A solemn assembly on the occasion of the Day of the Holy Brothers Cyril and Methodius, of the Bulgarian alphabet, education and culture and of the Slavonic literature was held at the “Prof. Marin Drinov” Hall of BAS.  During the ceremony the awards for young scientists “Professor Marin Drinov” and for the youngest scientists “Ivan Evstratiev Geshov” for 2022 were presented.

The prizes are awarded by the General Assembly (GA) for achievements in nine scientific fields. The President of the GA, Corr. Member. Evelina Slavcheva and Sofia Mayor Yordanka Fandakova presented the awards. Twemty-two young scientists were awarded for their achievements in the past year. The winners of the “Professor Marin Drinov” award have a doctoral degree and are under 35 years of age. The youngest scientists awarded with the Ivan Evstratiev Geshov Prize have the degree of Master and are under 30 years of age. The two awards for young scientists were established by BAS in 1996 with the aim to identify and stimulate talented researchers at BAS, to support their development, growth and international contacts.

A full list of the honorees can be found HERE

The President of the GA Corr. Mem. Evelina Slavcheva opened the celebration with the words: “More than 170 years ago in Plovdiv, our distinguished National Revivalist Nayden Gerov organised the first celebration of the work of the Holy Brothers Cyril and Methodius. Since then, Bulgarians have invariably celebrated this day as an expression of the spiritual growth of the nation, of our aspiration for improvement through the achievements of science and culture.”

The Vice President of BAS Corr. Member Stefan Hadjidodorov welcomed the guests at the celebration, stressing that this is the brightest, most unifying and undisputed official holiday and reminds us not only that language is part of our everyday culture of living and communicating, but also how significant and important it is to be responsible with our words. Through them we create science, we create spirituality but the word also has the power to draw difficult to overcome personal and political boundaries, he said.

These initiatives are an eloquent expression of the efforts made by scientists of BAS to attract young people to research and to create opportunities for the development of their scientific potential. This is noted in a congratulatory address sent to BAS by the President of the National Assembly Rosen Zhelyazkov. The young scientists are the ones Bulgaria will rely on to continue the work bequeathed to us by Professor Marin Drinov and defended by generations of Bulgarian academicians – for the success of Bulgarian science, for its contribution to the world achievements and economic progress of the country, the message of greetings further states.

During the celebration for 24 May at BAS, Corr. Mem. Miroslav Dachev from the Assembly of Academicians and Corresponding Members of BAS (AACM) delivered an academic speech on “The Language: a time for pride, a time for reflection and anxiety”.

Watch the event on the Youtube Channel of BAS

On 24 May at 10:45, participants from the Academy will join the official celebration procession.

The Assembly of Academicians and Corresponding Members of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (AACM) prepared an Appeal for the protection of the richness, beauty and sonority of the Bulgarian language. The appeal will be presented by scientists at a press conference at BAS to be held at 10:30 on 29 May (Monday).

На 24 май участниците от Академията се присъединиха към официалното празнично шествие.