Definition

1. Proper noun:
   • Old Bulgarian: An ancient Slavic language, also known as Old Church Slavonic, used as the first literary and liturgical language of the Slavs. It was created in the 9th century primarily for translating Christian texts, most notably the Bible.

Usage Notes

• Old Bulgarian is a historical and linguistic term. It refers specifically to the earliest attested form of the Slavic language used for writing.
• It is not used to describe the modern Bulgarian language. In modern contexts, it is more commonly referred to by scholars as Old Church Slavonic.
• It is primarily used in academic, historical, and religious discussions.

Examples of Usage

• Proper noun:
  • The Gospels were first translated into Old Bulgarian by Saints Cyril and Methodius.
  • Scholars study Old Bulgarian manuscripts to understand the development of Slavic languages.
  • Many Orthodox liturgical texts are still based on Old Bulgarian.

Advanced Usage

• As a liturgical language: Old Bulgarian remains the official liturgical language of several Eastern Orthodox churches, including the Bulgarian, Russian, and Serbian churches.
  • The service was conducted in Old Bulgarian.

Variants and Related Words

• Old Church Slavonic: The more common scholarly name for the same language.
• Church Slavonic: Refers to the later, evolved forms of the language used in liturgy after the 11th century.
• Proto-Slavic: The reconstructed common ancestor of all Slavic languages, which predates Old Bulgarian.

Synonyms

• Old Church Slavonic
• Old Church Slavic

Different Meanings / Contexts

• This term has only one specific meaning: the historic Slavic literary language of the 9th–11th centuries. It should not be confused with "Old Bulgarian" used informally to mean "archaic forms of the modern Bulgarian language."

Noun

1. the Slavic language into which the Bible was translated in the 9th century