site.btaToday's Observances: May 11-12

May 11

The Church:

- Day of St Cyril and St Methodius, inventors of first version of Slavic alphabet in 9th century. Secular holiday marked May 24.

On this date in Bulgarian history:

1851: St Cyril and St Methodius Day first celebrated in Plovdiv school named after the saintly brothers.

1872: Exarch Antim I reads proclamation of independence of Bulgarian Church.

1973: Diplomatic relations established with Colombia.

1990: Bulgaria applies for special invitee status in Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe.

2005: Parliament ratifies Bulgaria's Treaty of Accession to European Union.

May 12

The world:

- International Nurses Day.

On this date in Bulgarian history:

1876: Ottoman troops destroy town of Panagyurishte during April Uprising.

1896: The first of the Thracian societies (organizations defending the interests of Bulgarians who remained under Turkish rule after Bulgaria Liberation from the Ottoman Empire in 1878) is established in Varna by freedom fighter Captain Petko Voivoda.

1952: Monetary reform begins, to continue until May 15 of that year.

1957: Bulgarian Sports Totalizator carries out first draw.

1992: Bulgarian Power Industry Association is set up.

1993: First major privatization deal is signed: Maize Products Company of Razgrad is sold to Belgium's Amylum Group.

1999: EUR 50 million worth of Eurobonds of Sofia Municipality are put up for sale at the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. Eighty per cent of them are sold eventually.