“What’s Your Name?” – Names and Cultural Representation of Bulgarian Folk Dance Groups in North America

The current research project is entitled  entitled, “What’s Your Name?” – Names and Cultural Representation of Bulgarian Folk Dance Groups in North America. The research seeks out stories behind the names of Bulgarian folk dance groups in North America. Why were these names chosen? How do these choices reflect personal and cultural experiences? The broader framework for this paper was provoked by the question: In which ways can the study of names broaden a dance researcher’s perspective? Why should we study these names? The Bulgarian dance groups in North America, with their leaders, members and repertoires, have been an object of investigation for a decade. Group names, however, were not analyzed. What are the cultural messages conveyed through a group’s name? How are these names similar or different than those in Bulgaria? How do these names relate to the Bulgarian village tradition and folk dance ensemble tradition? In what ways do they communicate specific cultural messages to Bulgarians and others? This topic will be approached both synchronically and diachronically. The research proposes that combining methodological tools of ethnochoreology and onomastics will explore an additional dimension in the studies of dance. The names themselves and the process of naming have always been fundamental to our history. The previous investigations suggest ways of grouping of the existing names of Bulgarian dance groups in North America. A more comprehensive study would shed light upon the processes of importing and establishing one’s cultural identity while living abroad. This investigation relies on interviews and surveys conducted with group leaders and group members from coast to coast. Along with the fieldwork, this research relies on a large theoretical body of ethnochoreological and anthropological works, including publications in diaspora studies and studies in onomastics.

https://independent.academia.edu/DanielaIvanovaNyberg