Chronology and Ideology (On the Origin of Slavonic Writings according to the History Textbooks and the Cyrillo-Methodian Studies)

Abstract

The paper uncovers the ideological implications and underpinnings behind the scholarly debates about the exact year of the invention of the Slavonic writing by Sts. Cyril and Methodius. Despite the philological arguments, the year 855 stands firmly in the Bulgarian history textbooks from the 1950s up to nowadays, probably because it suits better the implicit narrative about the Bulgarian Slavs as a primary target of the religious and cultural mission of Sts. Cyril and Methodius.