THE SLAV PEOPLES NIEDERLE. 611 



were always Slavs, although they suffered a considerable admixture 

 of foreign elements. 



The Bulgarian Kingdom during the ninth and tenth centuries had 

 spread over a large territory. It carried on numerous wars with 

 the Byzantines on one hand and the Servians on the other, until 

 the time of the Turkish invasion. In 1396 the battle of Nikopole 

 resulted in the forcible submission of Bulgaria to the Turks, a sub- 

 mission lasting until 1878, when, with the help of Eussia, the country 

 again gained a limited freedom. In 1885 Bulgaria succeeded in 

 regaining a large part of Eoumelia ; and recently, on the occasion of 

 the annexation by Austria -Hungary of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and 

 that of political disorders in Turkey, Bulgaria again attained com- 

 plete independence. To-day it is the strongest and most progressive 

 nation of the Balkans. 



Throughout its history, but especially during and even after the 

 Turkish occupation, Bulgaria has witnessed many internal move- 

 ments of population. At present the restlessness is confined to the 

 Bulgarians of Macedonia. 



The total number of Bulgarians at the present day exceeds 5,000,- 

 000. Of these approximately 3,000,0000 reside in Bulgaria proper, 

 1,200,000 in Macedonia ; 600,000 in other parts of the Balkan Penin- 

 sula and Turkey, 180,000 in Eussia, and about 100,000 in Eoumania 

 and Dobrudza. In America, particularly in the United States, the 

 Bulgarians are represented by only small numbers. 



Exclusive of groups belonging to other nationalities which are 

 settled in Bulgaria, the Bulgarians themselves show an internal dif- 

 ferentiation into three principal subdivisions, differing somewhat 

 dialectically and in other respects. None of these divisions, however, 

 is sufficiently apart from the body of the people to make possible any 

 actual separation. Besides this, there are met with in Bulgaria (as 

 in Servia) many local names of groups, with no, or but very little, 

 ethnic significance. 



From the anthropological standpoint, according to the most reli- 

 able data, the Bulgarians are somewhat heterogeneous. The typical 

 Bulgarian is of medium height (166.5 centimeters for men and 156.7 

 centimeters for women), and predominantly dark (50 per cent dark, 

 5 per cent light, 45 per cent mixed complexion). The head is pre- 

 dominantly mesocephalic, with a rising proportion of brachycephaly 

 in the southwestern part of Bulgaria and in southern Macedonia. 

 Dolichocephalic forms appear in parts of southern Bulgaria. 



Eegarding the Slavs in Macedonia, there is still a difference of 

 opinion as to whether they are nearer the Bulgarians or the Servians, 

 or whether they constitute an independent Macedonian Slav people. 

 As the matter is complicated by politics, a continuation of the discus- 

 sion must be expected. There is no doubt that a large part of the 



