The Spontaneous and Forced Assimilation of the Turkish Women in Urban and Rural Environment during the Socialist Period in Bulgaria (Examples from the Svishtov Region)

Yelis Erolova

Authors

Yelis Erolova Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic Museum Author

Keywords:

Turks and Muslims in Bulgaria; communist regime; spontaneous and forced assimilation

Abstract

During the totalitarian communist regime (1944–1989) in Bulgaria, inconsistent policies of displacement, targeted integration, forced and coercive assimilation were implemented to reduce the size of the Muslim communities in the country. Their renaming in 1984/1985, called „Revival Process“ by the state authorities, was a continuation and final stage that ended in the re-settlement wave to Turkey during the summer of 1989, defined as „ethnic cleansing“. The article presents the life trajectories of two Turkish women in rural and urban environment, which are very different but also similar, because of their reactions to the forced assimilation measures including the change of their personal names. The paper discusses how the state policy influences their ethnicity and integration into the local Turkish and Bulgarian communities.

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