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The Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Azerbaijan established diplomatic relations 30 years ago, but even though the "Land of Fire" is only 3 hours and 10 minutes away by plane, it remains little known to Bulgarians. However, Bulgarians living there have never lost touch with their ancestral homeland, and the main credit for this goes to Maria Guseynova - the heart and soul of the Bulgarian community in Azerbaijan.
"Bulgarians in Azerbaijan preserve their language, traditions and customs”, says our interlocutor. „Each nation has its own characteristics and is unique. However, there are common features that are inherent to both the Bulgarians and the Azerbaijani people: they are hospitable, very patriotic, they respect the older generation. In Bulgaria, they love folk songs, they are passed down from generation to generation in Azerbaijan as well," Maria Guseynova shares her observations.
According to the latest data, 278 Bulgarians live in Azerbaijan. Maria's ancestors moved there from the town of Panagyurishte at the beginning of the 20th century. Growing up with Bulgarian songs and culture, Maria Guseynova passed on her love for Bulgaria to her children and grandchildren.
"This must be in the blood - the love for Bulgaria, the love for Bulgarian customs, all things Bulgarian. Many people wonder how we have preserved the language for so long, even though it is an old Bulgarian dialect, and the language is transmitted involuntarily. My grandmother spoke to us only in Bulgarian, my mother and father were Bulgarian. My family even keeps blankets that my grandmother brought from Bulgaria. I was discharged from the maternity hospital here with this blanket. My children read Ivan Vazov, Hristo Botev. This is how the attitude and love towards the history of Bulgaria is formed," says Maria.
In 2005, Mrs. Guseynova fulfilled her long-held dream: to unite the two homelands close to her. She created the Public Association "Support for the Development of Azerbaijani-Bulgarian Friendship". In the same year, the magazine "Accord" began to be published in Bulgarian, which is distributed in Azerbaijan, Bulgaria and Ukraine. Recently, Maria presented in Bulgaria her new project "Promoting the national-spiritual values of Azerbaijan in Bulgaria and international organizations".
"When I was in Bulgaria for the first time in 2005, I felt that there was very little information about Azerbaijan, but now both our media and our state structures are doing a lot to introduce Bulgarians to this country. I visited the Executive Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, the Presidency, Sofia University. And I asked them to support me in opening a House of Azerbaijan in Bulgaria, because both we and the ambassador want to promote the history, products of Azerbaijan, to develop tourism. I would like to make at least a small contribution to the strengthening and development of Azerbaijani-Bulgarian friendship. My work, my life today is aimed precisely at this goal. Thank you to all Bulgarians, to the whole of Bulgaria, for remembering, for treating us this way" - warm words of Maria Guseynova in her interview for Radio Bulgaria.
Photos: Desislava Semkovska
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