Key developments from the meeting of the Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad

Ninety participants representing 57 ensembles from Europe and North America gathered in Sofia, where progress was made on a draft national program to support Bulgarian cultural groups worldwide

published on 11/11/25 4:05 PM

Author: Yoan Kolev

Photo: BTA

Ninety participants representing 57 Bulgarian folklore ensembles from across Europe and North America gathered in Sofia for their fourth Creative Meeting and Seminar. The event was highly constructive, featuring useful workshops and guest lecturers. Notably, it marked significant progress on a key issue for the Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad: securing funding for ensembles based outside Bulgaria.

Deputy Minister of Culture Georgi Sultanov presented a draft national programme designed to support Bulgarian cultural and artistic associations worldwide.

Radoslava Nedyalkova

'This is a draft document that will be submitted for discussion and will go through the full administrative process before reaching the Council of Ministers for approval,' he explained. The Deputy Minister assured us that the timeline is short and this could happen as early as the beginning of next year,' explained Radoslava Nedyalkova, Chair of the Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad, in an interview with Radio Bulgaria.

During the three-day meeting (7–9 November), the dates for the 11th edition of the travelling folklore festival Na Megdana na Drugata Bulgaria (On the Village Square of the Other Bulgaria) were officially announced. The event will take place in Munich and will be hosted by the Lazarka ensemble.

“The dates are 15–17 May, and we’ve already started booking hotels, flights, and preparing our performance program,” explained Radoslava Nedyalkova. “I lead the group 'Nashentsi' from Milan, and we had already begun some preparations. Now that we know this year's theme — 'Libe le, libe hubavo' ('Sweetheart, my fair sweetheart') — our choreographer is planning a playful element inspired by the title to incorporate into our dances.'

A highlight of the meeting was the awards ceremony for the ninth edition of the ‘My Bulgarian Embroidered Shirt’ initiative, a competition organised by the Assen and Ilia Peikov Cultural Association and the AzBuki School in Rome and Colleferro, led by Mariola Georgieva.

This year's competition brought together children from Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and Cyprus. The awards ceremony took place at the New Bulgarian University in Sofia, where an accompanying exhibition of the participants' artwork is on display until 4 December. The exhibition also features projects by students from the university’s Department of Arts and Design presenting contemporary interpretations of traditional Bulgarian attire.

Speaking to Radio Bulgaria, Mariola Georgieva, the organiser of the competition, explained:

'The first prize in our competition is a hand-embroidered traditional Bulgarian shirt for each of the three categories and age groups. The second and third prizes are also material awards, and all participants will receive a certificate,' said Mariola Georgieva.

A Bulgarian living in Rome, Georgieva is the director of the Asen and Iliya Peykov Association, which was established in the Italian capital in 2016. One of the association’s key aims is to preserve the memory of its patrons, the sculptor Assen Peykov and the painter Ilia Peykov, who both left a lasting mark on the cultural life of Rome.

‘The work of our association centres around the AzBuki School, which was founded by patriotic parents and teachers who truly love their profession,’ Georgieva explained. ‘It isn’t easy because we teach bilingual children who learn through a methodology quite different from what we are used to in Bulgaria.’

Outside the school, we have a folklore ensemble called 'Lev', which is a member of the Association of Bulgarian Folklore Ensembles Abroad. For the sixth consecutive year, we are organising an online inter-school reading competition for pupils in Years 3 and 4 from all Bulgarian Sunday schools worldwide. It will take place on the first or second Saturday of May 2026.

These are just some of our activities beyond our main mission of promoting Bulgarian culture and building bridges between Bulgaria and other countries.”