Abstract
One of the most famous nomadic herders in the Balkans are the Karakachans. Members of this ethnic group show their affiliation to it surrounded by unrelated ethnic communities in several countries in the Balkans. Today in Bulgaria a majority of the representatives of this ethnic group are living in the region of Sliven. At the beginning of XXI century, the district administration of Sliven still has no clear idea about the potential of the well-preserved authentic culture of the Karakachans. In the regional strategy it has been paid particular attention to the anthropogenic resources for tourism development in the region. Based on the preserved folklore traditions through the centuries, identifying the existing and potential demand for products and services in the field of cultural tourism is put as a task. Unfortunately, the annual gathering of the Karakachans is not mentioned as a possibility for creating a special kind of ethnic tourism, which has many benefits for both members of the community and the area itself. The purpose of this study is to summarize the status and future possibilities of ethnic tourism in Sliven following the example of the Karakachan gathering . The collected empirical material is the result of a field research conducted in the 2012–2013 period. This paper goes beyond a mere description of a particular case and provides new knowledge to academics and practitioners.
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Notes
See 100th decree of the Council of Ministers of 15 March 1954 laying settling down for life of Karakachans and their residence; http://dediserver.eu/hosting/ethnodoc/data/BG19540315.pdf
Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, Paris, 17 October 2003
International cultural tourism charter (Managing Tourism at Places of Heritage Significance, 1999 ), Adopted by ICOMOS at the 12th General Assembly in Mexico, October 1999
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Stoykova, B. Authenticity of ethnic tourism (based on the example of the congregation of the Karakachans in Bulgaria). Int Rev Public Nonprofit Mark 12, 297–313 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-015-0138-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12208-015-0138-3