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At first place it was an [[umbrella term]] to designate all the inhabitants of the [[region of Macedonia]], regardless of their ethnic origin.<ref>''Many disinterested observers at the time concluded that the Slavic-speaking inhabitants of Macedonia were " Bulgarians " (R. King 1973 : 187) and that the term " Macedonian " was not used to identify people as belonging to a distinct "Macedonian" ethnic or national group. Rather "Macedonian" was either used in a general regional sense to designate all the inhabitants of Macedonia, or it was used more specifically to refer to the Slavic - speaking Christians living in the geographical area of Macedonia. If pressed to assert some other form of collective identity, these people may well have said they were " Bulgarians " (Perry 1988 : 19; Lunt 1959 : 20). For more see: Loring M. Danforth (1997). ''The Macedonian Conflict: Ethnic Nationalism in a Transnational World. Princeton University Press, {{ISBN|0691043566}}.</ref> "Macedonians" as an umbrella term covered Greeks, Bulgarians, Turks, Aromanians and Megleno-Romanians, Albanians, Serbs, etc.<ref>Bechev, Dimitar. ''Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia, Historical Dictionaries of Europe'', Scarecrow Press, 2009, {{ISBN|0810862956}}, Introduction.</ref> Simultaneously a [[Autonomy for Macedonia|political concept was created]], to encompass all these "Macedonians" in the area, into a separate [[Supranational union|supranational]] entity, based on their collective Macedonian regional identity.<ref>Tchavdar Marinov, We, the Macedonians, The Paths of Macedonian Supra-Nationalism (1878–1912) in: Mishkova Diana ed., 2009, We, the People: Politics of National Peculiarity in Southeastern Europe, Central European University Press, {{ISBN|9639776289}}, pp. 117-120.</ref> An example is the bylaws of the [[Macedonian Patriotic Organization]]. As written originally during 1920s, the bylaws' concept of "Macedonians" had only geographic and not ethnographic meaning, and was equally valid for all [[ethnic groups]] in Macedonia. Even the latest version of this bylaws, from 2016, retains this very definition of the terms “Macedonians” and "Macedonian emigrants".<ref>''Section 9. Nondiscrimination: The MPO shall in the conduct of its affairs have no restriction or limitation based upon race, color, religion, disability, political affiliation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identification, or employment status. The terms “Macedonians” and “Macedonian immigrants” used in these bylaws pertain equally to all nationality groups in Macedonia–Bulgarians, Aroumanians, Turks, Albanians, and others. As used in these MPO Bylaws, these terms have only geographic and not ethnographic meaning.''</ref>
At first place it was an [[umbrella term]] to designate all the inhabitants of the [[region of Macedonia]], regardless of their ethnic origin.<ref>''Many disinterested observers at the time concluded that the Slavic-speaking inhabitants of Macedonia were " Bulgarians " (R. King 1973 : 187) and that the term " Macedonian " was not used to identify people as belonging to a distinct "Macedonian" ethnic or national group. Rather "Macedonian" was either used in a general regional sense to designate all the inhabitants of Macedonia, or it was used more specifically to refer to the Slavic - speaking Christians living in the geographical area of Macedonia. If pressed to assert some other form of collective identity, these people may well have said they were " Bulgarians " (Perry 1988 : 19; Lunt 1959 : 20). For more see: Loring M. Danforth (1997). ''The Macedonian Conflict: Ethnic Nationalism in a Transnational World. Princeton University Press, {{ISBN|0691043566}}.</ref> "Macedonians" as an umbrella term covered Greeks, Bulgarians, Turks, Aromanians and Megleno-Romanians, Albanians, Serbs, etc.<ref>Bechev, Dimitar. ''Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia, Historical Dictionaries of Europe'', Scarecrow Press, 2009, {{ISBN|0810862956}}, Introduction.</ref> Simultaneously a [[Autonomy for Macedonia|political concept was created]], to encompass all these "Macedonians" in the area, into a separate [[Supranational union|supranational]] entity, based on their collective Macedonian regional identity.<ref>Tchavdar Marinov, We, the Macedonians, The Paths of Macedonian Supra-Nationalism (1878–1912) in: Mishkova Diana ed., 2009, We, the People: Politics of National Peculiarity in Southeastern Europe, Central European University Press, {{ISBN|9639776289}}, pp. 117-120.</ref> An example is the bylaws of the [[Macedonian Patriotic Organization]]. As written originally during 1920s, the bylaws' concept of "Macedonians" had only geographic and not ethnographic meaning, and was equally valid for all [[ethnic groups]] in Macedonia. Even the latest version of this bylaws, from 2016, retains this very definition of the terms “Macedonians” and "Macedonian emigrants".<ref>''Section 9. Nondiscrimination: The MPO shall in the conduct of its affairs have no restriction or limitation based upon race, color, religion, disability, political affiliation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identification, or employment status. The terms “Macedonians” and “Macedonian immigrants” used in these bylaws pertain equally to all nationality groups in Macedonia–Bulgarians, Aroumanians, Turks, Albanians, and others. As used in these MPO Bylaws, these terms have only geographic and not ethnographic meaning.''</ref>


=== Slavic Macedonians ===
At that time, this designation was used also to describe the [[Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia]], but not as a separate ethnic group, because this population was defined then mostly as ''[[Bulgarians]]'',<ref>''"Until the late 19th century both outside observers and those Bulgaro-Macedonians who had an ethnic consciousness believed that their group, which is now two separate nationalities, comprised a single people, the Bulgarians. Thus the reader should ignore references to ethnic Macedonians in the Middle ages which appear in some modern works. In the Middle Ages and into the 19th century, the term 'Macedonian' was used entirely in reference to a geographical region. Anyone who lived within its confines, regardless of nationality could be called a Macedonian...Nevertheless, the absence of a national consciousness in the past is no grounds to reject the Macedonians as a nationality today."'' "The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century," John Van Antwerp Fine, University of Michigan Press, 1991, {{ISBN|0472081497}}, pp. 36–37.</ref> while their association with Bulgaria was universally accepted.<ref>Demeter, Gábor; Bottlik, Zsolt (2021). Maps in the Service of the Nation: The Role of Ethnic Mapping in Nation-Building and Its Influence on Political Decision-Making Across the Balkan Peninsula (1840–1914). Berlin: Frank & Timme, p. 114, {{ISBN|3732906655}}.</ref>
At that time, this designation was used also to describe the [[Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia]], but not as a separate ethnic group, because this population was defined then mostly as ''[[Bulgarians]]'',<ref>''"Until the late 19th century both outside observers and those Bulgaro-Macedonians who had an ethnic consciousness believed that their group, which is now two separate nationalities, comprised a single people, the Bulgarians. Thus the reader should ignore references to ethnic Macedonians in the Middle ages which appear in some modern works. In the Middle Ages and into the 19th century, the term 'Macedonian' was used entirely in reference to a geographical region. Anyone who lived within its confines, regardless of nationality could be called a Macedonian...Nevertheless, the absence of a national consciousness in the past is no grounds to reject the Macedonians as a nationality today."'' "The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century," John Van Antwerp Fine, University of Michigan Press, 1991, {{ISBN|0472081497}}, pp. 36–37.</ref> while their association with Bulgaria was universally accepted.<ref>Demeter, Gábor; Bottlik, Zsolt (2021). Maps in the Service of the Nation: The Role of Ethnic Mapping in Nation-Building and Its Influence on Political Decision-Making Across the Balkan Peninsula (1840–1914). Berlin: Frank & Timme, p. 114, {{ISBN|3732906655}}.</ref> Although the local intellectuals initially rejected the Macedonian designation as Greek,<ref>''As the Macedonian historian Taskovski claims, the Macedonian Slavs initially rejected the Macedonian designation as Greek.'' For more see: Tchavdar Marinov, Famous Macedonia, the Land of Alexander: Macedonian identity at the crossroads of Greek, Bulgarian and Serbian nationalism, p. 285; in Entangled Histories of the Balkans – Volume One: National Ideologies and Language Policies with Roumen Daskalov and Tchavdar Marinov as ed., BRILL, 2013, {{ISBN|900425076X}}, pp. 273–330.</ref> since 1850s some of them, adopted it as a regional identity, and this name began to gain a popularity.<ref name="Roumen Daskalov 2013"/> Serbian politics then, also encouraged this kind of [[Regionalism (politics)|regionalism]] to neutralize the Bulgarian influx, thereby promoting Serbian interests there.<ref>Chris Kostov, Contested Ethnic Identity: The Case of Macedonian Immigrants in Toronto, 1900–1996, Peter Lang, 2010, {{ISBN|3034301960}}, p. 65.</ref> The local educator [[Kuzman Shapkarev]] concluded that since 1870s this foreign ethnonym began to replace the traditional one ''Bulgarians''.<ref name="Prof. 1934, p. 55">In a letter to Prof. [[Marin Drinov]] of May 25, 1888 Kuzman Shapkarev writes: "But even stranger is the name Macedonians, which was imposed on us only 10–15 years ago by outsiders, and not as some think by our own intellectuals.... Yet the people in Macedonia know nothing of that ancient name, reintroduced today with a cunning aim on the one hand and a stupid one on the other. They know the older word: "Bugari", although mispronounced: they have even adopted it as peculiarly theirs, inapplicable to other Bulgarians. You can find more about this in the introduction to the booklets I am sending you. They call their own Macedono-Bulgarian dialect the "Bugarski language", while the rest of the Bulgarian dialects they refer to as the "Shopski language". (Makedonski pregled, IX, 2, 1934, p. 55; the original letter is kept in the Marin Drinov Museum in Sofia, and it is available for examination and study)</ref> At the dawn of the 20th century the Bulgarian teacher [[Vasil Kanchov]] marked that the local Bulgarians and [[Koutsovlachs]] call themselves Macedonians, and the surrounding people also call them in the same way.<ref>E. Damianopoulos, The Macedonians: Their Past and Present, Springer, 2012, {{ISBN|1137011904}}, p. 185.</ref> During the [[interbellum]] Bulgaria also supported to some extent the Macedonian ''regional identity'', especially in Yugoslavia. Its aim was to prevent the [[Serbianization]] of the local Slavic-speakers, because the very name ''Macedonia'' was prohibited in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.<ref>Donald Bloxham, The Final Solution: A Genocide, OUP Oxford, 2009, {{ISBN|0199550336}}, p. 65.</ref><ref>Chris Kostov, Contested Ethnic Identity: The Case of Macedonian Immigrants in Toronto, Peter Lang, 2010, {{ISBN|3034301960}}, p. 76.</ref> Ultimately the designation Macedonian, changed its status in 1944, and went from being predominantly a regional, ethnographic denomination, to a national one.<ref>Raymond Detrez, Pieter Plas, Developing cultural identity in the Balkans: convergence vs divergence, Volume 34 of Multiple Europesq Peter Lang, 2005, {{ISBN|9052012970}}, p. 173.</ref>

== See also ==
== See also ==
* [[Macedonian (disambiguation)]]
* [[Macedonian (disambiguation)]]

Revision as of 07:20, 13 August 2022

Macedonians as an obsolete terminology was used at the eve of the 20th century and beyond in regional sense and had separate meanings.

Meanings

Umbrella term

At first place it was an umbrella term to designate all the inhabitants of the region of Macedonia, regardless of their ethnic origin.[1] "Macedonians" as an umbrella term covered Greeks, Bulgarians, Turks, Aromanians and Megleno-Romanians, Albanians, Serbs, etc.[2] Simultaneously a political concept was created, to encompass all these "Macedonians" in the area, into a separate supranational entity, based on their collective Macedonian regional identity.[3] An example is the bylaws of the Macedonian Patriotic Organization. As written originally during 1920s, the bylaws' concept of "Macedonians" had only geographic and not ethnographic meaning, and was equally valid for all ethnic groups in Macedonia. Even the latest version of this bylaws, from 2016, retains this very definition of the terms “Macedonians” and "Macedonian emigrants".[4]

Slavic Macedonians

At that time, this designation was used also to describe the Slavic speakers in Ottoman Macedonia, but not as a separate ethnic group, because this population was defined then mostly as Bulgarians,[5] while their association with Bulgaria was universally accepted.[6] Although the local intellectuals initially rejected the Macedonian designation as Greek,[7] since 1850s some of them, adopted it as a regional identity, and this name began to gain a popularity.[8] Serbian politics then, also encouraged this kind of regionalism to neutralize the Bulgarian influx, thereby promoting Serbian interests there.[9] The local educator Kuzman Shapkarev concluded that since 1870s this foreign ethnonym began to replace the traditional one Bulgarians.[10] At the dawn of the 20th century the Bulgarian teacher Vasil Kanchov marked that the local Bulgarians and Koutsovlachs call themselves Macedonians, and the surrounding people also call them in the same way.[11] During the interbellum Bulgaria also supported to some extent the Macedonian regional identity, especially in Yugoslavia. Its aim was to prevent the Serbianization of the local Slavic-speakers, because the very name Macedonia was prohibited in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.[12][13] Ultimately the designation Macedonian, changed its status in 1944, and went from being predominantly a regional, ethnographic denomination, to a national one.[14]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Many disinterested observers at the time concluded that the Slavic-speaking inhabitants of Macedonia were " Bulgarians " (R. King 1973 : 187) and that the term " Macedonian " was not used to identify people as belonging to a distinct "Macedonian" ethnic or national group. Rather "Macedonian" was either used in a general regional sense to designate all the inhabitants of Macedonia, or it was used more specifically to refer to the Slavic - speaking Christians living in the geographical area of Macedonia. If pressed to assert some other form of collective identity, these people may well have said they were " Bulgarians " (Perry 1988 : 19; Lunt 1959 : 20). For more see: Loring M. Danforth (1997). The Macedonian Conflict: Ethnic Nationalism in a Transnational World. Princeton University Press, ISBN 0691043566.
  2. ^ Bechev, Dimitar. Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia, Historical Dictionaries of Europe, Scarecrow Press, 2009, ISBN 0810862956, Introduction.
  3. ^ Tchavdar Marinov, We, the Macedonians, The Paths of Macedonian Supra-Nationalism (1878–1912) in: Mishkova Diana ed., 2009, We, the People: Politics of National Peculiarity in Southeastern Europe, Central European University Press, ISBN 9639776289, pp. 117-120.
  4. ^ Section 9. Nondiscrimination: The MPO shall in the conduct of its affairs have no restriction or limitation based upon race, color, religion, disability, political affiliation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identification, or employment status. The terms “Macedonians” and “Macedonian immigrants” used in these bylaws pertain equally to all nationality groups in Macedonia–Bulgarians, Aroumanians, Turks, Albanians, and others. As used in these MPO Bylaws, these terms have only geographic and not ethnographic meaning.
  5. ^ "Until the late 19th century both outside observers and those Bulgaro-Macedonians who had an ethnic consciousness believed that their group, which is now two separate nationalities, comprised a single people, the Bulgarians. Thus the reader should ignore references to ethnic Macedonians in the Middle ages which appear in some modern works. In the Middle Ages and into the 19th century, the term 'Macedonian' was used entirely in reference to a geographical region. Anyone who lived within its confines, regardless of nationality could be called a Macedonian...Nevertheless, the absence of a national consciousness in the past is no grounds to reject the Macedonians as a nationality today." "The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century," John Van Antwerp Fine, University of Michigan Press, 1991, ISBN 0472081497, pp. 36–37.
  6. ^ Demeter, Gábor; Bottlik, Zsolt (2021). Maps in the Service of the Nation: The Role of Ethnic Mapping in Nation-Building and Its Influence on Political Decision-Making Across the Balkan Peninsula (1840–1914). Berlin: Frank & Timme, p. 114, ISBN 3732906655.
  7. ^ As the Macedonian historian Taskovski claims, the Macedonian Slavs initially rejected the Macedonian designation as Greek. For more see: Tchavdar Marinov, Famous Macedonia, the Land of Alexander: Macedonian identity at the crossroads of Greek, Bulgarian and Serbian nationalism, p. 285; in Entangled Histories of the Balkans – Volume One: National Ideologies and Language Policies with Roumen Daskalov and Tchavdar Marinov as ed., BRILL, 2013, ISBN 900425076X, pp. 273–330.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Roumen Daskalov 2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Chris Kostov, Contested Ethnic Identity: The Case of Macedonian Immigrants in Toronto, 1900–1996, Peter Lang, 2010, ISBN 3034301960, p. 65.
  10. ^ In a letter to Prof. Marin Drinov of May 25, 1888 Kuzman Shapkarev writes: "But even stranger is the name Macedonians, which was imposed on us only 10–15 years ago by outsiders, and not as some think by our own intellectuals.... Yet the people in Macedonia know nothing of that ancient name, reintroduced today with a cunning aim on the one hand and a stupid one on the other. They know the older word: "Bugari", although mispronounced: they have even adopted it as peculiarly theirs, inapplicable to other Bulgarians. You can find more about this in the introduction to the booklets I am sending you. They call their own Macedono-Bulgarian dialect the "Bugarski language", while the rest of the Bulgarian dialects they refer to as the "Shopski language". (Makedonski pregled, IX, 2, 1934, p. 55; the original letter is kept in the Marin Drinov Museum in Sofia, and it is available for examination and study)
  11. ^ E. Damianopoulos, The Macedonians: Their Past and Present, Springer, 2012, ISBN 1137011904, p. 185.
  12. ^ Donald Bloxham, The Final Solution: A Genocide, OUP Oxford, 2009, ISBN 0199550336, p. 65.
  13. ^ Chris Kostov, Contested Ethnic Identity: The Case of Macedonian Immigrants in Toronto, Peter Lang, 2010, ISBN 3034301960, p. 76.
  14. ^ Raymond Detrez, Pieter Plas, Developing cultural identity in the Balkans: convergence vs divergence, Volume 34 of Multiple Europesq Peter Lang, 2005, ISBN 9052012970, p. 173.
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