December 5, 2008

Bulgarian Obituary Fliers
Nova Zagora, Bulgaria

An interesting cultural behavior of note in Bulgaria has been the use of fliers as memorial reminders. Loved ones of the deceased will plaster a building, neighborhood or city with a brief obituary and (almost always) a photo.

They can remain on the doors and courtyard gates of family homes for years after an individual's passing, and there doesn't seem to be any particular rule of thumb regarding how long fliers can or should be repeatedly posted onto trees, light poles and walls.

Recently in this country...

Comments:

The United Kingdom

john

February 6th, 2009

I've seen this in Greece as well.

The United States

a

March 18th, 2010

There are rules about it but people don't always follow them.

Bulgaria

Chris

April 1st, 2010

It is indeed very common in Bulgaria. I'm a native, so I'm well aware of the cultural paradoxes you're encountering, and I've got to say It's a ton of fun reading about things you're so familiar with from a foreigner's point of view.

Here's a place to also point out that I dislike this "tradition". It's ugly, poorly done, and unneeded.

Note: Comments are open to everyone. To reduce spam and reward regular contributors, only submissions from first-time commenters and/or those containing hyperlinks are moderated, and will appear after approval. Hateful or off-topic remarks are subject to pruning. Your e-mail address will never be publicly disclosed or abused.