Welcome to the Untold Story of Bulgaria’s Jews!

Bulgaria’s Jewish history is one of resilience, cultural richness, and a remarkable story of survival during the Holocaust that remains largely unknown.
From ancient settlements to a thriving Sephardic community, Bulgarian Jews played a significant role in the country’s history.
Yet, their fate in the 20th century was shaped by extraordinary and deeply paradoxical events — while Bulgaria aligned with Nazi Germany, it also defied Hitler by refusing to deport its own Jewish citizens.
At the same time, however, Bulgarian authorities actively participated in the deportation and destruction of Jewish communities in the occupied territories of Thrace and Macedonia.

After the war, Bulgaria became part of the Soviet-dominated socialist bloc, and the history of its Jewish community remained largely obscured behind the Iron Curtain.
Mass emigration to Israel, combined with the suppression of open historical discourse in the Communist era, contributed to the fact that the story of Bulgaria’s Jews — both their survival and the moral contradictions of the Holocaust — remains little known in the West.

This talk unveils the fascinating and complex history of Bulgarian Jewry, exploring both its deep historical roots and the conflicting narratives of World War II and beyond.

March 19, Wednesday, Part I: Centuries of Jewish Heritage in Bulgaria

Jewish presence in Bulgaria dates back to Roman times, with one of the oldest synagogues in Europe discovered in Plovdiv. Throughout the medieval period, Jews played an integral role in Bulgarian society — both as Romaniote Jews of Byzantine heritage and later as Sephardic Jews who found refuge here after the Spanish expulsion of 1492.
Under Ottoman rule, Jewish communities thrived as traders, craftsmen, and scholars. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the rise of modern Jewish institutions, schools, and cultural life, shaping a unique Jewish identity in Bulgaria.

March 26, Wednesday, Part II: The Holocaust, Survival, and the Aftermath

In 1941, Bulgaria joined the Axis powers, and antisemitic laws were introduced, mirroring those of Nazi Germany.
Over 11,000 Jews from the occupied territories of Thrace and Macedonia were deported by Bulgarian authorities and murdered in Treblinka.
At the same time, a powerful wave of public opposition — including politicians, clergy, and ordinary citizens — emerged to protest the planned deportation of Bulgaria’s own Jews. This resistance ultimately saved nearly 50,000 people from certain death.

After the war, most Bulgarian Jews emigrated to Israel, and those who remained lived under a Communist regime that suppressed religious and cultural life. The history of Bulgaria’s Jewish community — its survival, its struggles, and its moral complexities — was largely forgotten outside the country due to Bulgaria’s place behind the Iron Curtain.

Let's shed light on an extraordinary, often-overlooked chapter of Jewish history — one of exile, endurance, and moral contradictions, where salvation and destruction coexisted within the same nation. It is a story that deserves to be told.