles to continue his postgraduate education, he accepted the proposal of the Bulgarian Exarchate
to be appointed teacher in a high school in Bitola. There he became friendly with the Russian consul in Bitola
. He began to plan opening of local schools and publishing textbooks in Macedonian language. But the Ilinden Uprising in 1903 and the assassination of the Russian Consul changed his plans and he returned to Russia. There Misirkov published different articles about the Ilinden Uprising and the reasons why the Consul was assassinated. Soon afterwards he wrote the book "The Macedonian matters." This book, written in the Macedonian language, was published in Sofia
, where he founded a new circle of Macedonian intellectuals. In 1905, he left for Berdiansk
in Southern Russia. There he resumed publication of the journal "Vardar" and worked as Bulgarian teacher. In many of his next articles after 1905 Misirkov esposed pro-Bulgarian views and even categorically renounced the point of his book "The Macedonian matters". On 18 April 1907 Misirkov began to cooperate with the issued in Sofia magazine Macedonian-Adrianople Review, edited by Nikola Naumov, which was de facto organ of the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (IMARO). On 24 April 1909 K. Missirkov printed in Odessa in a separate booklet his work "South Slavic epic legends of the marriage of King Volkashin in connection with the question of the reasons for the popularity of Krali Marko among the South Slavs". On 1 October 1909 he printed the article, "The foundations of a Serbian-Bulgarian rapprochement" in the Magazine "Bulgarian collection" edited by Bulgarian diplomats in St. Petersburg. By the time, a Slavic Festival was held in Sofia in 1910 and Missirkov was attend as its guest of honor. In 1910–1911, he translated from Bulgarian to Russian the book of the Bulgarian geographer Prof. Atanas Ishirkov "Bulgaria".
When the First Balkan war
was declared, Misirkov went to Macedonia as a Russian war correspondent. There he could follow the military operations of the Bulgarian Army. Misirkov published a series of articles in the Russian press and some articles demanding that the Ottomans should be driven out of Macedonia. In 1913, after the outbreak of the Second Balkan war
Misirkov went back to Russia, where he worked as a teacher also in the Bulgarian schools in Odessa
. Here he wrote his diary, which was found in 2006. Later he was appointed teacher of the Bulgarian school at Kishinev. At that point, Misirkov made contacts with the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society, which started publishing the magazine "Macedonian Voice" in Russian. Misirkov was publishing in this magazine for some period under the pseudonym "K. Pelski".
After the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 Bessarabia
became a republic, and he was elected a member of the local parliament Sfatul Ţării
as a representative of the Bulgarian minority. At the same time, Misirkov worked as a secretary in the Bulgarian educational commission in Bessarabia. However, the Parliament was forced to declare the annexation of Bessarabia to Romania
in November 1918. Then Misirkov returned to Sofia, where he spent one year as a head of the Historical department of the National Museum of Ethnography. Then, he worked as a teacher and director of the high schools in Karlovo
and Koprivshtitsa
. During this period (but before 1923) the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) apparently marked Misirkov as harmful and was suspected of considering his assassination, but reconsidered after he met with a representative of the organization. In 1921 Misirkov wrote a letter to the Serbian Ambassador at Sofia asking him to secure his appointment to a teaching post at the grammar school in some Macedonian town, but his application was rejected. He also resumed his journalistic activity and published many articles on the Macedonian Question in the Bulgarian press. Misirkov died in 1926 and was buried in the graveyards in Sofia with the financial support of 5000 levs from the Ministry of Education, as an honoured educator.
in 1903. The magazine was called "Vardar" and was published in 1905 in Odessa
, Russian Empire
. The articles that Misirkov wrote have been published in different newspapers and they were focused on different topics.
. The magazine "Vardar" was published in 1905 in Odessa
, Russian Empire
. The magazine was published only once, because of the financial problems that Misirkov had been facing with at that time. "Vardar" has been published on Macedonian language, and the orthography that has been used is almost same as the orthography of the standard Macedonian language.
The magazine was meant to include several different scientific disciplines, mostly concerned with Macedonia. The first section of the magazine is made of the introduction, where in general Misirkov elaborates the aims of the magazine and this section was in Macedonian and Russian. The next section of the magazine is the literary section, where Misirkov translated into Macedonian the poem "Traveler" by the Croatian poet P. Preradovic. After the literary section, the magazine includes an analysis about the Balkan propagandas in Macedonia, followed by a political analysis of some of the global events in that period. The last section is statistics, which shows the Macedonian population in Macedonia.
or in Bulgaria. Most of the articles were signed by his birth name, but there are articles that are signed with his pseudonym K. Pelski.
and Bulgarian language
s, including in the Bulgarian dialect area
nearly all of Torlakian and Macedonian dialects. Misirkov pointed there, that the population in Pomoravlje
is autochthonous and Bulgarian by origin, excluding any later migrations during the Ottoman rule from Bulgaria.
According to Krste Misirkov, Krali Marko epic songs in Serbia, the so called Bugarstici
are a result from Bulgarian musical influence over the Serbian folk music.
, including his own ethnicity. While Misirkov's work and personality remain highly controversial and disputed, there have been attempts among international scholars to reconcile the conflicting and self-contradictory statements made by Misirkov. According to Croatian Ivo Banac
, professor of history at Yale University
Misirkov viewed both himself and the Slavs of Macedonia as Bulgarians, and espoused pan-Bulgarian patriotism in a larger Balkan context, and especially with regard to Serbian and Greek hegemonism in Macedonia. However, in the context of the larger Bulgarian unit/nation, Misirkov sought both cultural and national differentiation from the Bulgarians and called both himself and the Slavs of Macedonia Macedonians.
and was influenced by his ideas. At that time Novaković was a prominent proponent of the Macedonism, thereby promoting Serbian interests in the region of Macedonia. Afterwards Misirkov met several times with him and Novaković's diplomatic activity in St. Petersburg played significant role for the foundation of the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society. However, after 1906 Misirkov rejected these ideas, opposng the Serbian theory about the "floating mass" of the "Macedonian Slavs" and even developed a kind of Serbophobia
. In this period he became evidently bulgarophile
and argued that the Slavic population of Macedonia was not "a formless paste" but a "well baked Bulgarian bread". Bulgarian historians believe that his writings were significantly altered by the post-WWII Yugoslavian Communist regime to support the notion of a "Macedonian nation", distinct from the Bulgarian one. Bulgarians also note that Misirkov worked as Bulgarian teacher in Russia, was Bulgarian deputy in Bessarabia
, choose Bulgarian citizenship, lived and died in Bulgaria and worked there until his death in 1926. Nevertheless, Bulgarian scholarship points that despite the fact, that Misirkov in many cases defended the cause of Bulgarian nationalism, he several times switched during the 1920s, from Bulgarian to Macedonian one, and vice a versa. According to Bulgarian observers after the breakup of Yugoslavia in the Republic of Macedonia
also have arosen polemics about the identity of Misirkov. The most popular Misirkov's thought in Bulgaria is:
, Misirkov is regarded as the most prominent Macedonian
publicist
, philologist and linguist
who set the principles of the Macedonian literary language
in the early 20th century. In some of his writings he identifies the Macedonians as separate nation and the Macedonian as a separate South Slavic language. Also, Misirkov is the author of the first scientific magazine in Macedonian and because of his contributions to the Macedonian national cause, he is regarded as the greatest Macedonian of the 20th century. In his honor, many books and scientific works have been published and the Institute for Macedonian language "Krste Misirkov" is named after him.
There is not an important debate about Misirkov's ethnicity in Macedonia, since he is always regarded as Macedonian as it is obvious in most of his major writings. Since he was not allowed to live in work in Macedonia by the Yugoslav authorities, unwillingly he remained in Bulgaria where he got Bulgarian citizenship since he needed it for his job. Regarding Misirkov's signature under the phrase "Macedonian Bulgarian", the Macedonian historians and linguists argue that it means nothing but a Macedonian person with a Bulgarian citizenship, in a political sense, or just a Macedonian person living in Bulgaria. The most quoted and most popular Misirkov's thought in Macedonia is:
General
Ottoman 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...
(today Pella, Greece); died 26 July 1926 in Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
, Kingdom of Bulgaria
Kingdom of Bulgaria
The Kingdom of Bulgaria was established as an independent state when the Principality of Bulgaria, an Ottoman vassal, officially proclaimed itself independent on October 5, 1908 . This move also formalised the annexation of the Ottoman province of Eastern Rumelia, which had been under the control...
) was a philologist, slavist, historian, ethnographer, publicist
Publicist
A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a public figure, especially a celebrity, a business, or for a work such as a book, film or album...
author of the first book and scientific magazine in Macedonian, where he for the first time outlined the principles of the literary Macedonian language
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
. He was named the greatest Macedonian
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
of the 20th century.
His writings are central to the issue of the existence of a Macedonian nation
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
distinct from the Bulgarian nation
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:...
. He published one book, one magazine and over thirty articles. However, at different points in his life, Misirkov expressed conflicting statements about the ethnicity of the Slavic population living in Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
, including his own ethnicity, calling them Bulgarians, Macedonians or Macedonian Bulgarians respectively. As a result, both his ethnic attachment and legacy remains a matter of dispute among some historians from Bulgaria and Macedonia.
Biography
Krste Petkov Misirkov was born on 18 November 1874 in the village of PostolPostol
Postol may refer to:*Pella , Postol in Slavic languages*Theodore Postol , scientist...
, Ottoman Empire
Ottoman 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...
. He started his elementary education in the local Greek school, where he was studying until the sixth grade elementary school, but the bad financial situation of his family could not support his further education at that point and he left the school. At that period Serbian propaganda began to promote its variant of "Macedonism" and to recruit young people in order to "Serbianize" them. After some period without proper education, Misirkov applied and was granted a scholarship by the Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n association "St. Sava".
Misirkov spent some time in Serbia, where he was studying in Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
, and soon after he realized that the propaganda was the main goal of the Serbian association. That politics practiced by the association, forced the Misirkov and the other Macedonian students to participate in a students' revolt against the association. As a result of that, Misirkov and other companions moved from Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
to Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
. Since he faced up with similar situation in Bulgaria, i.e. another propaganda, Misirkov again went to Serbia to continue his education, but without any success because he was rejected by the "St. Sava" association. Since he was willing to get higher education, he was forced, by a chain of events, to enroll a theological school for teachers. Similar to the association "St. Sava", this school as well had its own propagandistic goals and that resulted in another revolt of the students. As a result of it, the school stopped working and the students were sent throughout Serbia. Misirkov was sent to Šabac
Šabac
Šabac is a city and municipality in western Serbia, along the Sava river, in the historic region of Mačva. It is the administrative center of the Mačva District. The city has a population of 52,822 , while population of the municipality is 115,347...
, where he finished the last, fourth, class of secondary education, but this time in the local gymnasium. In both, Serbia and Bulgaria, Misirkov and his friend were treated as Serbians or Bulgarians in order to be accepted in the educational system. After the gymnasium, even though he graduated, Misirkov enrolled in another secondary school for teachers in Belgrade, where he graduated in 1895. During this time, particularly in 1893, Misirkov founded an association of students called "Vardar". Its charter included, among other things, the aim of studying and spreading a knowledge of their country as regards its geographical, ethnographic and historical aspects and the cardinal principle of its program was that Macedonia should belong to the Macedonians. In other words, the students were not satisfied by the Serbianization of the Macedonians. This idea was inspired by the Macedonians in Sophia called "Lozari
Young Macedonian Literary Society
The Young Macedonian Literary Society was founded in 1891 in Sofia together with its magazine Loza. The purpose of the society was twofold: the official one was primarily scholarly and literary. One of the purposes of the magazine of Young Macedonian Literary Society was to defend the idea the...
". However, the Serbs were opposed to this thesis of the young Macedonians, so their society did not last very long and it was disbanded in 1895. Afterwards he was appointed as a Serbian teacher in Pristina
Pristina
Pristina, also spelled Prishtina and Priština is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous municipality and district....
. Misirkov refused and left for 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,...
to continue his studies.
His educational qualifications obtained in Belgrade were not recognized in 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...
. Misirkov had to study from the very beginning in the Seminary at Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
. In 1897 he was able to enter the Petersburg University. Here he entered at first the Bulgarian Students Association. Misirkov carried out here his first scholarly lecture on the ethnography and history of the Balkan Peninsula before the members of the Russian Imperial Geographical Society
Russian Geographical Society
The Russian Geographical Society is a learned society, founded on 6 August 1845 in Saint Petersburg, Russia.-Imperial Geographical Society:Prior to the Russian Revolution of 1917, it was known as the Imperial Russian Geographical Society....
. In 1901, he moved to the University of Odessa. Of great importance to Misirkov was the founding of the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society in Petersburg. Its creation was influenced by the Macedonian Club founded in Belgrade. After the Club was closed, its chief founders left for the Russian capital, where they organized the new Macedonian Society. This foundation in 1902 became the most important Macedonian institution abroad. In the same year this Society sent a special Memorandum to the Great Powers, in which the Macedonian Question was examined from the national point of view. It was proposed also Macedonian literary language to be codified. The question was also examined of establishing a Macedonian Church under the Ohrid Archbishopric
Ohrid Archbishopric
Archbishopric of Ochrid or Ohrid Archbishopric may refer to the following Eastern Orthodox ecclesiastical structures:* Archbishopric of Ochrid, established in 1019, an autonomous archbishopric under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Constantinople, abolished in the 18th century by the Ottoman...
. The aim of this Memorandum was that the Macedonians should be recognized as a separate nation and that Macedonia should be granted full autonomy within the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman 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...
.
Later Misirkov abandoned the University and left for Ottoman Macedonia. Facing financial obstacles to continue his postgraduate education, he accepted the proposal of the Bulgarian Exarchate
Bulgarian Exarchate
The Bulgarian Exarchate was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church before its autocephaly was recognized by the Ecumenical See in 1945 and the Bulgarian Patriarchate was restored in 1953....
to be appointed teacher in a high school in Bitola. There he became friendly with the Russian consul in Bitola
Bitola
Bitola is a city in the southwestern part of the Republic of Macedonia. The city is an administrative, cultural, industrial, commercial, and educational centre. It is located in the southern part of the Pelagonia valley, surrounded by the Baba and Nidže mountains, 14 km north of the...
. He began to plan opening of local schools and publishing textbooks in Macedonian language. But the Ilinden Uprising in 1903 and the assassination of the Russian Consul changed his plans and he returned to Russia. There Misirkov published different articles about the Ilinden Uprising and the reasons why the Consul was assassinated. Soon afterwards he wrote the book "The Macedonian matters." This book, written in the Macedonian language, was published in Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
, where he founded a new circle of Macedonian intellectuals. In 1905, he left for Berdiansk
Berdiansk
Berdyansk is a port city in the Zaporizhia Oblast of south-east Ukraine. Serving as the administrative center of the Berdyansky Raion , the city itself is directly subordinate to the oblast, and is located on the northern coast of the Sea of Azov.The current estimated population is around 125,000...
in Southern Russia. There he resumed publication of the journal "Vardar" and worked as Bulgarian teacher. In many of his next articles after 1905 Misirkov esposed pro-Bulgarian views and even categorically renounced the point of his book "The Macedonian matters". On 18 April 1907 Misirkov began to cooperate with the issued in Sofia magazine Macedonian-Adrianople Review, edited by Nikola Naumov, which was de facto organ of the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (IMARO). On 24 April 1909 K. Missirkov printed in Odessa in a separate booklet his work "South Slavic epic legends of the marriage of King Volkashin in connection with the question of the reasons for the popularity of Krali Marko among the South Slavs". On 1 October 1909 he printed the article, "The foundations of a Serbian-Bulgarian rapprochement" in the Magazine "Bulgarian collection" edited by Bulgarian diplomats in St. Petersburg. By the time, a Slavic Festival was held in Sofia in 1910 and Missirkov was attend as its guest of honor. In 1910–1911, he translated from Bulgarian to Russian the book of the Bulgarian geographer Prof. Atanas Ishirkov "Bulgaria".
When the First Balkan war
First Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
was declared, Misirkov went to Macedonia as a Russian war correspondent. There he could follow the military operations of the Bulgarian Army. Misirkov published a series of articles in the Russian press and some articles demanding that the Ottomans should be driven out of Macedonia. In 1913, after the outbreak of the Second Balkan war
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...
Misirkov went back to Russia, where he worked as a teacher also in the Bulgarian schools in 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,...
. Here he wrote his diary, which was found in 2006. Later he was appointed teacher of the Bulgarian school at Kishinev. At that point, Misirkov made contacts with the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society, which started publishing the magazine "Macedonian Voice" in Russian. Misirkov was publishing in this magazine for some period under the pseudonym "K. Pelski".
After the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 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....
became a republic, and he was elected a member of the local parliament Sfatul Ţării
Sfatul Tarii
Sfatul Țării was, in 1917-1918, the National Assembly of the Governorate of Bessarabia of the disintegrating Russian Empire, which proclaimed the independent Moldavian Democratic Republic in December 1917, and then union with Romania in April 1918.-Russian participation in World War I:In August...
as a representative of the Bulgarian minority. At the same time, Misirkov worked as a secretary in the Bulgarian educational commission in Bessarabia. However, the Parliament was forced to declare the annexation of Bessarabia to Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
in November 1918. Then Misirkov returned to Sofia, where he spent one year as a head of the Historical department of the National Museum of Ethnography. Then, he worked as a teacher and director of the high schools in Karlovo
Karlovo
Karlovo is a picturesque and a historically important town in central Bulgaria located in a fertile valley along the river Stryama at the southern foot of the Balkan Mountains...
and Koprivshtitsa
Koprivshtitsa
Koprivshtitsa is a historic town in Sofia Province, central Bulgaria, lying on the Topolnitsa River among the Sredna Gora mountains. It was one of the centres of the April Uprising in 1876 and is known for its authentic Bulgarian architecture and for its folk music festivals, making it a very...
. During this period (but before 1923) the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO) apparently marked Misirkov as harmful and was suspected of considering his assassination, but reconsidered after he met with a representative of the organization. In 1921 Misirkov wrote a letter to the Serbian Ambassador at Sofia asking him to secure his appointment to a teaching post at the grammar school in some Macedonian town, but his application was rejected. He also resumed his journalistic activity and published many articles on the Macedonian Question in the Bulgarian press. Misirkov died in 1926 and was buried in the graveyards in Sofia with the financial support of 5000 levs from the Ministry of Education, as an honoured educator.
Works
In his life, Misirkov wrote one book, one diary, published one issue of a magazine and wrote more than thirty articles. His most important work is the book "On Macedonian Matters", published in SofiaSofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
in 1903. The magazine was called "Vardar" and was published in 1905 in 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,...
, 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...
. The articles that Misirkov wrote have been published in different newspapers and they were focused on different topics.
On the Macedonian Matters
Misirkov's most important writing is undoubtedly the book Za makedonckite raboti (On Macedonian Matters) published in 1903 in Sofia, in which he laid down the principles of the modern Macedonian language. According to this book, the Macedonian language should be based on dialects from the central part of Macedonia which are the Veles, Prilep, Bitola and Ohrid dialects. He also used those dialects in the book itself. Most copies of the book were confiscated and destroyed by the Bulgarian police and IMRO activists, shortly after the book was published. Misirkov's principles played a crucial role in the future codification of the Macedonian language, right after World War II.The magazine Vardar
Besides On Macedonian Matters, Misirkov is author of the first scientific magazine on Macedonian languageMacedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
. The magazine "Vardar" was published in 1905 in 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,...
, 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...
. The magazine was published only once, because of the financial problems that Misirkov had been facing with at that time. "Vardar" has been published on Macedonian language, and the orthography that has been used is almost same as the orthography of the standard Macedonian language.
The magazine was meant to include several different scientific disciplines, mostly concerned with Macedonia. The first section of the magazine is made of the introduction, where in general Misirkov elaborates the aims of the magazine and this section was in Macedonian and Russian. The next section of the magazine is the literary section, where Misirkov translated into Macedonian the poem "Traveler" by the Croatian poet P. Preradovic. After the literary section, the magazine includes an analysis about the Balkan propagandas in Macedonia, followed by a political analysis of some of the global events in that period. The last section is statistics, which shows the Macedonian population in Macedonia.
Articles
During his life, Misirkov published many articles for different newspapers and magazines. The articles deal with Macedonia, Macedonian culture, ethnology, politics and nation on one hand and with the Bulgarian nation, politics and ethnography on the other. Misirkov published his articles in Macedonian, Russian and Bulgarian and he published them either in RussiaRussia
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...
or in Bulgaria. Most of the articles were signed by his birth name, but there are articles that are signed with his pseudonym K. Pelski.
Diary
In 2006, a handwritten diary by Misirkov written during his stay in Russia in 1913 was discovered. It was declared authentic by Bulgarian and Macedonian experts and was published in 2008. The content of the diary clearly shows that at the time, Misirkov was a Bulgarian nationalist. It has given rise to new public discussion over Misirkov's stances on Bulgarian and Macedonian ethnicity. The manuscript, includes 381 pages written in Russian language. Misirkov wrote it in Odessa's nearby village of Klimentove, where he lived and worked at the time. It contains also articles and excerpts from the Russian press of that time.Contribution to Bulgarian dialectology and ethnography
In several publications Misirkov made an attempt to determine the border between the Serbo-CroatianSerbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
and 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...
s, including in the Bulgarian dialect area
Bulgarian dialects
Bulgarian dialects are the regional spoken varieties of the Bulgarian language, a South Slavic language. Bulgarian dialectology dates to the 1830s and the pioneering work of Neofit Rilski, Bolgarska gramatika...
nearly all of Torlakian and Macedonian dialects. Misirkov pointed there, that the population in Pomoravlje
Pomoravlje (region)
Pomoravlje , is a general term which in its widest sense marks valleys of any of three Morava rivers in Serbia: West Morava , Južna Morava and Great Morava . In the narrow sense, term is applied only to the Greater Pomoravlje...
is autochthonous and Bulgarian by origin, excluding any later migrations during the Ottoman rule from Bulgaria.
According to Krste Misirkov, Krali Marko epic songs in Serbia, the so called Bugarstici
Bugarstici
Bugarštica is a form of epic and ballad poetry, which was popular among Serbs and Croats until the 18th century, sung in long verses of mostly fifteen and sixteen syllables with a caesura after the seventh and eighth syllable, respectively...
are a result from Bulgarian musical influence over the Serbian folk music.
Controversies about Misirkov's ethnicity and views
During the second half of 19 century and the beginning of the 20 century the idea of a separate Macedonian ethnicity was as yet promoted only by some circles of intellectuals. Then, the most of the Slavic population in Macedonia had a Bulgarian consciousness, and this idea failed to gain wide popular support. At different points in his life, Misirkov expressed conflicting statements about the ethnicity of the Slavs living in MacedoniaMacedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
, including his own ethnicity. While Misirkov's work and personality remain highly controversial and disputed, there have been attempts among international scholars to reconcile the conflicting and self-contradictory statements made by Misirkov. According to Croatian Ivo Banac
Ivo Banac
-External links:*...
, professor of history at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
Misirkov viewed both himself and the Slavs of Macedonia as Bulgarians, and espoused pan-Bulgarian patriotism in a larger Balkan context, and especially with regard to Serbian and Greek hegemonism in Macedonia. However, in the context of the larger Bulgarian unit/nation, Misirkov sought both cultural and national differentiation from the Bulgarians and called both himself and the Slavs of Macedonia Macedonians.
View of Misirkov in Bulgaria
In Bulgaria Misirkov is regarded as a controversial educator with scientific contribution to Bulgarian dialectology and ethnography. He graduated from the Belgrade University as a student of Prof. Stojan NovakovićStojan Novakovic
Stojan Novaković , was a Serbian literary critic, scholar, politician and diplomat, and the foremost Serbian historian of nineteenth century, holding the post of Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Serbia on two occasions.He was born in the western Serbian city of Šabac and died in the southern city of...
and was influenced by his ideas. At that time Novaković was a prominent proponent of the Macedonism, thereby promoting Serbian interests in the region of Macedonia. Afterwards Misirkov met several times with him and Novaković's diplomatic activity in St. Petersburg played significant role for the foundation of the Macedonian Scientific and Literary Society. However, after 1906 Misirkov rejected these ideas, opposng the Serbian theory about the "floating mass" of the "Macedonian Slavs" and even developed a kind of Serbophobia
Serbophobia
Anti-Serb sentiment is a generic term used to describe a sentiment of hostility or hatred towards Serbs, Serbia or Serbian Orthodoxy...
. In this period he became evidently bulgarophile
Bulgarophiles
Bulgarophiles - , ; ; ; is a term used for people from region of Macedonia and region of Pomoravlje who regard themselves as Bulgarians. It is most often used pejoratively, as the term implies that these people are not really Bulgarian....
and argued that the Slavic population of Macedonia was not "a formless paste" but a "well baked Bulgarian bread". Bulgarian historians believe that his writings were significantly altered by the post-WWII Yugoslavian Communist regime to support the notion of a "Macedonian nation", distinct from the Bulgarian one. Bulgarians also note that Misirkov worked as Bulgarian teacher in Russia, was Bulgarian deputy in 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....
, choose Bulgarian citizenship, lived and died in Bulgaria and worked there until his death in 1926. Nevertheless, Bulgarian scholarship points that despite the fact, that Misirkov in many cases defended the cause of Bulgarian nationalism, he several times switched during the 1920s, from Bulgarian to Macedonian one, and vice a versa. According to Bulgarian observers after the breakup of Yugoslavia in the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
also have arosen polemics about the identity of Misirkov. The most popular Misirkov's thought in Bulgaria is:
View of Misirkov in the Republic of Macedonia
In the Republic of MacedoniaRepublic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, Misirkov is regarded as the most prominent Macedonian
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
publicist
Publicist
A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a public figure, especially a celebrity, a business, or for a work such as a book, film or album...
, philologist and linguist
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
who set the principles of the Macedonian literary language
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
in the early 20th century. In some of his writings he identifies the Macedonians as separate nation and the Macedonian as a separate South Slavic language. Also, Misirkov is the author of the first scientific magazine in Macedonian and because of his contributions to the Macedonian national cause, he is regarded as the greatest Macedonian of the 20th century. In his honor, many books and scientific works have been published and the Institute for Macedonian language "Krste Misirkov" is named after him.
There is not an important debate about Misirkov's ethnicity in Macedonia, since he is always regarded as Macedonian as it is obvious in most of his major writings. Since he was not allowed to live in work in Macedonia by the Yugoslav authorities, unwillingly he remained in Bulgaria where he got Bulgarian citizenship since he needed it for his job. Regarding Misirkov's signature under the phrase "Macedonian Bulgarian", the Macedonian historians and linguists argue that it means nothing but a Macedonian person with a Bulgarian citizenship, in a political sense, or just a Macedonian person living in Bulgaria. The most quoted and most popular Misirkov's thought in Macedonia is:
Misirkov family
See also
- MacedonisticsMacedonisticsMacedonistics or sometimes called Macedonian Studies is a science that studies the Macedonian language. The person that studies the Macedonian language is called Macedonist or in Macedonian Македонист / Makedonist...
- History of the Macedonian languageHistory of the Macedonian languageStandard Macedonian was adopted as an official language in August 1944 by a provisional government run by the Anti-Fascist Assembly for the National Liberation of Macedonia when it declared the formation of the Socialist Republic of Macedonia—a constituent state within the Socialist Federative...
- Macedonian nationalismMacedonian nationalismMacedonian nationalism is a term referring to the ethnic Macedonian version of nationalism.-Late 19th century beginning:The development of the Macedonian ethnicity can be said to have begun in the late 19th and early 20th century. This is the time of the first expressions of ethnic nationalism by...
- Institute for Macedonian language "Krste Misirkov"
- History of the Republic of MacedoniaHistory of the Republic of Macedonia- Ancient period :In antiquity, most of the territory that is now the Republic of Macedonia was included in the kingdom of Paeonia, which was populated by the Paeonians, a people of Thracian origins, but also parts of ancient Illyria and Dardania, inhabited by various Illyrian peoples, and...
External links
Works- Krste Misirkov – Misirkov's work on the Macedonian Wikisource. Complete text of his book, magazine and articles.
- Magazine "Vardar" on Wikisource.
- "On Macedonian matters" – complete text on Wikisource.
- "On Macedonian matters" – scan of the original book.
- "On Macedonian Matters" – complete text.
- Project: Krste Misirkov – on line interactive site about Misirkov's life and work.
- "On Macedonian Matters" – complete text.
- Misirkov's diary – downloadable link.
General
