Around the Bloc: Romania May Reopen 1989 Revolution Case
Investigation into hundreds of civilian deaths during uprising was declared classified last year before any trials began.
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Investigation into hundreds of civilian deaths during uprising was declared classified last year before any trials began.
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My paper analyzes how a part of the Romanian people contested on daily basis their leader, Nicolae Ceausescu, and also the overwhelming presence of his cult of personality in their life especially during the 1980s. To this end, I will employ James C. Scott’s concept of everyday resistance in order to map the array of means used by the people in order to express their protest towards the public homage paid to the Romanian communist leader. My examination of the documents created by the Securitate (the former Romanian political police) and also by the Romanian department of Radio Free Europe, of the memoir literature published after the demise of the communist regime helped me to identify the following forms of everyday resistance towards Nicolae Ceausescu’s cult of personality: political discussions, individual or collective actions directed against the images of the Romanian communist leader, writing and spreading “documents containing hostile message” (unsigned letters, leaflets with messages against Nicolae Ceausescu) and political jokes. They will be analyzed from two main perspectives that will show and explain in what their resistance core lies in. The first one underlines that these forms of everyday resistance reversed the meanings of the homage assumptions made by the Romanian propaganda about Ceausescu’s leadership in order to identify what and particularly why certain aspects of his rule became the focus of the daily popular protest. The other perspective evaluates the role played by everyday resistance in the gradual undermining of Nicolae Ceausescu’s domestic legitimacy that along other evolutions led to the popular revolt against his rule in December 1989.
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Academician Dimitar Kosev is one of those Bulgarian historians who brought with them the patriotic enthusiasm from the time before World War II and welcomed the new Bulgarian hope expressed in the radical changes after the victory over fascism in Bulgaria and in the world. Acad. Kossev applied in his research territory the imposed “proletarian internationalism” selectively and carefully and avoiding direct confrontations, skillfully managed to be one of the first to carry into the new time the consistent bidding of Bulgarians on the national question and stand for it.
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The article is dedicated to a written monument from the time of the Bulgarian Revival, which is relatively little known to scientists – Life of St. Rada of Plovdiv written by Hadji Dimitar Panichkov. It seeks the place of this literary monument in the context of hagiographic literature created in the XIX century, and among other literary interpretations of the legend. Life of St. Martyr Rada of Plovdiv is not only a literary monument from the nineteenth century, but also an interesting source of information about important events and persons in the history of the city during the 1820’s and 1830’s, and in a broader context – about the historical environment in which Bulgarians build their national identity. It is a valuable documentary evidence of the mentality of Bulgarians from the time of their National Revival. Between attempts at reforms in the empire, military conflicts and liberation movements of the neighboring Balkan nations Bulgarians obtained their national emancipation, with their saints, heroes and role models, national myths and national identity based on them.
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At the end of the nineteenth century Russian civil administration governed the liberated territories of Bulgaria. It actively dealt with issues related to the restoration of Bulgarian statehood: the formation of an administrative apparatus, preparation of “Organic Chart” which later became constitution; the development of “Organic Statute” in Eastern Rumelia. It also ministered to the formation of the army and the education system of Bulgarian Principality. Russia prepared the ground for the later unification of the two parts of Bulgaria in one state.
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The article traces the main points of the diplomatic activity of Marko D. Balabanov in the first years of the Principality of Bulgaria (1879–1885). Growing up as a writer, public figure and politician in the period before the Liberation, Balabanov occupied leading positions in the Interim Russian Government (1877–1879) and played a significant role in the work of the Constituent Assembly in Veliko Tarnovo. There he participated actively in the debates on the issue of reunification of the Bulgarian nation divided by the Berlin agreement. When the first Bulgarian government was formed Balabanov was given the post of foreign minister and as such he worked hard to lay the foundations of a new Bulgarian diplomacy. After the fall of the conservative government, he was appointed envoy in Istanbul where he vigorously acted in defense of the Bulgarian national interests and contributed to raising the international prestige of the country. The regime of credentials (1881–1883) interrupted his diplomatic career, but in the second government of Dragan Tsankov (1883–1884) we see him again in the position of Bulgarian Foreign Minister. In those years he contributed in solving all the major foreign policy issues and contributed to the rise and consolidation of the authority of the Bulgarian state on the international arena. Facts and events in the life of Balabanov which are presented in the study give grounds to assert that he played a noticeable and even at times a leading role in the construction of the Bulgarian foreign policy in the period.
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Memories of President Zhelyu Zhelev about Academician Dimitar Kossev
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The text raises theoretical issues of the ethnos and of the ethnic with a view to the еthnogenesis and ethnic consolidation prior to the industrial age: from prehistorical times to the Middle Ages. The first range of issues is related to content analysis of the ethnic, whereby the ethnic components are examined as being composed of ethnic nucleus and ethnic syntagma, and are presented on the basis of the example of the wedding rite. The principal parameters of the ethnic self-awareness are outlined, which is to be acquired through accelerated mastering of the ethnic specificities of the new community. The second range of issues refers to the ethnic processes. Based on a purely academic segmenting of the object of research, i.e., of the “ethnos/ethnic” system, it can be divided into two parts, each of which comprises in turn separate subsystems, components and elements. Each system is alive when it functions, i.e., when certain processes develop in it.
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The hypothesis that Thracian and Dacian are two separate languages belongs to Vladimir Georgiev. It has both supporters and opponents. On the basis of analysis both of onomastic material (hydronyms, names of settlements, anthroponyms, theonyms and ethnonyms), and of appellatives (glosses), the paper checks the claim of considerable phonetic differences (presence or absence of a shift of the voiced and voiceless consonants) between the Thracian and the Dacian-Moesian region. Attention is devoted to the data on proper names formed on the same roots in both areas. An analysis is made of different graphic variants of other names with a view to studying the reasons for the appearance of the varying transcripts.
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The article focusses on Jan Lechoń’s political views after he emigrated to New York. These opinions could be found in literary works, as well as in letters and the Journal. The most important elements of political views of the author of Silver and black were: blatant anticommunism, critical assessment of the Polish emigration government, openly expressed admiration for America and nostalgia towards the interbellum (idealizing Józef Piłsudski). His views had a significant influence on his personal life, as exemplified by his politically motivated ending of his long-lasting friendship with Julian Tuwim. One of the most important issues is where to classify Lechoń’s often expressed opposition towards the political changes in Poland among the reasons for his suicide.
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The proposed text interprets the incriminated from totalitarianism book of Panait Istrati „Confessions of a defeated” and his political reorientation from left to right. It shows his deep disappointment from Stalinist Russia, too.
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This is a scholarly historical article about the role of the Bulgarian flag as a symbol and the change of its purpose from a distinctive Bulgarian mark to a national symbol.
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In this article prof. Hristo Matanov is writing about the role of fire and the usage of candles in human history and how they play general role in our development and evolution from Paleolithic era till nowadays and took their place in various religious rites.
More...Wokół narracji losu Anki Grupińskiej i Jánosa Kőbányaiego
The text is devoted to an analysis of the phenomenon of conversation. The author analyzes two volumes of interviews: Anka Grupińska’s "Still in a Circle", and "Izraeli szellem ma" by János Kőbányai, both of which explore the significance of talking about the Holocaust and the manner in which it can be done. The positions of the two writers demonstrate that on the map of post-Holocaust genres, one of the most important is the interview/conversation, which allows one to view another’s untouchable history and experience it without disturbing it.
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Jan Bułhak belongs to the precursors of the Polish artistic photography. He initiated the activity of environment photographers in Vilnius. His articles published in „Fotograf Polski” related to such issues as: aesthetics, artistry and social role of photography. Bułhak was a lecturer at the Stefan Batory University in Vilnius. His artistic photos were presented at international art exhibitions in such places as: London, Vienna, and Budapest. He photographed monuments, landscapes, nature and people. He is the author of the books “Fotografika”, “Estetyka światła” and “Fotografia ojczysta”. Both his books and articles were very popular among the young photographers. Bułhak was very active in the artistic community, being a member of photographic associations and the president of Vilnius Photo Club.
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Which God sanctified power? In the Roman Empire in 1 BC, during the transition of power, there was a question of legitimization comprehensive victory winner. That was an interesting phenomenon, when generals and statesmen addressed primarily the cult of Dionysus. These figures could be the Romans, but primarily embodied the opposite side of the conflict. Why is this God or only this God? Analysis of complex sources shows that depending on the circumstances, politicians have used the help of many gods. And the attitude to this practice was formed by both situation and propaganda.
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Christians consider Sunday to be a Holy Day. In order to understand the meaning and essence of Sunday which distinguish it from the other days of the week, it is necessary to look at the process of its development in the history of the Church. The origin of celebrating Sunday goes back to the creation of heaven and earth, after which, on the 7th day, God rested (Gen 2, 1-4). The day was blessed by God and made holy in order to differentiate it from the working days. As such, this day is a feast of the Creator and His creation. Historical basis for the celebration of Sunday can be found in the Old Testament, where it was called the Sabbath. On this day, the Jews commemorated the creation of the world, the exodus of Egypt and the covenant between Yahweh and Israel. Old Testament Israelites understood the significance celebrating Sabbath had for their keeping faith in one God, their identity and maintaining the community. New Testament sheds new light on Sabbath through the person of Jesus Christ, who rose from the dead “on the first day after the Sabbath”. Hence, Sunday – the first day of the week, marked first by the resurrection of Jesus and then by His Christophanies and the Pentecost – has constituted a central point in the life of Christians ever since the beginning of the Church.First mentions of celebrating Sunday as Lord’s Day come from the apostolic times. They can be found in the writings of st. Paul (1 Cor 16, 2) and in the Acts of the Apostles (20, 7-14). First Christians considered taking part in the Sunday Eucharist, called, among others, the ‘breaking of bread’, a moral obli- gation. Eucharist remained a distinctive symbol of celebrating Sunday also in the post-apostolic times. Early Christian writers and Fathers of the Church deepened the theological understanding and meaning of this day (e.g. „Didache”, st. Ignatius of Antioch, „The Epistle of Barnabas”, st. Justin, Origen, Tertullian, st. Ambrose, st. Augustine). First legal attempts to regulate celebrating Sunday come from the 4th century AD. A new chapter in the history of celebrating Sun- day in the life of the Christian community was started by the Edict of Milan, issued by the emperor Constantine in AD 313. It established Sunday as a national holiday. Ever since then, the law of the Church has included norms and regulations regarding the content and range of celebrating Sunday. The issue was raised during many ecumenical councils, but the first official bill regarding celebrating Sunday was included in the Code of Canon Law in 1917. The obligation to celebrate Sunday was also emphasized in the Code in 1983 and in the Catechism of the Catholic Church in 1992. ‘Dies Domini’ an apostolic letter promulgated by pope John Paul II in 1998 also played an important role in the shaping of our understanding of the theology of Sunday and of the basics of celebrating Sunday as the Lord’s Day, the Day of the Church and of the Man. In the 20 centuries of the history of the Church, celebrating Sunday shaped the spiritual culture of Europe and, as such, became a centuries-long cultural heritage of the Polish people. Attempts to abandon celebrating Sunday, not first in history, aim to undermine tradition and destroy family ties. In the 21st century, celebrating Sunday still remains a key element of Christian identity and culture.
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Content of the main Bulgarian scientific journals for the current year in linguistics, literature, history, folklore, ethnography, archeology and art studies
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