Newsgroups: soc.culture.bulgaria
Subject: Re: Are the Bulgarians Slavic?
From: <ANTHC@CUNYVM.BITNET>
Date: Sunday, 4 Oct 1992 21:40:38 EDT
Organization: City University of New York/ University Computer Center

Hi:
   Of course the ancient Bulgarians were not Slavic.  They belonged to the

group of late horse nations that left the Iranian steppe in III or IV-th

century along with the Huns.  I can vaguely remmember that the earliest

they were mentioned in a Chinese manuscripts as one of the tribes living

western of the Chinese borders.

   In VIIth century two tribes at least moved to the South most part of Europea

steppe, that in Bulgaria is Dobrudja.  My opinion is that they never moved

Southern, because the teren is not suitable for horsemen.  There is no grass

and the winter kills other green pants that can provide food for their horses.

   It was always puzlle for me why other group moved to Macedonia and settled

near Ohrid.  Later these Bulgarians were increasingly hired by the Byzantium

to serve in the army.  I remmember that one of the Bulgarian leaders reached

to a high rang in Tessallinica.  Now I live in NYC and here even the History of

Zlatarski is not availabe and I can't recal details and names.  These Bulgarian

are often thought to be slavs.

  For the rest of the area I beleave the population was slavic but the name

Bulgaria was adopted because the Bulgarians were the major military power.

and Byzantium negotiated mostly with them.  I see simmilar case in Europe with

France.  The population was mostly Gallic but the country adopted the name of

the German tribe - the Francs, because they were the major power in the region.

  I believe the existance of Bulgarian state was convinience for Byzantium.

The Bulgarians were never serious threat for the empire, because they prefere

the life under open air.  I remmember that for senturies they migrateed during

the summer Northern because they can't stand the heat during the summer.

Formally Bulgaria was on the Balkan peninsula but the heart and the roos were

in the steppe Northern.  From there Bulgaria used to received unlimited supply

of fresh skilled soldiers.  The slavs have never been entusiastic soldiers

I remmember that during the wars of Simeon, hundreds of thousands of slavs

escape to Buzantium because they wanted to avoid the war.

  I believe that the steppe conection saved Bulgaria when it was overpowerd

by Buzantium in 9th century.  Preslav was captured and Khan Boris I was

prisoner of emperor Michaelle.  It was up to the Byzantines to terminate the

existance of the Bulgarian state on the Balkans, but they were smart enough

not to do these, because the Bulgarians from the North would become chronical

problem for the empire and in the past they were often not invited guests under

the walls of Constantinopole, used to devistate entire European part of the

empire and prefere to fight in the most inconvinient time for the Byzantines -

the winter.  So they converted Khan Boris I to orthodox christianity under

Byzantine supervision and forced him to rename to Kniaz Michaele.  This way

they had reliable protection for their Northern borther to Frankish influence.

The setteled Bulgarians were corupted and eventually assimilated by the

Byzantine aristocracy and that led to the falior of the First Bulgarian state

in 10th century.  This didn't bring the Bulgarians in the North out of the

stage.  Simply the fact is ignored.  At the time when the Russians were

devistating Bulgaria and the Byzantines were conquering it, messinger for

help were sent Northern.  It probably took some time until army was organized

because different tribes used to feed their horses in areas several day away

from each other.  Also they couldn't send all warioors away, someone had to

protect the women and the children.  Eventually the army headed South.  At that

time it was too late to save the Bulgarian state, but it was not to late to

punished the main culprit - the Kievian Kniaz Stanislav.  He was captured and

killed.  The Byzantime historians clamed this to be Pechenezians, but I don't

thing so.  Either the Pechenesians is another name for the Bulgarians that

used to be callled Bulgarians only by foreigners, but among themself they used

to apply the name of the clan, like Unugunduri, Kutriguri, Uzi etc.   I believe

that if one day the treasury of the Bulgarian kings is discovered, among the

silber goblets we will find the skull of Svetoslav coated with silver as

the Bulgarians use to do with the skulls of their enemys leaders (remmember

Nikiforovata kratuna).  After this the army reached Bulgaria, but it was too

late.  I believe that curupted Bulgarian aristocracy didn't care for Bulgaria

at that point and they prefere to be in captivity in Constantinopole.  So the

army didn't find much to be helped.  Instead they probably collected some spoil

and forced the Byzantines to give them North Bulgaria as feodal estate.  These

Bulgarians are called often cumans by the Byzantines but I consider it as

another trick of the smartest politicians the world have ever seen - those of

Byzantium.  They simply wanted to reject the connection between the First and

the Second Bulgarian Kingdom.
Newsgroups: soc.culture.bulgaria