Aldzhan Dzhafer,
PhD
Curator at Omurtag Museum of History
7, Aksakov St.
7700 Targovishte BULGARIA
E-mail: alcan_djafer@abv.bg
Miyryam Salim,
Professor, PhD
Faculty of Humanities
Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen
115, Universitetska St.
9700 Shumen BULGARIA
Е-mail: m.salim@shu.bg
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9654-2629
Съдържанието е достъпно само за абонирани потребители.
Pages: 179 – 230 | https://doi.org/10.53656/978-619-7667-81-3-v2.05
Abstract. The fairs were the only place that guarantees relatively good conditions for carrying out trade exchanges in the Ottoman Empire. Traditional state fairs are one of the longest-lasting and most colorful types of trade in the history of shopping. The Bulgarian lands, as the main crossroads of the Balkan Peninsula, became the center of numerous fairs of great importance.
The present study presents the emergence, organization and functioning of the largest fairs in the Rumelian part of the Ottoman Empire. Some of these fairs, which have a rather long and time-honored history, are still known in many populated areas today.
Of particular importance are the fairs in Uzundzhovo, Sliven (Islimie), Targovishte (Eski Juma), Prilep in today’s Republic of North Macedonia, Medzhidie, also known as Karasu/Cherna Voda in today’s Republic of Romania, Seres in today’s Hellenic Republic,Pazardjik (Tatar Pazardjik), Dobrich (Hadjioglu Pazardzhik) and others.
The analysis is based on sources of various types and origins, with the aim being to reveal the place and significance of the larger fairs in today‘s Bulgarian lands before the Liberation. The organization, security and service of the fairs, the commercial exchange carried out at the international and interregional level, as well as their social and cultural role, helping to establish trade contacts and cultural ties in the Ottoman period, are presented.
The research brings into scientific circulation hitherto unknown Ottoman-Turkish sources stored in the Bulgarian archives (Department „Oriental Collections“ of the „St. St. Cyril and Methodius“ National Library) and the Ottoman Archives in Istanbul (Directorate of State Archives Ottoman archive). In addition to the mentioned sources, information is used from the correspondence in the revival periodical press, published travel literature, as well as research by Bulgarian and foreign scientists. The newly discovered and unpublished Ottoman sources are presented with a facsimile, transliteration of the text and a complete translation into Bulgarian.
Special attention has been paid to the spatial organization of the fairs, the features of construction of the fair towns are described in detail, and architectural sketches are attached. The development also presents a new find – a fair seal, which is currently the only artifact of its kind. The study also focuses on the role of the fair as a cultural center, attracting people from many different regions with different customs and customs.
Keywords: Ottoman Empire; fairs; Bulgarian lands; fairground; trade; goods
Свързани статии:
Tobacco in the Economic Development of the Bulgarian Lands under Ottoman Rule
The Urban Economics on the Bulgarian Lands in the 19th Century
Categories of Population with Special Duties in the Economic Life of the Ottoman Province (15th – First Decades of the 18th Centuries)
Ottoman Public Finance in the 18th to 20th Centuries: Questions, Answers, and Perspectives
