site.btaResidents of Dolna Ribnitsa Renovate 150-year-old Church
The over 150-year-old St Dimitar church in the village of Dolna Ribnitsa in Petrich continues to unite its residents to this day, Mayor Stefan Zlatinov told BTA. In the last two years, at the initiative of the locals, the church has been renovated and improved, and was even declared a cultural monument, added Zlatinov.
The construction of the temple began around 1860. The then inhabitants of the settlement went to the Turkish pasha with a request to allow them to build a church. They were advised to lie to him and say that there is already a temple in the village and that they want to repair the walls, otherwise the pasha would not approve the construction of a new temple.
They received permission and the construction of the temple began, mainly with funds and labour from the villagers. People at that time made a living mainly from animal husbandry and cattle breeding, said Zlatinov. In 1871, the construction of the church St Dimitar was finished. In 1902, the first proper school in the village was built in a room under the church.
The population of Dolna Ribnitsa currently numbers about 350 people. Violeta Taseva, a teacher from the village, said that the village was originally called Ribaritsa, because in the spring the fish came and spawned. "There used to be a big river, it was green, there were lots of vines, and there were seven water mills along the river," she said.
/DS/
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