Women among the Turkish elite in Bulgaria
Project "Women among the elite of the Turkish population in Bulgaria in the second half of the twentieth century."
Funded by Scientific Research Fund, Contract № ДМ 20-3 от 18.12.2017 г.Duration – 24 months
Contract Amount – 20 000 BGN
Kirila Atanasova – Administrative Coordinator
The aim of this project is the detailed study of the female representation among the elite of the Turkish community in Bulgaria in the second half of the twentieth century. The initiative will explore aspects of the modernization development of the minority, namely the emancipation of Turkish women. The problem circles that will emerge in the course of the work will serve as a basis for developing new paradigms about the social structure of the largest minority in the country and will create preconditions for a more detailed understanding of the processes taking place among the Turkish population both historically and in the contemporary context. The team's working hypothesis is that the modernization actions taken by the Bulgarian state towards Muslim communities place women in a position between the ideological foundations of equality and the traditional religious tenets of a patriarchal social structure. From this perspective, an insider's look at the processes of women's social ascent to high positions represents a highly interesting field of study. The results of this project will create new knowledge on key issues related to the politics of Bulgaria in the second half of the twentieth century towards the Turkish minority and Turkish women in particular. In this sense, they will serve as a starting point for future analyses and comparisons in a broader context.
