Keywords: Grigor K. Aleksiev, Literary activity, translations, teacher, priest
Grigor K. Aleksiev was a famous teacher, then a priest from Prilep. From an early age he took part in the education. For the needs of Prilep school he translated several books. One of his most important literary works was the schoolbook "The Law of God". he collaborated with the newspapers "The Novini" and "The Vesti". where he published letters and articles. For the first time the literary activity of Aleksiev has been treated in this articla.
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Keywords: Metodij Kusevich; Women’s Equality; man; woman; male-female relations
Todor Kusev (b. 1838 Prilep, d. 1922 Stara Zagora, Bulgaria) is the author of several works, letters, speeches, books. This paper’s interest is focused on Kusevich’s manuscript Women’s Equality, published as a separate booklet in 1912. In this work, Kusevich, sharply, with irony and mocking commentaries and examples, accuses women of undermining the existing social order by weakening their defense mechanisms, thus enabling enemies to conquer them. Women, demanding equality with men, opposed the laws of nature. The publication of the brochure was followed by an article, Equality according the Metropolitan Metodij of Stara Zagora, signed by a female author with the initials Sl. D-va, published in the magazine Woman's Voice. The author expresses her doubts of Metropolitan Methodius’ sincere intentions to present women’s issues properly. Having in mind that in the 19th century there were not many known cases of Macedonian authors writing, particularly on the topic of "women’s issues," this paper sets to explore the said manuscript as a template speaking closely to the mindset of Macedonian men, as well as Balkan men in general, particularly the clergy of the period, towards women.
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Keywords: wedding procedures; Greek letters; the vernacular Macedonian; announcement; letter; Ecumenical Patriarchate
The use of the Greek alphabet when writing letters, notifications, and various announcements in the vernacular Macedonian is a phenomenon characteristic of the Macedonian region throughout the 19th century. One example of a text written with Greek letters in the vernacular Macedonian of the Ohrid-Struga region is the announcement of wedding ceremony procedures, (Epistolia/book) consisting of seven items, issued by the Greek Metropolis of Ohrid to the faithful. The content of the announcement addressed to all priests in the areas of Drimkol, Prespa, and Ohrid was of great importance for the regulation of duties when getting married. Hence, it is of great importance for the establishing of church canons, i.e. rituals of the Christian population living in the aforementioned areas in the second half of the 19th century, as well as the male-female relations in this period.
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Keywords: urbanization; Macedonian woman; bazaar; folk songs/singers; national costumes; town costumes; chalgians; troubadours
The urbanisation of the settlements on the territory of Macedonia in the nineteenth century contributed to the development of citizenship. That citizenship became one of the pillars of the development of education, that is, literature, art, construction, etc. In the article we focus on the influence that the town environment had on the Macedonian woman in the XIX century through the bazaar, folk songs and singers, chalgians and troubadours, town clothes versus the village costumes, as well as the gradual suppression of the patriarchal community.
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Već sam zaboravio kako je to biti na selu, da osjetim miris zemlje, đubreta, ovčijih brabonjaka. Doduše, ovaca je u zadnje vrijeme sve manje; i one nestaju kao i ljudi. To selo je nizinsko, no samo je ravno oko tebe, tamo u daljini, raspoznaju se brda i planine. Vrijeme je lijepo, vazduh je svjež, zdrav, a miris duhana me povremeno udari u nos. Tada šmrknem, kihnem, obrišem se i produžim da radim ono što sam radio.
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Keywords: Nikola Petrov Rusinski; August Bebel; Konstantina Bojadzhieva Rusinska; socilist; women question; Macedonia; 19th century
Nikola Petrov Rusinski was a representative of the first wave of ideal - socialists of the Macedonian revolutionary movement, who emphasized the necessity to unite the peasantry and citizenry, pointing out the growing social differences that divided people into rich and poor and advocating for women's rights. He was among the first Macedonian authors who paid special attention to the women's issue, especially in the chapter "Organization of women in the city of Ohrid" of his book Contribution to the History of the Internal Macedonian-Adrianople Revolutionary Organization (1936). Rusinski was married to Konstantina Bojadzieva, one of the first Macedonian activists to promote women's rights.
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Keywords: Dafina from Prosenik; Stefan Verkovich; XIX century; folk songs; archaisms; tradition.
In this paper we refer to the life of one of the most famous Macedonian interpreters of folk songs from the XIX century, Dafina from the village of Prosenik, Serres area. She was the most significant informant of Stefan Verkovich, who had written a number of songs from her, of which 275 have been determined so far. Because of the skill and beauty of the songs, Verkovich called her “Homer’s successor” and "a woman with rare wit and unusual gift to remember". Her poems are with different themes and motifs, rich in metaphors, epithets, a rich fund of personal names and toponyms, etc. Therefore, Dafina's songs represent a small remembrance to the rich cultural and historical past of the Macedonians.
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Keywords: Hriste Hadzi Konstantinovich; Pismovnik; Erminija; Prilep; XIX century; manuscripts.
In this paper we focus on the manuscripts by Hriste Hadzhi Konstantinovich,- teacher from Prilep, who lived and worked in the second half of the 18th and the first half of the 19th century. The paper is about his two works: Pismovnik and Erminia, which are important written testimonies of the rich Macedonian cultural and literary heritage. We consider that by analyzing of these works, we can contribute to exposing the character and work of this less known teacher and writer, Hriste Hadzhi Konstantinovich.
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Keywords: correspondence; letters; Macedonian women; Mitra Miladinova; Efrosina Dimitrova Robeva; Robevci brothers; Metodij Kusevich.
The Macedonian XIX century abounds in a huge collection of postcards and letters, written on various occasions and dealing with various issues. It is in the correspondence where one finds the most numerous examples of female authorship in the nineteenth century. In the letters, the creative activity of women's authorship is at its peak. Through them we can see the everyday life of the authors. As very important for the Macedonian women's correspondence from this period, we single out the letters of Mitra Miladinova, Efrosina Dimitrova Robeva, Evtimia P. Bozhkova, Zachariya Naumcheva, Kotsa K. Kemenzhieva etc.
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Keywords: Treskavec; records; margins; church books; Alexa Kochovikj; Alexa Popov; flood.
On the margins of many church books are written numerous records that bring out information and tell us a story of everyday life of the common man. For this occasion, we explore and present the records on the margins of the monastery Treskavec, Prilep.
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Keywords: Olga Madzarova; The Vesti newspaper; 19th-20th century; Macedonian women’s writing; women question; women’s education
Among the Macedonian authors who left their mark in the periodicals at the beginning of the 20th century, a significant place belongs to Olga Madzarova (1887, Negovan, Thessaloniki area - Gorna Dzumaja after 1934). She is the author of the longest journalistic text in general, published by a Macedonian woman on the pages of the daily press in Macedonia under Ottoman rule, i.e. until 1912. Madzarova is the author of the article “The main qualities that a good teacher-pedagogue should possess”, published in two parts on the pages of The Vesti newspaper. The first part was published in issue 71 of July 30, 1904, and its sequel in issue 72 of August 3 of the same year. Under the title of the first part is the information: “Speech delivered by the student Olga Madzarova at the annual act of the Thessaloniki Women’s High School on June 37, 1904.” The two parts published in issues 71 and 72 of The Vesti newspaper refer to the importance of teachers in the education of girls, as well as to their role and presence in public life. The selected words used by the young author indicate the qualities that she possessed, and that she was able to express, in her own way, her thoughts full of hope and ideals for a better future.
More...Keywords: Evtimica Jancheva; Voden; 19th century; literary polemic; newspaper Novini; women’s writing
In this paper, we refer to a polemic from 1898 in which the teacher Evtimica Jancheva from the town of Voden took part. The polemic developed as a response to two texts in which the authors criticised women, especially teachers, for their attitude towards fashion and work. Jancheva's extensive text, published in the newspaper Novini, in the section Correspondence, defends the right of women to be teachers, to follow the latest fashion trends, etc. In this way, the article by Evtimica Jancheva is the first registered polemical writing in Macedonian literature, in which a woman had taken part, while Evtimca Jancheva is considered to be the first Macedonian woman to take part in a public polemic.
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Keywords: Yanka Kanevcheva; feminist movement; revolution
Yanka Kanevcheva was a Macedonian intellectual. She was known as Goce Delchev`s greatest love. She participated actively in the Macedonian revolutionary movement. She was punting out vocally the need for a bigger participation of the women in the public life and the revolutionary movement as well. In this study two articles of her related to the Macedonian movement for freedom are being discussed.
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Keywords: Jordan Hadzi Konstantinov Dzinot; Macedonian literature of the 19the century; plays; poetry; travel literature
This text is dedicated to marking the 140th anniversary of the death of the famous Macedonian writer Jordan Hadzi Konstantinov Dzinot. He is one of the most prominent figures in the Macedonian 19th century, having the honorable place as one of the first playwrights, travel literature writers, poets, aphorists and folklorists. We supplement tracing his life path with information on his rich educational and literary activities and his philosophical and religious-ideological views.
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Keywords: Anastasia Miloshova (Milosheva); Macedonian literature in 19th century; Macedonian women’s writing; manuscripts; poem; essays.
In this paper we refer to a part of the newly found manuscript archive of the young author Anastasia Miloshova. It consists of an untitled poem written on a separate sheet and four essays written in an unpaged notebook without covers. The poem and essays were written during Miloshova's schooling in Thessaloniki, in the period 1895-1896. The song is a product of the romantic perceptions of the author and it deals with the meaning and the need for an ideal. The four prose works deal with different topics related to rural life, the birth of Jesus Christ, the purity and the duties that parents and children have in their daily lives. Anastasia Miloshova's works are the first registered Macedonian essays and poems in manuscript, which increases the number of works by Macedonian women in the 19th century.
More...Keywords: pseudonyms; anonyms; abbreviations; decipherment of pseudonyms; categorisation of pseudonyms; Macedonian literature
In this paper, we shall address the issue of pseudonymity in Macedonian literature. We shall focus on the process of collecting, analysing and synthesising unsigned works or those signed with hidden names, initials, graphic signs, etc. We categorise them into several groups (cryptonyms, collective pseudonyms, geonyms or troponyms, latinisms, phytonyms, etc). We shall present these observations as an example for the possibilities for further research in the field of pseudonymy, as well as of the need to clarify the necessities and the ways to write under a hidden name. We consider this work as an relevant basis for providing insight into the complexity of the issue of Macedonian literary pseudonyms.
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Keywords: Kocho Racin; Pop Bogomil; Bogomilism; contemporary Bogomilan authors; folk-Bogomilan authors.
In this study we refer to the phenomenon of piety and its influence on literature and philosophy by this day. Starting from the term “folk-Bogomilan” poetry, first used by Kocho Racin, we present observations about the possibilities of emergence, even if spontaneous and not formed completely, of contemporary folk-Bogomilan authors, i.e. contemporary folk-Bogomilan literature. Hence, we terminologically upgrade Racin's position on folk-Bogomilan poetry with folk-Bogomilan or contemporary Bogomilan authors who have a distinctly social creative dimension. Such authors, for example, apart from Racin, are August Cesarec, Miroslav Krleza, Hristo Botev, Ivan Cankar, etc. These were authors who were “a thorn in the side of all conservative people”, who brought a “new spirit, art and life” into their works and who found themselves in conflict with the social systems of the time, i.e. the rule of “being Bogomil meant living outside the law, without the protection of any earthly authorities they were surrounded with” applied to them. In their works we should look for a reference to the old times, to denying and fighting against the existing social, religious and economic systems, to a demand for social justice, to dualism, etc.
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