Мегданът на българските емигранти
The Meeting Point of Bulgarian Emigrants
Author(s): Julia PopchevaSubject(s): History, Anthropology, Social Sciences, Gender Studies, Cultural history, Customs / Folklore, Sociology, Ethnohistory, Oral history, Social history, Gender history, Recent History (1900 till today), Cultural Anthropology / Ethnology, Culture and social structure , Family and social welfare, Nationalism Studies, Gerontology, Rural and urban sociology, Sociology of Culture, Sociology of the arts, business, education, Migration Studies, Ethnic Minorities Studies, Sports Studies, Social Norms / Social Control, Globalization, Identity of Collectives
Published by: Институт за етнология и фолклористика с Етнографски музей при БАН
Keywords: imagined community; heterotopia; meeting point; migration; festival; social network; folklore dances; Bulgarians in Europe
Summary/Abstract: With its fifth edition in 2019, the festival ‘Na Megdana na Drugata Bulgaria’ (At the Public Square and Gathering Point of the Other Bulgaria) establishes itself as one of the main events for Bulgarian emigrants in Europe. It gathers folklore enthusiasts and besides a dancing stage, it is a ground for new friendships, meetings, and exchange of expertise. The article examines the festival as a place of contact of informal migration-based groups of interest and as a trigger for developing an imagined community around symbols such as origin, clothes, music, dance and food. The ‘megdan’ is considered a community centre existing mainly in people’s mind but not as a geographic location. The article searches for the link between the event and the ways of preserving and transmitting cultural heritage in migration. The study was conducted in three stages: a preliminary online survey; fieldwork in the period May 10 – 12, 2019 in La Nucia, Spain; an additional digital data gathering.
Journal: Българска етнология
- Issue Year: 2020
- Issue No: 2
- Page Range: 275-293
- Page Count: 19
- Language: Bulgarian