Todor Genchov Vlaykov (13 February 1865 – 28 April 1943), also known by his pseudonym Veselin, was a Bulgarian writer, public figure and politician. His most famous work is the story "Grandfather Slavchova's Granddaughter". His great-grandson is the diplomat Radko Vlaykov.

Biography

He was born on February 13, 1865, in the town of

Pirdop Pirdop ( ) is a town located in central-west Bulgaria. As of 2024, it had a population of 6,739. Pirdop Gate on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Pirdop. Geography The town is situated in the Zlatitsa ...

. He graduated from the Faculty of History and Philology of

Moscow University Moscow State University (MSU), officially M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University,. is a public research university in Moscow, Russia. The university includes 15 research institutes, 43 faculties, more than 300 departments, and six branches. Al ...

in 1888. He was the founder and chairman of the Bulgarian Teachers' Union. He was a full member of the BKD (now BAS) from 1900 onwards. In 1890 Vlaykov and Todor Yonchev founded the first Bulgarian cooperative - Mirkovo Mutual Savings Agricultural Association " Oralo" in

Mirkovo Mirkovo (, ) is a village in western Bulgaria, part of Sofia Province. It is the administrative centre of Mirkovo Municipality, which lies in the central eastern part of Sofia Province. The village is located in the eastern part of the Zlatitsa– ...

. Vlaykov was one of the founders and the first leader of the Radical Democratic Party. At the founding of the Democratic Alliance in 1923, he participated in the group that drafted the first program of the new party.

Legacy

In 1926, on the initiative of Vlaykov's wife, Maria Vlaykova, a building was opened to house a Cinema. Shortly after, the newly built cinema on Tsar

Ivan Asen II Ivan Asen II, also known as John Asen II (, ; 1190s – May/June 1241), was Emperor (Tsar) of Second Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria from 1218 to 1241. He was still a child when his father Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria, Ivan Asen I one of the founders of th ...

Street was donated to the Ministry of Public Education, and a little later it was officially named the Vlaykova Cinema, in honour of Todor and his wife. In 2007, with the decision of the Municipal Council of Pirdop, the Todor Vlaykov National Literary Prize was established.

Bibliography

*"Aunt Gena" 1890 *"For Uncle Stayka" 1891 *"Ratay" 1892 *"Teacher Milenkov" 1894 Stories and Narratives 1897 *"Grandfather Slavchova's Granddaughter" (11th ed. - 1889, 1917, 1927, 1928, 1928 with the title "Two young people fell in love", 1941, 1946, 1978, 1985, 1989, 2004) *"Strina Venkovica and her daughter-in-law" 1925 *"The Experience" 1934, 1939, 1942 *"Autumn" 1891 *"Unpleasant guest"

References

{{Reflist 1865 births 1943 deaths 20th-century Bulgarian writers People from the Principality of Bulgaria Expatriates in the Russian Empire 19th-century Bulgarian writers