Bulgaria is celebrating on Tuesday the Day of Bulgarian Education and Culture and Slavonic Alphabet.

Also known as Saints Cyril and Methodius' Day, May 24 commemorates the deed of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the two brothers who are credited with founding the Slavonic alphabet in the ninth century.

Cyril and Methodius were born in Thessaloniki and served on several missions on the request of Byzantine Emperor Michael III.

Their most notable mission was the one to Great Moravia, where they were entrusted with evangelising the Slavs.

There they translated the Bible in the Old Church Slavonic language and created the Glagolitic alphabet, which later served as the basis of the Cyrillic alphabet developed by their disciples.

In Bulgaria, the holiday has been celebrated since the 19^th century with the holding of processions and various cultural events.

A procession in the Bulgarian capital will start from the Archaeological museum and will proceed to the National library which is named after the two brothers.

Bulgarian Patriarch Neophyte will hold a prayer service at the Saint Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, while Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev and Sofia mayor Yordanka Fandakova will deliver speeches.

After the end of the official ceremony, visitors to the library will be able to see the exhibition “Blessed by wisdom”, which is dedicated to the 1100^th anniversary of the death of Saint Clement of Ohrid, one of the disciples of Cyril and Methodius.

There will be also celebrations and award ceremonies in Sofia University, which is named after Saint Clement of Ohrid.

The holiday will also coincide with the start of the Spring Book Fair at the National Palace of Culture (NDK), which will last until Sunday.

Celebrations and processions will be held also throughout the country and abroad.

An exhibition dedicated to the Cyrillic alphabet will be unveiled at the European Parliament in Brussels, followed by classical concert dedicated to Saints Cyril and Methodius – Patrons of Europe.

A Bulgarian delegation headed by Culture Minister Vezhdi Rashidov will visit the Basilica of Saint Clement in Rome, which contains the tomb of Saint Cyril.

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