Greeks in Bulgaria
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Greeks (Bulgarian: гърци gǎrci) are the seventh-largest ethnic minority in Bulgaria (Greek: Βουλγαρία Voulgaria). They number 3,408 according to the 2001 census,[1] but are estimated at around 25,000 by Greek organizations,[2] and around 28,500 (including the Sarakatsani) officially by Greece.[3] Today, Greeks mostly live in the large urban centres like Sofia (1,157) and Plovdiv (766 in Plovdiv Province).[1]
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[edit] History
Historically, the presence of a Greek population in what is today Bulgaria dates to the 7th century BC, when Milesians and Dorians founded thriving Greek colonies on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, often on the site of earlier Thracian settlements.[4] Maritime poleis like Nesebar (Μεσημβρια Mesimvria), Sozopol (Απολλωνία Apollonia), Pomorie (Αγχίαλος Ankhialos) and Varna (Οδησσός Odissos)[4] controlled the trade routes in the western part of the Black Sea and often waged wars between each other.
Prior to the early 20th century, there was a significant Greek population in Bulgaria in Southeastern Bulgaria, living largely between Varna to the north, Topolovgrad to the west and the Black Sea to the east, with a compact rural population in the inland regions of the Strandzha and Sakar mountains.[2] However, a large part of this population, the so-called Kariots,[5] is regarded by ethnographers (including Konstantin Josef Jireček) as having been only Greek-identifying, but of Bulgarian origin.[6]
Greek communities also existed in Plovdiv, Sofia, Asenovgrad, Haskovo and Rousse, among others.[2] In 1900, the Greeks in Bulgaria numbered 33,650.[7]
Following the anti-Greek tensions in Bulgaria in 1906 and the population exchange agreements Kalfov-Politis and Mollov-Kafandaris after World War I, the bulk of the Greek population in Bulgaria was forced to leave for Greece and was substituted by Bulgarians from Western Thrace and Greek Macedonia.[8]
[edit] Census data
| Locality | 1903 census[2] |
|---|---|
| Sofia | 687 |
| Plovdiv | 5,000 |
| Burgas | 21,527 |
| Varna | 15,249 |
| Rousse | 780 |
| Kavarna | 9,000 |
| Golyam Manastir | 1,800 |
| Pomorie | 6,170 |
| Nesebar | 1,750 |
| Byala, Varna Province | 1,200 |
[edit] Notable Greeks from Bulgaria
- Kostas Varnalis (1884–1974), poet
- Michael III of Anchialus, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
- Jeremias II Tranos, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
- Parthenius I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople
[edit] References
- ^ a b Population as of 1 March 2001 divided by provinces and ethnic group (Bulgarian). National Statistical Institute (2001). Retrieved on 2006-07-10.
- ^ a b c d Чернев, Черньо. "Гърците в България" Burgas (2002-05-11). Retrieved on 2007-02-18
- ^ Bilateral relations between Greece and Bulgaria. Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Greece in the World. Retrieved on 2007-02-18.
- ^ a b Траките (Bulgarian). България Травъл. Retrieved on 2007-02-18.
- ^ From Καραις, the Greek name of the once Kariot-inhabited village of Oreshnik, Haskovo Province, also known in Turkish as Kozluca.
- ^ Ангелов, Атанас. "За кипренските “гърци”", Кипра — следи от миналото (in Bulgarian). Литернет.
- ^ Етнически малцинствени общности (Bulgarian). Национален съвет за сътрудничество по етническите и демографските въпроси. Retrieved on 2007-02-18.
- ^ Mintchev, Vesselin (October 1999). "External Migration... in Bulgaria". South-East Europe Review (3/99). Retrieved on 2007-02-18.
[edit] Further reading
- Daskalova-Zhelyazkova, Nevena (1989). Karioti (in Bulgarian). Sofia: Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. OCLC 21482370.
- Valchinova, Galya (1998). "Greek Population and Greek Ethnic Identity in Bulgaria. A Contribution to the History of an Unidentified Minority" (in Bulgarian). Historical Future (2).
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Greek embassy in Bulgaria (Greek) (Bulgarian)
Vlachs (10,566) · Macedonians (5,071) · Greeks (3,408) · Ukrainians (2,489) · Jews (1,363) · Romanians (1,088) · Germans (436)
(according to 2001 census data)
