Children’s Quran Celebration Held in Bulgaria’s Ribnovo Village

IQNA – Mosques and public squares in Ribnovo, a predominantly Muslim village in southwestern Bulgaria, hosted a Quran-themed celebration for children and families, highlighting the community’s growing engagement in Islamic education.

According to the Muslims Around the World website, the event was organized in the Blagoevgrad Province in a festive and religious atmosphere, with Quran recitations and decorations filling the mosques and open spaces.

The celebration was coordinated by Fikriye Nazmi Avdikova, a teacher and Islamic preacher with Bulgaria’s Chief Mufti’s Office. Since 2010, she has taught Quran and Islamic principles to children during summer, winter, and weekend classes.

Avdikova’s initiative reflects wider efforts by Bulgaria’s Muslim educators to promote religious understanding and revive traditions suppressed during the communist period, when public religious practice was restricted.

Decorations prepared by local families and children adorned the mosques, and Quran recitations echoed through the village.

Women educators within Bulgaria’s Muslim community have played a key role in teaching Quranic studies and nurturing children’s spiritual development.

Muslims make up roughly 10–12% of Bulgaria’s population, forming the largest religious minority. Most are ethnic Turks and Pomaks, living mainly in the Rhodope Mountains and southern regions, where local mosques have become active centers of education and community life.

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