On August 2, 1903, the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising broke out, which is considered to have been the culmination of the national liberation movement of the Bulgarians in Macedonia and the Edirne region. It is the result of the intransigence of the Bulgarian people towards the decisions of the Berlin Congress of 1878, when the Great Powers determined that these two areas would remain outside the borders of Bulgaria which was liberated from five centuries of Ottoman rule.
It erupted in the Bitola Revolutionary District in Macedonia on the church holiday of St. Elijah (Sveti Iliya) - August 2 in the old style calendar, hence its name. At the Day of the Transfiguration (Preobrazhenie) on August 19 (in old style calendar), the uprising broke out in Edirne region. The rebels managed to liberate many settlements in the area of Strandzha Mountain and the coastal towns of Tsarevo and Ahtopol.
Read more about these historical events in a publication picked by Radio Bulgaria’s collection dedicated to the Ilinden-Preobrazhenie Uprising HERE.
The biggest holiday for Muslims, which marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, is Eid al-Adha. It begins in the evening hours of the day of Arife (June 27), when Muslims pay respect to their deceased relatives..
Midsummer's Day or Enyovden in Bulgaria is always celebrated on June 24, when the church honors the birth of St. John the Baptist. Folklore traditions are associated with the day of the summer solstice, when the sun "twinkles" and "plays" at..
April 24 marked the 82 nd anniversary since the birth of Nedyalka Keranova- one of the most remarkable voices of Bulgarian folklore, who passed away in 1966 at the age of 55. Our listener and friend Noris Balabanyan who lives in the USA and whose..
+359 2 9336 661