Emil Stoyanov

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Emil Stefanow Stojanow (also spelled Emil Stefanov Stoyanov , Bulgarian Емил Стефанов Стоянов; born July 12, 1959 in Plovdiv ), is a Bulgarian politician , entrepreneur, publisher and member of the European Parliament for the GERB party . Former Bulgarian President Petar Stoyanov is his brother. Emil is married to the journalist Margarita Raltschewa, with whom he has a daughter and a son.

family

Emil Stojanow was born in Plovdiv, the second largest city in Bulgaria, in 1959 on St. Peter's Day in the family of Stefan and Stojanka Stojanowi. Since his older brother's name was Petar, he was called Emil. His father, who was one of five sons, was governor of the Oblast (district) "Plovdiv, Pazardzhik and Smolyan" before the Bulgarian Communists came to power in 1945 . He and his wife Stojanka were members of the Bulgarian Democratic Forum party , which was banned after 1945. Stefan Stojanow was interned in concentration and labor camps three times by the communists who were then ruling in Bulgaria. Emil's grandfather, Petar, was a wholesaler who traded in wood and owned large lands in the nearby Rhodope Mountains , which had been confiscated by the communists after 1945.

Life

After primary school in Plovdiv, Emil Stojanow attended the then newly opened German grammar school in nearby Pazardzhik . According to his own statements, he learned not only discipline there, but also got to know and appreciate German culture and literature.

After finishing high school, Stoyanov was drafted into the Bulgarian army. He served for two years in the army units, which normally included recruits with no secondary school diploma or members of the minorities and political prisoners. After serving in the army, Stojanow became a literary student at the Paisii Hilendarski University , where he wanted to prepare for a life as a writer. His first book was a translation of an anthology by contemporary Leipzig poets. He then accepted an invitation from the University of Leipzig for further training in the GDR .

In 1986 Stojanow published his own work Esenen Tschowek ( Bulgar . "Есенен човек", German autumn man). In the same year he completed his university studies. He then tried for almost a year to get a job with the Plovdiv editor and publisher, until he learned that the Bulgarian State Security had issued a ban on literary activity . The ban lasted until 1989, the year the Iron Curtain collapsed in Eastern Europe and with it the end of the Cold War . In the years after the overthrow of the communist dictator Todor Zhivkov , Emil and his brother Petar co-founded the Union of Democratic Forces (SDS) in Plovdiv, but did not become a member of the SDS.

In 1992 he founded the publishing house Pygmalion (bulg. "Пигмалион") with the aim of popularizing European aesthetic, political, philosophical and above all German-language literature in Bulgaria. One of his first projects was a collaboration with the Wiener Wieser Verlag and the publication of the works of the Austrian writer Karl-Markus Gauß .

In 2001 Stojanow founded the first pure news channel TV Ewropa with the support of the German Taunusfilm . He also established the Pygmalion Foundation with the aim of promoting literature and art in Plovdiv. One of her international projects is her participation in the HALMA Network project , which is under the patronage of Frank-Walter Steinmeier and serves to link European cultural and literary scenes.

In 2004 Emil Stojanow was honored with the German Cross of Merit for his contribution to German culture.

In the European elections in Bulgaria in 2009 Emil Stoyanov as MP for the party GERB and which was the Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats in the European Parliament elected.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Biography from the official website of Emil Stojanow (bulg.)
  2. ↑ ..I was never a member of the SDS ... (Bulgarian) Interview with Emil Stojanow on www.standartnews.com, July 23, 2009

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Stoyanov, Emil
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Stojanow, Emil Stefanow; Stojanov, Emil Stefanov; Стоянов, Емил Стефанов (Bulgarian spelling)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bulgarian politician, MEP, entrepreneur, publisher
DATE OF BIRTH July 12, 1959
PLACE OF BIRTH Plovdiv