The Zariphios School (, "Zariphios School of Philippopolis") was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

educational institution established in 1875 in

Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...

(Philippopolis), then in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

and now in

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 ...

. It became one of the most significant Greek educational centres in the region of

Thrace Thrace (, ; ; ; ) is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe roughly corresponding to the province of Thrace in the Roman Empire. Bounded by the Balkan Mountains to the north, the Aegean Sea to the south, and the Black Se ...

, attracting teachers from

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

and

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

and existed until 1906. The Zariphios was one of the first schools of the

Greek diaspora The Greek diaspora, also known as Omogenia (), are the communities of Greeks living outside of Greece and Cyprus. Such places historically (dating to the ancient period) include, Greeks in Albania, Albania, Greeks in North Macedonia, North Maced ...

that introduced primary and secondary education for girls.

Background

Until the early 20th century, the Greek community was one of the three most numerous ethnic communities in Plovdiv, behind

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

and Turks. Greek education was thriving during the 19th century and reached a peak in the 1880s. At that time the city hosted eight Greek language schools: one boys' school, three mutual education schools, one central, one district girls' schools and two pedagogical academies. There were also two private parish schools with clerics as teachers.

History

Zariphios was established in 1875 owing to an initiative of the ''Greek Education Committee of Thrace'' and the sponsorship of the banker and benefactor from

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

Georgios Zariphis, one of the prominent personalities in the Ottoman capital's business life at the time. Additionally, Zariphis offered an annual amount of 1,000 pounds for the school's needs. The school soon became a well known educational institution for Greek communities inside and outside the region of

Eastern Rumelia Eastern Rumelia (; ; ) was an autonomous province (''oblast'' in Bulgarian, ''vilayet'' in Turkish) of the Ottoman Empire with a total area of , which was created in 1878 by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), Treaty of Berlin and ''de facto'' ...

(an autonomous province under Ottoman control, established in 1878 and united in 1885 with the

Principality of Bulgaria The Principality of Bulgaria () was a vassal state under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire. It was established by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. After the Russo-Turkish War ended with a Russian victory, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed ...

) and

. To increase its authority and prestige, the Zariphios increased its contacts with prominent educational institutions in

and

. Moreover, it attracted university teachers in the fields of

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

and

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

from the capital of the Greek state,

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, as well as music teachers from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. From 1881, the Zariphios and the rest of the Greek schools in the city synchronized their curriculum with the schools in Greece, while from 1885 they issued certificates identical to those of high schools in Greece. In 1906, Greek-Bulgarian antagonism over the Macedonian Question led to the departure of the majority of the Greek community. Their schools had to close, and the remaining female students of the Zariphios attended the local French college of Saint Augustine.

Notable teachers

* Gregorios Bernardakis (1848-1925), philologist, palaeographer and university professor

Notable graduates

* Christos Tsountas (1857–1913), archaeologist * Patriarch Photios II of Constantinople (1874–1935) * Kostas Varnalis (1884–1974), poet

References

{{reflist Education in the Ottoman Empire Greek diaspora in Europe Education in Plovdiv Defunct schools in Bulgaria Educational institutions established in 1875 Educational institutions disestablished in 1906 History of Plovdiv 1875 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Organizations based in Plovdiv

Background

History

Notable teachers

Notable graduates

See also

References