Macedonism

For the Byzantine Christian sect, see Macedonianism.

Macedonism (Macedonian and Serbian: Македонизам, Bulgarian: Македонизъм, all transliterated: Makedonizam, and Greek: Μακεδονισμός - Makedonismós) is a political term used in a polemic sense to refer to a set of ideas perceived as characteristic of ethnic Macedonian nationalism by some Bulgarian and Greek authors, where it has strong pejorative connotations. It is occasionally used in international scholarship and in an apologetic sense in isolated examples from some Macedonian authors.

Origins

The roots of the concept were first developed in the late 19th century, in the context of Greek, Bulgarian and Serbian initiatives to take control over the region of Macedonia, which was at that time ruled by the Ottoman Empire. It was originally used in a contemptuous manner to refer to Macedonians who believed they constituted a distinct ethnic group, separate from their neighbours. The first to use the term "Macedonist" was the Bulgarian author Petko Slaveykov, who coined the term in his article The Macedonian Question, published in the newspaper Makedoniya in 1871, to criticise those Macedonians espousing such views. Another early recorded use of the term "Macedonism" is found in a report by the Serbian politician Stojan Novaković from 1887. He proposed to employ the Macedonist ideology as a means to counteract the Bulgarian influence in Macedonia, thereby promoting Serbian interests in the region.

We have often heard from the Macedonists that they are not Bulgarians but Macedonians, descendants of the Ancient Macedonians, and have always waited to hear some proof of this, but have never heard it. The Macedonists have never shown us the basis for their beliefs. They insist on their Macedonian origin...

— Petko Slaveykov,

Ideas

Among the views and opinions that are often perceived as representative of Macedonian nationalism and criticised as parts of "Macedonism" by those who use the term are the following:

• The disputed level of racial continuity between the modern Macedonians and ancient autochthonous peoples of the region (i.e. Ancient Macedonians);
• The idea that there is a fundamental, ethnogenetic distinction between Macedonians and Bulgarians, going back much further than the political divisions between the two nations during the 20th century; (see Identities of the ethnic Macedonians)
• The belief that this distinction is related to the inheritance of ethnic elements of the ancient non-Slavic tribe of the Bulgars, supposed to form an essential part of modern Bulgarian but not Macedonian heritage; (see Origins of the ethnic Macedonians, Ethnogenesis of the Bulgarians)
• Irridentist political views about the neighbouring regions of Greek Macedonia ("Aegean Macedonia") and parts of southwest Bulgaria ("Pirin Macedonia") and about ethnic Macedonian minorities living in these areas, connected to the political idea of a United Macedonia.

Other, related areas of Macedonian–Bulgarian national polemics relate to:

• The presence of the Bulgars in Medieval Macedonia and their connection to today's Macedonians; (see Kouber)
• The ethnic character of various medieval historical figures and entities, including the saints Cyril and Methodius, the medieval Tsar Samuil and his kingdom, and the medieval Archbishopric of Ohrid;
• The historical role of the Bulgarian Exarchate and the ethnic character of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization;
• The historical role of various Macedonian insurgent movements during Ottoman rule (see Ilinden Uprising) and during the Bulgarian occupation of Macedonia in World War II; (see National Liberation War of Macedonia)
• The opinion that a separate Macedonian nationhood was the artificial product of a Communist plot during the 20th century and the belief of some Bulgarians that Macedonians — for whatever reason — constitute a subgroup of the Bulgarian people. (see Demographic history of Macedonia)

On the other hand, areas of Macedonian–Greek national polemics relate to:

• The cultural identity of the ancient Macedonians and the classification of the ancient Macedonian language and their relation to the contemporary Macedonian and Greek languages and people. (see Origins of the Greeks, The Arnaiz-Villena controversy)

See also

• Alexander Donski
• The Ten Lies of Macedonism
• Moldovenism
• Phoenicianism