The Bulgarian Ambassador to Berlin participated in the Annual Symposium of the German-Bulgarian Society
The event serves as a vivid example of the academic cooperation and exchange between Bulgaria and Germany
April 30th, 2024
On April 5, 2024, the annual symposium of the German-Bulgarian Society for the Promotion of Relations between Germany and Bulgaria was held. The event was held as a hybrid event with both virtual participation and live participants at the University of Heidelberg, which is one of the centers of German Bulgarian studies, The symposium was moderated by Prof. Dr. Blagovest Zlatanov, lecturer in Bulgarian language at the Slavic Institute of the University of Heidelberg.
Symposium participants included the chairman of the company Dr. Zygroun Komati, its founder and longtime chairman Prof. Dr. Helmut Schaller, the Chairman of the German-Bulgarian Forum Dr. Volker Beresheim and Bulgarian and German scientists dedicated to the development of German-Bulgarian relations, namely: Prof. Dr. Tede Kall, Maria Georgieva and Dr. Gergana Börger from the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena, Dr. Samuil Shivachev from Plovdiv University "Paisii Hilendarski", Assoc. Dr. Tsvetomira Venkova from the Humboldt University in Berlin, Dr. Helga Thomas from Lörrach, Dr. Jörg Schenk from the University of Lübeck and Dr. Rumyana Zlatanova from Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski". Kliment Ohridski".
The guest of honor at the event was the Bulgarian Ambassador to Berlin Mr. Grigor Porozhanov. In his address, he expressed his satisfaction with the organization of this event, which serves as a vivid example of the academic cooperation and exchange between Bulgaria and Germany and complements the excellent bilateral relations. He explained that Germany has traditionally exercised exceptional “soft power” attracting many Bulgarian students, scientists, writers and artists to come to Germany.
He shared his conviction that today's conference will give impetus to the development of Bulgarian studies in Germany. He pointed out that the interest in Bulgarian studies in Germany is unfortunately declining, and out of 30 Slavic seminars in Germany, only seven offer Bulgarian language training. He shared his hope that today's event will contribute to reversing this trend and to promoting Bulgaria and the Bulgarian language in particular, including against the backdrop of the growing number of our compatriots here.
The conference discussed a wide range of topics illustrating the depth of Bulgarian-German relations, such as the Bulgarian language in Wallachia, the pan-European corridor 8, the Venelin's copy of Slavonic-Bulgarian History, the Bulgarian language practice and literary theory at the Humboldt University in Berlin, the Bulgarians in Ukraine, language seminars in Bulgaria, the role of Carl Diem in the development of organized sports in Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Academic Society "Dr. Petar Beron" and the exhibition of The German-Bulgarian Society for Alexander Battenberg.
