Bulgarian Australian
Encyclopedia
Bulgarians in Australia are Australians of Bulgarian
descent. According to the 2006 Australian census, 2,680 residents of Australia were born in Bulgaria. Of these, 850 lived in New South Wales
, 840 in Victoria, 340 in Queensland and 340 in South Australia. Some 4,870 people claimed full or partial Bulgarian ancestry. Some unofficial estimates claim that the number of Bulgarians in Australia is around 20,000; others, who count the Bulgarian Australian and the later Macedonian Australian
diaspora together for historical reasons, estimate a total number of around 100,000.
atrocities in the wake of the April Uprising
settled in Queensland
and Tasmania
. According to 1891 statistics, only 14 Bulgarians lived in Australia. Following the anti-Ottoman Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising of 1908, around 100 Bulgarians from Macedonia
and southern Thrace
emigrated to Australia. The first more prominent Bulgarian colony was formed in Perth
, Western Australia
, in 1906–07.
The first larger organized group of Bulgarian emigrants arrived in Australia in 1907 and consisted of around 100 people, most from the Veliko Tarnovo
region; 30 of these disembarked in Adelaide
, South Australia
, 35 in Melbourne
, Victoria
and 35 in Sydney
, New South Wales
. In 1912, Bulgarian gardeners bought out the swampy lands of Fulham
near Adelaide and turned these into fruit gardens. The Bulgarian colony in Adelaide was among the fastest-growing Bulgarian colonies in Australia; many settlers from the villages near Veliko Tarnovo arrived in the 1920s to work in the city as gardeners. The Bulgarian community in Melbourne was established in 1910–1911.
After the end of World War II
, there was an influx of hundreds of Bulgarian political emigrants who did not accept the newly-established communist authority in Bulgaria
. It is difficult to establish the exact number of Bulgarian settlers in the pre-World War II period, but one estimate puts the number of emigrants from the Kingdom of Bulgaria
at 1,000, with another 5,000 to 6,000 ethnic Bulgarian emigrants from Macedonia
, Dobruja
and Bessarabia
.
It was not until 1950 that Bulgarian Orthodox
church communities were officially established. The Bulgarian Orthodox churches in Australia are part of the Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and Australia
. Today, there are three Bulgarian Orthodox churches in Australia: the Saint John of Rila
Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church in Macquarie Fields, Sydney, the Saint Petka
Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church in Adelaide, and the Saints Cyril & Methody Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Cathedral in Melbourne.
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
descent. According to the 2006 Australian census, 2,680 residents of Australia were born in Bulgaria. Of these, 850 lived in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, 840 in Victoria, 340 in Queensland and 340 in South Australia. Some 4,870 people claimed full or partial Bulgarian ancestry. Some unofficial estimates claim that the number of Bulgarians in Australia is around 20,000; others, who count the Bulgarian Australian and the later Macedonian Australian
Macedonian Australian
Macedonian Australians are Australians of ethnic Macedonian descent. Many have their origins in the 1920s and 1930s although larger numbers came to Australia after World War II and the Greek Civil War...
diaspora together for historical reasons, estimate a total number of around 100,000.
History
The first traces of Bulgarian emigration to Australia date back to 1876, when an unknown number of Bulgarians fleeing the OttomanOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
atrocities in the wake of the April Uprising
April Uprising
The April Uprising was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876, which indirectly resulted in the re-establishment of Bulgaria as an autonomous nation in 1878...
settled in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
and Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
. According to 1891 statistics, only 14 Bulgarians lived in Australia. Following the anti-Ottoman Ilinden–Preobrazhenie Uprising of 1908, around 100 Bulgarians from Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
and southern Thrace
Thrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
emigrated to Australia. The first more prominent Bulgarian colony was formed in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, in 1906–07.
The first larger organized group of Bulgarian emigrants arrived in Australia in 1907 and consisted of around 100 people, most from the Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists...
region; 30 of these disembarked in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
, 35 in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and 35 in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. In 1912, Bulgarian gardeners bought out the swampy lands of Fulham
Fulham, South Australia
Fulham is a western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of West Torrens.-History:The area incorporating the current suburb of Ridleyton was purchased c. 1836 by a John White, who named it Fulham Farm after the suburb of Fulham in his native London.-Geography:Fulham sits...
near Adelaide and turned these into fruit gardens. The Bulgarian colony in Adelaide was among the fastest-growing Bulgarian colonies in Australia; many settlers from the villages near Veliko Tarnovo arrived in the 1920s to work in the city as gardeners. The Bulgarian community in Melbourne was established in 1910–1911.
After the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, there was an influx of hundreds of Bulgarian political emigrants who did not accept the newly-established communist authority in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. It is difficult to establish the exact number of Bulgarian settlers in the pre-World War II period, but one estimate puts the number of emigrants from the Kingdom of Bulgaria
Kingdom of Bulgaria
The Kingdom of Bulgaria was established as an independent state when the Principality of Bulgaria, an Ottoman vassal, officially proclaimed itself independent on October 5, 1908 . This move also formalised the annexation of the Ottoman province of Eastern Rumelia, which had been under the control...
at 1,000, with another 5,000 to 6,000 ethnic Bulgarian emigrants from Macedonia
Macedonia (region)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...
, Dobruja
Dobruja
Dobruja is a historical region shared by Bulgaria and Romania, located between the lower Danube river and the Black Sea, including the Danube Delta, Romanian coast and the northernmost part of the Bulgarian coast...
and Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
.
It was not until 1950 that Bulgarian Orthodox
Bulgarian Orthodox Church
The Bulgarian Orthodox Church - Bulgarian Patriarchate is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church with some 6.5 million members in the Republic of Bulgaria and between 1.5 and 2.0 million members in a number of European countries, the Americas and Australia...
church communities were officially established. The Bulgarian Orthodox churches in Australia are part of the Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and Australia
Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and Australia
The Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada, and Australia is one of fifteen dioceses of the Church of Bulgaria. The diocese is led by Metr. Joseph.-History:...
. Today, there are three Bulgarian Orthodox churches in Australia: the Saint John of Rila
John of Rila
Saint John of Rila was the first Bulgarian hermit. He was revered as a saint while he was still alive. The legend surrounding him tells of wild animals that freely came up to him and birds that landed in his hands. His followers founded many churches in his honor, including the famous Rila...
Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church in Macquarie Fields, Sydney, the Saint Petka
Paraskevi
Paraskevi is a female name. Variations include Petka, Paraskeva, Praskovia, Praskovie, Pyatnitsa, Pyetka, Paraskevoula, Paraschiva and Voula.Notable people with the name include:*Voula Patoulidou, Greek hurdler and long jumper*Paraskevi...
Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Church in Adelaide, and the Saints Cyril & Methody Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Cathedral in Melbourne.
See also
- BulgariansBulgariansThe Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
- Bulgarian diasporaBulgarian diasporaBulgarian diaspora consists of Bulgarian emigrants and their descendants.The number of Bulgarians outside Bulgaria has sharply increased since 1991, following the collapse of the communism in Eastern Europe. Over one million Bulgarians have left the country, either permanently or as temporary...
- Macedonian AustralianMacedonian AustralianMacedonian Australians are Australians of ethnic Macedonian descent. Many have their origins in the 1920s and 1930s although larger numbers came to Australia after World War II and the Greek Civil War...
- Australia–Bulgaria relations
- Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and AustraliaBulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and AustraliaThe Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada, and Australia is one of fifteen dioceses of the Church of Bulgaria. The diocese is led by Metr. Joseph.-History:...