| has gloss | eng: The Bulgarian Muslims (; locally called pomak, ahryan, poganets, marvak, poturnak) are Bulgarians of the Islamic faith. They are generally thought to be the descendents of Slavs who converted to Islam during Ottoman rule. Most scholars have agreed that the Muslim Bulgarians are a Religious group of Slav Bulgarians who speak Bulgarian as their mother tongue and do not understand Turkish, but whose religion and customs are Islamic. Muslim Bulgarians live mostly in the Rhodopes – Smolyan Province, the southern part of Pazardzhik and Kardzhali Provinces and the eastern part of Blagoevgrad Province in Southern Bulgaria. They also live in a group of villages in Lovech Province in Northern Bulgaria. The name Pomak is pejorative in Bulgarian and is resented by most members of the community, especially by non-practising Muslims. The name adopted and used instead is Bulgarian Muslims. |
