History of BulgariaHistory of Bulgaria
Cut-out detail; background removed. A stone slab with three crosses and a damaged inscription at the lower right.
Samuil’s inscription

Preslav and Ohrid · Main period: First Tsardom

The disciples bring the books

How do the disciples continue Cyril’s work?

9 scenes · 4 min · Sources · 18

StartListen

The disciples of Cyril and Methodius arrive at Boris I’s court. In Pliska, Preslav and Ohrid, their translations find teachers and copyists. Two stone inscriptions reveal the different forms of Glagolitic and Cyrillic.

Glagolitic and Cyrillic: a museum comparison. Modern comparative panel in the National History Museum, Sofia; not a medieval inscription.

Part 1 · Main period: First Tsardom

Cyril creates Glagolitic

Cyril, earlier known as Constantine, and his brother Methodius came from Thessalonica. Around 863, they went to Great Moravia, a state in Central Europe. Prince Rastislav had requested teachers who could explain Christianity in a language people understood.

Cyril created Glagolitic, the first Slavonic alphabet. The brothers used it to write translations of church texts from Greek. The books’ language is called Old Bulgarian or Old Church Slavonic. It differs from Bulgarian spoken today.

Listen to scene · 1

Synthetic voice · 0:33
Sources · 4
  1. John Paul II Slavorum Apostoli The Holy See; encyclical, 2 June · 1985
  2. Charles University, Faculty of Humanities, Medieval Languages and Literatures project Church Slavonic
  3. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
  4. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
Pliska: palace remains today. Modern photograph of the archaeological remains; does not show the welcome in 886.
Geographic context, without historical bordersGeographic context, without historical borders123
Geographic context, without historical borders

Part 2 · Main period: First Tsardom

A welcome in Pliska

Cyril died in Rome in 869, and Methodius in 885. After Methodius’s death, some disciples were imprisoned and expelled. Clement, Naum and Angelarius reached Bulgaria. According to the Institute for Bulgarian Language, Boris I welcomed them in Pliska in 886.

Boris supported their work. Worship, the shared prayer in church, needed books. It also needed people who could read and teach. This support probably helped their work continue.

  • Pliska · Approximate location
  • Preslav · Approximate location
  • Ohrid · Approximate location

Listen to scene · 2

Synthetic voice · 0:32
Sources · 4
  1. John Paul II Slavorum Apostoli The Holy See; encyclical, 2 June · 1985
  2. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  3. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
  4. Evelyn Reuter From Folk Religion to Church Politics: Naum’s Significance in Macedonia PDF ИСТОРИЈА / Journal of HISTORY · 2020 · 107–126
Illuminated copy of the stone tablet, with Glagolitic letters and carved foliage.

Part 3 · Main period: First Tsardom

Glagolitic in stone

Look at the signs below the carved foliage. This is the Baška Tablet, from about 1100, from present-day Croatia. It shows the later use of Glagolitic. The disciples did not bring this tablet to Bulgaria. Its text mentions a gift of land by King Zvonimir.

Some letters have loops; others resemble crosses. The original is kept in Zagreb; the church in Jurandvor has a replica, meaning a copy. The script is mainly Glagolitic, although it includes other signs.

1 · A cross-shaped sign
A cross-shaped sign appears at the start of the upper line. Look at the crossing strokes. The beginning has different scholarly readings; here we observe its shape without insisting on one reading.
2 · A letter with loops
Here in the second line is a sign with two rounded parts. Compare it with the cross-shaped form. Glagolitic letters did not keep identical shapes throughout the centuries.

Listen to scene · 3

Synthetic voice · 0:30
Sources · 5
  1. Hrvatska akademija znanosti i umjetnosti Bašćanska ploča Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts
  2. Tourist Board of Baška The Baška Tablet PDF Baška visitor catalogue · 2019
  3. Tourist Board of Baška The Church of St. Lucy Visit Baška — Sights
  4. Leksikografski zavod Miroslav Krleža Bašćanska ploča Hrvatska enciklopedija, mrežno izdanje
  5. Sibinia Baška-Tablettbeleuchtung Wikimedia Commons · 2021

Part 4 · Main period: First Tsardom

Activity: the first alphabet

Which alphabet did Cyril create for Slavonic speech?

  1. Cyrillic
  2. Glagolitic
  3. The Greek alphabet
Why is that?

The first Slavonic alphabet was Glagolitic. The name Cyrillic does not make it the same alphabet.

Correct · Glagolitic

  1. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  2. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium

Listen to scene · 4

Synthetic voice · 0:04
Sources · 2
  1. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  2. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
The Round Church in Preslav today. Archaeological site with restored portions; not a surviving medieval classroom.
Plaošnik, Ohrid: archaeological site. Photograph from 2014 showing archaeological remains and modern construction; does not establish the precise location of Clement’s lessons.
The Monastery of Saint Naum today. Present-day view of the monastery church; the building is not presented as unchanged since Naum’s time.

Part 5 · Main period: First Tsardom

Clement and Naum teach

Clement taught in the southwestern lands of the Bulgarian state, associated with Ohrid. In 893, he became a bishop, who leads a church community. Naum took over teaching.

In the northeast, people worked with books around Pliska and Preslav. We call these centres literary schools: people translated, wrote and taught others in monasteries and churches. Both regions used Glagolitic books. Research indicates that Glagolitic was used in Preslav too.

  • Preslav · Approximate location
  • Ohrid · Approximate location

Listen to scene · 5

Synthetic voice · 0:30
Sources · 4
  1. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
  2. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  3. Татяна Славова Глаголическата традиция и преславската книжнина PDF Palaeobulgarica / Старобългаристика · 1999 · 23 · 35–46
  4. Wikimedia geographical database contributors Ohrid: geographical records

Part 6 · Main period: First Tsardom

Activity: put events in order

Put the events in order, from earliest to latest.

  1. The brothers leave for Moravia
  2. Methodius dies
  3. Boris welcomes the disciples
  4. Naum takes over teaching
Why is that?

The mission preceded Methodius’s death. The expulsion and welcome in Bulgaria followed. Naum’s teaching after Clement came later.

Correct order

  1. The brothers leave for Moravia
  2. Methodius dies
  3. Boris welcomes the disciples
  4. Naum takes over teaching
  1. John Paul II Slavorum Apostoli The Holy See; encyclical, 2 June · 1985
  2. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  3. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium

Listen to scene · 6

Synthetic voice · 0:04
Sources · 3
  1. John Paul II Slavorum Apostoli The Holy See; encyclical, 2 June · 1985
  2. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  3. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
A stone slab with three crosses and a damaged inscription at the lower right.

Part 7 · Main period: First Tsardom

Letters on Samuil’s stone

Look at Samuil’s inscription, found in the village of German near Lake Prespa. It commemorates his parents and brother. Its date corresponds to 992–993; often only 993 is given.

The letters are Cyrillic. Cyrillic appeared in Bulgaria around 900. Many signs follow Greek capitals; others represent Slavonic sounds. Researchers suggest that writers in Preslav created it with support from the ruler Simeon. The name honours Cyril, but his alphabet was Glagolitic.

1 · A at the start of the line
At the start of the third line of text is an A. Compare it with the cross-shaped sign on the other tablet. The two scripts use different letter forms.
2 · Letters in a name
The point marks M in Samuil’s name. Its shape is closer to familiar modern capitals. Parts of the text are missing. Damaged passages require comparison with other sources, rather than freely adding missing words.

Listen to scene · 7

Synthetic voice · 0:34
Sources · 5
  1. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  2. Charles University, Faculty of Humanities, Medieval Languages and Literatures project Church Slavonic
  3. Иван Дуйчев, съставител и преводач XXV. Надпис на цар Самуила от 993 година Из старата българска книжнина. Книжовни и исторически паметници от Първото българско царство. София: Хемус, второ поправено и допълнено издание · 1943 · I · 141, 232–233
  4. Казимир Попконстантинов; Лиляна Грашева, гл. ред. Самуилов надпис Кирило-методиевска енциклопедия. София: АИ Марин Дринов · 2003 · III · 529–531
  5. Fyodor Uspensky SamuilUspenskyBGHistory.png Wikimedia Commons; image repository · 1899
A page of the Codex Suprasliensis. Digital image of a Cyrillic parchment manuscript; not a book surviving in Cyril’s own hand.

Part 8 · Main period: First Tsardom

The copyist writes on skin

The photograph shows a page from the Codex Suprasliensis, a Cyrillic book from eastern Bulgaria. It is written on parchment, prepared animal skin. The book is about a thousand years old. Its parts are now in Warsaw, Ljubljana and Saint Petersburg.

Cyrillic and Glagolitic were used alongside each other. Books from the Bulgarian centres spread and were copied in other Slavonic lands. Support for teachers and copyists probably helped books reach more people.

Listen to scene · 8

Synthetic voice · 0:29
Sources · 5
  1. National and University Library Ljubljana; National Library of Poland; National Library of Russia Codex Suprasliensis – Mineia četia, Mart: Memory of the World nomination PDF UNESCO Memory of the World
  2. Codex Suprasliensis Project; scholarly digital edition team About the Codex Suprasliensis Codex Suprasliensis digital edition
  3. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  4. Татяна Славова Глаголическата традиция и преславската книжнина PDF Palaeobulgarica / Старобългаристика · 1999 · 23 · 35–46
  5. Десислава Найденова Глаголически следи в България / Traces of Glagolitic Script in Bulgaria Кирило-Методиевски места на паметта в българската култура. София: КМНЦ–БАН · 2023 · 237–260 (CEEOL); 245–268 (author CV); unresolved

Part 9 · Main period: First Tsardom

Activity: match the roles

Match each person to their role in the story.

  1. Cyril · Creates Glagolitic
  2. Boris I · Supports the arriving disciples
  3. Clement · Teacher who becomes a bishop
  4. Naum · Takes over teaching in 893
Why is that?

These are different roles in work carried on by successive people. Naming Cyrillic in Cyril’s honour does not prove its authorship.

  1. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  2. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium

Listen to scene · 9

Synthetic voice · 0:03
Sources · 2
  1. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  2. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium

A new find for your collection

The story shows how important teachers and copyists are in keeping an alphabet in use.

Boris I and Christianisation · PliskaBoris I: the cost of a new faithCompare how faith and books change society.Boyana Church · BoyanaThe faces of BoyanaThe Gospels of Ivan Alexander · LondonThe tsar between the pages

People in this story

Boris ISimeonCyrilMethodiusClementNaumAngelariusRastislavZvonimirSamuilSaint LucyBoris I Michael · RulersSimeon I · Rulers

Sources

  1. Tourist Board of Baška The Church of St. Lucy Visit Baška — Sights
  2. Tourist Board of Baška The Baška Tablet PDF Baška visitor catalogue · 2019
  3. Charles University, Faculty of Humanities, Medieval Languages and Literatures project Church Slavonic
  4. Dimo Cheshmedzhiev; Regional Historical Museum Burgas The Slavonic alphabets – between Bulgaria and Byzantium
  5. Wikimedia geographical database contributors Ohrid: geographical records
  6. Leksikografski zavod Miroslav Krleža Bašćanska ploča Hrvatska enciklopedija, mrežno izdanje
  7. Иван Дуйчев, съставител и преводач XXV. Надпис на цар Самуила от 993 година Из старата българска книжнина. Книжовни и исторически паметници от Първото българско царство. София: Хемус, второ поправено и допълнено издание · 1943 · I · 141, 232–233
  8. Hrvatska akademija znanosti i umjetnosti Bašćanska ploča Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts
  9. Institute for Bulgarian Language, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Bulgarian alphabets Institute for Bulgarian Language website
  10. Десислава Найденова Глаголически следи в България / Traces of Glagolitic Script in Bulgaria Кирило-Методиевски места на паметта в българската култура. София: КМНЦ–БАН · 2023 · 237–260 (CEEOL); 245–268 (author CV); unresolved
  11. Sibinia Baška-Tablettbeleuchtung Wikimedia Commons · 2021
  12. Fyodor Uspensky SamuilUspenskyBGHistory.png Wikimedia Commons; image repository · 1899
  13. Казимир Попконстантинов; Лиляна Грашева, гл. ред. Самуилов надпис Кирило-методиевска енциклопедия. София: АИ Марин Дринов · 2003 · III · 529–531
  14. Evelyn Reuter From Folk Religion to Church Politics: Naum’s Significance in Macedonia PDF ИСТОРИЈА / Journal of HISTORY · 2020 · 107–126
  15. Татяна Славова Глаголическата традиция и преславската книжнина PDF Palaeobulgarica / Старобългаристика · 1999 · 23 · 35–46
  16. Codex Suprasliensis Project; scholarly digital edition team About the Codex Suprasliensis Codex Suprasliensis digital edition
  17. National and University Library Ljubljana; National Library of Poland; National Library of Russia Codex Suprasliensis – Mineia četia, Mart: Memory of the World nomination PDF UNESCO Memory of the World
  18. John Paul II Slavorum Apostoli The Holy See; encyclical, 2 June · 1985

Images

Fyodor Uspensky · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

The old photograph, published in 1899, shows Cyrillic letters at the lower right.

Open source

Full attribution

Image: Fyodor Uspensky, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain. Historic photograph published in 1899; the inscription is at the lower right. Some passages are damaged. Cut-out detail; background removed.

Apostoloff · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Modern comparative panel in the National History Museum, Sofia; not a medieval inscription.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Apostoloff, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Modern comparative panel in the National History Museum, Sofia; not a medieval inscription. Processed image.

Svilen Enev · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Modern photograph of the archaeological remains; does not show the welcome in 886.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Svilen Enev, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Modern photograph of the archaeological remains; does not show the welcome in 886. Processed image.

Photo

Sibinia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Illuminated modern copy of the Baška Tablet at St Lucy’s Church, Jurandvor.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Sibinia / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0. Modern copy. Cropped image.

Nikolov2010 · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

Archaeological site with restored portions; not a surviving medieval classroom.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Nikolov2010, Wikimedia Commons, CC0. Archaeological site with restored portions; not a surviving medieval classroom. Processed image.

Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Photograph from 2014 showing archaeological remains and modern construction; does not establish the precise location of Clement’s lessons.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Diego Delso, https://delso.photo, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Photograph from 2014 showing archaeological remains and modern construction; does not establish the precise location of Clement’s lessons. Processed image.

Petar Milošević · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Present-day view of the monastery church; the building is not presented as unchanged since Naum’s time.

Open source

Full attribution

Photo: Petar Milošević, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Present-day view of the monastery church; the building is not presented as unchanged since Naum’s time. Processed image.

Fyodor Uspensky · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

The old photograph, published in 1899, shows Cyrillic letters at the lower right.

Open source

Full attribution

Image: Fyodor Uspensky, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain. Historic photograph published in 1899; the inscription is at the lower right. Some passages are damaged. Processed image.

Retko · Public domain · Polona / National Library of Poland, via Wikimedia Commons

Digital image of a Cyrillic parchment manuscript; not a book surviving in Cyril’s own hand.

Open source

Full attribution

Scribe: Retko. Digital image: Polona / National Library of Poland, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain. Processed image.

Geographic context, without historical borders

Tom Patterson · Nathaniel Vaughn Kelso · Public domain · Natural Earth

Open source

Full attribution

Tom Patterson · Nathaniel Vaughn Kelso