Tsar Samuel († 1014) in the historical memory of the Bulgarians in 13th – 14th centuries

TSAR SAMUEL († 1014) IN THE HISTORICAL MEMORY OF THE BULGARIANS IN 13TH – 14TH CENTURIES 

Georgi N. Nikolov 

(Summary) 

The memory of Tsar Samuеl (997 – 1014) among Bulgarians has been preserved for centuries after his death. This is clearly noted in a number of historical sources: the correspondence of the Bulgarian Tsar Kaloyan (1197 – 1207) with the Roman Pope Innocent III (1198 – 1216), the Synodicon of the Bulgarian Church (13th – 14th centuries), the 14th-century Bulgarian translations of the Byzantine chronicles of Symeon the Metaphrast and Logothete (10th century), Ioannes Zonaras (12th century) and Constantine Manasses (12th century). The memory of Samuel in the Bulgarian Tsardom in the 13th – 14th centuries is a specific expression of the enduring sense of historicity, which was also one of the characteristics of Bulgarian society in the middle Ages. Tsar Samuel is among the few Bulgarian rulers from the early middle Ages whose memory has been preserved throughout the centuries. 

Keywords: Tsar Samuel, Tsar Kaloyan, memory, Bulgarian Tsardom, 13th – 14th centuries