ЧЕИЗЪТ НА БЪЛГАРКАТА ПРЕЗ ВЪЗРАЖДАНЕТО. ОТРАЗЕН В КОНДИКАТА НА ПЛЕВЕНСКАТА ОБЩИНА
THE DOWRY OF BULGARIAN WOMAN IN THE REVIVAL PERIOD IN THE CONDICS OF PLEVEN COMMUNITY

Summary/Abstract: The economic side of marriage is revealed in the wedding by the dowry of the bride and by the gifts and presents, received by the young couple. An important source for the study of this problem is the Condics of Pleven Community. In this documents are mentioned 723 wedding ceremonies, which have taken place from 1834 to 1889. In the marriage contracts are enumerated the objects, comprising the dowry of the bride and the bridegrooms gifts, which are exchanged by their parents. These are mainly clothes, jewelry, household objects, land property and money. The economical, social and cultural changes after the Creamean war didn't influence much the number and variety of objects, given as dowry. It is seen from the documents that in the prevailing part of weddings the dowries are not very rich and this is a sign of social inequality. More changes are observed after the Liberation from Ottoman rule. The reason is the appearance of new kinds of goods in the market, the increase of handicraft production, the decrease of household objects at the expense of real property. As a whole the dowry of Pleven brides is an indicator of working abilities of Bulgarian women and of their economical state. The data reveal also characteristic features of clothes, household objects, the development of certain crafts and reveal the penetration of European influence in Pleven during the Revival period.

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