Children start first grade at about seven, and there are twelve grades. Marks go from 2 to 6: "шестица"
(a six) is excellent, "двойка"
(a two) is a fail. So if a Bulgarian tells you "Взех шестица!"
, congratulate them. School ends with "матури"
— state final exams.
Explore Bulgaria
School in Bulgaria
The school year usually starts on 15 September — "първият учебен ден"
(the first school day) is a celebration with flowers for the teacher.
1aeg.sofia · CC BY 4.0 · Source
History of Bulgaria
An illustrated history of Bulgaria
Explore Bulgaria
Bin im Garten · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
Market day
Every town has its "пазар"
(market), and many places have a weekly market day, often at the weekend.
VasilPetrov92 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
Horo — the chain dance
At weddings, fairs and holidays Bulgarians dance the "хоро"
— a chain of people holding hands or belts.
Bulgarian names
Bulgarians usually have three names: a first name, a middle name formed from the father's first name, and a surname — e.g. "Иван Георгиев Петров"
.