From June 23 to 27, 2026, a major international academic forum was held in Varna: the 26th symposium of CIÉPO (Comité International des Études Pré-Ottomanes et Ottomanes). CIÉPO is a prestigious academic organization that, since 1974, has been organizing biennial symposia that bring together researchers from around the world working on issues related to the history of the Ottoman Empire, the Balkans, and the Black Sea region from the 15th to the early 20th century. This is the second time Bulgaria has hosted such a forum (following Sofia in 2018), and the first time BAS has been a co-organizer.
The chair of the Organizing Committee was Corresponding Member Prof. Ivan Roussev. The symposium’s co-organizers included the University of Economics – Varna, the Institute for Historical Studies of BAS, and Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski.” During the forum, more than 230 historians and philologists from countries in Europe, Asia, and North America presented their research papers, including scholars from France, Germany, Italy, all Balkan countries, the United States, Japan, South Korea, and others. The scholars admitted to participation were selected following an anonymous peer-review process from among over 400 applications received. It is fair to say that the 26th CIÉPO symposium, held in Varna, was the largest in the 50-year history of these forums and was the most significant event in the global humanities in June 2026.
The program, abstracts of the presentations, and other important information about the forum are available on its official website: https://ciepo26varna.weebly.com/programme.html
