The Macedonian Digest
“From the readers for the readers”
Edition 5 – May 2006
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Editor’s Notes
I am happy to announce that included in this issue is Katerina’s heartfelt and inspiring article “BEING A GREEK, What it means to me as an enlightened Greek” which you can find in the “Opinions” section. This article you can’t afford not to read.
Dear friends from the Greek persuasion;
I have spent countless hours debating with Greeks and so far I have nothing to show for it, just wasted time. So there is nothing more or new that you can tell me which I have not already heard.
We Macedonians are here to assert out identity and you are here to deny it! Pure and simple!
The only thing that really works with you (Greeks) is to challenge you at your own game, put you on the defensive and take you to war (so to speak) on your turf.
It is you Greeks who do not exist. Your nation is a 19th century Great Power fabrication. You are no better and no different from us except we know who we are and you don’t. Can you accept that? Can you accept the fact that the modern Balkan States are created from the SAME people, Vlahs, Albanians, Macedonians, Turks and Roma, to name the majority? Yes it is a fact! Deal with it! There are no real Greeks, only fabricated ones. Your state is creating them as we speak. Tell me that today Greece is not importing Albanians, Russians, Romanians, etc., making them into Greeks! Tell me that today Greece is not importing Georgians and not calling them “pure Macedonians, descendents from Alexander the Great”?!
Face it, Greeks are MADE NOT BORN! They are made from other ethnicities including the ones you loathe!
If you want to debate with me you have to first admit to yourselves that we all are descendants of the same people. We are made from the same Balkan raw materials; only politics and politics alone have divided us and made us different. The Balkans were without borders for over two millennia and there is no chance on Gods earth that our ancestors did not mix in every way possible. So why deny it? If we are Slavs so are you!
When you call yourselves Greeks you not only live a lie and a myth but at the same time you let your real heritage slip away. In time none of you will know who you are!
When you call yourselves “Greek” you deny “mine and your existence”. The Greek State and successive Governments have made our relationship exclusive. If you [Greeks] exist, we [Macedonians] don’t exist and if we [Macedonians] exist you [Greeks] don’t exist, that is what your Government is telling you. Macedonians and Greeks are mutually exclusive. But is does not have to be that way!
As voters and citizens of Greece you need to correct this. You need to vote out those politicians who lie to you and get some decent people in. Your current party system leaves a lot to be desired! Your current Government leaders are dynasts and might as well be Kings.
For now here is my philosophy: “If you deny my existence, I will deny yours”. (You have to think about this a bit.) Don’t you think that’s fair?
Risto Stefov
Issues
THE BULGARIAN LANGUAGE
American missionaries working in Bulgaria in the 1850s created the first standardized Bulgarian script, choosing to base the national language on the dialect of Thrace and eastern Macedonia rather than on that spoken in the regions of northern Bulgaria. Until the work of such American missionaries, memories of an ecclesiastical past in Bulgaria had been preserved in large part only by Slavonic monks. The American Board of Missionaries, with their network of locally posted missionaries, intentionally or not, assisted nascent Bulgarian national elites to forge a different picture of the past.
Dr. Elias Riggs, for example, crossed "European Turkey" in the late 1840s and in 1847 compiled a Bulgarian grammar primer. According to Tsanoff (1919:ix), it had been the American missionaries who had discovered (or, we might say, helped to invent) the Bulgarian nation. They published some of the first books in Bulgarian, and in 1864 began putting out the first monthly magazine in the region written in Bulgarian. Morning Star (Zornitsa), as it was called, later became a weekly, was distributed widely throughout the countryside and was read aloud in coffee shops in towns and villages. In fact, zornitsa eventually became a generic term for newspaper in Bulgaria.(1) Apart from the work of Bulgarian clergy, intellectuals, and political elites for the national awakening of the Bulgarian peoples, it had been the provisioning of the written word that provided the impetus for unification under the banner of Bulgarian national ideology. As Prince Ferdinand of Montenegro once remarked, "had there been no American missionaries, there would have been no Bulgaria" (cited in H.askell 1919:3). Not only did they translate the Bible into Bulgarian, but their linguistic work also enabled them to preach to local inhabitants in their own language.
(1) For more on the work of American missionaries in Bulgaria, see Tsanoff (1919), Haskell (1919), and the Carnegie Report (1914).
Karakasidou, Anastasia N. Fields of Wheat, Hills of Blood. Chicago: The
University of Chicago Press, 1997. p. 83
ONE DOES NOT NEED TO GO TO MACEDONIA TO FIND MACEDONIANS
By Eugene N. Borza
An essay on modern political culture in a volume devoted to reciprocity in life and art in the ancient world may require a word or two of explanation. The theme of what follows is the modem rebirth of ancient Macedonia as a symbol of nationalism in a part of the Balkans that has been a killing ground in recent times. Many contemporary observers have attempted to reinvent the ancient history of the region in order to fit the necessities of their own lives and the vagaries of modem Balkan politics. It is a distorted reflection of the past, which, in its warped form, serves a purpose useful beyond the romantic antiquarianism of the classroom, the tourist path, and the museum. Midst the great body of Peter Green' s scholarship on literature, art, and the history of antiquity, one must not lose sight of the fact that he is one of our most perceptive observers of modem Greece, having lived among Greeks for several years, and having understood them better, perhaps, than they might have wished. Green's essays in publications such as the New York Review, the New Republic, and the Times Literary Supplement are a rich source of insight for anyone who not only wishes to know something about contemporary Greece, but also requires some understanding of the issue of continuity and discontinuity between the past and present. I hope that he will accept this essay in the spirit he has expressed in his own work on like subjects.
In the spring of 1993 I taught an undergraduate senior seminar to History majors, the topic of which was "Ethnic Minorities and the Rise of National States in the Modem Balkans." We examined the status of minorities following the founding of Serbia (1815), Greece (1832), Bulgaria (1878), Albania (1913), and Yugoslavia (1918). Not long into the semester I asked my American students to identify their own ethnic backgrounds. One young woman said proudly that she was "Macedonian." Grist for my mill. I asked her what that meant: was she Greek or Slav? She answered that she was Macedonian, and certainly not Greek, although she pointed out that she had spent most of her school life pretending that she was Greek, for, whenever her teachers asked about her ethnic background and she answered "Macedonian," they responded, ''Oh, you must be Greek." Now, as an honors student and a senior at a major university, she had stopped pretending she was Greek, and took my seminar in part to help her learn something about her Slavic Macedonian background.
Her family lived near a decaying central Pennsylvania mill town called, appropriately, Steelton. About halfway through the semester, the student told me that she had visited her church cemetery in Steelton, and that she had seen a number of gravestones on which the deceased had been identified as having been born in "Macedonia." I asked what the dates of burial were, and she said "Oh, the 1950s." "Not good enough," I responded, ''Next time you visit, look for earlier dates," knowing that by the 1950s it would not be unusual for birthplaces to be given as "Macedonia" in light of the federal status of Macedonia as a Yugoslav Republic. About two weeks later my student informed me that she had seen gravestones of the 1930s with the Macedonian identification. I jumped at the chance. "I'm going to pay you a visit in Steelton," I told her. "Find some old-timer in your church, and let's go looking for gravestones."
Steelton is located along the Susquehanna River, just south of Harrisburg. The deteriorated mills, now largely deserted, stretch along the river, separated from a dilapidated old working-class community by a highway. Affluence has lured many people into the suburbs of Harrisburg a few miles away, and the houses and people who remain have clearly seen better times. The town climbs a bluff from the river. The higher parts are marked by greenery, better kept and larger homes, and bits of parkland. On the summit of one of the highest bluffs is an open, grassy area of several acres, the site of the Baldwin cemetery. Within lie the remains of immigrants who escaped the violence and poverty of Balkan life generations ago to seek economic well-being in the mills of Steelton.
The old woman who accompanied us knew the history of the cemetery and the churches whose members were buried there. One of the first things that struck me was that, by and large, the deceased who were identified as Serbs, Bulgarians, or Macedonians were buried in separate parts of the cemetery. In death, they sought the separation that sometimes eluded them in life. The old Macedonian woman had little but contempt for the Serbs, many of whom she had known, but she sometimes appeared confused by the distinctions between Macedonians and Bulgarians. For until the establishment of the Macedonian Autocephalous Orthodox Church in 1967, the Macedonians belonged to either the Bulgarian Orthodox Church or to the "Macedonian-Bulgarian" Orthodox Church described on a few gravestones. Indeed, the Macedonian community in Steelton had apparently experienced internal division over whether their priests should most legitimately have been trained in Macedonia or in Bulgaria.
We picked our way past hundreds of gravestones, stopping to take photographs and looking for earlier dates. Some stones were engraved in Latin letters, most in Cyrillic. A few decrepit headstones had been replaced with new ones, but most were original, and I mused that my old teachers of epigraphy would have been pleased that many of the techniques used to examine ancient inscribed stones were useful in this twentieth-century American cemetery.
Nearly all the deceased had been born in the southwestern Macedonian town of Prilep, about forty miles northeast of the Greek frontier above Florina (Lerin). Several stones appeared with death dates in the 1920s, and a few in the 'teens. We halted at the edge of the cemetery, where the hillside had begun to collapse into a valley. I was told that the earliest gravestones had fallen away down the slope, and that the presence of snakes and ticks made the descent perilous. I was satisfied, for at my feet was an intact gravestone with the name of the deceased who had been born in "Prilep, Macedonia" in 1892, and who had died in Steelton in 1915. I was stunned. Here was clear evidence of a man who died in a central Pennsylvania mill town only two years after the Second Balkan War, and was identified at his burial as a Macedonian.
A subsequent trip to the cemetery in 1995 confirmed and enlarged the data base. I now have 30 gravestones in my photo file, the most interesting one of which was discovered in my 1995 visit. It is a simple, weather-worn headstone with the name of the deceased followed by (in English) "Mace-done [sic] died Sep. 20, 1906 at Steelton Pa." Thus, six years before the First Balkan War in which the region of Macedonia was detached from the Ottoman Empire by Serb, Greek, and Bulgarian armies, the reality of Macedonia/Macedonian already existed among Macedonian immigrants in central Pennsylvania.
All of which is confirmed by reference to the 1920 United States census report from Steelton. The census-taker collected data from about 250 persons who lived along Main Street in Steelton. Of the total 76 claimed to have been born in "Macedonia," and to have "Macedonian" as their mother tongue. All 76 listed their parents as having been born in "Macedonia," With "Macedonian" as their mother tongue. Thus 228 persons were identified by a U.S. census taker in 1920 on a single street in Steelton as having a Macedonian connection.
Posted on the maknews.com forum by Mak Master
Opinions
WHAT IS A HELLENE?
If you ask a Modern Greek today what is a “Hellene” he or she will tell you “a Hellene is a Greek”. In fact inside Greece Greeks among themselves don’t call themselves Greeks they call themselves “Ellines” and their country “Ellada”. If you ask “how do you say Greek in Greek” they will answer “Ellines”.
So, what exactly are “Ellines”?
Here is what Michael Dimitry has to say;
“…the term “hellene” which is often translated as the ethnic identification “Greek” did not necessarily mean that to the ancients. Another Athenian statesman, Isocrates (436-338 B.C.), says in his Panegyricus: ‘And so far has out city distanced the rest of mankind in thought and in speech that her pupils have become the teachers of the rest of the world; and she has brought it about that the name “Hellenes” suggests no longer a race but an intelligence, and that the title “Hellenes” is applied rather to those who share our culture than to those who share a common blood.’
Therefore, the term “Hellene” in ancient times had about the same meaning as some of the cultural generalities we use today such as “Western Civilization” or “Oriental”. They are somehow fluid and have little, if any value.
This leads to another question; how did the ancient Greeks determine who was a “hellene” in an ethnic sense?
There were two criteria; one was the person participated in the Olympics, the other was that a city or region had fought on the Greek side of the Trojan War. The Macedonians fit neither of these criteria.”
Dimitri, Michael A. The Radiance of Ancient Macedonia, Fort Wayne, 1992. p. 17
So, are modern Greeks Hellenes? A question to ponder!
By Risto Stefov
PLAYING NAME GAMES
Imagine Japan annexed the state of Queensland then expelled most of the Australian population from there. Then, they settled it with Japanese people and labeled the newcomers as Japanese-Australians! On the other hand, they pressured the rest of Australia and many world governments to accept a name like FBCoA - The Former British Colony of Australia. How would you feel as an Australian?
Macedonia had lands stripped off it not from one but from four fronts with territories in Greece, Bulgaria, Albania and Serbia-Kosovo! Nations which have annexed territories from other countries should not be allowed to use that state’s name for identifying these newly acquired lands which illegally belong to them.
Take for example the US state of New Mexico which was stripped off Mexico. Going by this analogy Greece could call its northern annexed province "New Macedonia". But then again this was a former name proposal from Greece for its northern neighbour (implying they annexed territory from Greece)!
The whole thing has become a farce. Greece's 'northern territories' annexed in 1913 are now called (since 1988) the 'Province of Macedonia and Thrace'. The Greek government has even appointed a minister for this province. The "so called" Minister for Macedonia and Thrace. They are looking like complete fools because recently deciphered ancient inscriptions show that the Ancient Macedonians and Thracians spoke a Slavic language, just like the Modern Macedonians and Bulgarians (formerly Thracians or half Thracians) do!
By Zac- Australia
The Ancient Greeks brushed off the Ancient Macedonians and everyone else in the world that wasn't Greek as "Barbarians". To the chauvinistic Greek ear the foreigners spoke a language that to them sounded like 'babble' and 'blabber' ("Ej, onie barbarite")!
Well the biggest barbarians of them all were the Macedonians from the north and their king Philip II (father of Alexander III -The Great).
So it goes without saying: The Modern Greeks should not lay a claim to Macedonia or Alexander the Great before FULLY explaining the Athenian Demosthenes: What he said and called King Philip II and why and how he died!
Even more recent damaging evidence against Greece is that these "barbarians" who lived in close proximity and among the Ancient Greeks spoke a proto-slavic language which is the root language of the Modern Macedonians.
By Zac Australia
BEING A GREEK
What it means to me as an enlightened Greek
Being denied my true ethnic heritage and having “nationalism” imposed upon me, left me an ethnic “non-identity”. While I was forced to learn about my “new” nationality I was simultaneously denied knowledge of my true ethnicity until it was all forgotten and I was left with only my nationality. In other words my family came to Greece from Asia Minor with a fully intact and vibrant ethnicity which was denied, and as the years wore on our ethnicity slowly evaporated to be replaced by our newly imposed Greek nationality.
Having understood this I resent what has happened because all the knowledge of my family roots is now gone and resides with my dear departed relatives.
Now I am hopelessly stuck at being no more than a mere 'Greek'. Why do I say, "No more than a mere Greek?" Well, because inside my national narrative others have chosen my ethnicity, an ethnicity designed to link me NOT to my true ancestors but to an idealistic and historic once glorious people that belonged to a multi-ethnic and multicultural ancient civilization which started 4000 years ago. Whoever they may have been, yes according to ancient history they were glorious, they however, are very far removed in time to have any REAL relevance for me.
I personally find it unrealistic for me to belong to an ethnicity that belongs to people from 4,000 years ago. How can I be sure that with all the mixing of people over the ages, that I really belong to this particular ethnicity? How do we even know if the Ancient Greeks themselves were of the same ethnicity that I am today? There were also others, so EVERYBODY could not have been Greek, the type of Greek I am today! Our choices, our lack of proper distinction and clarification given to our modern part, leave me feeling dissatisfied.
Feeling dissatisfied I made attempts to look at my most recent history which I thought I could easily verify and which I expected would give me insight into who I am. That unfortunately was not easy either and had its shortcomings.
My quest to find my original ethnicity hit a wall. Here is what I was told;
"You are Greek! You come from a direct lineage of formerly super-glorious people from 4000 years ago! What more do you need? Is this not enough for you?"
I am told this by my own people.
To be honest with you, this simplistic and unrealistic explanation is not enough for me. I don't feel it accurately reflects my truth, nor does it explain how I came to be in that span of 4000 years.
In the conceptualization of my Greek national narrative, it was the idea “of my people living in a homogenous nation” that formed my nation's ideology. In other words, “to be called Greek was to be a Greek”. If you were told you were Greek then you were Greek and nothing else mattered. Nothing else was deemed relevant to our state's adopted ideology.
The 'Greeks' in Greece, who spoke their native tongues which was not Greek, were not supposed to exist, or show anybody that they existed.
This however was not reality so state 'measures' were employed to correct the situation and to ensure that people remained in line with the state's official ideology.
Many of my own family members belonged to this latter category. Much of my own true ethnic culture was forcibly 'contained', to the annoyance of one particular family member whose influence on the family had a huge impact for generations. My beliefs too are an indirect product of her influence. The things that we remember most vividly and are locked in our collective memories are the most traumatic experiences in our lives. Hence that is why this woman's experiences remain locked in the memories of her family, including my own.
This is how and why I came to know about my 'Anatolian' Great-Grandmother, as she referred to herself, (because she hated Turks for her fate) who was born a native Turkish speaker with a Turkish surname.
She was an Orthodox Christian and where she lived she was not allowed to be Christian but did not want to convert. Her only other choices were to flee or die, so she was forced to flee. She took one of her three children and fled to the nearest place she could reach to save herself and her child.
She was true to her faith and remained an Orthodox Christian but she paid a price for it. The way I see it she sacrificed herself to give us, her grandchildren the opportunity to learn, as much as we could about her true heritage and language. She managed to preserve her real culture and at the same time, despite her discomfort with this name, was able to call herself Greek. She practiced her own culture and remained true to her heritage. She did this by teaching the new generation the traditional cooking she so much loved and cherished. She only referred to it as 'Greek' but defiantly defended it as her own!
Other than her delicious recipes for making her food, I have little knowledge of her culture, a loss which I deeply regret. I resent the fact that my people were placed in circumstances where the State made choices for them instead of allowing individuals to make choices for themselves.
IT WAS NOT THE STATE'S RIGHT TO MAKE THAT CHOICE FOR ME.
What was taken away from me can never be replaced or restored. I have missed out on learning all the languages my ancestors spoke, the traditions they practiced and the cultural rites they performed. I have missed learning and experiencing my true culture which is now buried with my ancestors. I was robbed of my rightful inheritance as if it did not exist. I only know a fraction of what I could have known.
I have relatives from many places who I will never know. I will probably never know my full ethnic heritage.
What I DO know is my Greek nationality, my Greek language and my Greek culture, which is clearly a pastiche of many other ethnic cultures.
To be nothing more than just 'Greek' for me is to look back at my past and stare at nothing more than a vacuum.
Conceptually speaking, I now understand that after absorbing so many diverse ethnicities and cultures, and know why Greece has so many fears and why a pluralistic society is viewed as a threat to its sovereignty.
National narrative in this case is “form without content” and therefore needs “something” to fill the empty space.
If I don't call myself Greek what am I then, a complete non-identity? Everything real was taken away from me and I feel like a superficial 'Greek shell'.
I am a person where substance matters a hell of a lot more to me than just appearances.
As a simply Greek individual I don’t feel completely content. Being just Greek may be enough for others; that is THEIR CHOICE. MY CHOICE is to belong to a minority which the Greek State DOES NOT NEGATE THE EQUALITY OF ITS VALUE!
Unfortunately my reality remains unchanged and as of today Greek is all I have with which to identify. It hurts me when I am put-down but I can do nothing other than just be reminded of what it could have been like, but unfortunately I was robbed of that.
It is something in my life that I can’t simply FIX and MY truth I can only learn to accept and be the best possible individual “Greek” that I can be.
Don’t misunderstand me, it is great to belong to a nationality but not to one that is politically motivated and shifts according to political climates. But then who knows, some day, with better economic opportunities or influenced by other factors the political climate could change where an individual could choose his or her nationality.
That's why I view Nationality as 'the shell'.
Our ethnic heritage, language and culture are constants belonging to us as a group or as individuals. It should be our free choice if we want them or if we want to let them go. It should also be our choice to preserve and pass them on.
Both Greeks and Macedonians are victims of national and political ideologies. We have simply failed to realize this. In contrast, I see Macedonians in Greece as an ethnicity but not yet a nationality. There is potential for all Macedonians of varying backgrounds to live together in EQUALITY under the one name Macedonia, each free to practice the various languages and cultures of the land openly and in peace. In my opinion Macedonians have a very exciting future ahead of them in Macedonia.
I fail to see where Macedonians may take 'offence' in a political environment where all people enjoy the same rights and everyone treats everyone with dignity and respect!
The Macedonian people still have this opportunity, the potential and the hope to have it all!!
This is something which I could only imagine for Greeks and as an 'enlightened' Greek, who valued my true ethnic heritage, I can never have.
By Katerina
Concerns
Andreas A.: asks
Andreas: As a Hellene, or ("Greek") I liked most of your articles. Your resources and to the point ideals interests me in many ways. You have brought up many good points throughout your Articles.
I got a few questions for you?
Can you show me proof that the Macedonians of today are direct descendants of the Ancient Macedonians?
Risto: I have never claimed that Macedonians are direct descendants of the ancient Macedonians. I have always insisted that the modern Macedonians are a product of all the people that have lived on those lands. The only ones that claim direct descent are the Greeks.
Andreas: Can you prove that the language of the current Macedonians is of the Ancient Macedonians and not some different version of Bulgarian?
Risto: The ancient people spoke many languages not just Koine. We know Alexander’s soldiers spoke another language. Today we are slowly discovering that the Kalesh and Hunza languages in Pakistan have many words that belong in the modern Macedonian language.
As you know the Macedonians were already in the Balkans when the Bulgarians arrived. The Macedonians also spoke this same language (barring evolution) that they speak today. You should also know that modern Bulgarian was created from a southern Thracian dialect and resembles nothing to the northern Bulgarian dialects.
Andreas: The modern day Greeks speak an offshoot of one of the Ancient languages - the Orthodox Church still uses the Koine language in its services.
We should also remember that borders and countries were created by the powers - for the ancient times the lands were divided by States, or Empires - be it the Illyrians, the Macedonians, the Greek States, Mesopotamians, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Israelites! They might have fought amongst each other but throughout those times the people lived together learning from each other.
My friend, I'd live in those times because of it. Today all we see is bickering, fighting amongst each other, boosting each others egos, etc.
Be proud to be a Macedonian! Be proud of your Religion!
Choices
Due to popular demand, we will dedicate considerable space in this issue of the Digest to cover the various choices as to what our readers think “Slav” is.
WHAT IS SLAV?
One is Slaven and the other one is Sloven but both words clearly mean “Slavic” languages.
While Slava is glory, Slavlje means celebration and is also the name of a Slavic pagan goddess. The verb “slaviti” means to celebrate and Slavica is a girl’s name while Slavko is a boy’s name.
Some people use the word Slaveni to refer to the Slavic people, clearly describing the importance of glory and celebration in their culture.
Sloveni however, is a more correct term, since its roots are from a word “slovo” which means “word” in the old-Slavic languages. The word Sloveni evolved from the word “slovo” which described a people who could understand each other or who had similar languages and cultures.
They could “sloviti” or “have a word” with each other, thus calling each other Sloveni.
Another interesting fact is that in the Slavic languages the word for German is “Nemci” in Macedonian, “Nemac” in Serbian), немецкий in Russian, Niemiecki in Polish and Němec in Czech. These are words derived from the root word “Nem” meaning “mute” or someone you cannot communicate with. The word “Nemci” evolved from “Nem” describing the Germans as a group of people with which the Slavs came into contact but could not communicate.
The word “Sklav” was first used by the Romans who took Slavic speaking people as their slaves. “Sklavus”, meaning slave in Latin, was the name given to Roman Slav speaking slaves. This however, had nothing to do with the meaning of the word “Slav” as I described it earlier. This is a misconception, as we have to understand that every nation has a name that it calls itself in its own language and perhaps another name that foreigners call it. The Romans called the Slavs “Sklavs” meaning slaves, but the Slavs themselves called each other Sloveni meaning people that could speak each other’s languages. But within the Slavic speaking tribes, each had its own unique tribal name.
Another interesting story from the book “Serbs, the oldest people” by Serbian ethnologist Olga Lukovic – Pjanovic, is that when Romans imprisoned Slavic speaking people, they made note of their names in the way these people referred to each other. This is as true today as it was then and there are a lot of names that have the ending “slav” such as: Miroslav (celebrator of peace), Tomislav, Dragoslav Vatroslav (celebrator of fire), Vladislav (leader or ruler), Radoslav (celebrator of work), Ratislav (celebrator of war), Vojislav, Njegoslav and so on. Some sources say given that there were so many names ending with “Slav” the Romans naturally began to call these people “Slavs”.
By Cheguevanja
THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME “SLAV”
Since ancient times (Neolithic according to me or Paleolithic according to Alinei; it’s your choice whether you are a creationist or an evolutionist) in Central Europe existed a nation (in Slovak nation, ethnicity and people are referred to as “narod”) which called itself by the name Sloveni, Slavi, Slaveni and later Slovenci and Slovaci (in Slovakia there is the eternal question: when did the word “Sloven” turn into “Slovak”). In Classical times these people were mentioned by Greek and Roman historians, but they called them by different names; forged names like Rheti and Veneti. Examples of forged names exist with other people as well. Lets take the Germans for example where in their own language they call themselves Deutche, the Italians call them Tedesci, the French call them Allemande, the Slavic speakers call them Nemci and the English speakers of course call them Germans (I apologize if I misspelled any of the names).
If we follow Theoroman logic we would conclude that these are all separate ethnicities which conquered one another throughout history.
19th century historians applied this sort of logic to come up with the theory of the Great Slavic Migration. Initially it was believed that Slavs lived only in Central Europe, and then it was believed that Slavs lived behind Carpathia and later it was believed Slavs lived across the entire continent. So looking at this development it is natural to conclude that the Slavs must have migrated. Unfortunately, historians neglected the fact that the Slavs of today and the Slavs of the 6th century AD are not the same Slavs. The Slavs of the 6th century AD are only a small branch of all the Slavs of today.
So, how did historians arrive at this conclusion?
The many tribes who called themselves “Slav” from Veneti, Rheti, Jazigi, Suevi to Longombards, Vandals and Burgundians occupied a strip of land from the Cymbrian (Serbian) peninsula (today Jutland) south to the Adriatic and from the Alps east to the Carpathian mountains. They may even have occupied a wider area I cannot say for sure; but based on a couple of toponyms in Russia named slav, slavenski (except this could mean a whole lot of things) and based on the fact that the inhabitants of Gaul and wider were called Veneti.
The Roman name for the Slavs was Venetae. First contact between Romans and Venetae took place in the north of the Adriatic in what is today Venice. The name Veneti was derived from the word Slovenci which in Latin would sound like Sloveneti, except that Romans found it hard to pronounce the SL (later they used SV or something completely different) so they cut the word into just Veneti. Hard to imagine but it could happen. Supposing a merchant was traveling through Slav lands and just heard the name then told his townsmen in Rome the way he heard it.
According to Tacitus a tribe called the Suevi and another tribe called the Nemets lived in southern Germany. We know today that the Nemets are the ancestors of modern Germans and it should be obvious that the word Suevi is actually a “Slavi” translated in Latin.
According to Tacitus many Slavic tribes can be found in Germania (Aleksandr F. Veltman: Indo-Germans or Sayvani).
According to Homer the Veneti or Eneti fought on the side of the Trojans during the Trojan War Interestingly, the people that lived in the region of modern Slovenia were called the Rheti. Correct me if I am wrong but I believe the Greek word “το ρητου” (rheton) means “slovo” in Slavic or “word” in English. So Rheti is a literal translation of the name Sloveni or Slavs.
During the 5th century AD the Russian Kievans (Huns) under the leadership of Attila liberated (or conquered) the Slavic tribes that lived in Rhetia, Pannonia, Venetia and Illyria.
The word “Slav” or “Sklabhuoi” was coined for the first time during the 6th century AD by the scholar Jordanes who wrote it down in the Koine language.
Naturally to the Theoromans this meant that the Slavs, in the modern sense of the word, appeared in the Balkans for the first time during the 6th century AD. Many of these tribes between the year 518 AD and 527 AD began to journey south and cross into Byzantine territory. They were still referred to by some as Veneti and by others as Sklaveni, Slavini and Slavi. In the year 581 AD together with the Russian Scythians (Avars) they invaded the lower Balkans and in 584-586 AD they siege Solun. Then in 623 AD the tribes of the Danube Region united under the leadership of Samo creating what became known as Magna Slavonia. In 609 AD they sieged Solun again. In 626 AD the Slavs (Sloveni) and Avars (Russians=Huns=Scythians) siege the city of Constantinople - Tsari Grad (after all Constantine the Great was a Serb and a Roman Emperor - Tsar) but failed. In 632 AD a new dynasty began in Serbia under the rule of Zvonimir I Drvanov (the Drvanovich dynasty) as a result of the Slavic wars (the fall of Svevladovich dynasty).
The warriors of the Sloveni and Sklavini who conquered Byzantine lands set their own self-ruled duchies (knezevine) which were called Sklavinie (Slovenie). The Sloveni and the inhabitants of the Balkans, Serbs, Macedonians, Thracians, are kin and speak a very similar language. It could be that these inhabitants who lived in the Sklavinie also received the epithet Sklavi.
In 658 AD king Samo died and his empire was inherited by his children the Slavnikovci. In 820 AD the Slavnikovci under Mojmir created a new union of tribes with their capital in Moravia and Slovakia was named the Sloven Empire (Slovenská Ríša). This empire came under pressure from the Frankish Roman church and to fight back the new duke of Slovenia, Rastislav sent a letter to Rome asking for help. Being refused he sent another letter to Tsari Grad which in part read:
"By the mercy of God we are well. Many teachers of Christianity have come to us from Italy, from the Balkans and from German lands, and they all teach differently. But we Slovieni are simple people and do not have among us a man to instruct us in the ways of truth and to explain to us the meaning of the scriptures. Therefore, good sovereign, send us such a man, capable of guiding us in the ways of every truth."
Emperor Michael III chose Constantine (Kiril) and Metodi to create an alphabet based on the Slavic runic script and partially on the Koine and Latin script which became known as Glagolica. They then took the language of the Sklavi who lived in Macedonia, already mingled with the Macedonians after 300 years of coexistence, and codified it. This Church Slavonic language was then used as a liturgical language of the Slavic people (in the modern sense of the name).
It was during the 11th century AD that Arab scholars used the name Slavs for the first time to describe the Russians, Serbs, Croatians, Macedonians, Bulgars, Slovenians, Slovaks, Czechs, Poles, Ukrainians, Ruthenians etc. under one name. Since then the term Slavs came to represent all Slav speaking nations. No one forced the Russians, Macedonians, Serbs or Bulgars to use this term. Most Macedonians today hate this term because they are not Slavs who came to Macedonia in the 6th ct AD (except a few) but are only kin to them.
There is no erroneous use of the name Slavs. One who has studied the Slavic science in some detail will find that every Slavic scholar uses this term correctly. Some Serb scholars know what I wrote above (about the Slavs) and thus use the term Serbian to describe that branch of the Indo-European languages. The Russians do the same and claim that Slavs come from the Russians. Slovenes claim that Slavs - Sloveni derive from Veneti. In Czech and Slovakia the term Slov-wani is becoming popular, based on the belief that in the ancient world Slavs called themselves Wani. And so on.
Everything that we learn in our schools is based on the model that was created in the 19th century by German scholars including the proper use of the term Slav. Imagine, the Germans telling their most hated enemy the Slavs what to call themselves, how ridiculous.
Sorry about my bad English. If you find errors in this text please tell me, I probably made mistake but please stick to facts I don’t need opinions.
By Tomas known as Slovak on the maknews.com forum
Bravo Tomas, a very interesting article keep up the good work. Your English is improving and so is your knowledge of the Slavs.
ON THE SUBJECT OF SLAVS
For what it is worth I support what Slovak is saying. It seems to me like the rest of you are talking rubbish or you copped a bad knock in the head when you were young. The way I see it, our ethnicity is Macedonian and we are of the Slavic race
Example: Macedonians, Bulgarians, Serbs Croatians, Slovenians, Czechs, Slovaks, Russians, Poles, Ukrainians, etc, are different people/different ethnicities but we have common ancestors. Common sense should tell you this.
By Danny
ON THE SUBJECT OF “SLAVS”
When Kiril and Metodi were asked to devise a script for the Moravians they used the language spoken by the people of Solun as their template. Can somebody here then tell me if Moravian and Macedonian were intelligible? To that point, how can we then deny linguistic kinship with other Slav peoples and if we have some form of linguistic kinship what is it based on?
I am starting to believe we are throwing the baby out with the bath water here to satisfy a new found pride in our Macedonianism.
If the PCT [Paleolithic Continuity Theory] is correct and I am one who feels it explains historical reality better than any other, I cannot see what the problem is about Macedonians being a predominately Slavic people.
If we claim the ancient Balkan languages to be the basis for our modern ones and go to great pains to demonstrate that, why not accept that a people can be referred to differently at different times throughout history?
Why does it bother some Macedonians to be referred to as Slavs? Is it because some of the other Slavs namely the neo Hellenes have used that name as a political weapon against us, so we then deny our reality because they have denied their own reality?
I am disappointed with this Neo-Hellenic type of approach to history.
By Osiris
HOW MUCH DOES THE WORLD KNOW ABOUT THE SLAVS?
Please tell me:
1. In your opinion, were the languages of the Brygians (Phrygians), Thracians, Veneti, etc, and our contemporary modern Macedonian language of the same group?
Yes or No
2. Does our Macedonian contemporary language belong to the same linguistic group as today’s Slovakian, Russian, Serbian, Slovenian, etc?
Yes or No
If yes, then the Brygian, Thracian, Macedonian, Slovakian, Russian, etc. languages all belong to the same linguistic group. What this linguistic group is called is not important. If you wish we can call it Martian or Jupiterian instead of Slavic.
On the other hand, as ethnicities, we are Macedonians, Serbs, Slovenians, Slovakians, etc. and we see ourselves as different people. That is why we LIKE, STRIVE and FIGHT vigorously to have our own separate states.
We have examples where Macedonians fought against Slavic invaders but that does not mean that they were different in their native languages. Serbs and Croats are of the same linguistic group but they are real beasts towards each other. In Bosnia they are all Serbs, Croats and Muslim Serbs or Croats but they kill each other. This shows very clearly that linguistically similar people do fight but it is other factors that make them fight.
Another point: Recently I read the news from Iraq. The title was: “Shiites, Sunnites and Kurds” or something like that. This differentiation is obviously made on different criteria. While Shiite and Sunnite is a religious criterion, Kurds is an ethnic criterion. You see, modern journalists and historian chronicalists like those from Byzantine times do not always take care to be consistent in their classifications. So when they say Slavs it is not clear what they really mean. Sometimes they say Skiti-Slavs sometimes they say Avaro-Slavs, etc. Some chronicalists speak of king Samoil’s army as being Macedonian, etc.
My advice is to not take so literally those Byzantine texts. To familiarize yourselves with the subject of Slavs please read Florin Curta's book “The Making of the Slavs”. You'll see how he analyses Byzantine texts and how he reaches his conclusions.
No Slav migration; that is one of his major conclusions.
By Yannis
MORE ON THE SLAVS
We [Macedonians] are not Slavs who came here in 6-th century AD. Some [Macedonians] do not like that term since it reminds them of the 6-th century AD “migration theory” which is denied by many modern scholars. Also some [Greeks] do not use it [the term “Slavs”] for practical and positive reasons. Given that, how could one possibly convince Europeans that we are Slavs and Macedonians without providing it to them with a book of evidence? Unless we have extensive discussions for long periods of time it is impossible to be consistent.
The question then is what should we call languages like Thracian, Brygian, etc. which were so similar to the language we [Macedonians], but also Serbs, Croatians, Bulgarians, Montenegrins, Slovenians, Russians, Byelorussians, etc. speak today. They are today called Slavic languages. The term Slavic is already in use in linguistic circles and we can not be the clever guys who will convince them not to call the languages Slavic.
The name is a matter of definition and convention. When we use some name we always have to define its meaning.
Thus for use in this forum we could create some name not to confuse ourselves. But for use in the scholarly circles we can not gain so much power to hypnotize them not to call the language we speak, a Slavic language.
We all have to be satisfied with the last developments in the linguistics, especially the continuity theory, which although it calls our language Slavic, definitively departs from the migrationist theory.
So, maybe we should direct your listeners to the continuity theory which claims the Slavic presence in the Balkans from very ancient times. By the way Alinei and his group call the Thracian language a Slavic language and the Thracians he calls Slavs. Obviously, although he has read all the Byzantine texts we have read, his interpretation is different.
By Yannis
SLAV IS NOT AN EHNICITY OR RACE
Being a Slav is not an ethnicity or race, it is a linguistic group, the biggest in Europe. When speaking broadly there is nothing wrong with referring to yourself as a Slav, just like an Italian and Brazilian would say they are "Latino”. The lands from Macedonia to Russia are nearly all Slavic-speaking countries, none of them use a prefix and neither should Macedonia. We are as Slavic as Serbs and Russians, Slavic isn’t our blood, Macedonian is our blood, Slavic is our language in which there is a commonality with most of Europe.
By Soldier of Macedon
TAKE NATIONALISM AND ‘RACE’ OUT OF THE SLAV EQUATION
Slavic is a family of languages. Before this family of languages was known as Slavic, it was known as something else. The fact they didn't have a name for it before it was known as Slavic doesn't mean it wasn't there or didn't exist. Strictly speaking ancient artifacts can put a Slavic language in Macedonia long before we ever knew it was there, but what do we know about the people who spoke it?
By Paul
THE SLAVS OF OLD
I've got an excerpt from this book "The 3000-year old hat" which is about the ancient Thracians, Phrygians and Pelasgians.
"Thrace, Thrakia, or Thacia is a collective name for the number of ancient tribes and nations of Indo-European origin, constituting the oldest ethno-cultural group of people in the continent of Europe, as well as the oldest native part of the populations of Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, and parts of Turkey. The Thracians were also known as Thrakes, Thraikes, Threkes, Threikes and Thraces.
One of the theories on the etymology of the name “Thracia” is its connection to Troy and the tribal name “Trausi”. Another one is based on the name of a healer called “Thrakes”, who was able to bring the dead back to life. The archaic name of Thrace was "Perke", thought to have originated from the Thracian word "Berga," meaning "higher coast" or "mountain". A possible connection of this word with the "Bryges" (who lived in Macedonia/Phrygians), the old name of the Phrygians, cannot be excluded. Close to Troy there was a settlement called Perkote, of the same root as the name of the city of Pergamon. Although the old name of this city was Teuthrania, renamed by some invading force, its history seems to be connected with Pelasgian Arcadia, which helped Troy against the invaders. Pergamon was also the name of the citadel of Troy. Berga (or Berge), too, was the name of a Thracian settlement (location unknown) in the Strymon valley (Struma) about 35 kilometers way from Amphipolis in today’s Northern Greece. Of the same origin is the name Bergaeos, a Bisaltian dynast from the region of the Black Sea coast south of the Balkan Range. In antiquity, the Turkish town Lyuleburgas was the location of the Thracian settlement called Bergule, part of the province of Eoropa since the fourth century. Its name in Roman times was changed to Arcadiopolis.
Perkos (or Perkonis) was a common noun for an anonymous Thracian deity, known as Heros (no connection to the similar word in the Greek language). Today Pero (or Perko) has survived as a personal name in Bulgaria and Serbia.
The following is a list of all the Thraco-Phrygian and Thraco-Pelasgian tribes and nations known so far in the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor. Some of them, especially those in contact zones of Illyria, Macedonia and Thrace, are difficult to define clearly, which partly comes from their similar traditions, beliefs and folklore, which in term contributed to the gradual fusion of their cultures. The same can be said about the population around the ancient Greek city-states, where groups of Thraco-Pelasgians became an active part of the ethnic make-up of post-classical Greece.
Many names, possibly belonging to Thracian tribes, appear in ancient literature with only a vague characteristic, such as "Abi-most righteous of all men," "Hippomolgi-drinkers of horse-milk," or "Maionians, who lived around lake Gyges." Others, such as the Muateni, korelli, Enet (Paphlagonian tribe), are just names.
Attempts were made in the past to determine the territories and the number of tribes of Thraco-Pelasgian and Thraco-Phrygian origin. Much of their traditions, mythology, and religion today constitute a large part of the rich folklore of modern day Bulgaria, Romania, Macedonia and Northern Greece, and are a fundamental block of their ethno-cultural identities."
There is also an explanation of the word Peloponnesus:
"The name Thesus is fundamental in the oral history of Athens and the Thraco-Pelasgian inhabitants of the region, as his great grandfather was none other than Pelops the Phrygian, the man in the very centre of pre-Greek oral traditions, after whom the Peloponnesus was named."
"The Bryges and a number of other Thracian tribes lived in close proximity with the Macedonians. Judging by the necropolises of the two groups, Macedonian tribal culture shows clear parallels with the Thracians in terms of burial traditions and crafts, while ethnic differentiation began to show only after 700 BCE."
Posted by Agema
VEDA SLOVENA
I came across this work that has obvious Macedonian significance, although the Bulgarians appear quite keen to claim it. I was hoping we could discuss this cultural work here and as a preamble I place the following texts from Wikipedia:
Веда Словена in Modern Bulgarian, originally written as Веда Словенахъ is a collection of folk songs and legends of the Muslim Bulgarians in the Rhodopes and Aegean Macedonia, the first volume of which was printed in 1874 in Belgrade and the second in 1881 in Saint Petersburg under the authorship of Bosnian Serb Stefan Velković. The collection was assembled by Bulgarian teacher Ivan Gologanov for 12 years and is famous for containing numerous elements of ancient Slavic mythology notwithstanding the conversions first to Christianity and then to Islam.
Veda Slovena has been alleged to have been partly or fully forged by Gologanov ever since its publication, dividing scholar circles into two groups, the one considering the texts to be forged, the other defending their genuineness.
An internet link via Wikipedia (Bulgarophilic but a starting point): http://www.omda.bg/engl/history/mistificacia.html
The "Veda Slovena" Mystery
Two volumes of "Veda Slovena" were published, one in 1874 in Belgrade, and the other in 1881 in St. Petersburg under the name the "Bulgarian folk songs of the pre-historical and pre-Christian age". Compiled by the Bosnian Serb Stephen Verkovich, "Veda Slovena" created a furor among the scholarly world ranging from Russia to France, and went down in history as the biggest folklore mystery, the debates over which are still going on.
The sensation lies in the fact that these, as well as some other songs published by Verkovich, "written down" in an isolated part of Macedonia, provided evidence which turned the prevailing conceptions about Europe's pre-written history upside down. The "Vedas", whose "Indian" name was picked up by no chance, not only contained legends of how the plough, the sickle, the boat, wheat, wine, writing, etc. came into being, but created a legendary-mythological conceptual framework, in which all - the Indian god Vishnu, the Thracian singer Orpheus, the Macedonian kings Phillip II and Alexander the Great, the Trojan War, etc., were present. Moreover, the famous German epic, the "Song of the Nibelungs" consisted of "only" 9,776 lines, while the two volumes of "Veda Slovena" included as many as 23,809 lines, and Verkovich himself claimed that he had available at least ten times as many.
In the debates that followed in the field of European Slavonic studies, the "denouncers" exceeded in number the "apologists". "Veda Slovena" succeeded in winning support by not only a great number of recognized foreign scholars, but by quite a few of the Bulgarian scholars from Macedonia itself, who knew the local folklore and dialects in minute detail. The French government, in turn, twice sent its emissaries, who had to establish the authenticity of the epos on the spot of its "discovery" - in the South-Western parts of the Rhodopes, among the so-called Pomaks - a Bulgarian-speaking ethnic group professing Islam. Neither the French, nor, later, the Bulgarian inquiries, however, provided unequivocal and weighty answers to all questions provoked by "Veda Slovena".
What is known for certain is that the rise of this mystery is due to Ivan Gologanov (1839-1895). He was born in the village of Tarlis, in the neighbourhood of the mentioned Pomak region, nearby the town of Valovishta renamed to Siderokastron in Greece), and spent his whole life as a village teacher in his native place. He was the man who claimed to have found and written down (for a small charge paid by Verkovich) the "Veda Slovena" songs. He did this in the course of 12 years. The Serbian Verkovich published the songs thus collected under his own name.
Ivan Gologanov's critics, former and present, have rejected the authenticity of "Veda Slovena". Their argument is, most generally, that Gologanov was simple-minded and, therefore, he lied. Such argument, however, is not correct. Gologanov could hardly be considered one of an uneducated crowd.
The "plain" village teacher actually did not come from just any family - one of his brothers later became an academician, as well as Metropolitan of Skopje, the capital of present day Republic of Macedonia; his other brother became Abbot of the Bachkovo monastery. Ivan Gologanov himself had command of ancient and modern Greek; he knew the Hellenic mythology in detail, and his idol was the immortal epic poet Homer. Gologanov knew Homer's works perfectly well.
Even today the "Veda Slovena" arguments continue challenging the authenticity of the songs. Are they authentic or fake?
It is certain that neither the scale of "Veda Slovena" and the artisitc qualities of the songs, nor their huge number could be the work of a talent-less grapho-maniac. What is more, as we will see further, the motivation underlying his striking capacity for work, if he was the inventor, did not boil down to just making both ends meet.
The Bosnian Serb Stephen Verkovich (1827-1893), too, was not someone to ignore. A former Franciscan monk, he settled in Macedonia in 1850, with the purpose of extending, as a paid agent, the propaganda of the Serbian government among the local people. The historical moment was such that Serbia and Greece, which had been liberated at the beginning of the century from a four-hundred-year Turkish domination, crossed their Pan-Serbian and Pan-Hellenic appetites in Macedonia, i.e. in one of Bulgaria's regions, and Bulgaria was still under the rule of the Sultan (its statehood would be revived only in 1878).
Initially Belgrade, whose aim was to form a Southern-Slavic federation under Serbian control, was still far from the idea of declaring the people to be "Southern Serbs", and yet farther from referring to them as a "separate nation". On the contrary, in those years Belgrade supported the struggle of the people to emancipate themselves from the guardianship of the Greek Patriarchate and to restore their own Church hierarchy. In this sense, what Stephen Verkovich did is an isolated, but telling example of noble effort.
What is more, when the Serbs changed their policy and started large-scale activities, which were detrimental to the Macedonians, the Franciscan Verkovich remained loyal to the morality of his Order. He did not reject the historical and real life truth, opposed all political falsifications, and persisted in his service in support of the causes he believed to be true and just. During the long years he lived in Macedonia, he proved to be a remarkable scientist in the field of Macedonian folklore, ethnography and geography. In addition, owing to his collector's zeal, Verkovich saved a great number of ancient manuscripts, coins, objects of art, etc.
The efforts Verkovich made in the study, conservation and popularization of the Macedonian ancient culture, as well as the work of his assistant Ivan Gologanov, had also a practical effect for the people. At that time Moesia, Thrace, and Macedonia were agitated by a feverish struggle on two fronts - against their national oppressors, the Turks and the Ottoman Empire, and against their ecclesiastical oppressors - the Greek Church and clergy. In this sense, the activity of Verkovich and Gologanov was an integral part of people's powerful desire for educational, cultural, religious and economic emancipation.
No matter how specific, all these processes were linked with the tendencies and changes occurring in the whole of Europe from the late 18th up to the mid-19th century. This was the epoch of the powerful European revolutionary romanticism, seeking reforms and social freedom, and, in the case of the oppressed peoples - national liberation. Disappointed by the existing reality, romanticists looked for a base of its rejection and reformation in the fertile roots of tradition, in the idealized past of their countries. In all the fields of thought and art they abandoned the ancient models and the rationalism of the Enlightenment, seeking inspiration in the history, folk art, folklore, music, and architecture of their peoples. Messianic ideas flooded the sphere of ideology, naturally, glorifying the respective nation. At the same time, no other cultural age produced such huge collections, studies, and works based on folklore material like romanticism. Although with a delay of several decades, this wave overflowed the Balkans too. While Germany had its Grimm brothers, the Miladinov brothers were their Macedonian analogue. Everywhere in Europe romanticists collected, adapted, recast, and authorized folk works. This was the foundation on which the geniuses of Byron and Pushkin, Chopin and Liszt evolved.
And whenever the facts, or their abilities, were deficient, romanticists did not hesitate to resort to sometimes harmless, but other times not that innocent, falsifications. The founder of this "technique" was the Scotsman James Macpherson, the predecessor of the romantics, who published in 1765 his revised versions of the Celtic sagas and legends as an authentic collection of works of the legendary warrior and bard Ossian. The circle around the linguist Vaclav Hanka produced, in 1817-1818, the then much talked about "ancient" manuscripts, which were presented as original 9th and 13th century works. The aim of this mystification was to prove the ancient character of the Czech culture and to activate the national self-identification of the Czechs, under Austrian power at that time.
By its scope and scale "Veda Slovena" surpassed the phenomena mentioned above. Let us assume that this work is a fake.
If Verkovich himself had unconsciously been involved in its creation, Gologanov was far from doing it by chance. As evidenced by one of his sons, the main motive of his father was patriotic. In fact, because of his activity in this field, Gologanov was persecuted and imprisoned by the Turkish authorities, very much like other "romanticists". Therefore, not all of his contemporaries felt inclined to blame him. The most remarkable statesman of modern Bulgaria, Prime Minister Stefan Stambolov (1887-1894) offered to move Gologanov to Sofia, promising him a pension of considerable amount. Stambolov's response to some criticisms that he wanted to reward an impostor, was the following: "All European academies have shown interest in the songs of the Rhodope region, so that no matter whether he has heard them from somebody else's tongue, or has invented them himself, for us it is one and the same..."
The assumption that "Veda Slovena" is a fabrication, means to recognize Ivan Gologanov as a poetic genius, who deserves a place of his own in the history of world literature. To assume that these texts are authentic folklore implies the necessity of reconsidering the cultural development of Europe as a whole. This dilemma has waited its turn for more than a century.
Posted by Risto the Great and parts edited by Risto Stefov
Free Advice
YOU ARE NOT TRYING HARD ENOUGH!
Trying to prove not only that the Bulgarian Slavs mingled with the Turan-Mongol tribe, but that Bulgars came also to Macedonia, leaving there their own blood and their own name and culture, Bulgarian historians very often underline the significance of a certain company of Asparuh’s brother Kuber, who came to the Bitola and Solun regions and remained there. Yet there are still no reliable sources supporting this. It is true, Bulgars are mentioned in connection with the attacks against Solun in the 7th century, but only as one of the many allies of the Macedonian Slav tribes, such as the Avars or Kumans, most of which moved back. Even if we suppose that they remained in Macedonia, owing to their insignificant number they could not have changed the general ethnic character of the Macedonian people. There were also Bulgars across the Danube, even in some parts of Croatia, and it would really be difficult to put forward similar claims concerning the Bulgarian character of the people or territories there.
Excerpts from the book “MACEDONIA AND THE MACEDONIANS, The Macedonian People and Macedonian National Consciousness”
History
Grigor Prlichev (1830-1893)
Grigor Prlichev was born in Ohrid on January 30th, 1830 to a very poor family. Grigor’s father died when Grigor was only six months old, leaving him and his three siblings in the care of their grandfather.
Grigor’s first education came from his grandfather who taught him how to read. He later went to Ohrid and became a student of Dimitar Miladinov, who at the time was well known and gave Grigor a solid education.
After finishing school Grigor became a teacher and taught for a while before going to Athens to study medicine.
Grigor had a passion for writing and soon abandoned medicine for writing.
He wrote the poem "O Armatolos" in Greek with which he entered a literary competition for the best poem in the Greek language and won. He was awarded the highest award “The Lovorov Wreath” in Athens, which earned him the nickname “second Homer”. "O Armatolos", or the “The Bandit” in English or “Serdarot” in Macedonian, was based on a folk poem which dealt with the exploits and heroic death of Kuzman Kapitan, a famous hero and protector of his people in their struggle against marauding Gegs. He later translated the poem into Macedonian.
When Greek officials offered him a scholarship to study in western Europe he turned it down. He realized that even though he loved to write in Greek, he was not Greek.
When Grigor found out that the Greeks were responsible for the tragic deaths of the Miladinov brothers he quickly disassociated himself with the Greeks and went back to Macedonia. He took part in the Macedonian cultural revival and fought against Greek influence in the schools and church. He never wrote in Greek again.
After spending five months in Tsari Grad, brushing up on his skills in the Slav language, Grigor returned to Ohrid and resumed his teaching job. Unfortunately he found himself unwelcome and the Greek bishop had him arrested and sent to prison in Debar for opposing the use of the Greek language in the schools and churches in Macedonia.
Later in life Grigor continued to work as a teacher in Bitola, Ohrid and Solun. When he went teaching in Tirana he wrote the poem "Skenderbeg", the exploits of the rebellious Macedonian Georgi Kastriot.
In 1871 Grigor translated Homer’s Iliad into Macedonian and was heavily criticized by the Bulgarian writer Hristo Botev for refusing to translate it into Bulgarian.
Before his death Grigor spent his last years in Solun where, among other things, he wrote his own biography. He died in his native city Ohrid in 1893.
References
Page 7, Macedonian Almanac, 1971.
Page 29, Macedonian Magazine, # 420, April 1988.
By Risto Stefov
Stories
GREEK CLAIM:
"There is no doubt that ancient Macedonians were Greek. It is thoroughly proved by historic documents and archaeological discoveries which can be found in history books and museums in Greece and around the world. The most important archeological discovery in Macedonia is the tomb of King Philippos II. It was excavated in Vergina, Greece in 1978 and it proves beyond any doubt the Greek-ness of ancient Macedonia. All the findings are characteristic of the Greek culture and all the inscriptions are written using the Greek language. Among the discoveries of this tomb is the "Vergina sun" the symbol that FYROM attempted to use on its flag initially".
REPLY:
The Macedonians were not Greek, but simply Macedonians, and Macedonia was never a Greek land. Actually, the very first time modern Greeks saw the Macedonian sun symbol (Vergina sun as they call it) was in 1978. However, modern Macedonians had known about this symbol since Philip II and Alexander the Greats’ time. The Macedonian sun can be found engraved on centuries-old Macedonian churches and monasteries, common in the handmade centuries-old folklore designs. Therefore, if anybody is stealing Macedonian symbols today, it is the modern Greeks, since they knew nothing about it until 1978, while the Macedonians had cherished it for millennia. We should point out that the name of the place called Vergina today where the discovery was made in 1978, was originally know as Kutlesh. This original Macedonian name was replaced by the Greek name Vergina, after Greece swallowed up 51% of Macedonia’s territory, including Kutlesh, in 1912, 1913.
We should also point out that the language on the inscriptions found in Kutlesh was the international language of trade and commerce known as the Koine language. This was a language prevalent in the entire Eastern Mediterranean region and seaboard. Koine, like English today, was an international language and it would be naïve to assume that anyone who spoke it or wrote in it was “Greek”!
Words
BUILDING WORDS – BUILDING LANGUAGE
I’ve been fascinated how our Macedonian language builds words and ideas. Incredibly beautiful, I think.
Let’s take for example the word “umetnik” broadly translated as thinker, philosopher, and creative artist. First we can break down the word to its constituent syllables…three of them.
Begin with the last syllable: nik. Lovely word meaning: ‘sprout’. Isn’t it wonderful to see almost anything sprout from the ground…herbs, flowers, mushrooms, food and whatever?
Take now the second syllable: met. Honey. What is sweeter and more natural than honey made by bees after so much work and organization?
Consider the first syllable: UM. Mind, intelligence, that is God given. How wonderfully it joins and links with ‘Met’, that sweetness we talked about. The idea of mind and sweetness fuse together into: umet. Incredible fusion there, more than just welding, but an amalgam of ideas….words.
Put those ideas together…say….”the mind with sweetness sprouting upwards”…and carrying with it the sense of something… green, fresh, new.”.
Who can deny the beauty and the wisdom locked into that ONE WORD? Who, for what, would want to lose such a language, or give it up???
Thoughtfully, Dedo Kire
Book Reviews
Sorry to say, no one submitted a book review for this issue. However, it was suggested to us by Lou K. that we submit a film review on Jill Daniels’s film “Next Year in Lerin“ that aired sometime in March on the Macedonian television program “The Macedonian Heritage Hour”.
Next Year in Lerin by Jill Daniels
The story of Macedonian children taken by the Communist-led Democratic Army from their villages and mothers during the Greek civil war in 1948 who are still not allowed back to Greece to visit their birthplaces.
In 1948 nearly thirty thousand Macedonian children were taken from their homes and dispersed to orphanages throughout Eastern Europe. After a certain period of time, political exiles were allowed to return to Greece--with one condition: They had to be Greek by birth. Consequently, many Macedonians were never able to return to their homeland, never reunited with their families.
Fifty years later, in July of 1998, some of these exiles are reunited in hopes of visiting the place of their birth. This film follows these men and women who come from all over the world to revisit their homeland. After waiting nearly five hours in the blazing sun, on the Greek border, 75 people are allowed in. The rest, including those holding Australian and Canadian passports, were turned back.
Next Year in Lerin is a film about journeys—from the painful separation of babies and children from their mothers and fathers to the journey they take back as adults to their homeland. The film also captures a metaphorical journey, as these wanderers revisit the land of their dreams—of the villages from where they were uprooted, of the past that they can never reclaim, of the too few memories they have of their families. Though the mountain villages have fallen into decay, these Macedonian 'children' are still compelled to visit the villages that still capture their imaginations. Their pilgrimage is captured in this film of a bittersweet reunion with the past.
DVD, Color, 45 min, Full Screen.
Directed by Jill Daniels
ISBN 0-8026-0331-9
PP ISBN0-8026-0332-7*
Price: $24.95 (Price includes Library Circulation rights).
P.P. Price: $139.95 (Price includes all rights for Classroom Use and Public Performance for non-paying audiences).
For more info click on:
https://www.nationalfilmnetwork.com/store/ProductDetails.aspx?ProductID=209
Contact Information
Director: Jill Daniels
Address: 1 Aigburth Mansions, Mowll Street, London SW9 0EP, England
Phone: 44 (0) 207 564 3211
Fax: 44 (0) 207 564 3211
Email: jill@reportint.co.uk
Distributor: High Ground Films
For more info click on:
http://institute.sundance.org/jsps/site.jsp?resource=pag_ex_programs_sdf_next&sk=WQqHIgWCoVcQk5nC
Poetry
GRCITE SI GRESELE, (The Greeks are concerned)
NA CUZDI GROB SI PLACELE, (on someone else’s grave they cry)
ZA CUZDI CAR SE RADVALE, (with someone else’s king they are happy)
MAJKA MAKEDONIJA NA CEL SVET KE MU DOKAZE, (Mother Macedonia to the entire world you will tell)
ALEKSANDAR E CAR MAKEDONSKI!!!!!!!! (Alexander is a Macedonian king)!!!!!!!!
Posted by Zumbula
MACEDONIAN GIRL ...CANADIAN WOMAN
Sophie Rade Massin
(Girl, woman, wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother)
Heavy incensed air, robed Macedonian priests
Swinging, smoking censer.
Harmonic and familiar, two part
Slavonic funeral song.
We are gathered to honor cousin Sophie
Who lived well and lived long.
Born in Oshchima -Macedonia Land of her Fathers.
Rich in history and orthodox culture
Turmoil, wars, occupations and all that the Balkans relate
To a new life with promise
This Macedonian girl with family did emigrate.
Language and culture to be learned.
And the making of friends she faced.
Like others from her homeland
She became dual culture filled.
Eager student in school, and like women of her race
Excelled in dress design, teachers praised how skilled.
Lovely of feature and Slavonic manner.
From a girl to a young woman
Able in things of home and life
All was set for God's plan
Brother would introduce sister
To the one who would be her man.
Begun in love, man and wife
These immigrant two.
Worked together through the Great Depression
Making a good life and marriage.
Now a mother, she was blessed four times
In the need for a baby carriage.
Hard times, good times
for each there was a season.
In each other these six
Made their home a happy one.
Mother, then mother-in-law then Grandmother
To a woman can more happiness come?
In time to her, as to all
Sadness and loss come to pass.
First her beloved husband, the half of her
By death was taken away.
Then grief of all grief’s to a mother
Pre-deceased by her child, sorrow now holds sway.
Round her loving and guard like
Her three sons rally
First bound to her by umbilical cord
Now by cords of love more closely tied.
From this bereavement and sadness
No mother can be pried.
Am I here because cousin Sophie died?
No: rather it was that she had lived
Her character and goodness
Are both alive and free.
She lives on in her children, and the children
Of her beloved sons, these three.
Can a eulogy do justice?
To personality and manner of life?
Half listening to the priest's words
Memories of her came into view.
From childhood to adulthood each meeting,
Confirmed our cousinhood true.
Cousin, you have left behind your of clay
As all we must do.
You follow parents, brother
Dearly loved husband and son
Life’s race is over; this journeys been run
And as promised by Christ, a new journey begun.
Buried in the Christians sure hope
Of the resurrection; Rest in Peace cousin.
Edward Spero Thompson
A Letter from the Archives
TESTIMONIES OF HOW OUR GREAT-GREAT GRANDPARENTS LIVED
The most eloquent testimony of the economic hardships experienced by Macedonians at the turn of the 20th century under Ottoman rule is this moving letter written to the Ottoman authorities by the people from the village of Bouf in the district of Lerin. The letter dates from 1906:
Your Excellency,
The undersigned headman and councilors of the village of Bouf, in the district of Lerin, directed by the village council, have the honour to inform your Excellency of the following:
1. In our village there are 243 houses and 2,258 inhabitants, of whom 1,193 are men and 1,065 women. Twenty-five men have left without hope of return, thus leaving 1,168 male inhabitants for whom, in accordance with the recent law, the village is obliged to pay a military tax of 5,000 piastres for every hundred inhabitants, i.e. 11.8 x 5;000, making a total of 58,400 piastres. The local authorities, however, have sent us a claim in which this tax is fixed at 65,850 piastres, which considerably exceeds the sum envisaged and required by the law. Furthermore, according to the latter ruling, we would also be obliged to pay a sum of 3,951 piastres surtax.
2. The house-ownership tax (vergija) of 9,854 piastres is also excessive, since there are persons in the village who will have two pay two or three times over for various buildings put up at different times on the same foundations. Amongst these buildings there are many watermills which have long since been abandoned but are still made subject to tax.
3. The tax on earnings (temeti) is 300 piastres, even when wages and earnings are no greater than this sum.
4. The tithe for last year was 40,550 piastres, while in the past 85,000 piastres were collected from the lessees, which shows how injurious the rental system was for us.
5. In addition to the old cattle tax (beglik), which was 5 piastres per head for sheep and goats, we have, since last year, been obliged to pay a tax of 10 piastres per head for horses, mules and cows, 3 piastres for donkeys and 1 piastre for pigs. This tax is all the more difficult to bear because it means that we shall soon have to give up our chief means of support - cattle-breeding.
6. Last year we were required to pay 1,080 piastres for aid to the hospital in Lerin and 1,400 piastres for renovations to the police-station, altogether 2,480 piastres. The sum we pay for various obligations ranges annually from 150,000 to 200,000. The burden of these payments for a village such as ours, which two years ago was completely burnt down and destroyed, is so great that it is beginning to destroy us. Every year we are left with a deficit and enter into new debts. As a result many of our villagers have emigrated and many continue to go to the most distant lands. The day is not far off when we shall be forced to do the same if the government of the Empire does not soon take measures to relieve us of this burden. With reference to the above, we have the honour humbly to beg you to present our case to the honourable commission and request that they grant us:
1. Reduction of the bedel, or at least limitation of the same, to the amount fixed by law, and the abolition of all surtax.
2. The abolition of double and triple tax on buildings for which we have already paid two or three times.
3. Reduction of tax on abandoned watermills.
4. Reduction of tax on earnings by at least one half.
5. Discontinuance of new taxes on larger cattle.
(Taken from: Draganoff -La Macedoine, Paris, 1921, pp. 68-70)
Feedback
Just reading the digest; four things that came to mind:
1. The Greeks apparently until recent times have been teaching their children in school that Bulgarians have fat heads with one eye. I believe that about 6 or more years ago two journalists in Athens were arrested for trying to expose this fact in the media. Chris K., formerly of Michael K's eatery told me about this.
Also my father (who comes from the Bulgarian part) was asked during an episode in the late 1950's with a Greek woman restaurant worker, "how come if you are from Bulgarian you don't have a fat head with one eye?" (My father answered her that she must be thinking about his other head).
2. The word “Graici”, which is where the word Greek comes from, is a Latin word describing a liar or thief. Apparently it was coined to describe so-called Greek migrants to the Naples area during Roman times. I also know that French friends of the Macedonian diplomat Blagoj Zashov told him the meaning as I have stated it. Probably it is a sort of reason why the Greeks would prefer to call themselves something else [Ellines] because they must know that the word Greek is derived from a derogatory term.
3. The late Tom Yaneff, who really should be recognized for his great work, when everyone else was still out in the woods, concerning Macedonian history and linguistics, thought that Slav may be derived from the religious term "Pravo Slavna Crkva" ie like the Catholic (or universal) Church. I think that because of the negative slant associated with the term Slav (because of the Greeks and others, also its association with the word slave) even we ourselves view it in a way that is somewhat less than ideal even though it shouldn't be.
4. I have always thought that the logic of Slavic cultural migration was not from the North to Macedonia but from Macedonia to the North. A case in point describing the way things really went, just look at the Russian (Ukrainian) Christianizers, Sts. Olga and Vladimir...where they not baptized in Ohrid?
By Mike
Check out Mike's website at: http://mikecloseartist.tripod.com
E-mail of the Month
From: George G.
It is so sad that you have to make up the worst hypocritical bullshit on the planet to further your ill-fated ideals on a distinct Macedonian people. So sad that a Slavic people who have always shared an identical history with the rest of the Bulgarians need to steal another's 4000 year old proud heritage and culture because you lack one yourselves.
If you cannot accept simple historical fact and evidence that Ancient Macedonia was Greek then I suggest you visit a mental institution. Linguistics, artifacts, historical sources (like Herodotus etc.) all prove the Hellenic identity of the Ancient Macedonians. It is accepted common historical knowledge that you Slavs came into the Balkan area along with the Bulgarians 6-10th century AD. It is also common knowledge that Alexander spread Greek culture and ideas throughout his empire and hence Greek became the language of the Eastern Mediterranean World for the next 300 years or so.
I have a Slavic friend who himself says your language is made up of 70% Bulgarian and 30% Serbian...so much for having a distinct independent language. You people suffer from nationalistic delusions, which is why you didn't want to be seen as Bulgarian since Bulgaria lost in all major conflicts in the 20th century.
I could crap on like you did for ages about all my arguments too but since I actually do have a life I will cut it short and extend an invitation for you to visit the Thessaloniki Museum in Macedonia and see first-hand how embarrassing your false claims really are.
60 years of lying and Tito-instigated Slavic propaganda cannot and will never cover up 4000 years of Historical truth and justice. Once again, it is so sad a quasi-Bulgarian people have to usurp another's proud culture and achievements because they have nothing to be proud of themselves.
Humour
ONE OF OUR GREEK FORUM MEMBERS SAID:
You do realize that the western coast of turkey was historically a Greek land until the ottomans conquered it so logically we preceded any Turkish settlers in the region. Now, because we were occupied we had to adjust to the living conditions of the ruling people so we learned the Turkish language in those areas, but that does not mean we became Turkish. Our blood was Greek then and it is now.
By Imathiotis
GREEKS ARE FUNNY
You Greeks are funny. When it suits you, you claim your "Greek-ness" through various categories.... now blood.... before language... culture.... way of thinking and so forth.....
There is no way in heaven a Greek would not be a Greek?
The Hellenism voodoo is strong........
By Jordan Piperkata
AH THE GREEK INFLUENCE EH?
Ah the famous Greek influence on the Turkish seaboard, that explains it all. It’s in the Greek blood this stupidity that passes itself of as Hellenic that’s what I thought but I really didn’t want to express it so bluntly, thanks to Imatioitis that Hellenic blood hound.
I am so glad for our neo Hellenes sake that only Greek blood seems to get passed down through the ages. Heaven forbid if all that Albanian, Vlach and Slavic blood in Balkan was passed down Greece wouldn’t have any Hellenes left. But that wouldn’t matter because we have established many times, one doesn’t need Hellenic blood, culture or language to be Greek, all one needs is the desire to be a Hellene. Sometimes one doesn’t even need the desire, one becomes a Greek because some other wannabe Greeks insist on it.
Now back to blood lines. Can some neo Hellene tell me whatever happened to all the blood of the Pelasgians slaves, merchants, mercenaries, invaders, and other people who inhabited the cities of ancient modern and in between Hellas? Was it miraculously tranformed into Hellenic by some neo Hellenic alchemists?
Another thing about blood lines! What do sub-Saharan peoples have in common with modern neo Hellenes?
With all due respect to sub-Saharan peoples I don’t believe that they are all neo Hellenes too because if they were they would drink frappe coffee eat Turkish kebabs and pretend they were all really blond and blue eyed before those nasty Turks started giving it to their lovely Greek women.
Now I am becoming really confused! Is it Greek blood infused with Turkish blood that makes neo Hellenes so dark or is it sub-Saharan blood? Or is it perhaps sipping Greek coffee that makes modern Greek blood so Turkish looking? Whatever! It’s all Greek to me, this neo Hellenism!
By Osiris
THE MANY WAYS TO BE GREEK
It's a funny thing you know. Ever noticed how there are many ways to be a Greek [not to be confused with the ancient Greeks]. It is something that is very elusive. I suppose there is a point to all of their paranoia and a reason why they are so sensitive about their 'race'. Perhaps it is because all the markers point to a vastly diverse past. It might be that a Modern Greek is more afraid of being 'pigeon holed' by his past than anything else in life. Wouldn't it kind of be like living a lie? Perhaps the Modern Greeks know this. Prosfigi [settlers in Macedonia from Asia Minor] whose grandparents still speak Turkish; Greeks whose grandparents still speak Albanian; Greeks whose grandparents still speak Macedonian; and so on, are fine examples of Modern Greeks. One has to be shifty and the Modern Greek identity is definitely that. Denying something of Greece as it was not so long ago and developing [some might say contriving] a Greek identity go hand in hand. A Greek that wants to be known as an ancient Greek has to deny his diversity to be so - if any diversity in fact exists. How can 'diversity' and 'purity' coexist? Answer is I think that they can't and never will. So Modern Greece one day may have to choose which one it is going to be. But the worst nationalists fear losing all those greedy land grabs, unjustifiably. Oh well, what else can I say about it? You said it 'Jordan Piperkata' 'Hellenism Voodoo' is alive and kicking. Someone once said to me if I can picture mass Greek paranoia over their 'identity' as a disease, the symptom of that disease is Macedonia.
I wonder whether changing the Modern Greek language to resemble something more 'ancient' and less 'historical' is actually working. Soon we'll have a land full of ancient Greek speakers. Isn't that what they are now? A new breed of ancient Greek speakers! I can grant them that.
The Macedonian seems to me is very real and represent the history of Macedonia and region down the ages, as it was and as it happened, and it would be sad to see it go. That is why there is a bit of everything in the Macedonian. That is why the Macedonian can never be just one thing. If one cannot accept the diversity of Macedonian history down the ages and all it has created, then one cannot accept the Macedonian, a product of that history. That is exactly where the Modern Greek stands. Diversity is the enemy. Unbroken continuity is the goal of the Modern Greek. While they harbour aspirations to contrive linguistic, cultural and historical links to an ancient past, I think they are digging themselves into a bit of a big hole. I've said it before and I'll say it again a Macedonian does a Thracian dance, paints himself with an Illyrian tattoo, drinks a Turkish coffee and shouts in Slavic. It would be sad to lose all this history of the ethnic Macedonian and create a contrived white-wash of it that was somehow always 'Greek'. And here's the rub.....we never know what they mean by 'Greek', do we?
By Paul
In Memoriam
STEVE STAVRO
1927 - 2006
TORONTO - CANADA
On April 24, 2006 the ethnic Macedonian community lost a real patriot, Steve Stavro at the age of 78.
Born: 1927 – Village of Gabresh, Macedonia
Mr.
Stavro came to Canada at the age of seven and as a child worked in his father’s
grocery store. Later in life he opened his own grocery store on Danforth
Avenue, eventually expanding it into a chain of food terminals across the
city known as Knob Hill Farms. Stavro an avid soccer fan had his first experience
with competitive organized soccer playing centre forward for the Duke of
Connaught Public School in Toronto in the late 1930s. The team went on to
become Toronto District Champions.
He was recently honored as a life member of the Canadian Soccer Association.
Over the years he was involved in the organization and management of the
Continental Soccer League in 1959, the International Soccer League in 1960,
the Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League in late 1960, the United Soccer
Association in 1966 and the North American Soccer League in 1968.
In 1961, along with industrialist Larry Myslivec and journalist Ed Fitken,
Stavro formed the Toronto City Soccer Club which played in the newly created
Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League, becoming president of the club.
In that first season the team signed well known British stars Stanley Matthews,
Danny Blanchflower, Jackie Mudie and Johnny Haynes, while the player-coach
was formed Scottish international Tommy Younger.
He continued to operate the team until January of 1966 when he withdrew the team after the league refused to order the amalgamation of the three Toronto teams.
In more recent years he turned his attention to hockey and horse racing and in 1991 became chairman of the board of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd., a governor of the National Hockey League and chairman of the board of the Air Canada Centre.
Our sincere condolences to the Stavro family …..We’ll miss you Steve!
By Alex Gulin
RADIO MAKEDONSKA KAFANA
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