Bardarski Geran

Bardarski Geran ( _bg. Бърдарски геран) is a village in northwestern Bulgaria, part of Byala Slatina municipality, Vratsa Province. It is among the several villages founded by Banat Bulgarians returning from the Banat after the Liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule in 1878, and is thus predominantly Roman Catholic. It is regarded as "the capital of Banat Bulgarians in Bulgaria" by certain members of the community. [cite web |url=http://ide.li/modules.php?name=News&file=comments&sid=401&tid=5445&mode=&order=&thold= |title=Коментар от Светлана Караджова |publisher=Иде.ли? |accessdate=2007-03-24 |language=Bulgarian ]

The village was founded in 1887, [cite web |url=http://www.odyssey-bg.com/article_info.php?articles_id=148&cArticlePath=153&osCsid=c716f8ea5904b4a96c5bfd22947149dd |publisher=Списание Одисей |title=Сънища от Бърдарски геран |last=Делиева |first=Радослава |language=Bulgarian |accessdate=2007-05-26 ] mostly by Banat Bulgarian settlers (initially 185 families) from Dudeştii Vechi ("Stár Bišnov") in Austria-Hungary (today in Romania). [Njagulov, p. 91.] A number of Banat Swabians also settled, beginning with seven families in 1893, their total number later exceeding 90 families. [Njagulov, p. 121.] Due to the religious differences (the Bulgarian inhabitants of the surrounding villages being Eastern Orthodox), the inhabitants of Bardarski Geran would mostly communicate with residents of the other Catholic villages in the region.

The village has two Roman Catholic churches, one of which is the Church of St Joseph, and the other the German Church of the Virgin Mary, which is almost destroyed due to lack of maintenance, as the bulk of the Germans left around World War II. [cite book |title=Католиците между двете световни войни 1918–1944 |publisher=IMIR |url=http://www.imir-bg.org/catolics/cat4.htm |chapter=1. Никополската епархия — консолидация под външен натиск |language=Bulgarian ] Despite the common denomination, lifestyle and customs, the Bulgarians and the Germans would not usually intermarry and often quarrelled, and so preferred to have two separate churches. In the 1930s, the Bulgarian parish priest was Evgeniy Bosilkov, future Bishop of Nikopol, while the German colonists were served by Emil Frohe. [cite web |title=Католическата църква в България и общностните идентичности на принадлежащите към нея вернипрез ХIХ и първата половина на ХХ век |last=Еленков |first=Иван |url=http://www.ilit.bas.bg/bi/include.php?file=elenkov#_ftnref123 |publisher=Балкански идентичности, |language=Bulgarian |accessdate=2007-03-24 ]

The monthly newspaper of the Banat Bulgarians in Bulgaria, "Falmis", was founded in Bardarski Geran in 1997. [cite news |url=http://knigite.abv.bg/banat/falmis.html |title="Фалмис" — вестник на банатските българи |accessdate=2007-03-24 |publisher=Вестник "Македония" |date=1999-01-20 |language=Bulgarian ] There is also a folklore dance group active in Bardarski Geran and performing Banat Bulgarian dances and songs.

As of 2005, the village has a population of 939GR|Bulgaria and the mayor is Damyan Monov.

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References

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*cite web |url=http://www.temanews.com/index.php?p=tema&iid=128&aid=3324 |title=Germanija, bǎlgarska prikazka |last=Cenkova |first=Iskra |accessdate=2008-08-09 |language=Bulgarian |publisher=TEMA