Historian Aleksandar Stoyanov Named Awakener of the Year for 2026

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Historian Aleksandar Stoyanov has been named Awakener of the Year for 2026. The awards were presented at a ceremony marking the conclusion of the Bulgarian National Radio’s (BNR) 13th campaign. Stoyanov was selected following thousands of votes from the public and the BNR jury.
He said that people today should not regard themselves as less worthy than their ancestors from the Bulgarian National Revival period. “We are just as good as they were,” he said, expressing confidence that the work of the present generation would still matter 100 to 150 years from now.
Stoyanov received a statuette created by sculptor Alexander Proinov. As part of the award, the historian was also given 21,000 square metres of old-growth oak forest in the Sliven section of the Balkan Range, donated by Nikola Rahnev and the Gorata.bg initiative.
A special Unifier of the Year award was presented to singer Dara by BNR Director General Milen Mitev in recognition of her victory at the Eurovision Song Contest. Dara said that what mattered to her was sharing energy and love with people and inspiring them to believe that dreams can come true. She described the role of a modern-day awakener as supporting others and demonstrating honesty, fairness and empathy.
Among the ten finalists were Lyubov Kostova, recognized for her work promoting science and scientists; Dimitar “Shosho” Kotsev and Hristo Hristov, nominated for their efforts to restore public awareness of the persecution carried out under the totalitarian regime; theatre and film director Javor Gardev; and Yuriy Vulkovsky, director of the Community Centers Foundation. Stefan Bakalov, a long-serving employee of the National Customs Agency, was nominated for the You Are Not Alone campaign, which aims to protect young people from drug and gambling addiction. The Give a Hand Foundation was also among the nominees for its support for children, families, older people and people with disabilities through social and healthcare assistance, scholarships and integration initiatives. Other finalists included Dimitar Ivanov, founder of the Together for Good Foundation; Slav Petkov, founder and chairman of the Adapted Physical Activity Federation; and Boris Bandev, co-founder of the social enterprise Stray Sheep, who was nominated for his efforts to promote sign language and improve deaf people’s access to information and culture. Each of the finalists received a certificate recognizing their nomination.

Historian Aleksandar Stoyanov Named Awakener of the Year for 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-11-07 06:18:58

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BULGARIA NEWS – NEWS AGENCY 2009–2026 2026-11-07 06:18:58