The Institute of the Bulgarian Language at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences will present the results of the project “The Cultural Identity of Banat Bulgarians and Bulgarian Catholic Literature”

The “Prof. Lyubomir Andreychin” Institute of the Bulgarian Language at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences will present the results of the project “The Cultural Identity of Bulgarians in Banat and Bulgarian Catholic Literature,” funded by the “Scientific Research” Fund (contract KP-06-N70/1).

The event will take place on April 23, 2026, at 4:00 p.m., in the “Prof. Alexander Teodorov-Balan” Hall of the Institute of the Bulgarian Language at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 52 Shipchenski Prohod Blvd., Block 17, Sofia.

The project brings together research on the language, literature, and cultural identity of the Bulgarians in Banat and aims to trace the historical and cultural ties between Catholic Bulgarians on both banks of the Danube.

Significant scientific results have been achieved during its implementation, including over 40 publications, among which are two monographs, two anthologies of studies and articles, and an anthology. A draft textbook was also developed for children in the Bulgarian community in Banat, who have preserved their language and cultural identity for over three centuries.

The anthology “Texts from the Literature of Bulgarian Catholics and the Literature of Banat” is the first publication of its kind, presenting to the general public a selection of texts—from the 17th century to the present.

The 38 included texts, presented in both Cyrillic and Latin scripts, combine scholarly value with accessibility and make an important contribution to the field of foreign language teaching.

Among the project’s key publications are two monographs: Mariana Tsibranska-Kostova’s study on Filip Stanislavov’s “Abagar” (1651) and Magdalena Abadzhieva’s work, which explores the connections between the literature of Catholic Bulgarians and the literary tradition of Banat.

The research within the project is based on the analysis of a rich corpus of literary monuments and on fieldwork among the Bulgarians of Banat in Bulgaria and Romania.

A YouTube channel featuring authentic recordings was also created as part of the project: https://www.youtube.com/@kp06n701

The presentation is aimed at researchers, faculty members, students, and anyone interested in Bulgarian linguistic and cultural heritage.

Project team: Prof. Dr. Mariana Tsibranska-Kostova, Prof. Dr. Luchia Antonova, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kalina Micheva-Peycheva, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Magdalena Abadjieva, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Iavor Ivanov, and Dr. Svetlana Karadjova.

Coordinator: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Magdalena Abadzhieva

Photo: Books from the project (source: Magdalena Abadzhieva)

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About Author

Magdalena Abadzhieva

Magdalena Abadzhieva was born in 1978 in Ruse. In 2002, she graduated with a degree in Bulgarian Philology from Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski.” She holds a Ph.D. in Bulgarian Language. She defended her dissertation in 2017 on the topic “18th-Century Pavlikian Literature in the History of the Bulgarian Language.” She works as an scientific assistant at the “Prof. Lyubomir Andreychin” Institute of the Bulgarian Language (Bulgarian Academy of Sciences), in the Department of the History of the Bulgarian Language. She has completed specialized studies in Rome (Italy) and Ljubljana (Slovenia). She is fluent in English and Italian.

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