Ganchev O. Demographic transformation of the Bulgarian community in South Bessarabia (ХІХ – the beginning of ХХІ c.)

The object of the study is to define the Bulgarian community in South Bessarabia. The subject of the work is the demographic aspects of the formation, adaptation and development of Bulgarians in the North-West Black Sea region. From this point of view, the mechanisms and factors of the movements of the Bulgarian population of the region are considered, the reconstruction of family and clan institutions and social practices is carried out. The aim of the study is to highlight the demographic processes of formation and transformation of the ethnocultural Bulgarian community in South Bessarabia during the XIX and the beginning of XIX c. The results of the study: an interdisciplinary approach was applied, which made it possible to identify the historical circumstances of the formation of the Bulgarian community in South Bessarabia and the features of its demographic transformations. On the example of the dynamics of the development of an ethno group over two centuries, the heuristic possibilities of the corpus of historical sources for the implementation of theoretical and practical tasks of science are demonstrated. Based on the processing and analysis of data from various sources, the key aspects of the history of formation, adaptation mechanisms and the multi-vector response to external challenges of the Bulgarian society are comprehensively covered. In the study, a comprehensive analysis of the processes of formation, development and demographic transformations of the Bulgarian community in South Bessarabia over two centuries, that is, the entire period of the existence of the ethno group, is presented. The scope of application: theoretical achievements of the work can be used for the preparation of general studies on the history, religious studies and ethnology of the Bulgarian diasporas of the world, certain regions of Ukraine, Moldova and Bulgaria; in the preparation of generalizing works and textbooks on historical source studies; relevant lecture courses, special courses and practical classes in source studies, historiography and special historical disciplines.