The centuries-old traditions of any country are largely reflected in the names that parents give to their children at birth. For example, many Bulgarian names have a special meaning and show certain characteristics of the child. In addition, they may contain a wish for success, health or wealth for a person. Some of them have Slavic roots, others are Muslim. As in other countries, children nowadays are called by international names.
Origin and traditions
The most common names in Bulgaria are Slavic origin. They became most popular when the Orthodox faith. Except them, Names of other origins have also become widespread:
- Turkish;
- Greek;
- Latin;
- Jewish.
Around the middle of the 20th century, Western European and American names, often children began to be named after famous performers, actors or heroes of films and books.
However, compared to many other countries, many, especially Bulgarian male names, have remained unchanged. This is because in Bulgaria there is still a tradition of naming children in honor of their ancestors, and often a child could be named after his grandmother or grandfather, regardless of his gender. Names in the country are unique in that many of them have both male forms, and women's. Among them:
- Zhivka-Zhivko;
- Kalin-Kalina;
- Todor-Todorka;
- Spas-Spaska.
Often names are chosen according to the church calendar. Then the child is named after the saint on whose day he was born. A name can also mean one or another property. This is explained by the Bulgarians' belief in the power of words. The influence of other cultures, in particular Turkish, is felt in the names. Turkish origin have such names, How:
- Demir and Demir;
- Emine;
- Mustafa and other Muslim names.
In addition, there are a lot of gypsies in the country. For this reason, there are people here whose names are Gozho, Evsenia, Bakhtalo and others. Some of them really have Romani origin, in other cases, parents named their children that way due to influence.
Features of female and male names
The country is unique in that people are named following centuries-old traditions, and there are also a large number of original traditional names. The variety of Bulgarian names for girls is amazing. Many of them have special meaning, for example:
There are women's traditional names of this country, which in Russia are considered masculine, and in short form. For example, Petya or Vanya. In Bulgaria you can often meet girls whose names are Tsvetans, Ivankas, Tsvetskas, Jordankas, Zornitsyas and more.
Men's names also have their own characteristics. In particular, there are a large number of them that end in “slav” or “peace”:
- Zlatoslav;
- Radimir;
- Lubomir;
- Zlatoslav.
No less popular are the names more familiar to Russians - Vladimir or Yaroslav. Original Bulgarian names can be called short forms, which are often considered official. For example, Tosho (from the full Todor), Gogo (George), as well as Zhivko, Zlatko and more.
Like women's names, Bulgarian boys' names have their own meaning. In addition, it was often possible to determine by the boy’s name what his family was doing.
For example, Dimitars or Georgies most often called the children of peasant farmers. But Philippas most often appeared in the families of riders or horse breeders. This name translates to “horse lover.” It is quite possible that the ancestors of the singer Kirkorov were involved in horses.
Other meanings of male names include:
In addition, in Bulgaria there are Angel or Apostle. It is worth noting that there are more men in Bulgaria who have “Angel” written in their passport than in the world. For this reason, many call Bulgaria “the country of Angels”.
Modern tendencies
If you believe the statistics of the Bulgarian National Institute, the number of names in the country is more than 67 thousand names. Moreover, if there are 29 thousand male names, there are much more female ones - 38 thousand, respectively.
Boys are most often called Ivan and Georgiy. 38 percent of the male population is called this way. And the most common female name in the country is Maria, if we also count its form as Mariyka.
Other common names in the country include:
Today, one of the most popular names for newborn girls is Victoria, which can be called a trend towards globalization. But boys are still mostly called Georgies. And also in last years girls were often called double names in a foreign way, such as Anna-Maria, Maria-Margarita and others.
Last names and patronymics
The concept of a surname as a family hereditary sign in Bulgaria appeared relatively recently compared to other European countries. Their history of formation began only end of the 19th century century.
In spelling, they do not differ from traditional Russian surnames, but, unlike them, they have a “floating” accent that can change. Like Russians, many Bulgarian surnames for women or men end in -ev (Botev or Tashev) or -ov (Todorov, Vazov). A smaller number were formed using the suffixes -shki, -ski or -chki, reminiscent of Polish. Their origins are ancient, associated with the cities or villages of human origin. For example, Lesicherski (a native of the village of Lesicharska) or Ohridski (from the city of Ohrid).
Many surnames of people in Bulgaria are derived from given names - both directly Bulgarian and Christian in general. For example, Pavlov, Isaev, Ivanov and others, some are in no way different from Russians.
There are also special surnames that are also considered traditional Bulgarian, however, they may seem to be of Muslim origin. These include the surnames Hadzhipopov, Hadzhigeorgiev and others with a similar prefix. The word “Hajj” in the Muslim world is interpreted as a pilgrimage to Mecca. In Bulgaria, the owners of such surnames may not be hereditary Muslims, but their ancestors during the time of Turkish oppression were called this way when they traveled to Jerusalem or visited other holy places, and not necessarily Muslim ones.
There are surnames that indicate nicknames or activities. For example, the surname Kovachev comes from the word “blacksmith” and is an analogue of the Russian surname Kuznetsov or the Ukrainian surname Kovalev (or Koval).
Currently, newborns in Bulgaria are given a choice of the surname of their father or mother, either assigned a new one after the name of their grandfather, or the surnames of their parents are combined. Previously, in most cases, women after marriage took their husbands' surnames, but now they mostly switch to a double one.
There are also Bulgarian patronymics. They differ from Russians by the absence of the characteristic ending “vich” or “vna” and are more reminiscent of surnames. For example, if a woman's name is Ivanka Stoyanova, and her father's name is Todor, then her full name will sound like Ivanka Todorova Stoyanova. If a person’s surname is Ivanov, and his father’s name is Ivan, then the surname and patronymic will look the same in writing, but will differ in emphasis. In the patronymic it will be on the first syllable, and in the surname it will be on the second, respectively.
Unlike others Slavic countries, in Bulgaria a large number of Old Church Slavonic names forgotten in Russia have been preserved, which are distinguished by their euphony and have their own meaning. The traditions that continue to be honored in the country contributed greatly. Although, despite this, the fashion for international names is still growing. It’s too early to say whether they will be able to displace traditional ones.
Attention, TODAY only!
There are many names in Bulgaria, which often carry a special meaning. By doing this, parents try to show the child’s character traits or endow him with some special features. Often, Bulgarian names are a kind of wish for prosperity, success or health to the newly born person. Today we will try to consider not only their meanings, but also to understand which names are the most popular in this state, how they are formed and what Bulgarian traditions observed when naming children.
Origin of Bulgarian names
The most common and popular Bulgarian names are of Slavic origin. They firmly came into use after the adoption of Christianity as the main faith. Greek, Latin and Old Hebrew gained considerable popularity. Turkish rule in Bulgaria, oddly enough, had little effect on the variety of names, since states rarely named their children Muslim. For a long time parents named their sons in honor of the Slavic princes Alexander and Vladimir.
Since the mid-20th century, the names of Western European and American origin. Bulgarian names(female and male) during this period were enriched with new forms due to popular movie characters, singers and actors.
Be that as it may, Bulgarian men and women are called in a special way, even if the names are derived from words often used in other countries. Agree, it’s rare in any country in Europe, America or Asia that you can hear a girl’s name being Miljana or Luchezara, and men being called Tsvetan or Yasen.
Traditions: how they give a name in Bulgaria
Bulgarian names, especially for men, have been preserved unchanged due to the naming of descendants in honor of their grandfathers or great-grandfathers. There was no special system for the sequence of inheritance. The older child could be called grandma or grandpa, no matter what gender the baby was. Bulgarian names are unique in this regard: boys and girls are often called the same. An example of this would be male name Zhivko and female Zhivka, Spaska and Spas, Kalin and Kalina.
In addition, Bulgarian names for girls and boys are chosen in accordance with the church calendar. In this case, children are named after the saints on whose day they were born. Also in Bulgaria they still believe in the power of words as such, so names of young Bulgarians are often given as names of plants or properties of human character.
Female names in Bulgaria and their meaning
So we're already in general outline learned what Bulgarian names are. Female and male, as mentioned above, are often consonant or have the same meaning. But there are those whose sound is unique not only for a particular country, but also for the whole world. These include names such as Gisela ("beauty"), Smaragda ("jewel"), Salvina (healthy), Vavilia ("God's gate") and so on.
Many female names in Bulgaria are given to girls as a talisman. For example, Bliss, according to the Bulgarians, should endow a girl with happiness, and Iskra with sincerity. They call a girl radiant when they want to give her strength, and Demira when a girl needs fortitude. Several names for little Bulgarians have their origins in myths and legends. So, Veda means “mermaid” or “forest fairy”, Xantha means “golden-haired”, Luchezara means “heavenly star”.
Bulgarian male names
The meaning of Bulgarian is as varied as that of girls. There is a whole list. At the same time, some of the names are capable of endowing the boy with certain qualities: Blagomir (“bringing good to the world”), Boyan (“ strong-willed fighter"), Branimir ("defending the world"), Nikolaa ("conquering nations"), Peter or Penko ("strong as a stone, rock").
Bulgarian names (male) are often associated with a person’s character or the main one in the family. For example, Georgi and Dimitar are two of the most popular names among peasants working on the land. They are translated as "farmer". The name Philip (“who loves horses”) was more often given to children in families of grooms, equestrians, or horse breeders.
Love for children, the desire to endow them with beauty in appearance and character are also reflected in male names in Bulgaria. For example, Luben (love), Lyudmil (dear to people) and Tsvetan (flower) are still often found in this country. Also in Bulgaria they believe that good luck and respect in the future will be with those who are called Slavey Zvezdelin (“starry”) or Yan (“who worships God”).
Popular boy and girl names in Bulgaria
Behind last decades Bulgarian girls have Iliya, Rositsa, Rada (Radka) and Mariyka. They are called about 20% of all newborn girls. Slightly less popular are Stoyanka, Vasilka, Stefka and Yordanka. Bulgarian names for boys, which have gained popularity in recent years, do not sound very exotic. Most often, boys are called Petry, Rumen, Todor and Ivan. Nikola, Atanas, Marin and Angel deserved slightly less popularity.
"Tiny" names
In addition to the official ones, in Bulgaria it is customary to use so-called “tiny” names, which are a shortened version of the name given at birth. This tradition is rarely applied to women, but men's names are often shortened beyond recognition. An example of this is Georgiy: in Bulgaria, men with this name are often called Gosho, Gezha, Gogo or Zhoro. But Todor can be pronounced as Tosho, Totio or Toshko. In rare cases, a “tiny” name can become independent and official, after which it can be entered into documents.
Oleg and Valentina Svetovid are mystics, specialists in esotericism and occultism, authors of 15 books.
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Bulgarian surnames
Bulgarian surnames
Bulgarian surnames They are very similar in spelling to Russians, but do not always coincide with them in pronunciation and origin. Bulgarian surnames can be divided by origin into three parts:
Surnames that were formed from given names are identical in spelling to Russian surnames (Ivanov, Petrov, Pavlov, Andreev, Nikolaev, Davidov, Bogdanov, Bogomilov, Borisov, Romanov, Georgiev, Gerasimov, Tikhonov, Efremov, etc.)
Surnames formed from Orthodox Bulgarian names and other concepts related to religion (Christianity)
Surnames formed from other words and concepts (professions, localities, etc.)
Bulgarian surnames
Alekov
Ananev
Angels
Andonov
Andreev
Apostles
Argirov
Atanasov
Biserov
Blagoev
Bogoev
Bogomilov
Bozhanov
Bozhilov
Bozhinov
Bozhkov
Boychev
Bonchev
Boyanov
Vanev
Vasev
Vasilov
Velikov
Velkov
Velchev
Venev
Veselinov
Vladov
Vlaikov
Vlasev
Warriors
Gavrailov
Ganev
Ganchev
Georgiev
Georgov
Gerginov
Getsov
Ginchev
Goranov
Gospodinov
Grigoriev
Grigorov
Davidov
Damyanov
Danailov
Dankov
Danchev
Dimitrov
Dimov
Dinov
Dobrev
Dobrilov
Dobrinov
Donev
Donchev
Draganov
Elev
Emilev
Emilov
Enev
Enkov
Enchev
Zhelev
Zhivkov
Zapryanov
Zarev
Zahariev
Zdravkov
Zlatanov
Zlatev
Zlatkov
Ivaylov
Ivanov
Jordanov
Ipolitov
Isusev
Yovkov
Yovchev
Jordan
Yordanov
Kaloyanov
Kamenov
Kinchev
Kirilov
Kirkorov
Kirov
Kirchev
Kolev
Kostov
Kristev
Lazarov
Lazov
Lachev
Liliev
Lilov
Lapatonov
Lyubenov
Lyudmilov
Manov
Marev
Marinov
Markov
Metodiev
Milanov
Milev
Milenov
Minkov
Minchev
Mirov
Mitkov
Mladenov
Momchev
Momchilov
Monchev
Nasev
Nachev
Nikolov
Ognev
Ognyanov
Panayotov
Panchev
Penchev
Petarov
Petev
Petkov
Plamenov
Radev
Radkov
Radov
Radoev
Radoslavov
Raichev
Rosenov
Rumenov
Rusev
Simeonov
Slavov
Slavchev
Spasov
Sretenov
Stanev
Stanchev
Stefanov
Stoychev
Stoyanov
Tanasov
Tanev
Tanchev
Todorov
Tomov
Tomchev
Tonev
Traykov
Filev
Filipov
Filov
Khristev
Christov
Tsanev
Tsankov
Tsvetkov
Tsenev
Tsonev
Chavdarov
Chernev
Yavorov
Yankov
Yanchev
Yasenov
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Oleg and Valentina Svetovid
Our address Email: [email protected]
Bulgarian surnames
Attention!
Sites and blogs have appeared on the Internet that are not our official sites, but use our name. Be careful. Fraudsters use our name, our email addresses for their mailings, information from our books and our websites. Using our name, they lure people to various magical forums and deceive (they give advice and recommendations that can harm, or lure money for conducting magical rituals, making amulets and teaching magic).
On our websites we do not provide links to magic forums or websites of magic healers. We do not participate in any forums. We do not give consultations over the phone, we do not have time for this.
Note! We do not engage in healing or magic, we do not make or sell talismans and amulets. We do not engage in magical and healing practices at all, we have not offered and do not offer such services.
The only direction of our work is correspondence consultations in written form, training through an esoteric club and writing books.
Sometimes people write to us that they saw information on some websites that we allegedly deceived someone - they took money for healing sessions or making amulets. We officially declare that this is slander and not true. In our entire life, we have never deceived anyone. On the pages of our website, in the club materials, we always write that you need to be an honest, decent person. For us, an honest name is not an empty phrase.
People who write slander about us are guided by the basest motives - envy, greed, they have black souls. The times have come when slander pays well. Now many people are ready to sell their homeland for three kopecks, and it is even easier to slander decent people. People who write slander do not understand that they are seriously worsening their karma, worsening their fate and the fate of their loved ones. It is pointless to talk with such people about conscience and faith in God. They do not believe in God, because a believer will never make a deal with his conscience, will never engage in deception, slander, or fraud.
There are a lot of scammers, pseudo-magicians, charlatans, envious people, people without conscience and honor who are hungry for money. The police and other regulatory authorities have not yet been able to cope with the growing influx of "Deception for profit" madness.
Therefore, please be careful!
Sincerely – Oleg and Valentina Svetovid
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You will soon have a son or daughter, are you expecting a child and don’t know what to name him?
Is everyday life and community very important to you?
Have you decided to give your child a special or real Bulgarian name?
Or maybe you yourself want to change your first and last name to a more original, beautiful and consonant one famous personalities Bulgarian history?
We really hope that our top 50 most popular names and surnames in Bulgaria will help you solve your pressing problem
Data was used to select the most popular first and last names in Bulgaria phone book To understand, the main point was used - statistics. The data itself is quite suitable for this kind of statistics, because it contains a large number of names and surnames and from different regions Bulgaria. The book contains more than 1 million people from all municipalities and regions of Bulgaria.
The top contains results and complete statistics separately for women and male surnames and names, which is reflected in the 50 best (or most popular) Bulgarian names and surnames.
Number of analyzed entries from telephone directories: 1089948
Number of unique names: 15791
Number of unique surnames: 55055
Here are all the statistics compiled from several TOPs.
Top 50 most popular Bulgarian names and surnames
This top 50 contains all the most popular first and last names, regardless of gender.
1. IVANOV Ivan
2. GEORGIEV Georgi
3. DIMITROV Dimitar (Dimitrov Dimitar)
4. PETROV Petar (Petrov Petr)
5. CHRIST Christ
6. TODOROV Todor
7. STOYANOV Stoyan
8. YORDAN Jordan
9. NIKOLOV Nikola
10. ATANASOV Atanas
11. VASILEV Vasil
12. NIKOLOV Nikolay
13. PETKOV Petko
14. ILIEV Ilia
15. STEFANOV Stefan
16. ANGELS Angel
17. IVANOV Georgi
18. MARINOV Marin
19. GEORGIEV Ivan
20. DIMITROV Georgi
21. IVANOV Dimitar (Ivanov Dimitar)
22. DIMITROV Ivan
23. GEORGIEV Dimitar (Georgiev Dimitar)
24. IVANOVA Maria
25. PETROV Ivan
26. MIKHAILOV Mikhail
27. ALEXANDROV Alexander (Alexandrov Aleksandir)
28. KOLEV Kolyo
29. NIKOLOV Georgi
30. IVANOV Petar (Ivanov Petar)
31. NIKOLOV Ivan
32. KOSTADINOV Kostadin
33. PETROV Georgi
34. DIMOV Dimo
35. IVANOVA Ivanka
36. SIMEONOV Simeon
37. STOYANOV Ivan
38. KHRISTOV Ivan
39. TODOROV Ivan
40. CHRISTOV Georgi
41. GEORGEVA Maria
42. STOYANOV Georgi
43. DIMITROVA Maria
44. GEORGIEV Petar (Georgiev Petar)
45. KOLEV Nikolay
46. NIKOLOV Dimitar (Nikolov Dimitar)
47. IVANOV Hristo
48. PAVLOV Pavel
49. PETROV Dimitar (Petrov Dimitar)
50. TODOROV Georgi
Top 50 most popular Bulgarian names
The most popular Bulgarian names, regardless of gender.
1. Ivan
2. Georgi
3. Dimitar (Dimitar)
4. Petar (Petar)
5. Maria
6. Christo
7. Todor
8. Nikolay
9. Vasil
10. Stefan
11. Jordan
12. Stoyan
13. Nikola
14. Ivanka
15. Atanas
16. Elena
17. Kiril
18. Angel
19. Aleksandar (Alexander)
20. Elijah
21. Jordanka
22. Boris
23. Krasimir
24. Foam
25. Margarita
26. Petko
27. Plamen
28. Valentine
29. Violeta
30. Rumen
31. Emil
32. Lubomir
33. Vladimir
34. Liljana
35. Tsvetanka
36. Mikhail
37. Marin
38. Radka
39. Kostadin
40. Tsvetan
41. Hope
42. Veselin
43. Mariyka
44. Blush
45. Todorka
46. Stefka
47. Parking lot
48. Asen
49. Cornflower
50. Simeon
Top 50 most popular Bulgarian surnames
Bulgarian surnames are represented regardless of gender. With a small gap from each other, women with the same last names are in the lead in our top.
1. IVANOV
2. GEORGIEV
3. DIMITROV
4. IVANOVA
5. PETROV
6. GEORGIEV
7. NIKOLOV
8. DIMITROVA
9. CHRIST
10. STOYANOV
11. TODOROV
12. PETROVA
13. NIKOLOVA
14. STOYANOVA
15. ILIEV
16. CHRIST
17. VASILEV
18. ATANASOV
19. TODOROVA
20. PETKOV
21. ANGELS
22. KOLEV
23. YORDANOV
24. MARINOV
25. ILIEVA
26. VASILEVA
27. ATANASOVA
28. PETKOVA
29. STEFANOV
30. POPOV
31. ANGELOVA
32. KOLEVA
33. YORDANOVA
34. MIKHAILOV
35. KRYSTEV (Krystev)
36. KOSTOV
37. MARINOVA
38. DIMOV
39. STEFANOVA
40. KOSTADINOV
41. POPOVA
42. MIKHAILOVA
43. PAVLOV
44. MITEV
45. SIMEONOV
46. FLOWERS
47. KRISTEVA (Krysteva)
48. ALEXANDROV
49. MARKOV
50. KOSTOVA
Top 50 most popular Bulgarian male names
1. Ivan
2. Georgi
3. Dimitar (Dimitar)
4. Petar (Petar)
5. Christo
6. Todor
7. Nikolay
8. Vasil
9. Stefan
10. Jordan
11. Stoyan
12. Nikola
13. Atanas
14. Kiril
15. Angel
16. Aleksandar (Alexander)
17. Elijah
18. Boris
19. Krasimir
20. Petko
21. Plamen
22. Valentine
23. Rumen
24. Emil
25. Lubomir
26. Vladimir
27. Mikhail
28. Marin
29. Kostadin
30. Tsvetan
31. Veselin
32. Asen
33. Simeon
34. Lyuben
35. Borislav
36. Mitko
37. Pavel
38. Anton
39. Slavcho
40. Ventsislav
41. Valerie
42. Methodi
43. Bozhidar
44. Zdravko
45. Necklace
46. Dimo
47. Konstantin
48. Boyan
49. Ognyan
50. Zhivko
Top 50 most popular Bulgarian male surnames
1. IVANOV
2. GEORGIEV
3. DIMITROV
4. PETROV
5. NIKOLOV
6. CHRIST
7. STOYANOV
8. TODOROV
9. ILIEV
10. VASILEV
11. ATANASOV
12. PETKOV
13. ANGELS
14. KOLEV
15. YORDANOV
16. MARINOV
17. STEFANOV
18. POPOV
19. MIKHAILOV
20. KRISTEV
21. KOSTOV
22. DIMOV
23. KOSTADINOV
24. PAVLOV
25. MITEV
26. SIMEONOV
27. FLOWERS
28. ALEXANDROV
29. MARKOV
30. SAVES
31. LAZAROV
32. DOBREV
33. ANDREEV
34. MLADENOV
35. RUSEV
36. VOLCHEV
37. RADEV
38. YANEV
39. FOUND
40. PENEV
41. YANKOV
42. STANCHEV
43. STOYCHEV
44. SLAVOV
45. GRIGOROV
46. KIROV
47. ALEXIEV
48. STANEV
49. STANDS
50. BORISOV
Top 50 most popular new Bulgarian female names
1. Maria
2. Ivanka
3. Elena
4. Jordanka
5. Foam
6. Margarita
7. Violeta
8. Liljana
9. Tsvetanka
10. Radka
11. Hope
12. Mariyka
13. Blush
14. Todorka
15. Stefka
16. Parking
17. Cornflower
18. Rositsa
19. Stanka
20. Emilia
21. Donka
22. Milka
23. Wieliczka
24. Raina
25. Anka
26. Krasimira
27. Snezhana
28. Mariana
29. Valentina
30. Yanka
31. Christina
32. Katya
33. Nikolina
34. Daniela
35. Tatyana
36. Svetla
37. Galina
38. Zlatka
39. Lily
40. Ekaterina
41. Tsvetana
42. Nedyalka
43. Diana
44. Antoaneta
45. Peacock
46. Anna
47. Veselina
48. Warbler
49. Marijana
50. Julia
Top 50 most popular native Bulgarian female surnames
1. IVANOVA
2. GEORGIEV
3. DIMITROV
4. PETROVA
5. NIKOLOVA
6. STOYANOVA
7. CHRIST
8. TODOROVA
9. ILIEVA
10. VASILEVA
11. ATANASOVA
12. PETKOVA
13. ANGELOVA
14. KOLEVA
15. YORDANOVA
16. MARINOVA
17. STEFANOVA
18. POPOVA
19. MIKHAILOVA
20. KRISTEVA
21. KOSTOVA
22. DIMOVA
23. PAVLOVA
24. KOSTADINOVA
25. MITEVA
26. SIMEONOVA
27. TSVETKOVA
28. ALEXANDROV
29. MARKOVA
30. SPASOVA
31. LAZAROVA
32. DOBREV
33. MLADENOVA
34. ANDREEVA
35. YANEVA
36. RADEVA
37. RUSEVA
38. YANKOVA
39. PENEVA
40. VULCHEVA
41. GRIGOROVA
42. KIROVA
43. NAIDENOVA
44. STANCHEVA
45. ALEXIEVA
46. STOYCHEVA
47. BORISOVA
48. SLAVOVA
49. STANEVA
50. PANAYOTOVA
select a country and click on it - a page with lists of popular names will openA state in South-Eastern Europe, in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The capital is Sofia. Population – 7,202,198 (2014). I will also provide data on ethnic groups and languages (as of 2011). 84.8% are Bulgarians. The second largest group is the Turks (8.8%). 4.9% of Gypsies live, 0.15% of Russians, also Armenians, Circassians, Romanians, Ukrainians, Greeks, Karakachans, Jews, Gagauz. The majority of Bulgarians are Orthodox Christians (83.96%), 0.85% are Catholics, 1.12% are Protestants. 2.02% are Muslims, 0.012% are Jews. Official language– Bulgarian, which is native to 85.2% of the population. The Bulgarian alphabet, as is known, is Cyrillic.
Turkish is the native language of 8.8% of people. It is significantly distributed in the regions of Kardzhali, Razgrad, Targovishte, Shumen, Silistra, Dobrich, Ruse and Burgas.
The Bulgarian name book is similar to the Russian one, since the basis of both is made up of names from the Orthodox church calendar. Many Bulgarians use names of Slavic origin. There are Thracian ones. The Turkish ones, despite the long Turkish rule, were almost not accepted by the Bulgarians. A peculiarity of the Bulgarian naming in comparison with the Russian is the widespread use as official diminutives, short forms names (for example: Boyko, Vlado, Drago, Miro, Rado, Slavko).
Official statistics on names in Bulgaria are provided by the National Statistical Institute. These statistics have been available on his website since 2010. It is usually published in late December or early January and does not include data for December. Therefore, statistics on names in the institute’s press releases are preliminary. In 2011, he published a press release containing information about the most popular names in Bulgaria in 2007–2010
20 most common male names
Place Name Number of media % of carriers 1 Georgi 171356 4.9 2 Ivan 164858 4.7 3 Dimitar 126990 3.6 4 Nikolay 94637 2.7 5 Petar 76968 2.2 6 Christo 62592 1.8 7 Alexander 57313 1.6 8 Stephen 53728 1.5 9 Jordan 53352 1.5 10 Vasil 51607 1.5 11 Todor 50090 1.4 12 Stoyan 49667 1.4 13 Atanas 47109 1.3 14 Angel 46513 1.3 15 Krasimir 44984 1.3 16 Plamen 41282 1.2 17 Nikola 39178 1.1 18 Ivaylo 35771 1.0 19 Valentine 33740 1.0 20 Emil 32330 0.9 The most common Muslim male names in modern Bulgaria are Mehmed(16 thousand), Ahmed(14 thousand), Mustafa(12 thousand).
20 most common female names
Place Name Number of media % of carriers 1 Maria 120049 3.2 2 Ivanka 63675 1.7 3 Elena 54778 1.5 4 Jordanka 40497 1.1 5 Foam 33228 0.9 6 Daniela 30451 0.8 7 Rositsa 30143 0.8 8 Mariyka 30052 0.8 9 Peter 29485 0.8 10 Desislava 29468 0.8 11 Gergana 27894 0.8 12 Violeta 27102 0.7 13 Margarita 26978 0.7 14 Hope 26350 0.7 15 Radka 26002 0.7 16 Silvia 24786 0.7 17 Emilia 24729 0.7 18 Blush 24694 0.7 19 Victoria 23640 0.6 20 Parking 23567 0.6 Of the female Muslim names in modern Bulgaria, the most common are Fatme(17 thousand), Aishe(15 thousand), Emine(10 thousand).
20 most common male baby names
Place Name Number of names % of those named 1 Georgi 1249 3.5 2 Alexander 1222 3.5 3 Martin 1024 2.9 4 Ivan 821 2.3 5 Dimitar 775 2.2 6 Nikola 750 2.1 7 Daniel 701 2.0 8 Nikolay 696 2.0 9 Victor 693 2.0 10 Kaloyan 628 1.8 11 Christian 550 1.6 12 Boris 513 1.5 13 Theodore 503 1.4 14 Bozhidar 477 1.4 15 Stephen 406 1.2 16 Petar 379 1.1 17 Alex 376 1.1 18 Michael 349 1.0 19 Christo 348 1.0 20 Ivaylo 348 1.0 The most common male names for newborns from Muslim families: Emir(202) and Mert (133).
20 most common female baby names
Place Name Number of names % of those named 1 Victoria 931 2.8 2 Nikol 883 2.6 3 Maria 862 2.6 4 Alexandra 592 1.8 5 Gabriela 494 1.5 6 Daria 448 1.3 7 Yoana 412 1.2 8 Raya 408 1.2 9 Sofia 377 1.1 10 Simone 355 1.1 11 Elena 339 1.0 12 Theodora 313 0.9 13 Siyana 307 0.9 14 Gergana 296 0.9 15 Michaela 265 0.8 16 Ivayla 248 0.7 17 Magdalena 244 0.7 18 Bozhidara 240 0.7 19 Ema 219 0.7 20 Stephanie 211 0.6 The most common female names for newborns from Muslim families: Elif(136) and Melek (98).
One publication contains the top 20 names of newborns in Bulgaria in 1980. I will give the first 10 names from that list.
Men's: Ivan, Georgi, Dimitar, Petar, Hristo, Nikolai, Todor, Jordan, Stoyan, Vasil
Women's: Maria, Ivanka, Elena, Mariyka, Yordanka, Ana, Penka, Nadezhda, Radka, AnkaYou can clearly see how much the top 10 female names have been updated. From the previous composition, after 30 years, only the name remains Maria. The male part of the name changed more slowly. In the modern top 10 we find 4 names from the top 10 of 1980: Ivan, Georgi, Dimitar, Nikolai.
Many of the above names of Bulgarians among Russians have correspondences that are traditional and familiar to Russians. There are few unusual names for Russians in the top 20. I will give some of them with etymological explanations.
Bozhidar– translation (tracing paper) Greek name Theodore, i.e. “god” + “gift”. Feminine form of the name - Bozhidara.
Desislava– female to Desislav(slav. from Decity“to find, to comprehend” + glory).
Ivaylo- the name of the Bulgarian king in 1277–1280. It could also be a type of name Ivan, and type of name V'lo(translated as “wolf”). Feminine form of the name - Ivayla.
Kaloyan– male name of several historical figures. Among them are the Byzantine emperor from 1118 to 1143 and the king of Bulgaria from 1197 to 1207. The name comes from Greek Kaloiōannēs, meaning "good John" or "beautiful John". Feminine form of the name - Kaloyan.
Foam – female uniform name Penko. Last thing - folk form name Petar(Russian) Peter). According to another etymology - abbreviation to Petkana(from the name of the day of the week “Friday”).
Radka(female) – from glad(“joyful”)
Rositsa(feminine) – or associated with the word dew, or female to Rosen(name of the flower Rosen, in Russian dittany).
Blush– feminine form of the name Rumen(“rodgy”, i.e. having healthy red cheeks).
Siyana(female) – “bright, light.” Although it may well be a derivative of such female names as Vasiyana, Kasiyana, Rusiyana etc., or name Siya(“light” or from the name Anastasia).
