Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

The book was printed in Rome on May 6, 1651

370 years since the printing of the first Bulgarian book "Abagar"

Photo: Archive

Bulgaria marks 370 years since the publication of the first Bulgarian printed book - the collection of prayers "Abagar".
The book consists of five large sheets in the form of scrolls, on which short apocryphal prayers are printed . The sheets are 44.5 cm wide and 33.5 cm high. The paper is Italian, thin but rough. At the bottom the sheets are numbered with Cyrillic letters. On each sheet the text is printed in four narrow columns, each of which is surrounded by a frame of ornaments, so that if the columns are cut and arranged in sequence, one would obtain a strip about 5 meters and 80 cm long. This allowed for the collection to be shaped like a scroll and to be worn as an amulet. 
The book was printed in Rome on May 6, 1651 by the Bulgarian Catholic Bishop Philip Stanislavov
The only surviving such copy is now stored in the Library of Bologna.

You can learn more about the first Bulgarian printed book in the publication from Radio Bulgaria's Best collection entitled Bishop Philip Stanislavov and his book Abagar.




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

On 27 January the world remembers the victims of the Holocaust

10 March is the Bulgarian Day of Rescue of Bulgarian Jews, Holocaust Victims and Crimes against Humanity With commemorative events in Sofia and in Russe with the participation of officials from Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry, public administration,..

updated on 1/27/25 11:17 AM

On Epiphany, God hears the prayers of the faithful and the Holy Spirit sanctifies the water

On January 6, the Orthodox Church celebrates one of the greatest Christian feasts called Epiphany, Yordanovden, or the Baptism of Lord. This is the day on which St. John the Baptist baptized Jesus Christ in the Jordan River. Epiphany is also..

published on 1/6/25 10:21 AM

A gift for a gift – ritual breads and an odd number of dishes on Christmas Eve

Nowadays, as in the past, households are bustling with a festive hustle from the early morning of the day of Christmas eve (Badni vecher in Bulgarian) with preparations for the most important dinner of the year. The dinner in anticipation of Christmas..

published on 12/24/24 4:05 AM