Vinishte, Bulgaria

Vinište is a small village in North Bulgaria, 16 kilometers north from Montana, Bulgaria. Now its population is only 400 people. It is positioned in semi-mountain region in the skirts of the Balkan mountain. There is a spectacular formation of rocks called Kamiko nearby. The village name reflects the good conditions in the region for cultivating vines and making wine (Bulgarian vino, English wine).

History

This region of Bulgaria became part of the Roman Empire in 26 BC. About AD 150 the Roman built their stronghold in the region called it Montana, because the military division that first settled it, was recruited in the Swiss Alps. The town was populated by Latin-speaking local tribes, who later were called Wallachs by the Slavs, and the Christianity was introduced in AD 325. The Romans ruled the region more or less successfully until AD 500 when the new invaders - the Slavs - came from the North. The Slavs were powerful and fierce people that soon destroyed the Roman rule almost everywhere on the Balkans. In AD 681 the Slavonic chiefs in this region became aliers of the Bulgarian Khan. Bulgarians, originally from Asia, had made their numerous raids into the Balkans for the last two centuries before 681, when they finally settled in present-day North-Eastern Bulgaria. In the beginning of the 15th century the region of North-Western Bulgaria along with vast territories of Europe became part of the Ottoman Empire. However unlike many other parts of present-day Bulgaria, Turkish rule was not very strong in the region. The only Turks in the region were military divisions and since no Turks lived in the region, they had no support and lived almost under siege. So Vinište was relatively isolated and saved from outside influences, which helped many traditions to be saved until very recently. Vinište is first mentioned in the 15th-century Ottoman tax documents. The village is located on an important road - the one that connects Sofia with Vidin on the Danube river and from there to Central Europe. The road was used for carrying the collected taxes and military retreat first by the Romans (from the Balkans to Central Europe), by the Bulgarians and by the Turks (from Central Europe to Constantinople). It is beyond doubt that those caravans with treasures were regular object of raids by the local people. The loot was usually buried, waiting be dug out after the authorities counter-strike blows over, but the looters not always left alive after it, so much left under the ground. The passion for seeking treasures under the ground remains until present days and in many cases, not in vain. It was normal if people found coins from the 1st centuries AD, and the Turkish gold was even more common. In 1951 during agricultural works many apparently very old items were dug out, but unfortunately they were not saved. Some of the Roman coins found around Vinishte can be seen in the Historical Museums in Montana and Sofia

Traditions

Since it was relatively isolated from influences, the village managed to keep the original traditions and mentality of its inhabitants. Though Christian since 9th century, local people kept much of their paganian past. One of the customs practiced until the 1950s was called Kurban. Every clan had its own day in the year (usually the day of some saint) when all members of this clan gathered together around a special stone, symbol of the clan, or of the saint. A picture of such a stone, found near the village in a place called Kamiko, is on the left. The inscription on the stone (which had the form of a cross, about 1.70 m in height) reads: "St. Constantine Year Of Our Lord 1804". The cross was found near an extremely old oak tree, split in two by a lightning stroke. The custom of people to gather around a lightning-struck oak tree is a well known fact from the Slavic mythology even before they came on the Balkans, which shows how long this tradition is going back in time. Stones like this have been numerous in the village, and old people still can remember how every year they gathered around them, and at this gatherings a traditional lamb soup was prepared and eaten by all.

References

Coordinates: 43°29′N 23°04′E / 43.483°N 23.067°E