Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Svishtov celebrates 169 years since the first chitalishte was founded in Bulgaria

The memorial plaque honouring Dimitar Nachovich
Photo: BTA-archive

Svishtov on the Danube is celebrating 169 years since the first Bulgarian chitalishte was founded. The official celebrations will take place at the memorial plaque honouring Dimitar Nachovich.

The chitalishte in Svishtov was founded on 30 January, 1856, at the initiative of Dimitar Nachovich, Emanuil Vaskifovich, Georgi Vladikin and Hristaki Filchev.

This marked the start of the spread of these cultural institutions nationwide. The chitalishte in Svishtov is named after Elenka and Kiril Avramov who donated 200,000 gold Leva for the construction of the building.

The chitalishte is the first kind of urban centres offering access to different cultural and educational services at a time when the country was still under Ottoman domination.




Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

EBRD to establish a technology center in Bulgaria focused on AI

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will open a technology center in Bulgaria focused on emerging technologies such as Big Data , artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and cloud services. This becomes possible after the..

published on 11/19/25 4:58 PM

Numerous violations along Bulgarian Black Sea Coast found in inspections after the deadly floods

Violations were found in 27% of the inspected sections along the Black Sea coast , according to the control authorities of the Ministry of Environment and Water. Minister Manol Genov ordered the inspection following the October floods in the southern..

published on 11/19/25 4:46 PM

President Rumen Radev again calls for a referendum on the introduction of the euro

With 128 votes in favour, the governing majority in Parliament and three independent MPs rejected the president’s veto on the Law on Defence and the Armed Forces. The amendments expand the possibilities for declaring a state of emergency and..

published on 11/19/25 1:00 PM