Figure 1.--This Bulgarian boy was photographed in Sofia some time after 1886 when the photographic studio was established. We believe that the portrait was taken about 1905, but this is only a rough guess. He wears a sailor suit, but note the distinctive embroidery. Also note the embroidered symbol on the white dickey. Unfortunately we can not quite make it out. Image courtesy of the MD collection.

We have little no information on Bulgarian garments at this time. We have noted boys wearing folk garments, but have few details. Bulagarian boys also wore Western European fashions by the late 19th century. We notice some French influence here. European fashions in the 19th century seem primarill worn in the cities and by the upper and middle class. Folk styles in the the 19th and eraly 20th century ws still widely worn by the peasantry and in rural areas.We note many of the same basic garments such as tunics and sailor suits. Here the country's German monarchy must have been a significant factor. Some of the detailing seems destinctly Bulgarian. Most European boys had stripes on their sailor suits for detailing as were worn by actual sailors. Many Bulagrain boys wore sailor suits with more elaborate embroidery, although our information is still very limited.

Folk Costumes

We have noted boys wearing folk garments, but have few details. Bulgaria has some destinctive folk fashions, similar in many ways to neighboring Greece. I am not positive about the influenes here, but several centuries of Ottomon rule must have been a factor. European fashions in the 19th century seem primarill worn in the cities and by the upper and middle class. Folk styles in the the 19th and eraly 20th century ws still widely worn by the peasantry and in rural areas.

Berets

Bulagarian boys also wore Western European fashions by the late 19th century. We notice some French influence here. We note images of boys waring berets. Here we have little information. We do not think that Bugarian boys commonly wore berets. As far as we know, berets were commonly used by mothers to dress boys in stylish outfits to look fashionable. We note American boys dressed this way as well in the 1930s.

Sailor Suits

We note many of the same basic garments such as tunics and sailor suits. Sailor suits were mostly worn in the cities by the elite and middle-class boys. They were not as common in the villages and country side. Here the German origins of the country's monarchy must have been a significant factor. Some of the detailing seems destinctly Bulgarian. Note the sailor suit here (figure 1). Most European boys had the traditional stripes on their sailor suits for detailing as were worn by actual sailors. We see these sailor suits with these stripes. Many Bulagrain boys wore sailor suits with more elaborate embroidery or even lace trim. Our information is still very limited so we do not yet know how common the various styles were in Bulgaria.

Pants

We do not yet have enough information on Bulgaria to understand much about popular styles of pants and trousers in Bulgaria. We believe like other Balkan countries that styles of pants were different than in the rest of Europe because if the long era of Ottomon control. Located ar the vase of the Balkan Peninsula, Ottoman influence was especially pronounced in Europe. This was a factor in the substantial difference between urban and rural areas. European styles first appeared in the citis and only gradually becme adopted in the rural areas. Traditional clothing was still common in rural areas up to World war I. After the War we see European styles becoming widely adopted throughout the country. We note many Bulgarian boys wearing short pants in the inter-War era, especially city boys from affluent families. The styles seem fairly standard, styles widely worn in Europe at the time. Long pants see more common among the working class and rural population.

Sandals

A HBC reader has noted twin-bar sandals referred to in catalogs as Bulgarian sandals. We are not sure why this style of sandal was referred to as Bulgarian sandals, but it suggests Bulgarian origins to the style. These references to Bulgaria disaapear after the 1920s. We are not sure about the origins of the twin-bar sandals. Nor or we sure about the origins of other styles of sandals such as the "T"-strap sandal so commonly worn by British boys. We had thought that the two were essebtially connedcted and being of primarily British origins. A HBC reader writes of the origins of of the twin-nar sandal with a center strap. He writes, "My hypothesis is that the style came to North Anmerica with immigrants about 1900, probably from people who lived in the area of the old Roman province of Dacia or modern Bulgaria. I am centering my research on Bulgaria. where the style is currently shown as part of peasants' costume. It is also referred to as "tsurvouli" and was also used by Bulgarian soldiers. I'm going to try to attach a picture and a Bulglarian history writeup. I am assuming the tsurvouli came from a Roman style, but maybe it's Slavic in origin."

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Created: March 3, 2003
Last updated: 11:45 PM 5/9/2009