Krste Misirkov

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Krste Petkov Misirkov
Portrait of Krste P. Misirkov
Portrait of Krste P. Misirkov
BornKrste Petkov Misirkov
(1874-11-18)18 November 1874
Postol, Ottoman Empire
Died26 July 1926(1926-07-26) (aged 51)
Sofia, Kingdom of Bulgaria
Pen name"K. Pelski", "Sekol"
Occupationphilologist, teacher, historian, ethnographer, translator and professor.
CitizenshipOttoman, Moldavian, Russian, Bulgarian
EducationDoctor's degree of philology and history
Alma materFaculty of philology and history at the University of Saint Petersburg
Genrehistory, linguistics, philology, politics, ethnography and analytics.
Subjecthistory, language and ethnicity
Notable worksOn Macedonian Matters
SpouseEkaterina Mihaylovna - Misirkova [bg]
ChildrenSergey Misirkov [bg]
Signature

Krste Petkov Misirkov (

ethnographer from the region of Macedonia
.

In the period between 1903 and 1905, he published a book and a scientific magazine in which he affirmed the existence of a Macedonian national identity separate from other Balkan nations, and attempted to codify a standard Macedonian language based on the central Western Macedonian dialects. A survey conducted in the Republic of Macedonia (now North Macedonia) found Misirkov to be "the most significant Macedonian of the 20th century".[3] For his efforts to codify a standard Macedonian language, he is often considered "the founder of the modern Macedonian literary language".[4]

On the other hand, he was one of the founders of the

IMARO-affiliated press. In his diary written during the Balkan Wars, he espoused pro-Bulgarian views. During the First World War, he became a member of the local parliament in Bessarabia as a representative of the Bulgarian minority there. During the 1920s he encouraged the Macedonian Slavs to adopt a Bulgarian national identity. Misirkov returned to Macedonian nationalism for a period in 1914 and again in 1924 and 1925.[6][page needed] Misirkov died in 1926 and was buried in the Sofia Central Cemetery
with the financial support from the Ministry of Education, as an honoured Bulgarian educator.

Because Misirkov expressed conflicting views about the national identity of the Macedonian Slavs at different points in his life, his national affiliation and legacy remain a matter of dispute between

pan-Bulgarian patriotism
in a larger Balkan context. However, in the context of the larger Bulgarian unit/nation, Misirkov sought both cultural and national differentiation from the other Bulgarians and called both himself and the Slavs of Macedonia, Macedonians.

Biography

Misirkov's birth house in Postol

Early years

Krste Petkov Misirkov was born on 18 November 1874 in the village of

Postol in the Salonica vilayet of the Ottoman Empire (present-day Pella, Greece). He started his elementary education in the local Greek school, where he studied until the sixth grade, but the bad financial situation of his family could not support his further education at that point and he left the school. At that period, the Serbian government began to promote efforts to espouse a pro-Serbian Macedonian nationalism and to recruit young people in order to "Serbianize" them.[7][8][9] After some period, Misirkov applied and was granted a scholarship by a Serbian association, "The Society of St. Sava".[10]

Misirkov in Serbia and Bulgaria

For a period, Misirkov studied in Serbia. Soon after he realized that the promotion of pro-Serbian ideas and propaganda was the main goal of the education provided by the Society of St. Sava.[7] The politics practiced by the association forced Misirkov and the other Macedonian students to participate in a students protest and revolt against the Society of St. Sava. As a result, Misirkov and other companions moved from Belgrade to Sofia. He then faced a similar situation in Bulgaria, this time being confronted with pro-Bulgarian propaganda.[7] Misirkov again went to Serbia to continue his education, but without any success as he was rejected by the Society of St. Sava, most likely for his part in the protests conducted against it. Since he was willing to get higher education, he was forced, by a chain of events, to enroll in a theological school for teachers. Similar to the Society of St. Sava, this school as well had its own propagandistic goals which resulted in another revolt of the students.[11] As a result of it, the school ended its programs and the students were sent throughout Serbia. Misirkov was sent to Šabac, where he finished his fourth secondary education course, but this time in the local gymnasium, which happened to be his last course.[10] In both Serbia and Bulgaria, Misirkov and his friend were treated as Serbs or Bulgarians[7][10] in order to be accepted in the educational system. After the gymnasium, even though he graduated, Misirkov enrolled in another secondary school for teachers in Belgrade, where he graduated in 1895. During this time, particularly in 1893, Misirkov became a member of an association of Macedonian students called "Vardar".[12]

Misirkov in the Russian Empire

His qualifications obtained in Belgrade were not recognized in

Balkan Peninsula before the members of the Russian Imperial Geographical Society
.

On November 15, 1900, Misirkov, a third-year student in the Faculty of History and Philosophy at the time, and other students in Russia created a students' circle in Saint Petersburg. The main objective of the circle was the political autonomy of the

Great Powers. In a letter sent to the President of the Supreme Macedonian-Adrianople Committee on 28 November of the same year, the founders of the circle stated that, "there's no Bulgarian who is not interested in the situation and fate of that part of our homeland, which continue to groan under the yoke of the tyrant." At that time, Misirkov considered the Slavic peoples of Macedonia and Thrace as Bulgarian.[15] He graduated in 1902.[12]

Misirkov's application sent to the Yugoslav authorities where he asks for a job in Macedonia
This plaque in Odessa, Ukraine indicates the house where the Macedonian national activist lived and worked in the period 1909–1913.
Questionnaire written in the Russian language filled by Misirkov as a member of Sfatul Țării in Bessarabia, where He defined himself as a Bulgarian.

Later Misirkov abandoned the university and left for

Ottoman Macedonia
.

Return to Ottoman Macedonia

Facing financial obstacles to continue his postgraduate education, he accepted the proposal of the

Ilinden Uprising and the justifications and causes as to why the Consul was assassinated. Soon afterwards, he wrote the book On Macedonian Matters and published it in Sofia.[16] Misirkov attacked the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO), among others, as a Bulgarian creation. As a result, he was persecuted by IMRO, and it is believed that its members destroyed a sizable amount of copies of his book.[17]

Return to Russian Empire

In 1905, he left Saint Petersburg for

Atanas Ishirkov, "Bulgaria" from Bulgarian to Russian.[24]

When the

Second Balkan War, Misirkov went back to Russia, where he worked as a teacher in the Bulgarian language schools in Odessa.[25] Later, he was appointed as a teacher of the Bulgarian language school in Chișinău. While working as a teacher in Chișinău, Misirkov sent а letter to the Bulgarian academic Aleksandar Teodorov-Balan with a request to be assigned as a professor at Sofia University. That request clearly indicates his self-identification at that time:[26] As a Bulgarian, I would willingly return to Bulgaria, if there is a need of a scientific research of the fate of the Bulgarian lands, especially Macedonia..."[27] A shorter letter with similar content was sent to another professor at Sofia University – Vasil Zlatarski with the request to be assigned as a chosen at the newly established department for history of Macedonia and the other western Bulgarian lands.[28]

At that point, Misirkov made contacts with the

Makedonski glas (Macedonian Voice) in Russian. Misirkov published in this magazine for some period under the pseudonym "K. Pelski".[10][7]
Misirkov defended and wrote about Macedonian ideals which, according to him, were in contrast with Bulgarian ideals and the general Bulgarian populace.

After the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, Bessarabia became a democratic republic, and he was elected a member of the local parliament Sfatul Țării as a representative of the Bulgarian minority. At the same time, Misirkov worked as a secretary in the Bulgarian educational commission in Bessarabia.[25] In March 1918, unification between Bessarabia and Romania was declared. On 21 May 1918, Misirkov openеd a Bulgarian language course in Bolhrad. Misirkov proceeded to take a clandestine trip to Bulgaria in order to procure textbooks for the students, but after his return in November, he was arrested by the Kingdom of Romania authorities, still at war with Bulgaria and was extradited to Bulgaria.

Last years in Bulgaria

The last picture of Misirkov

After being expelled by the Romanian authorities, Misirkov returned to

Macedonian Question in the Bulgarian press and in some of them expressed Macedonian national ideas. Misirkov died in 1926 and was buried in the graveyards in Sofia with the financial support of 5000 levs from the Ministry of Education, as an honored educator.[31]

Works

In his life, Misirkov wrote one book, one diary, published one issue of a magazine and wrote more than thirty articles. His book On the Macedonian Matters was published in Sofia in 1903. The magazine was called Vardar and was published in 1905 in Odessa, Russian Empire. The articles that Misirkov wrote were published in different newspapers and focused on different topics. The book, magazine and a number of his article were written in the Central Macedonian dialects, which are the basis of Modern Macedonian.

Front cover of On the Macedonian Matters
The first page of the magazine Vardar
The last page of Misirkov's diary of 1913

On the Macedonian Matters

One of the most important works of Misirkov is the Macedonian book

Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (IMARO) as agents of the Bulgarian interests in Macedonia. According to this book and Misirkov himself, the Macedonian literary language should be based on dialects from the central part of Macedonia, which were used in the book itself. Furthermore, Misirkov appealed to the Ottoman authorities for eventual recognition of a separate Macedonian nation. Misirkov admitted that there was no Macedonian nation, but argued that it should be created, when the necessary historical circumstances would arise.[34]

Vardar magazine

Misirkov was the author and editor of the first scientific magazine in Macedonian.[35] The magazine Vardar was published in 1905 in Odessa, Russian Empire. The magazine was published only once, because of the financial problems that Misirkov had been facing with at that time. He expressed views about the national distinctiveness of the Macedonians.[12] According to Blaže Ristovski, its orthography was almost the same as the orthography of standard Macedonian.[36] The magazine was meant to include several different scientific disciplines, mostly concerned with Macedonia.

Articles

Makedonium memorial in Kruševo

During his life, Misirkov published many articles for different newspapers and magazines. The articles deal with Macedonia, Macedonian culture, ethnology, politics and nation on one hand and with the Bulgarian nation, politics and ethnography on the other. Misirkov published his articles in Macedonian, Russian and Bulgarian and he published them either in Russia or in Bulgaria. Most of the articles were signed by his birth name, but there are articles that are signed with his pseudonym K. Pelski.

Diary

In 2006, a handwritten diary by Misirkov written during his stay in Russia in 1913 was discovered. It was declared authentic by Bulgarian and Macedonian experts and was published in 2008.

Kotovsk
's nearby village of Klimentove, where he lived and worked at the time. It contains also articles and excerpts from the Russian press of that time.

Dialectology and ethnography

In several publications, Misirkov made an attempt to determine the border between the

Pomoravlje is autochthonous and Bulgarian by origin, excluding any later migrations during the Ottoman rule from Bulgaria.[25]
According to Krste Misirkov,
are a result from Bulgarian musical influence over the Serbian folk music.

Legacy

During the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the idea of a separate Macedonian ethnicity was as of yet promoted by small circles of intellectuals.

pan-Bulgarian patriotism, but in the context of the larger Bulgarian nation, Misirkov sought cultural and national differentiation, separating the Macedonians.[52] Misirkov's ideas had a small impact in his own time and he was re-discovered in the post-WW2 era.[20]

Monument of Misirkov in Pella Square in Skopje, North Macedonia

View of Misirkov in Bulgaria

In Bulgaria, Misirkov is regarded as a controversial educator with scientific contribution to Bulgarian dialectology and ethnography. He graduated from the

Republic of Macedonia about the identity of Misirkov.[59][60]

View of Misirkov in North Macedonia

In

There is a debate about Misirkov's ethnicity in North Macedonia issued by Dr. Rastislav Terzioski, who brought to light memos from Russian archives which clearly stated his

Balkan wars and the Bucharest Agreement.[66] In 1914 and many times after that, he repeated his views about the Macedonian national existence.[67]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Орган Историјског института, Српске академије наука и уметности · 38. том (1992). "Историјски часопис": 290. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ Михайлов, Иван. "Истинският образ на неуравновесения Кр. Мисирков".
  3. ^ a b http://star.dnevnik.com.mk/default.aspx?pBroj=1884&stID=4305 Македонија мора да го има Крсте Мисирков во своите пазуви Archived 21 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  4. .
  5. ; стр. 14
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Giorgio Nurigiani (1972). "The Macedonian Genius Through the Centuries". D. Harvey Publishers. pp. 160–176. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
  7. , p. 63.
  8. , p. 66.
  9. ^ a b c d Literature of the Macedonian language, Georgi Stalev, Skopje
  10. ISBN 954621177X, p. 12. Archived 18 July 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ .
  12. ^ Мир, XXXI, бр. 7476 от 26 май 1925
  13. ^ a b "Проф. д-р Веселин Трайков – "Кръсте П. Мисирков и за българските работи в Македония", София, 2000, Издателство "Знание"". Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2013.
  14. ^ "НБКМ-БИА, ф. 224, Върховен македоно-одрински комитет, София, а.е. 23, л. 397 За (SS. Cyril and Methodius National Library-Bulgarian historical archive, facsimile 224, Supreme Macedonian-Adrianople Committee, Sofia, а.е 23, sheet 397 3a)". Archived from the original on 28 April 2013. Retrieved 19 February 2013.
  15. .
  16. .
  17. ^ a b Георги Маргаритов. В Скопие продължават да показват само едното лице на Кръсте Мисирков. в-к "Македония", брой 10, 10 март 1999 г.
  18. .
  19. ^ .
  20. ^ К. Мисирков. "БЕЛЕЖКИ ПО ЮЖНОСЛАВЯНСКАТА ФИЛОЛОГИЯ И ИСТОРИЯ /КЪМ ВЪПРОСА ЗА ПОГРАНИЧНАТА ЛИНИЯ МЕЖДУ БЪЛГАРСКИЯ И СРЬБСКО-ХЪРВАТСКИЯ ЕЗИЦИ И НАРОДИ/“ Българска сбирка, XVII, януари 1910, кн. 1, с. 39–42; февруари 1910, кн. 2, с. 100; маи 1910, кн. 5, с. 328; г. XVIII, март 1911, кн. 3, с. 197; април 1911. кн. 4, с. 265–267.
  21. ^ The South Slav Epic Legends on the Marriage of King Volkashin in Connection with the Reasons for the Popularity of Marko Kralé amongst the South Slavs (Odessa, 1909).
  22. ^ Крсте Петков Мисирков Записки за България и Руско-Българските отношения: бележки за събитията на деня (5 юли-30 август 1913 г.) редактор Цочо Василев Билярски, "Анико", 2011, ISBN 954824716X, стр. 30.
  23. ^ "Болгария съ картов блгарскихъ железнихъ дорогъ и 44 илюстрациями (Предисловие переводчика)", Одеса, 1911 година
  24. ^ .
  25. ^ Н. Велев, Из политико-обществената дейност на Кръстю Петков Мисирков. Сп. „Исторически преглед”, кн. 5, 1968, с. 70–86.
  26. ^ К. П. Мисирков – дневник 5 юли – 30 август 1913, София-Скопие, 2008, Държавна агенция „Архиви“ на Република България-Държавен архив на Република Македония, стр. 168.
  27. ^ K. P. Misirkov – Diary 5 July to 30 August 1913, Sofia-Skopje, 2008, Published by State Agency "Archives" of the Republic of Bulgaria & State Archive of the Republic of Macedonia, p. 168
  28. ^ Промемория на Никола Трайков за разговор с проф. Петко Стоянов за Кръстю Мисирков, София, 8 март 1963 г Archived 30 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  29. .
  30. ^ "ЦДИА, фонд № 177, Министерство на просвещението, опис № 2, а.е.230, л.22". Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 9 July 2007.
  31. .
  32. ^ The Former Yugoslavia's Diverse Peoples: A Reference Sourcebook, Matjaž Klemenčič, Mitja Žagar, p. 74: This work on the Macedonian language was written in Central Macedonian dialect, which he also recommended as a basis for a future literary language
  33. ^
  34. ^ Macedonia and Greece: The Struggle to Define a New Balkan Nation, John Shea, p. 204: "After the failure of the Ilinden rebellion, Misirkov returned to St. Petersburg, and in 1905 he launched the journal Vardar in Macedonian."
  35. ^ Вардар: научно-литературно и општествено-политичко списание на К. П. Мисирков (Vardar: scientific-literary and socio-political magazine of K. P. Misirkov), Blaže Ristovski, Institute of Macedonian language "Krste Misirkov", Skopje, 1966, p. 13.
  36. ^ Cvetanova, G. (2022). Reflections on Krste Misirkov’s theory: From ethnocultural entity to politically legitimate nation. Slavia Meridionalis, 22, Article 2672. p. 8.
  37. ^ That said, it is worth noting that Misirkov himself returned to a Bulgarian nationalist position by 1907, and his 1913 diary articulates explicit Bulgarianism. on p. 139 in: Al. Maxwell, “Slavic Macedonian Nationalism: From 'Regional' to 'Ethnic.'” Ethnologia Balkanica 11 (2007): 127–155.
  38. , p. 162.
  39. ^ , p. 208.
  40. ^ "Diary Reveals Father of Macedonian Nation Had Bulgarian Identity, Sofia News Agency, 23 April 2008, Wednesday". Archived from the original on 26 June 2008. Retrieved 10 August 2008.
  41. , p. 174.
  42. ^ See: Мисирков, Кръстьо (1898). Значението на моравското или ресавското наречие за съвременната и историческа етнография на Балканския полуостров. Български преглед, година V, книга І, стр. 121–127; Мисирков, Кръстьо (1910, 1911). Бележки по южно-славянска филология и история (Към въпроса за пограничната линия между българския и сръбско-хърватски езици и народи), Одеса, 30.XII.1909 г. Българска сбирка.
  43. , University of Illinois Press.
  44. .
  45. ^ Center for Documentation and Information on Minorities in Europe, Southeast Europe (CEDIME-SE) – "Macedonians of Bulgaria". Archived 23 July 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  46. ^ 154 Studia Theologica V, 3/2007, 147 – 176 Alexander Maxwell, Krste Misirkov's call for Macedonian Autocephaly: religious nationalism as instrumental political tactic.
  47. . Macedonian nationalism is a new phenomenon. In the early twentieth century, there was no separate Slavic Macedonian identity
  48. .
  49. . Despite the recent development of Macedonian identity, as Loring Danforth notes, it is no more or less artificial than any other identity. It merely has a more recent ethnogenesis – one that can therefore more easily be traced through the recent historical record.
  50. . Unlike the Slovene and Croatian identities, which existed independently for a long period before the emergence of SFRY Macedonian identity and language were themselves a product of federal Yugoslavia, and took shape only after 1944.
  51. , p. 327.
  52. ^ Църнушанов, Коста. Македонизмът и съпротивата на Македония срещу него. Унив. изд. "Св. Климент Охридски", София, 1992.
  53. ^ "Since the Bulgarian idea, as it is well-known, is deeply rooted in Macedonia, I think it is almost impossible to shake it completely by opposing it merely with the Serbian idea. This idea, we fear, would be incapable, as opposition pure and simple, of suppressing the Bulgarian idea. That is why the Serbian idea will need an ally that could stand in direct opposition to Bulgarianism and would contain in itself the elements which could attract the people and their feelings and thus sever them from Bulgarianism. This ally I see in Macedonism...." from the report of S. Novaković to the Minister of Education in Belgrade about "Macedonism" as a transitional stage in Serbianization of the Macedonian Bulgarians; see idem. Cultural and Public Relations of the Macedonians with Serbia in the XIXth c.), Skopje, 1960, p. 178.
  54. ^ Novaković initiated the establishment of closer Serbian-Russian relations as consul in St. Petersburg, where he supported the local Macedonists as Misirkov and Chupovski, see: Angel G. Angelov, The European Legacy: Toward New Paradigms, 1470-1316, Volume 2, Issue 3, 1997, Pages 411 – 417. and the Memoirs of Hristo Shaldev, Macedonian revolutionary (1876–1962), Macedonian Patriotic Organization "TA" (Adelaide, Australia, 1993), The Slav Macedonian Student Society in St. Petersburg, pp. 14–21.
  55. , стр. 12.
  56. ^ Македонизмът и съпротивата на Македония срещу него Коста Църнушанов, Унив. изд. "Св. Климент Охридски", София, 1992 г. стр. 42.
  57. ^ д-р Растислав Терзиоски "За некои ставови на К. П. Мисирков за македонското прашање (дилеми и толкувања), Зборник на МАНУ "Делото на Крсте Мисирков“, том 1 од Меѓународниот собир по повод стогодишнината од излегувањето на книгата "За Македонцките работи“ (Скопје 2005), стр. 87–90.
  58. ^ "Култура, Сто години Илинден или сто години Мисирков? Чавдар Маринов, 30 April 2004". Archived from the original on 24 January 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  59. ^ Списание България – Македония, Брой 2, 2010 г. Неизвестният досега дневник на Мисирков разбуни духовете край Вардара, Светослав Делчев.
  60. .
  61. .
  62. .
  63. ^ Во суштина, целта на Терзиоски е искажана еден пасос каде што авторот констатира дека е оправдана и потребна „извесна преоцена на некои искажани ‘конечни вистини’ за делото и личноста на К. П. Мисирков“. Интересно е што тежнението за преоцената на „делото и личноста на Мисирков“ се појавува во сегашните времиња (сто години по објавувањето на „За македонцките работи“) и е базирано врз, главно, службени преписки (Терзиоски најчесто цитира официјални писма, напишани до руските официјалисимуси, некаде од 1911 до 1919 година), што секако не пречи уште во воведот на излагањето да биде констатирано дека „К. П. Мисирков своерачно се потпишува како македонски Бугарин; говори за неспорното бугарско население во Македонија...расправа за бугарското сознание на словенското население во Македонија...жали за нереализирањето на Санстефанските решенија...“ и така натаму. Како илустрација се даваат писмата на Мисирков до министерот за надворешни работи на Русија, каде што се апелира „македонските Бугари“ да се оттргнат од јаремот на „шумадиските свињари“, а поентира со тоа дека „никогаш нема да престанеме да се чувствуваме Македонци или што е едно те исто со македонски Бугари“. Во едно писмо од 1914 г., Мисирков вели, дека “Македонци значи единствено македонски Бугари”. Го обвинува рускиот конзул Ростковски, дека под српско влијание сметал македонското население само за “словенско” и вели дека тоа било заблуда под српско влијание. Тагува за поделената во Балканските војни Бугарија.” For more see: Растислав Терзиоски „За некои ставови на К. П. Мисирков за македонското прашање (дилеми и толкувања), Зборник на МАНУ „Делото на Крсте Мисирков“, том 1 од Меѓународниот собир по повод стогодишнината од излегувањето на книгата „За Македонцките работи“ (Скопје 2005), стр. 87–90.
  64. ^ Експерти: Нема дилеми за идентитет на Мисирков Archived 10 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine on a1.com.mk
  65. ^ "Виктор Цветаноски - Враќањето на Мисирков, но не оној што го знаеме, Утрински весник". Archived from the original on 15 September 2009. Retrieved 25 April 2008.
  66. ^ In 1914 Misirkov wrote: “…I’d use the words of Boris Sarafov, that we, the Macedonians are neither Serbs nor Bulgarians, but simply Macedonians…” (”The Macedonian and the Bulgarian national ideals", Macedonian voice, No. 10, Sankt Peterburg, 1914, pg. 11–14.); Д-p Блaжe Pиcтoвcки, "Kpcтe Мисирков (1874–1926) – прилог кон проучувањето на развитокот на македонската национална мисла, МАNU, Skopje, 1966.

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