Prehistory, implementation and effects of the 1984 – 1989 name change campaign against the Turkish minority in Bulgaria by Vassil Vassilev
Reviewed for Research Institute for Mezalim (FEM) by Ilker Akgül
The book deals with the “Prehistory, implementation and effects of the 1984 – 1989 name change campaign against the Turkish minority in Bulgaria”. The author thus provides an important overall account of the nationalist assimilation policy of the People’s Republic of Bulgaria. While the first section describes the history of independence up to the 1980s, the second section is devoted to the cultural destruction caused by the name change campaign.
Vassilev begins by describing the emergence of Bulgarian nationalism up to the founding of the Bulgarian state, which received the active support of the Tsarist Empire in the course of Russian expansion into the “warm south”. It describes the flight and expulsion of the Turks as well as the Bulgarians’ self-perception and perception of others. “The prejudiced, stereotypical image of the Turks is almost mythologized in Bulgarian memory and still lives on today as a spectre within the country’s own perception of its own identity – becoming, so to speak, a source of identity itself.” (p. 27) Accordingly, a mythologized enemy emerged, “which could be defined ethnically and religiously and thus designated quite concretely.” (S. 28)
The short and concise description from the end of the 18th century to 1944 is followed by a concise description up to the assimilation policy in the 1980s.
The differentiated policy of the Bulgarian state between liberal nationalism and
“violent attacks” (p.23) led to the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Turkish Muslims. In this context, emigration was facilitated by temporary emigration agreements with the Republic of Turkey.
The first ideological turnaround took place in the 1950s. The Turkish language was to be pushed back through a change in education policy and the influence of Islam in society was to be weakened. An active policy was implemented against the type of clothing as well as “the replacement of all religious rituals in the country by a uniform socialist ritual system” (p.46).
The policy of constructing a unified socialist nation was further advanced in the mid-1970s by a name-change campaign against the Muslim Pomak minority.
In the second chapter, he begins with the framework conditions that led to the assimilation policy. The return to a “glorious Bulgarian nation” played an important role in domestic politics, as did the Cyprus problem in foreign policy. The construction of the “scientific basis” (p.43) as a means of future Turkish policy took place during this period. From then on, Bulgaria saw itself as a “one-nation state” (p.43) and Turks were regarded “as part of their own ethnic group, who had lost their connection through external pressure and self-deception (they had adopted a different faith through Islamization and forgotten their language) and now had to be returned to their actual ethnic group” (p.27).
After describing the decision-making process, he looks at the implementation and consequences of the assimilation campaign. When the People’s Republic signed the
name change campaign is also sparking resistance among Turks. The assimilation efforts were disguised as a voluntary wish on the part of the Bulgarian Turks, whereby the refusal to adopt a Christian-Bulgarian name could inevitably lead to the destruction of their economic existence.
Vassilev describes the differentiated resistance actions of the Turkish minority and the reaction of the Turkish press, the Republic of Turkey and the OIC (Organization of the Islamic Conference). At the same time, he deals with Bulgaria’s justification and cover-up tactics and the reaction of the Bulgarian press. In 1989, the mass exodus of at least. 300,000 Bulgarian Turks not only had serious economic consequences, but also changed the demographic structure of both Turkey and Bulgaria.
I take a critical view of the interpretation of the events as “cultural genocide” (p.95), as the term “genocide/genocide” is used in an inflationary way in my opinion. The term “destruction/destruction” would be more appropriate. Although the archives are not yet fully accessible, the author has succeeded in presenting an impressive overall picture. The book makes an important contribution to the history of the Turks in the Balkans, which was characterized by expulsion, ethnic cleansing, flight and mass murder.
Title Nationalism under the Red Star
Prehistory, implementation and effects of the 1984 – 1989 name change campaign against the Turkish minority in Bulgaria
ISBN 978-3825812966
Publication date 10/01/2008
Length 160 pages
Price 19,90 €
Genre Bulgaria, Balkans, Turkey,
Format book
Publisher LIT