NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND THE DISCOURSES OF HUMAN RIGHTS, POLITICS, AND SOCIETY

Author(s): Goran Ilik,Angelo Viglianisi Ferraro / Language(s): English Issue: Supp. 1/2021

Modern societies are associated with the constant flow and acceptance of information and communication technologies at home, in the workplace, in the process of education, even in recreational activities. The development of new technologies has not only challenged human rights, but also politics and society in general. Even more importantly, this new technological level has also empowered transnational corporations operating in the digital environment as hosting providers to perform quasi-public functions in the transnational context. New technologies have the potential to make significant positive contributions to the prevention, promotion, and protection of human rights and democratization, decentralization, and digitalization of politics and the advancement of society as a whole.

Научен отзив за Кръглата маса на тема: Образи на прехода: кино, театър и визуални изкуства

Author(s): Elena Fuchedzhieva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 10/2021

How do different arts - cinema, theater, literature, music - tell the story of the transition to democratization? This was the main topic discussed at a Round Table, held in the end of September at G8 Cinema by researchers for the project ‘The Transition after 1989 - Interpretations of Historical Change, Social Experience and Cultural Memory in Contemporary Bulgarian Literature’. The cultural heritage of Transition was at the center of discussions about the memory, the clash between the image of freedom and the market mechanisms of governing culture and art and the role of the media.

Научен отзив за Международната научна конференция "Дезинформацията: новите предизвикателства"

Author(s): Ralitsa Kovacheva,Ralitsa Kovacheva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 10/2021

The International scientific conference "Disinformation: the new challenges" brought together 16 participants - established researchers, PhD students and journalists - from Bulgaria, USA, Canada, Germany. The presented papers reflect various aspects of the problem of disinformation: the impact of disinformation on political processes, regulatory approaches to curbing disinformation, journalistic practice of fact-checking and debunking disinformation, the role of social media in disseminating and amplifying disinformation.

Сериализирането в международния информационен поток

Author(s): Maria Neikova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 10/2021

In the proposed text is sought to answer the question of whether and when we can talk about serialization in the international information flow. An attempt has been made for some systematization of the possible types of serialization, among which the anniversaries stand out. There are two major branches – the traditional serialization and the one generated by the possibilities of new technologies. The example with the ‘Tiananmen Papers’ is considered in more detail. It is also worth noting the borrowing serialization, shown in two examples of connecting processes in the present with such from the recent or very distant past.

Български места на памет, възпоменателни чествания в Република Северна Македония и техните медийни отражения

Author(s): Lozanka Peycheva,Lozanka Peycheva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 10/2021

The research focuses on commemorative practices around the figure of Mara Buneva and her memorial plaque in the center of Skopje, which can be interpreted as a Bulgarian place of memory. The study tracked only online reporting of the practices, without observing the corresponding offline events. Online versions of electronic media and agencies (TV, radio, news agency websites); online media (information websites) and social ‘we-media’ (video sharing websites, blogs, social networks, etc.) were researched. The studied materials reveal the care of some communities to establish the memorial plaque as a special Bulgarian place of memory in Northern Macedonia and the efforts of other groups seeking complete amnesia and ultimate delegitimization of the past related to Mara Buneva.

Re-reading the Bulgarian Folklore Journal

Author(s): Valentina Ganeva-Raycheva / Language(s): English Issue: Special 2/2020

This article is dedicated to the fortieth anniversary of the founding of the Bulgarian Folklore Journal. The reflections on the Journal which are discussed here are made in the context of the political and sociocultural development of Bulgaria, as well as in the context of national and international traditions in the study of folklore. At the same time, these reflections address changes in scientific paradigms and theoretical approaches, the problems of the existing boundaries between disciplines, the re-definition of scientific scope and newly defined fields of research. The interdisciplinary nature of the Journal, the development of its scientific profile, and its transformation into a journal for scholarly research in the field of folklore studies, ethnology and anthropology in the 1990s are given special attention. Editorial politics and practices, as well as different aspects of its theoretical sensibility and applied aims are traced. The place of the Journal among Bulgarian humanities periodicals and its international visibility are also highlighted.

SWITCHING FROM CASH TO CASHLESS PAYMENTS: CONSUMER BEHAVIOR EVIDENCE FROM KOSOVO

Author(s): Faruk Ahmeti / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2022

This paper investigates the readiness of customers to shift toward cashless payment by identifying the main factors that impact that shift. The sample consisted of randomly selected individuals identified as potential users of cashless payment and are considered more likely to continue using the new technology. Five hundred eighty-six questionaries were returned and considered complete for the research. The outcomes were assessed employing CFA for validity and determined using Cronbach’s alpha for the reliability of the research, which was stratified by seven regions throughout the country was applied, by covering all levels of the society. The findings show that the perceived risk is connected to the level of correct and believable information offered to customers. It has been confirmed that the respondents trust cashless payment technology, and at the same time, self-efficacy had a lower impact on usage continuance intention. Consequently, the growth of self-efficacy would strengthen the intention to use cashless technologies. Several segments in the financial market may benefit from the results and develop more appropriate and reliable systems and the proper approach toward customers with needed information and insurance related to the security and benefits they may have by adopting the cashless technology.

Гергьовден в Поморие – разделящ и споделян

Author(s): Lina Gergova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2022

The genesis of St. George’s Day as the day of Pomorie displays the mutual development of its modern historical political myth and the last three decades’ festivity. After the democratic changes in 1989, the patron holiday of the Anhialo monastery that continued to be observed even during socialism and the fair that accompanies it were developed and transformed into an official holiday, but invented rituals brought about a myth shift: from the established in the course of a century narrative about the fight for and the restoration of justice to a story of the offered fraternal hand and forgiveness. Based on the research of the myth–ritual interaction, the author searches for answers to the questions about the significance of St. George’s Day for the local community and about this holiday’s ability to serve both national and pluralistic tasks.

Юбилеите на руската емиграция в България (1919–1944) през нейните вестници: приоритет на снизхождащото приспособяване

Author(s): Yordan Lyutskanov / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2022

In my article, I analyse the newspaper imprints of some jubilee celebrations performed in the minds of Russian émigrés in Bulgaria, but also outdoors and indoors, between 1919 and 1944. Basing on M. Spariosu’s theory of exilic-utopian imagination and on the intuitive premise that an émigré community would inevitably pursue/problematize its accommodation within the host society, I locate the Russian émigré community and its celebrations within a tri-axial communicative situation whereby impulses for (self-aggrandising) introspection, mental war with the exiling power (sovietised Russia), and domestication of the host milieu are detectable. Considering newspapers as the most effective sites to host places of celebration for a (non-persecuted) ethno-cultural minority in the first half of the 20th c., and basing on prior historiography on the Russian émigrés of Bulgaria and on an overview of their periodicals, I identify as most conspicuous a constellation of jubilees that gravitated around the 50th anniversary from both the beginning and the completion of the 1877–1878 Russian-Ottoman war. Thus, I am able to discern the specificity of the communicative situation of that particular Russian émigré community against the benchmark of the ‘metropolitan’ one based in Paris. I approach these “imprints”, or “places of celebration”, as visual-verbal compositions (elaborating D. Georgiev’s ‘architecturology’ of newspaper); and as textualised experiences potentially reminiscent of the two cultural archetypes of “jubilee” for (post)Christian humankind, the Hebraic and the Roman ones.

Странстващи идеи по пътищата на хуманитаристиката. Изследвания по фолклористика, културна антропология и славистика в чест на доц. д-р Катя Михайлова. София: Издателство на БАН „Проф. Марин Дринов“. Т. 1, 2020. Т. 2, 2021

Author(s): Albena Georgieva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2022

Book review

Слова при представянето на книгата "Социалистическото българско радио (1944-1989:) на доц. д.н. Вяра Ангелова

Author(s): Raina Konstantinova,Snezhana Popova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 12/2022

The text contains a review made within the Public Seminar of the Department of „Radio and Television“, held on November 1, 2022, where Raina Konstantinova, Chair of the Public Council of the Bulgarian National Radio, and Prof. Snezhana Popova presented the new book of Assoc. Prof. D.S. Vyara Angelova „The Socialist Bulgarian Radio (1944-1989)“ (University Press „St. Kliment Ohridski“, 2022). We publish both speeches given at the premiere of the book.

Човекът - изваден наново

Author(s): Enyo Stoyanov / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 12/2022

The text offers a review of Prof. Miglena Nikolchina's monumental study "God with Machine: Subtracting the Human", dedicated to fundamental theoretical conceptualizations around anthropological issues. The review dwells in particular on the central conceptual paradox outlined in Prof. Nikolchina's book, namely the double determination of man as "a being who wants to be human" and “being who does not want to be human”

The 'Doubled-Sided' Chapel at Pyrga (Cyprus, 1421-1424).

Author(s): Vladimir Agrigoroaei / Language(s): English Issue: 6/2022

Après avoir reconfirmé la datation de Camille Enlart (vers 1421 ou 1421-1424) et identifié le comman-ditaire (l’évêque de Limassol Barthélemy Gui) dans une inscription fragmentaire, la présente étude explore: d’une part, les modèles des inscriptions en langue vernaculaire française de Pyrga (Chypre); d’autre part, la lo-gique du programme iconographique et le contexte culturel que sous-tend cette dernière. Dans la première par-tie, l’analyse des inscriptions de la chapelle prouve que le concepteur du décor peint a suivi un modèle manuscrit, sans doute un psautier avec un grand cycle d’enluminures. L’étude évoque trois termes de comparaison célè-bres: le Psautier de la reine Ingeburge (Chantilly, Bibliothèque du Musée Condé, 9 – tournant du xiiie siècle), le psautier de l’évêque Henri de Blois (Londres, British Library, Cotton Nero C iv – vers 1160) et le livre d’images de Marie de Rethel (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, n. acq. fr. 16251 – vers 1285). Dans la source manuscrite reconstituée, les inscriptions en ancien français étaient probablement transcrites en tant que tituli, d’après une typologie tripartite: noms de fêtes religieuses, groupes nominaux ayant une fonction analogue et légendes sous forme d’énoncés introduits par l’adverbe coument. La langue des inscriptions de Pyrga, un français d’Outremer, présente les traits particuliers des scriptae chypriotes de la fin du Moyen Âge. De plus, on constate que la déco-ration de la chapelle inscrit le monument de Pyrga dans la catégorie des chapelles royales de l’Europe occidentale (xive et xve siècles). Le transfert du codex à la paroi concerne non seulement les images, mais également les textes qui accompagnent ces dernières. L’auteur s’intéresse ensuite à la disposition symétrique de la décoration dans les deux travées de la chapelle, ainsi qu’à la manière dont cette disposition accentue l’Uniatisme catholique-orthodoxe. La logique dos-à-dos de la décoration émule celle des icônes à double face – termes de comparaison directs pour la chapelle – notamment leur choix d’apparier deux scènes : la Crucifixion / la Mère de Dieu. Le con-cepteur du décor peint souhaitait évoquer l’osmose de deux églises: une église latine, orientée vers l’Est; la sug-gestion d’une église byzantine, orientée vers l’Ouest. Cela explique le choix particulier de la décoration des voûtes (christologique pour la travée Est et mariale pour la travée Ouest), la double représentation de l’An-nonciation (pour marquer l’orientation des deux églises) et le choix d’une composition de type pala d’altare pour la paroi Est, tandis que la paroi Ouest imite la décoration des templons byzantins. L’osmose des deux églises est indiquée de manière encore plus claire par le choix de représenter les martyriums des saints Étienne (signifiant l’Orient) et Laurent (signifiant l’Occident) au-dessus des entrées latérales. Ce serait une allusion à l’osmose des corps de ces saints dans la Coniunctio corporum sanctorum Stephani et Laurentii (bhl 4784b). Après une réévaluation du texte fragmentaire (aujourd’hui perdu) de l’inscription dédicatoire, il est évident que la dédicace proprement dite concernait l’Assomption de la Vierge. Qui plus est, l’osmose Est-Ouest était de nou-veau indiquée par la représentation dans un même cadre de la Dormition de la Mère de Dieu (sujet à connotation byzantine) et du Couronnement de la Vierge (thème occidental par excellence). Les textes littéraires des xive et xve siècles confirment la fixation chypriote de l’appariement de la Mère de Dieu avec la Passion du Christ, de même que plusieurs autres choix de la décoration de Pyrga. La signification de la décoration devait être multiple, en rapport avec la triple utilité du bâtiment: chapelle funéraire (pour Barthélemy Gui), chapelle royale (pour le couple Janus de Lusignan-Charlotte de Bourbon) et point d’entrée au monastère de Stavrovouni, qui hébergeait des reliques de la Sainte Croix.

Royal Doors of Maramureș beyond their appearances.

Author(s): Alexandru Baboș / Language(s): English Issue: 6/2022

Dans les églises de rite byzantin, les ‘portes royales’ de l’iconostase se distinguent par leur richesse, leur étrangeté et leurs mystérieux ornements. Malgré le rôle décoratif essentiel qu’ils jouent, la finalité de ces traits caractéristiques demeure souvent obscure. Le manque d’explication cohérente devient ainsi l’un des défis scientifiques les plus stimulants à relever, afin d’en clarifier la signification. Étant donné que les recherches en ce sens sont encore absentes du panorama critique de l’histoire de l’art post-byzantin, mettre l’accent, dans une analyse du symbolisme des ‘portes royales’, sur une province lointaine telle que le Maramureș pourrait surprendre. La présente étude se propose toutefois d’interpréter la décoration des ‘portes royales’ au sein du cadre strict de l’espace rituel et culturel byzantin dans le territoire des Carpates du Nord à l’époque prémoderne, en s’appuyant, pour ce faire, sur des écrits religieux contemporains des objets étudiés. Puisque ces écrits, à travers les traductions en langue vernaculaire, ont influencé la culture populaire de la région, la décoration des ‘portes royales’ doit être interprétée en clé mariale. Aussi, tous les traits caractéristiques, les détails et les significations de ces portes illustrent la porte du ciel, attribut caractéristique de la Mère de Dieu dès l’incarnation du Christ. Il semblerait donc que le thème central en soit l’Annonciation. Ainsi, l’étude se propose de montrer la manière dont ce thème a été amplifié et diversifié sous forme de cycle iconographique composé de quatre parties, que l’on peut observer à la fois en peinture et en sculpture. Les sculptures témoignent d’un emploi particulier du langage métaphorique, exprimé d’une manière allégorique et emblématique, à travers laquelle les ‘portes royales’ sont transformées en pièces centrales et complexes de l’iconostase. Plusieurs prophéties concernant la Venue du Sauveur grâce à une vierge ont été choisies et représentées dans la sculpture des ‘portes royales’ de la région des Carpates du Nord, qui devient le centre d’un développement iconographique particulier. Sans doute, les disputes religieuses ont-elles façonné la culture spirituelle des croyants orthodoxes des Carpates, à l’époque turbulente de la pré-modernité. À cet égard, la rhétorique du langage artistique visuel se pose en miroir des témoignages apportés par les documents, les inscriptions et les collections folkloriques des communautés de rite byzantin. Situé à un carrefour de civilisations, l’art sacré de Maramureș contribue à une meilleure compréhension de la signification et de l’évolution de ces ‘portes royales’ à l’époque post-byzantine; mais il nourrit également l’étude de l’histoire de l’art européen dans son ensemble.

Brief Scholarly Reflections on Ukraine.

Author(s): Kohut Halyna,Taisiya Leber,Waldemar Deluga,Svitlana Valeriyivna Olianina / Language(s): English Issue: 6/2022

THE INFLUENCE OF THE DECOMMUNIZATION POLICY ON THE FORMATION OF UKRAINIAN NATIONAL IDENTITY

Author(s): Oleh Poshedin,Kateryna Kashchuk / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2023

The article examined the impact of the decommunization policy in Ukraine on national identity formation. The objectives of the article were to determine the main reasons and consequences of decommunization in Ukraine. A historical approach to determine the causes of decommunization and justify its necessity is applied in the article. Sociological studies and expert opinions on decommunization are analyzed. Based on synthesis, analogy, and abstraction methods, the elaborated material is summarised, and the article’s conclusions are formulated. As a result, the conclusion has been drawn that decommunization could not contribute to the formation of national identity in Ukraine. The outcomes of decommunization had a positive effect only in combination with other efforts (educational process, dialogue with society, language policy). However, given Ukraine’s regional characteristics, it took time to unite the population around a shared historical memory, common symbols, and traditions. The policy of decommunization primarily contributed to the strengthening of regional identity. Moreover, improving the material well-being of Ukrainians and creating favorable conditions for living and working in Ukraine will unite the residents of all regions of Ukraine. These actions will significantly enhance the effect of decommunization in forming national identity.

THE IMPACT OF COLLECTIVE MEMORY ON THAILAND’S INVOLVEMENT IN THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE

Author(s): Sanyarat Meesuwan / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2023

This study uses the theory of collective memory in international politics to examine the connection between collective memory and foreign policy to investigate why the Belt and Road Initiative has witnessed slow progress in Thailand. Qualitative data were gathered from various sources, including books, newspapers, journals, policy documents, and textbooks. The study concludes that cooperation between states is essential for achieving shared objectives but is contingent upon establishing mutual trust. Collective memories that one country maintains concerning another country can influence mutual understanding and trust, becoming ingrained even if the situation responsible for the memories changes or no longer exists. In the case of Thailand and China, the Thai government’s push for the high-speed rail project faced criticism and concerns due to the public’s deep-seated fears and distrust of China, the result of historical events and past experiences. This paper’s findings highlight the state’s role in creating collective memory and otherness, recognizing that external variables such as major power activities play a significant role.

LOCAL SELF-GOVERNMENT, COMMUNITY, AND SOCIAL SERVICE DELIVERY IN KOSOVO

Author(s): Ferdi Kamberi,Zeqir Hashani / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2023

Community development is vital in networking and creating social capital. Local governments in Kosovo cooperate closely with their communities by offering public and social services, inclusivity, and social integration. This cooperation increases active citizenship, community development, social welfare, and local democracy. This paper aims to research and analyze the relationship between local governments and their communities, focusing on providing social services. The applied methodology included a quantitative survey of 300 respondents from three municipalities: Pristina, Fushe Kosove, and Obilic, targeting citizens aged 18 and above of both genders. The results show that local authorities in these municipalities offer community services and include their communities in policy-making and decision-making. While they also offer social services, community-based services should be restructured, and local authorities should pay more attention to empowering the community more comprehensively.

Прогноза за времето: от епичния „край на света“ до апокалипсиса днес

Author(s): Lidija D. Delić / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 2/2022

The paper examines the folklore understanding of weather conditions, archaic conceptualization of cataclysms and contemporary newspaper/internet articles on similar topics in a comparative context. It turns out that modern civilization inherits part of the rhetorical repository and imaginary of traditional cultures when it comes to meteorological phenomena, employing them in a new context in the already recognized global “discourse of fear/intimidation” (F. Furedi, D. Altheide, P. Cap). At the same time, this rhetorical identification is seductive insofar as all its parameters (the planet has warmed since pre-industrial times, glaciers are melting, sea levels have risen, a large percentage of forests emitting oxygen have been cut down, the ozone layer and ecosystem-regulating animal species vanish, humanity has increased enormously) speak that on a global level something dramatic is happening and that we are not just witnessing another of the great resurrections of history and its (mis)use.

Разомагьосване, повторно омагьосване и фолклорни жанрове

Author(s): Ana Vukmanović / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 2/2022

Book Review: Disenchantment, Re-enchantment and Folklore Genres. Ed. by Nemanja Radulović, Smiljana Đorđević Belić. Belgrade: Institute for Literature and Arts, 2021. 286 pp. ISBN 978-86-7095-286-7