The Bulgarian Political and Ethnic Presence in the Dniester-Carpathian Region

The article examines a number of written sources (western treatises, royal charters, letters, historical works, Arabic and Persian manuscripts, geographical and nautical maps, etc), which testify about the Bulgarian political and ethnic presence in the Dniester-Carpathian region. Shown is how during different periods the local population was under the rule or in the sphere of influence of the Hungarian Kingdom, the Principality of Galicia-Volhynia, the Golden Horde, and the Bulgarian Tsardom. Some of the adornments found near Voinești, Oțeleni, and Cotnari originate from the area of South Danube and together with the monetary finds present important evidence about the relations of Dniester-Carpathian region with the Bulgarian lands south of the Danube. There are many toponymic, anthroponymic, and linguistic data about the Bulgarian ethnic presence in the lands of Moldova.