site.btaProf. Alessandro Maria Bruni: Cyrillic Alphabet Holds Central Place on Map of European Languages

The Cyrillic alphabet holds a central place on the map of European languages, Alessandro Maria Bruni, an Italian professor of Slavic studies, told BTA on Thursday. He is among the participants in the International Cyrillic Forum "Alphabet. Language. Identity" in Sofia and Plovdiv, June 27-28.

As a scholar, Prof. Bruni is most interested in Old Bulgarian studies. He said in the interview that his focus is on the history of the earliest Bulgarian translations from Greek, including works by the brothers Cyril and Methodius and the texts of Preslav, especially translations of works by Greek clerics such as Gregory the Theologian, as well as Bible (mainly Old Testament) translations.

Bruni noted that Bulgaria's membership of the European Union has added the Cyrillic script to the bloc's official alphabets. "Of course, this part of history is not very well known in other countries. Initiatives such as this forum are very important for popularizing our scholarly research, so that we can do something to give people a better understanding of the history of the Cyrillic alphabet," he said.

The International Cyrillic Forum "Alphabet. Language. Identity" is a two-day conference initiated by Vice President Iliana Iotova and supported by the Ministry of Education and Science. It is discussing the significance of letters, words, language, and culture for the Slavic heritage, its preservation and dissemination in today’s world, and the importance of language and identity in the processes of globalization, highlighting Bulgaria's key role in the creation and preservation of Slavic civilization. The event is taking place in Sofia on June 27 and Plovdiv on June 28.