Islam in Bulgaria

The population Musulman E of Bulgaria includes/understands Turks, Moslem Bulgares, Pomaks as well as Tatars of the Crimea. These Moslems live mainly in the North-East of Bulgaria and in the mountains of Rhodope. According to a census carried out in 2001, the number of Moslem in the country is of 966.978 people, thus representing nearly 12.2% on a total of 7.928.901 inhabitants.
En taking account of their respective ethnicity, one can divide them thus,

Turks: 713.000 Bulgarian
: 131.000
Rroms : 103.000
Others: 20.000

The majority of the Bulgarian Moslems, are of confession sunnite of rite hanafite, this form of the Islam had been supported by Othoman Turkish who occupied the country during nearly five centuries. However, there exist also Shiite sects like the Qizilbash and the Bektachi. Nearly 84.000 Shiite Moslems live in the area of Razgrad, Sliven and Tutrakan (north-eastern of Roussé). They are mainly descendants the Bulgarian ones being converted with Islam to avoid Othoman persecutions. They adopted the Alévisme because of its tolerance towards the national and religious habits Bulgarian. For example, some maintain practices orthodoxe like the communion and the respect of the saints. This integration of orthodoxe habit in Islam caused the emergence of a Syncrétisme which one finds only in Bulgaria. The Shiite community remains closed the abroads, and remains being wary with respect to the sunnites.

In 1987, the Bulgarian Moslems had 1287 mosques where the faithful ones were guided by the khodzhai . The Muslim community of Bulgaria had as religious leader a Mufti which was accompanied by eight regional muftis who were useful for one five years duration. The largest mosque of Bulgaria was the Mosquée of Tombul which was built in 1744.

The Moslems were persecuted by the mode of Todor Jivkov. This persecution is explained by the behavior of the orthodoxe church Bulgarian which regarded them as foreigners whereas they were for the majority ethniquement Bulgarian. Then the Communist regimes declared Islam contrary with the communist ideology and the Bulgarian traditions. The Turks living in Bulgaria were also persecuted by the method of violent assimilation of the Bulgarian government.

With the fall of the communist mode of Jivkov in 1989, the Moslems profited from a greater religious liberty. New mosques were built in much city and village. Certain villages practice the teaching and the training of the Coran, which was formally interdict under the Communists. The Moslems also published their own newspaper, Musulmani published into Bulgarian and Turkish. A political party, MDL defends the interests of the Muslim community.

Internal bond

Pomaks
Mosque of Tombul

External bonds

Which Islam in Bulgaria post-Communist?
faces of Islam in Bulgaria

Source

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