Balgarianovinite.com Bulgaria’s participation as guest of honour in the Bookfest international book fair in Bucharest concluded on Sunday with the presentation of a book about the Bulgarians in Izvoarele, a village in the south of Romania. The event, which attracted considerable interest at Bulgaria’s stand in the Romexpo exhibition centre, featured the book’s author, journalist Bianca Vasile, and Adriana Cupcea, a researcher at the Institute for the Study of National Minority Issues in Cluj-Napoca.
At the beginning of the event, Vasile spoke to the audience about the Bulgarian minority in Romania. She said there are Bulgarians in Banat, Oltenia, Muntenia and Dobruja. They are divided into Catholics in Banat and the areas around Bucharest, and Orthodox Christians in Oltenia, Muntenia and Dobruja. According to the latest census data, the largest number of Bulgarians live in Banat. They are also the most likely to identify themselves as Bulgarians, Vasile said.
Adriana Cupcea commented that internal differences between communities help researchers trace the ways in which ethnic identity develops and is shaped. “There are various factors, which are also addressed in Bianca Vasile’s book – religion, regional origin, educational level, social status and relations with the authorities. All of these have a significant impact,” she added.
“The archaic language spoken in Izvoarele is the clearest sign and marker of our identity,” Bianca Vasile said.
She explained: “At home we spoke Bulgarian. It was simply a given. We spoke an archaic form of Bulgarian – at home, in the fields and in the centre of the community. Over time, I began researching and learning more. I discovered the Bulgarian communities in Branesti, Cioplea, Baleni, Targoviste, Olt, Braila and Buzau. I learned that there had been different waves of migration and that each Bulgarian community in Romania originated from a different region and for different reasons. I discovered family recipes, elements of traditional clothing and aspects of identity that define us, and I decided to gather them in a book so that they would be preserved for future generations.”
Vasile thanked Gheorghe Nacov, the representative of the Bulgarian minority in the Romanian Parliament and chairman of the Union of Banat Bulgarians, as well as graphic designer and researcher Catalin Popa and the director of the Teleorman County Museum for supporting the creation and publication of the book.
Vasile’s book is a map-bridge between the past and the present, and perhaps even the future, said Oana Stanescu, cultural manager and coordinator of Bulgaria’s participation in the fair. Stanescu said: “Over the past five days, we too have tried to build bridges. The results will be seen in the future cooperation that I am certain lies ahead.”
Ognyan Iliev, First Secretary at Bulgaria’s Embassy in Romania, thanked the audience, Bulgarian writers, publishers and translators, all organizers of the Bulgarian stand, and the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) as media partner. “Thank you to everyone who chose to open their hearts to their neighbours to the south,” he said.
After the official programme ended, all attendees had the opportunity to sample homemade banitsa (cheese pie) and lyutika (a spicy vegetable spread), prepared by Bianca Vasile and her mother, Teodora. Book on Bulgarians in Izvoarele Concludes Bulgaria’s Participation at Bucharest Book Fair 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-06-07 15:16:33 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law