
Bulgarian literature is literature written by Bulgarians or residents of
Bulgaria
Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
, or written in the
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian (; , ) is an Eastern South Slavic, Eastern South Slavic language spoken in Southeast Europe, primarily in Bulgaria. It is the language of the Bulgarians.
Along with the closely related Macedonian language (collectively forming the ...
; usually the latter is the defining feature. Bulgarian literature can be said to be one of the oldest among the
Slavic peoples
The Slavs or Slavic people are groups of people who speak Slavic languages. Slavs are geographically distributed throughout the northern parts of Eurasia; they predominantly inhabit Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, Southeast ...
, having its roots during the late 9th century and the times of
Simeon I of the
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire (; was a medieval state that existed in Southeastern Europe between the 7th and 11th centuries AD. It was founded in 680–681 after part of the Bulgars, led by Asparuh of Bulgaria, Asparuh, moved south to the northe ...
.
Notable modern Bulgarian works of literature are ''
The Peach Thief'' by
Emiliyan Stanev, ''September'' by
Geo Milev, ''
Under The Yoke'' by
Ivan Vazov, ''The Windmill'' by
Elin Pelin, and ''Depths'' by
Dora Gabe. The book ''Wild Stories'' () by
Nikolay Haytov is included in the
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
Historical Collection.
Middle Ages
With the Bulgarian Empire welcoming the disciples of
Cyril and Methodius
Cyril (; born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (; born Michael, 815–885) were brothers, Population of the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine Christian theologians and Christian missionaries, missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs ...
after they were expelled from
Great Moravia
Great Moravia (; , ''Meghálī Moravía''; ; ; , ), or simply Moravia, was the first major state that was predominantly West Slavic to emerge in the area of Central Europe, possibly including territories which are today part of the Czech Repub ...
, the country became a centre of rich literary activity during what is known as the
Golden Age of medieval Bulgarian culture following centuries of oral tradition and epic singing in the region. In the late 9th, the 10th and early 11th century literature in Bulgaria prospered, with many books being translated from
Byzantine Greek
Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic; Greek: ) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the F ...
, but also new works being created. Many scholars worked in the
Preslav
The modern Veliki Preslav or Great Preslav (, ), former Preslav (; until 1993), is a city and the seat of government of the Veliki Preslav Municipality (Great Preslav Municipality, new Bulgarian: ''obshtina''), which in turn is part of Shumen P ...
and
Ohrid Literary School
The Ohrid Literary School or Ohrid- ''Devol'' Literary school was one of the two major cultural centres of the First Bulgarian Empire, along with the Preslav Literary School ( Pliska Literary School). The school was established in Ohrid (in what i ...
s, creating the
Cyrillic script
The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic languages, Slavic, Turkic languages, Turkic, Mongolic languages, Mongolic, Uralic languages, Uralic, C ...
for their needs.
Chernorizets Hrabar wrote his popular work ''An Account of Letters'',
Clement of Ohrid
Saint Clement (or Kliment) of Ohrid ( Bulgarian, Macedonian, , ''Kliment Ohridski''; , ''Klḗmēs tē̂s Akhrídas''; ; – 916) was one of the first medieval Bulgarian saints, scholar, writer, and apostle to the Slavs. He was one of the mos ...
worked on translations from Greek and is credited with several important religious books,
John Exarch wrote his ''Shestodnev'' and translated ''On Orthodox Christianity'' by
John of Damascus
John of Damascus or John Damascene, born Yūḥana ibn Manṣūr ibn Sarjūn, was an Arab Christian monk, priest, hymnographer, and apologist. He was born and raised in Damascus or AD 676; the precise date and place of his death is not know ...
,
Naum of Preslav also had a significant contribution. Bulgarian scholars and works influenced most of the Slavic world, spreading
Old Church Slavonic
Old Church Slavonic or Old Slavonic ( ) is the first Slavic languages, Slavic literary language and the oldest extant written Slavonic language attested in literary sources. It belongs to the South Slavic languages, South Slavic subgroup of the ...
, the Cyrillic and the
Glagolithic
The Glagolitic script ( , , ''glagolitsa'') is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. It is generally agreed that it was created in the 9th century for the purpose of translating liturgical texts into Old Church Slavonic by Saint Cyril, a monk fro ...
alphabet to
Kievan Rus'
Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,.
* was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...
,
medieval Serbia
The medieval period in the history of Serbia began in the 6th century with the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe, and lasted until the Ottoman Serbia, Ottoman conquest of Serbian lands in the second half of the 15th century. The period i ...
and
medieval Croatia.

As the Bulgarian Empire was subjugated by the
Byzantines in 1018, Bulgarian literary activity declined. However, after the establishment of the
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire (; ) was a medieval Bulgarians, Bulgarian state that existed between 1185 and 1422. A successor to the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Tsars Kaloyan of Bulgaria, Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II ...
followed another period of upsurge during the time of
Patriarch Evtimiy in the 14th century. Evtimiy founded the
Tarnovo Literary School that significantly affected the literature of
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
and
Muscovite Russia, as many writers fled abroad after the Ottoman conquest. Apart from Evtimiy, other established writers from the period were
Constantine of Kostenets
Constantine of Kostenets (; – after 1431), also known as Constantine the Philosopher ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Константин Филозоф, Konstantin Filozof, separator=" / "), was a medieval Bulgarian scholar, writer and chronicler, who spent mo ...
(1380-first half of the 15th century) and
Gregory Tsamblak Gregory Tsamblak (; ; ; sr-Cyr, Григорије Цамблак; ; ), member of the Tzamplakon family, was a writer and cleric active in Bulgaria, Moldavia, Serbia, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Principality of Kiev.
Biography
Early life
...
(1365–1420).
Medieval Bulgarian literature was dominated by religious themes, most works being
hymn
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...
s,
treatise
A treatise is a Formality, formal and systematic written discourse on some subject concerned with investigating or exposing the main principles of the subject and its conclusions."mwod:treatise, Treatise." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Acc ...
s, religious miscellanies,
apocrypha
Apocrypha () are biblical or related writings not forming part of the accepted canon of scripture, some of which might be of doubtful authorship or authenticity. In Christianity, the word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to ...
and
hagiographies
A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...
, most often heroic and instructive.
Early Ottoman rule
The fall of the Second Bulgarian Empire to the Ottomans in 1396 was a serious blow for Bulgarian literature and culture in general. Literary activity largely ceased, being concentrated in the monasteries that established themselves as centres of Bulgarian culture in the foreign empire. The religious theme continued to be dominant in the few works that were produced.
The main literary form of the 17th and 18th century were instructive sermons, at first translated from Greek and then compiled by Bulgarians.

A literary tradition continued to exist relatively uninterrupted during the early Ottoman rule in northwestern Bulgaria up until the
Chiprovtsi Uprising in end of the 17th century among the
Bulgarian Catholics who were supported by the Catholic states of
Central Europe
Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...
. Many of these works were written in a mixture of vernacular Bulgarian,
Church Slavonic
Church Slavonic is the conservative Slavic liturgical language used by the Eastern Orthodox Church in Belarus, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, Slovenia and Croatia. The ...
and
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian ( / ), also known as Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS), is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is a pluricentric language with four mutually i ...
and was called "Illyric". Among these was the first book printed in modern Bulgarian, the breviary ''
Abagar'' published in
Rome
Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
in 1651 by
Filip Stanislavov, bishop of
Nikopol.
The
Illyrian movement
The Illyrian movement (; ) was a pan-South-Slavic cultural and political campaign with roots in the early modern period, and revived by a group of young Croatian intellectuals during the first half of the 19th century, around the years of 1835 t ...
for
South Slavic unity affected the Bulgarian literature of the 18th and 19th century.
Hristofor Zhefarovich
Christopher is the English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or '' Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Christ" or "Anointed", and φέρει ...
's ''
Stemmatographia
Stemmatografia, known by its full name Stemmatographia sive Armorum Illyricorum delineatio, descriptio et restitutio (English: ''Stemmatography, or the sketch, description and revival of the Illyrian coats of arms'') is a heraldic essay written an ...
'' of 1741 is thought of as the earliest example of modern Bulgarian secular poetry for its
quatrain
A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four Line (poetry), lines.
Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India ...
s, although it was essentially a collection of
engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a Burin (engraving), burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or Glass engraving, glass ar ...
s.
Bulgarian National Revival
The nearly five centuries of Ottoman government of Bulgaria played a decisive role in the developing of the Bulgarian culture. The country was separated from the European Renaissance movements and higher forms of artistic expression and developed mostly its folklore songs and fairy-tales.
A new
revival of Bulgarian literature began in the 18th century with the historiographical writings of
Paisius of Hilendar
Saint Paisius of Hilendar or Paìsiy Hilendàrski () (1722–1773) was a Bulgarian Orthodox clergyman and a key Bulgarian National Revival figure. He is most famous for being the author of '' Istoriya Slavyanobolgarskaya'' (1762), the first signi ...
, ''
Istoriya Slavyanobolgarskaya''. Another influential work was ''Life and Sufferings of Sinful Sophronius'' by
Sophronius of Vratsa
Saint Sophronius of Vratsa (or Sofroniy Vrachanski; ; 1739–1813), born Stoyko Vladislavov (), was a Bulgarian cleric and one of the leading figures of the early Bulgarian National Revival.
Biography
Vladislavov was born in the town of Kotel i ...
.
In the period 1840–1875 the literature came alive with writings on mainly revolutionary, anti-Turkish themes. It was an earlier stage of the Bulgarian Renaissance and the most prominent poets at this time were:
Vasil Drumev,
Rayko Zhinzifov
Rayko Ivanov (Yoanov) Zhinzifov or Rajko Ivanov (Jovanov) Žinzifov, (, ; 15 February 1839 – 15 February 1877), born Ksenofont Dzindzifi ( cyrl, Ксенофонт Дзиндзифи), was a Bulgarian National Revival poet and translator from ...
and
Dobri Chintulov.
The noted poet and revolutionary
Hristo Botev (1848–1876) worked in the late 19th century and is nowadays regarded as arguably the foremost Bulgarian poet of the period. He managed to use the living language of the folklore songs to give an expression of modern ideas, doubts and questions. His works are small in number, most of them with intensive dialogue form and strong emotional message.

Among the writers who engaged in revolutionary activity were also
Lyuben Karavelov and
Georgi Sava Rakovski
Georgi Stoykov Rakovski () (1821 – 9 October 1867), known also Georgi Sava Rakovski (), born Sabi Stoykov Popovich (), was a 19th-century Bulgarian revolutionary, freemason, writer and an important figure of the Bulgarian National Revival ...
. Rakovski's best-known work, ''Gorski Patnik'' (translated as ''A Traveller in the Woods'' or ''Forest Wanderer'') was penned during the
Crimean War
The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
(1853–56) while hiding from Turkish authorities near the town of Kotel. Considered one of the first Bulgarian literary poems, it was not actually published until 1857.
A typical feature of the period was the increase of the interest in Bulgarian folklore, as figures like the
Miladinov brothers and
Kuzman Shapkarev made collections of folk songs and
ethnographic
Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...
studies.
Another writer with works of great importance is
Zahari Stoyanov (1850–1889) with his ''Memoirs of the Bulgarian Uprisings (1870–1876)''. His writings have historical, biographical and artistic value.
Bulgarian literature after 1878
Bulgaria received partial independence after the
Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). The recently established Bulgarian church, the developing national school system, the return of educated Bulgarians from abroad and the enthusiasm of a lately arrived
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
were among the factors which contributed to the forming of the new Bulgarian literature. It lost much of its revolutionary spirit, and writings of a pastoral and regional type became more common.
Ivan Vazov was the first professional Bulgarian man of letters and the founding father of the new Bulgarian literature. Vazov was very popular and productive and his works include both prose and poetry with equal virtuosity. His 1893 novel ''
Under the Yoke'', which depicts the Ottoman oppression of Bulgaria, is the most famous piece of classical Bulgarian literature and has been translated into over 30 languages. His most famous short novels include ''Nemili-nedragi'', ''Chichovtzi'' and others; he also wrote a large number of short stories, travel writings, memoirs, essays, pieces of criticism, dramas, comedies etc. Some of the more famous collections include: ''Draski i sharki'', ''Videno i chuto'' and others.
One of his most significant collections of poems is ''The Epopee of the Forgotten'' (1881–1884), consisting of 12 odes dedicated to the heroes of the Bulgarian history and the images and ideas which should be remembered. Other poetry collections include: ''Pryaporets i gusla'', ''Tagite na Bulgaria'', ''Gusla'', ''Slivnitza'', ''Luleka mi zamirisa'' and others.
A surprising example of early modern philosophical thought can be found in the poetic works of the renowned intellectual
Stoyan Mihaylovski.
Bulgarian modernist literature
The poet
Pencho Slaveykov, the son of the prominent Bulgarian Renaissance poet and teacher
Petko Slaveykov, is one of the most erudite writers of his time. He made a conscious effort to set the beginnings of modern literature and
Modernism
Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
in the country introducing the European philosophical and metaphysical ideas, partly modified and rebuilt upon the traditional linguistic and imagery heritage.
Slaveykov is famous for his ''philosophical poems'', his ''Epic Songs'' and the symbolist poetry collection ''Dream of Happiness''. Among others, he wrote a mystifying anthology of poets titled ''On the Island of the Blissful'' where he gathered at one place all the traditional ideas of Bulgarian poetry at this time presenting them like belonging to an imaginary island. His epic unfinished ''Song of Blood'' (1911–13) dealt with the struggle against the Turks. In his quest, Slaveykov was supported by other prominent intellectuals – scientists, writers, poets and critics.
One of the most remarkable prose writers from the first years after the liberation is
Aleko Konstantinov
Aleko Konstantinov () (1 January 1863 – 11 May 1897) ( NS: 13 January 1863 – 23 May 1897) was a Bulgarian writer, best known for his character Bay Ganyo, one of the most popular characters in Bulgarian fiction.
Life and career
Born to an ...
(1863–1897). His humorous and travel writings (''Bay Ganyo''; ''To Chicago and Back'') are both shrewd and vivid. He is best remembered for his character
Bay Ganyo, one of the most controversial and curious characters in the Bulgarian literature, with diverse layers and rich nuances.
Similarly to
Švejk of the Czechs,
Tartarin of Tarascon of the French and
Ostap Bender for the Russian peoples, Bay Ganyo is a collective image of many typical Bulgarian features. Although ridiculed, they could never receive a one-sided (positive or negative) evaluation and interpretation. The writer was killed accidentally just when his career was about to surge.
Along with
Petko Todorov,
Krastyo Krastev
Krastyo Kotev Krastev ( ; also transliterated as ''Krǎstjo Krǎstev'', ''Krustyo Krustev'', etc.) (31 May 1866 – 15 April 1919), popularly known as Dr. Krastev (д-р Кръстев), was a Bulgarian writer, translator, philosopher and public f ...
and
Peyo Yavorov, Pencho Slaveykov established the modernist circle ''Misal'' (''Thought''). Krastyo Krastev is a respected literary critic and erudite. Petko Todorov (1879–1916) is one of the greatest stylists of that time. A person of European education and manners, he manages to modernize the Bulgarian drama and also wrote a series of powerful impressionist stories based on folklore motives, titled ''Idylls''.
Peyo Yavorov (1878–1914) is considered a
Symbolist poet, one of the finest poetic talents in the ''
fin de siècle
"''Fin de siècle''" () is a French term meaning , a phrase which typically encompasses both the meaning of the similar English idiom '' turn of the century'' and also makes reference to the closing of one era and onset of another. Without co ...
''
Kingdom of Bulgaria
The Tsardom of Bulgaria (), also known as the Third Bulgarian Tsardom (), usually known in English as the Kingdom of Bulgaria, or simply Bulgaria, was a constitutional monarchy in Southeastern Europe, which was established on , when the Bulgaria ...
. The poems of Yavorov are diverse in topics but always with a strong impact – both emotional and intellectual. They have diverse and original forms, and rich and refined language; they are largely introspective, express the loneliness of the modern man, the impossibility to reach happiness and love in life, the constant threat and presentiment of death. They focus also on describing historical, mythological and visionary subjects with the same decadent emotional nuances.
Under the influence of the French and the Russian
symbolist
Symbolism or symbolist may refer to:
*Symbol, any object or sign that represents an idea
Arts
*Artistic symbol, an element of a literary, visual, or other work of art that represents an idea
** Color symbolism, the use of colors within various c ...
movements, there were other popular Bulgarian poets, quite a large number, who contributed to the fast-paced literary development in the country in the first decades of the 20th century. Among them were:
Dimcho Debelyanov,
Teodor Trayanov,
Nikolay Liliev,
Emanuil Popdimitrov,
Dimitar Boyadjiev and many others. Symbolism turned into one of the most influential movements and it can be felt in all the poetry to come throughout the 20th century. In Bulgaria it remains close to the European one: it is again an effort to overcome reality, its burden, monotony and heaviness. The quest for meaning and foundation in a different dimension of reality: an outer, high, spiritual, mystic, unknown and unintelligible one; a new dreamlike reality which is closer to beauty and harmony. The answer is looked for not only in the images, but in the purity and beauty of language.
Bulgarian literature between the world wars
Dimcho Debelyanov (1887–1916) was a poet whose death in the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
cut off his promising literary career. His body of work was collected by friends following his death and became very popular in post-war Bulgaria.
Hristo Smirnenski (1898–1923) is another talented symbolist poet with extremely melodious language whose early death could be mourned.
The interwar period in the Bulgarian literature will be remembered not only because of the dramatic social changes but also because of the reforms in the literary genres. A great part of them is associated with the figure and the activity of
Geo Milev (1895–1925) who published the
modernist
Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
magazine ''Vezni'' (''Scale''), in Sofia, contributing as a poet, translator, theatre reviewer, director, editor of anthologies and even as a painter. He experienced the influence of avant-garde movements like the German
expressionism
Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
and the French
surrealism
Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...
. His skillful poems (''The Cruel Ring'' (1920); ''The Icons Sleep'' (1922); ''September'' (1923)) and prose pieces (''A Little Expressionist Calendar for the Year'' (1921)) combine traditional motives, modern ideas and experimental language. He was killed at the age of 30 and although his career did not span more than 6 years, he is greatly respected and regarded by many as one of the most influential modernist poets and translators.
Bulgarian poetry will reach a new peak with another prematurely killed poet –
Nikola Vaptsarov (1909–1942). He managed to publish only 1 book of poems during his lifetime (''Motor Songs'' (1940)), in 1,500 copies. He was sentenced to death because of his underground communist activity against the Government.
Bulgarian prose flourished in the period between the world wars mainly because of the stories and the short novels of
Elin Pelin (1877–1949) and
Yordan Yovkov (1880–1937). Both of them were quite prolific and became popular not only in their home countries but also abroad. In their subjects, they stand close to the traditions of the
realism. Both of them focus on the rural life, but Yordan Yovkov is known for his fondness of traditions and myths, while Elin Pelin is more light-hearted and witty; the latter is also a famous writer of children literature. Both of them used vivid, elaborate language and images.
A remarkable writer of historical novels,
Fani Popova-Mutafova reaches the peak of her popularity before the Second World War but despite her talent, suffers repressions from the communist regime after it. Another figure which can hardly be forgotten from this period is the humorous writer and drawer
Chudomir (1890–1967) whose short stories (often no longer than 3–4 pages) are brilliant both in style and originality. The unique finesse of his writings is to remain widely admired.
Bulgarian literature after 1944
After the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
Bulgarian literature fell under the control of the
Communist Party and, particularly in the early years, was required to conform to the style called "
Socialist realism".
Dimitar Dimov (1909–1966) was forced to revise his best-selling novel ''Tobacco'' (1952), adapted for cinema as the
1962 film ''Tobacco'', to make it acceptable from the viewpoint of socialist realism by adding Communists and working-class characters and storylines.
The writer
Dimitar Talev (1898–1966) was also prevented for a time by the communist regime to publish his novels. Similarly to many other intellectuals, he was exiled to the province but continued to write. His best known work is ''The Iron Candlestick'' (1952).
Both Dimov and Talev were also renowned story-tellers with many story collections along with their novels. At the same time, even so early after the communists came to power, the development of their careers showed the ideological restrictions which writers had to face in the future.
Anton Donchev,
Yordan Radichkov,
Emiliyan Stanev,
Stanislav Stratiev,
Nikolay Haytov,
Ivailo Petrov and
Vera Mutafchieva are among the most talented and respected writers who managed to publish their books during the communist regime in the decades to come. Their works form the main novelesque body in the modern Bulgarian literature.

Some genres were almost sentenced to death like the
crime fiction
Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, crime novel, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives or fiction that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professiona ...
and the
science fiction
Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
as very few writers cultivated them (
Svetoslav Minkov,
Pavel Vezhinov,
Svetoslav Slavchev,
Lyuben Dilov
Lyuben Dilov Ivanov (Любен Дилов Иванов, 25 December 1927- 10 June 2008), occasionally spelled Luben Dilov, Ljuben Dilov or Liuben Dilov was a Bulgarian science fiction writer of the Communist era and the author of acclaimed chi ...
). Generally writers were tempted to turn to realist or historical subjects.
In fact, the Bulgarian national prose was not completely isolated from western literature and the ideas of
surrealism
Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...
,
expressionism
Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
,
existentialism
Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and valu ...
,
postmodernism
Postmodernism encompasses a variety of artistic, Culture, cultural, and philosophical movements that claim to mark a break from modernism. They have in common the conviction that it is no longer possible to rely upon previous ways of depicting ...
,
structuralism
Structuralism is an intellectual current and methodological approach, primarily in the social sciences, that interprets elements of human culture by way of their relationship to a broader system. It works to uncover the structural patterns t ...
and the other theoretical paradigms. The avant-garde literature movements were scarcely and unsystematically represented until the 80s.
Nevertheless, the postwar period was the most plenteous for the still feeble modern Bulgarian poetry. Both after the political changes in 1944 and 1989, thousands of poetry collections were published.
Some of the poets who have won a stable respect with time are
Atanas Dalchev (1904–1978) and
Valeri Petrov. Dalchev is also remembered as one of the finest translators from a wide range of languages.
The general tendencies can be noticed there and further on. The poetry becomes more intimate and confessional, and requires more invention in order to influence or provoke; nevertheless sometimes originality turns into an end in itself; the
free verse
Free verse is an open form of poetry which does not use a prescribed or regular meter or rhyme and tends to follow the rhythm of natural or irregular speech. Free verse encompasses a large range of poetic form, and the distinction between free ...
allowed higher intensity of language and diversity of forms; abstractness increased and started affecting the balance between philosophical depth and clearness; the search of lyricism is sometimes more evident than the meaning of the poems.
After change to capitalism
The gradual change from communism to capitalism in the
Eastern Bloc
The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...
and the Fall of Berlin Wall in 1989 was followed by a considerable increase in the modern publishing both of state and private publications, as well as a complicated distribution at periods, and a consequent seemed as devaluation compared to communist status that was well established as part of the communist ideology and cultural praxis of the writer’s social status at middle 90s altogether.
However at this time strongly is felt both the presence and influence of
Julia Kristeva
Julia Kristeva (; ; born Yuliya Stoyanova Krasteva, ; on 24 June 1941) is a Bulgarian-French philosopher, literary critic, semiotician, psychoanalyst, feminist, and novelist who has lived in France since the mid-1960s. She has taught at Colum ...
and her novels, widely translated from French to Bulgarian. Kristeva assured the possibility of the modern written in capitalism Bulgarian novel together with many, mostly poets, Bulgarian writers who tried to define literature in her new modern ways.
Sometimes the lack state ideological dogmatism of national consensus and the emerging new ideas, novelist areas and writing styles were producing mainly experimental attitude without much need for literary criticism in Bulgaria or for overscope on literary topics, are yet other factors that make it difficult or near impossible to distinguish those more famous or influential experimenting authors, the genuine ones, or those who served the communist state ideology who only slightly changed their paradigmatic ways together with younger voices in literature and writing. Generally it is considered that some better established poets from the previous generation maintained their popularity but it scarcely reaches outside of the national borders. Some of them include:
Konstantin Pavlov,
Boris Hristov,
Ekaterina Yosifova,
Dobromir Tonev,
Edvin Sugarev,
Ani Ilkov,
Georgi Gospodinov,
Iana Boukova and
Kristin Dimitrova.
References
Further reading
;On Bulgarian folktales:
* Даскалова-Перковска, Лиляна et al. "Български фолклорни приказки: каталог". Университетско издателство "Св. Климент Охридски", 1994. .
** Liliana Daskalova Perkowski, Doroteja Dobreva, Jordanka Koceva & Evgenija Miceva. ''Typenverzeichnis der bulgarischen Volksmärchen''. Bearbeitet und herausgegeben von Klaus Roth. Suomalainen Tiedeakatemia, 1995. . (German translation of the above)
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External links
Virtual Library of Bulgarian Literature SlovotoEnglish translations of Bulgarian poetry
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