Nikola Vaptsarov: Difference between revisions

Nikola Vaptsarov
Nikola Vaptsarov
	Vaptsarov during his time in the Varna Naval Machinery School
Native name	Никола Вапцаров
Born	7 December 1909; Bansko, Ottoman Empire
Died	23 July 1942 (aged 32); Sofia, Bulgaria
Occupation	poet, activist of the communist resistance
Nationality	Bulgarian
Notable works	Motor Songs

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Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov (Bulgarian: Никола Йонков Вапцаров; Macedonian: Никола Јонков Вапцаров, romanized: Nikola Jonkov Vapcarov; 7 December 1909 – 23 July 1942) was a Bulgarian poet, communist and revolutionary.^[1]^[2]^[3] Working most of his life as a machinist, he only wrote in his spare time. Despite the fact that he only ever published one poetry book, he is considered one of the most important Bulgarian poets. Because of his underground communist activity against the government of Boris III and the German troops in Bulgaria, Vaptsarov was arrested, tried, sentenced and executed the same night by a firing squad.

Life

He was born in Bansko (today in Bulgaria).^[4] Trained as a machine engineer at the Naval Machinery School in Varna, which was later named after him.^[5] His first service was on the famous Drazki torpedo boat. In this period, he embraced Marxism and spread the communist ideology during the 1930s.^[6] In April and May 1932, Vaptsarov visited Istanbul, Famagusta, Alexandria, Beirut, Port Said, and Haifa as a crew member of the Burgas vessel. In 1934, he joined the Bulgarian Communist Party.^[7]

Later, he went to work in a factory in the village of Kocherinovo – at first as a stoker and eventually as a mechanic. He was elected Chairman of the Association, protecting worker rights in the factory. During this time Vaptsarov was devoted to his talent and spent his free time writing and organizing amateur theater pieces. He got fired after a technical failure in 1936. This forced him to move to Sofia, where he worked for the state railway service and the municipal incinerating furnace.^[8] He continued writing, and a number of newspapers published poems of his. The "Romantika" poem won him a poetry contest.

In the late 1930s, he co-founded the Macedonian literary circle, which promoted the idea of a separate Macedonian nation, but Vaptsarov continued writing only in standard Bulgarian.^[9]^[7] His only published poetry collection is Motor Songs (1940).^[10]^[11] In 1940, he participated in the so-called "Sobolev action," gathering signatures for a pact of friendship between Bulgaria and the USSR. The illegal activity earned him an arrest and an internment in the village of Godech. After his release in September 1940, Vaptsarov got involved with the Central Military Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party. His task was to organize the supply of guns and documents for the communist resistance. He was arrested in March 1942. On 23 July 1942, he was sentenced to death and shot the same evening along with eleven other men.

Legacy

Post-war Bulgarian communist authorities revered him as an activist and revolutionary poet, presenting his poetry collection as an example of proletarian literature.^[7] His work was also widely published in Soviet-bloc countries. In 1949, the Bulgarian Naval Academy was renamed Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy. In 1953, he received posthumously the International Peace Award.^[12] His Selected Poems was published in London in the 1950s, by Lawrence & Wishart, translated into English with a foreword by British poet Peter Tempest. He was one of the most frequently translated Bulgarian poets.^[1] Vaptsarov Peak in eastern Livingston Island, Antarctica, is named after the famous Bulgarian poet. Vaptsarov's childhood home in Bansko and residence in Sofia are both museums. He is also revered in North Macedonia.^[4]

Notes

^ From a police investigation of 13 December 1940, regarding the arrest of the poet because of his poem "Selska Chronicle": ... I am named Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov, resident of Sofia, 37 Angel Kunchev Street, religion – Eastern Orthodox, nationality – Bulgarian, marital status – married, occupation – machine technician, born in 1909.

References

^ ^a ^b France, Peter (2000). The Oxford guide to literature in English translation. Oxford University Press. p. 194. ISBN 978-0198183594.
^ The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, Stephen Cushman et al., Princeton University Press, 2012, ISBN 1400841429, p. 169.
^ "The History of Bulgaria", The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Series, Frederick B. Chary, ABC-CLIO, 2011, ISBN 0313384460, pp. 143–144.
^ ^a ^b Dimitar Bechev (2009). Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia. Scarecrow Press. pp. 231–232. ISBN 978-0810862951.
^ "The Nikola Vaptsarov Museum in Bansko". 21 December 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^ R. J. Crampton (1987). A Short History of Modern Bulgaria. CUP Archive. p. 135. ISBN 9780521273237.
^ ^a ^b ^c Wojciech Roszkowski; Jan Kofman (2016). Biographical Dictionary of Central and Eastern Europe in the Twentieth Century. Routledge. pp. 1080–1081. ISBN 9781317475941.
^ "БДЖ организира пътуване с парния локомотив Баба Меца". 9 May 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^ Dimitar Bechev (2019). Historical Dictionary of North Macedonia (2nd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. p. 188. ISBN 978-1538119624.
^ "Bulgarian literature". Encyclopædia Britannica. 20 July 1998. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^ Charles A. Moser (2019). A History of Bulgarian Literature 865–1944. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. p. 227. ISBN 9783110810608.
^ "Bulgaria commemorates poet Nikola Vaptsarov". BGNES. 23 July 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2023.

External links

Full list of works (in Bulgarian)
Biography of Nikola Vapcarov (in English)
Poems by Nikola Vapcarov (in English)
Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy (in Bulgarian)
Police files on Nikola Vaptsarov (in Bulgarian)

[1] From a police investigation of 13 December 1940, regarding the arrest of the poet because of his poem "Selska Chronicle": ... I am named Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov, resident of Sofia, 37 Angel Kunchev Street, religion – Eastern Orthodox, nationality – Bulgarian, marital status – married, occupation – machine technician, born in 1909.

[oxford-2] France, Peter (2000). The Oxford guide to literature in English translation. Oxford University Press. p. 194. ISBN 978-0198183594.

[3] The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, Stephen Cushman et al., Princeton University Press, 2012, ISBN 1400841429, p. 169.

[4] "The History of Bulgaria", The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Series, Frederick B. Chary, ABC-CLIO, 2011, ISBN 0313384460, pp. 143–144.

[bechev-5] Dimitar Bechev (2009). Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia. Scarecrow Press. pp. 231–232. ISBN 978-0810862951.

[6] "The Nikola Vaptsarov Museum in Bansko". 21 December 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2020.

[7] R. J. Crampton (1987). A Short History of Modern Bulgaria. CUP Archive. p. 135. ISBN 9780521273237.

[bio-8] Wojciech Roszkowski; Jan Kofman (2016). Biographical Dictionary of Central and Eastern Europe in the Twentieth Century. Routledge. pp. 1080–1081. ISBN 9781317475941.

[9] "БДЖ организира пътуване с парния локомотив Баба Меца". 9 May 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.

[10] Dimitar Bechev (2019). Historical Dictionary of North Macedonia (2nd ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. p. 188. ISBN 978-1538119624.

[11] "Bulgarian literature". Encyclopædia Britannica. 20 July 1998. Retrieved 6 May 2020.

[12] Charles A. Moser (2019). A History of Bulgarian Literature 865–1944. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. p. 227. ISBN 9783110810608.

[13] "Bulgaria commemorates poet Nikola Vaptsarov". BGNES. 23 July 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2023.

[note 1]

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|20th-century Bulgarian poet and communist revolutionary}}
 {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
-{{Short description|20th-century Bulgarian poet and communist revolutionary}}
 {{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
 | name             = Nikola Vaptsarov
@@ Line 8: / Line 8: @@
 | caption          = Vaptsarov during his time in the Varna Naval Machinery School
 | birth_date       = {{Birth date|1909|12|07|df=y}}
-| birth_place      = [[Bansko]], [[Bulgaria]]
+| birth_place      = [[Bansko]], [[Ottoman Empire]]
 | death_date       = {{death date and age|1942|7|23|1909|12|07|df=y}}
 | death_place      = [[Sofia]], [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]]
-| nationality      = [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgarian]]<ref group="note">From a police investigation of 13 December 1940, regarding the arrest of the poet because of his poem "Selska Chronicle": ... I am named Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov, resident of Sofia, 37 Angel Kunchev Street, religion – Eastern Orthodox , nationality – Bulgarian, marital status – married, occupation – machine technician, born in 1909 ....</ref>
+| nationality      = [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgarian]]<ref group="note">From a police investigation of 13 December 1940, regarding the arrest of the poet because of his poem "Selska Chronicle": ... I am named Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov, resident of Sofia, 37 Angel Kunchev Street, religion – Eastern Orthodox, nationality – Bulgarian, marital status – married, occupation – machine technician, born in 1909.</ref>
 | occupation       = [[poet]], [[Bulgarian resistance movement during World War II|activist of the communist resistance]]
 | notableworks     = ''Motor Songs''
 }}
-'''Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov''' ({{lang-bg|Никола Йонков Вапцаров}}; {{lang-mk|Никола Јонков Вапцаров|Nikola Jonkov Vapcarov}}; 7 December 1909 – 23 July 1942) was a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] [[poet]], [[communist]] and [[revolutionary]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=France, Peter |url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordguidetolit00pete/page/194 |title=The Oxford guide to literature in English translation |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0198183594 |page=[https://archive.org/details/oxfordguidetolit00pete/page/194 194] |url-access=registration}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=uKiC6IeFR2UC&dq=nikola+vaptsarov+poetry&pg=PA169 ''The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics'', Stephen Cushman et al., Princeton University Press, 2012], {{ISBN|1400841429}}, p. 169.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=gUcVrH0jcBAC&dq=nikola+vaptsarov+poetry&pg=PA143 "The History of Bulgaria", The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Series, Frederick B. Chary, ABC-CLIO, 2011], {{ISBN|0313384460}}, pp. 143–144.</ref> Working most of his life as a machinist, he only wrote in his spare time. Despite the fact that he only ever published one poetry book, he is considered one of the most important Bulgarian poets. He's also revered in [[North Macedonia]]. Because of his underground communist activity against the government of [[Boris III]] and the German troops in [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]], Vaptsarov was arrested, tried, sentenced and executed the same night by a firing squad.
+'''Nikola Yonkov Vaptsarov''' ({{langx|bg|Никола Йонков Вапцаров}}; {{langx|mk|Никола Јонков Вапцаров|Nikola Jonkov Vapcarov}}; 7 December 1909 – 23 July 1942) was a [[Bulgarians|Bulgarian]] poet, communist and revolutionary.<ref name="oxford">{{Cite book |last=France, Peter |url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordguidetolit00pete/page/194 |title=The Oxford guide to literature in English translation |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0198183594 |page=[https://archive.org/details/oxfordguidetolit00pete/page/194 194] |url-access=registration}}</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=uKiC6IeFR2UC&dq=nikola+vaptsarov+poetry&pg=PA169 ''The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics'', Stephen Cushman et al., Princeton University Press, 2012], {{ISBN|1400841429}}, p. 169.</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=gUcVrH0jcBAC&dq=nikola+vaptsarov+poetry&pg=PA143 "The History of Bulgaria", The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations Series, Frederick B. Chary, ABC-CLIO, 2011], {{ISBN|0313384460}}, pp. 143–144.</ref> Working most of his life as a machinist, he only wrote in his spare time. Despite the fact that he only ever published one poetry book, he is considered one of the most important Bulgarian poets. Because of his underground communist activity against the government of [[Boris III]] and the German troops in [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]], Vaptsarov was arrested, tried, sentenced and executed the same night by a firing squad.
-== Biography ==
-He was born in [[Bansko]] (today in [[Bulgaria]]).<ref name="bechev">{{cite book |author=Dimitar Bechev |title=Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia |date=2009 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0810862951 |pages=231-232}}</ref> Trained as a machine engineer at the [[Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy|Naval Machinery School]] in [[Varna, Bulgaria|Varna]], which was later named after him.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 December 2014 |title=The Nikola Vaptsarov Museum in Bansko |url=https://bnr.bg/en/post/100499939/the-nikola-vaptsarov-museum-in-bansko |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref> His first service was on the famous [[Bulgarian torpedo boat Drazki|Drazki torpedo boat]]. In April and May 1932, Vaptsarov visited [[Istanbul]], [[Famagusta]], [[Alexandria]], [[Beirut]], [[Port Said]], and [[Haifa]] as a crew member of the Burgas vessel.
+== Life ==
-Later, he went to work in a factory in the village of [[Kocherinovo]] – at first as a stoker and eventually as a mechanic. He was elected Chairman of the Association, protecting worker rights in the factory. Vaptsarov was devoted to his talent and spent his free time writing and organizing amateur theater pieces. He got fired after a technical failure in 1936. This forced him to move to Sofia, where he worked for the [[Bulgarian State Railways|state railway service]] and the municipal incinerating furnace.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 May 2019 |title=БДЖ организира пътуване с парния локомотив Баба Меца |url=https://dariknews.bg/regioni/sofiia/bdzh-organizira-pytuvane-s-parniia-lokomotiv-baba-meca-2164473 |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref> He continued writing, and a number of newspapers published poems of his. The "Romantika" poem won him a poetry contest.
+He was born in [[Bansko]] (today in [[Bulgaria]]).<ref name="bechev">{{cite book |author=Dimitar Bechev |title=Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Macedonia |date=2009 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-0810862951 |pages=231–232}}</ref> Trained as a machine engineer at the [[Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy|Naval Machinery School]] in [[Varna, Bulgaria|Varna]], which was later named after him.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 December 2014 |title=The Nikola Vaptsarov Museum in Bansko |url=https://bnr.bg/en/post/100499939/the-nikola-vaptsarov-museum-in-bansko |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref> His first service was on the famous [[Bulgarian torpedo boat Drazki|Drazki torpedo boat]]. In this period, he embraced [[Marxism]] and spread the communist ideology during the 1930s.<ref>{{cite book |author=R. J. Crampton |title=A Short History of Modern Bulgaria |date=1987 |publisher=CUP Archive |isbn=9780521273237 |page=135}}</ref> In April and May 1932, Vaptsarov visited [[Istanbul]], [[Famagusta]], [[Alexandria]], [[Beirut]], [[Port Said]], and [[Haifa]] as a crew member of the Burgas vessel. In 1934, he joined the [[Bulgarian Communist Party]].<ref name="bio">{{cite book |author1=Wojciech Roszkowski |author2=Jan Kofman |title=Biographical Dictionary of Central and Eastern Europe in the Twentieth Century |date=2016 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781317475941 |pages=1080–1081}}</ref>
+Later, he went to work in a factory in the village of [[Kocherinovo]] – at first as a stoker and eventually as a mechanic. He was elected Chairman of the Association, protecting worker rights in the factory. During this time Vaptsarov was devoted to his talent and spent his free time writing and organizing amateur theater pieces. He got fired after a technical failure in 1936. This forced him to move to Sofia, where he worked for the [[Bulgarian State Railways|state railway service]] and the municipal incinerating furnace.<ref>{{Cite web |date=9 May 2019 |title=БДЖ организира пътуване с парния локомотив Баба Меца |url=https://dariknews.bg/regioni/sofiia/bdzh-organizira-pytuvane-s-parniia-lokomotiv-baba-meca-2164473 |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref> He continued writing, and a number of newspapers published poems of his. The "Romantika" poem won him a poetry contest.
-Over time, Vaptsarov absorbed a lot of Communist ideas and started taking an active part in the ideological movement.<ref name="britannica">{{Cite web |date=20 July 1998 |title=Bulgarian literature |url=https://www.britannica.com/art/Bulgarian-literature |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref> In the late 1930s, he was part of the [[Macedonian literary circle]], but Vaptsarov continued writing only in standard [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Dimitar Bechev |title=Historical Dictionary of North Macedonia |date=2019 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1538119624 |page=188 |edition=2nd}}</ref> In 1940, he participated in the so-called "Sobolev action," gathering signatures for a pact of friendship between [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] and the [[USSR]]. The illegal activity earned him an arrest and an internment in the village of [[Godech]]. After his release in September 1940, Vaptsarov got involved with the Central Military Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party. His task was to organize the supply of guns and documents for the communist resistance. He was arrested in March 1942. On 23 July 1942, he was sentenced to death and shot the same evening along with 11 other men.
+In the late 1930s, he co-founded the [[Macedonian literary circle]], which promoted the idea of a separate [[Macedonian nation]], but Vaptsarov continued writing only in standard [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Dimitar Bechev |title=Historical Dictionary of North Macedonia |date=2019 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-1538119624 |page=188 |edition=2nd}}</ref><ref name="bio" /> His only published poetry collection is ''Motor Songs'' (1940).<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 July 1998 |title=Bulgarian literature |url=https://www.britannica.com/art/Bulgarian-literature |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |accessdate=6 May 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Charles A. Moser |title=A History of Bulgarian Literature 865–1944 |date=2019 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=9783110810608 |page=227}}</ref> In 1940, he participated in the so-called "Sobolev action," gathering signatures for a pact of friendship between [[Kingdom of Bulgaria|Bulgaria]] and the [[USSR]]. The illegal activity earned him an arrest and an internment in the village of [[Godech]]. After his release in September 1940, Vaptsarov got involved with the Central Military Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party. His task was to organize the supply of guns and documents for the communist resistance. He was arrested in March 1942. On 23 July 1942, he was sentenced to death and shot the same evening along with eleven other men.
-==Literary works==
-His only released book of poetry is ''Motor Songs'' (1940).<ref name="britannica" />
 ==Legacy==
-In 1949, the Bulgarian Naval Academy was renamed ''[[Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy]]''. On 3 December 1953, he received posthumously the International Peace Award. His ''Selected Poems'' were published in London in 1954, by [[Lawrence & Wishart]], translated into English with a foreword by British poet Peter Tempest. His poetry has been translated in 98 languages throughout the world. [[Vaptsarov Peak]] in eastern [[Livingston Island]], [[Antarctica]] is named after the famous Bulgarian poet.
+Post-war Bulgarian communist authorities revered him as an activist and revolutionary poet, presenting his poetry collection as an example of [[proletarian literature]].<ref name="bio" /> His work was also widely published in [[Soviet Bloc|Soviet-bloc]] countries. In 1949, the Bulgarian Naval Academy was renamed ''[[Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy]]''. In 1953, he received posthumously the International Peace Award.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bulgaria commemorates poet Nikola Vaptsarov |url=https://bnr.bg/en/post/101680455/bulgaria-commemorates-poet-nikola-vaptsarov |website=BGNES |access-date=6 September 2023 |date=23 July 2022}}</ref> His ''Selected Poems'' was published in London in the 1950s, by [[Lawrence & Wishart]], translated into English with a foreword by British poet Peter Tempest. He was one of the most frequently translated Bulgarian poets.<ref name="oxford" /> [[Vaptsarov Peak]] in eastern [[Livingston Island]], [[Antarctica]], is named after the famous Bulgarian poet. Vaptsarov's childhood home in Bansko and residence in Sofia are both museums. He is also revered in [[North Macedonia]].<ref name="bechev" />
-Today, Nikola Vaptsarov's childhood home in Bansko and residence in Sofia are both museums.
 == Notes ==
@@ Line 42: / Line 38: @@
 *[http://www.poemhunter.com/nikola-vaptsarov/biography/ Biography of Nikola Vapcarov] {{in lang|en}}
 *[http://www.revolutionarydemocracy.org/rdv6n1/vaptsarov.htm Poems by Nikola Vapcarov] {{in lang|en}}
-*[http://www.naval-acad.bg/ Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy]{{in lang|bg}}
+*[http://www.naval-acad.bg/ Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy] {{in lang|bg}}
 *[http://policefiles.archives.bg/dosieta/2013-01-21-13-41-03 Police files on Nikola Vaptsarov] {{in lang|bg}}
@@ Line 62: / Line 58: @@
 [[Category:20th-century Bulgarian poets]]
 [[Category:Bulgarian resistance members]]
+[[Category:Executed communists]]

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