Our people may not be perfect, but our culture is superior to that of others "- according to 69% of the Bulgarians who participated in a survey of the Pew Research Center from 34 countries in Europe conducted in the period 2015-2017 .

The results were released on Monday as part of data pointing out the value divide between Eastern and Western Europe. It shows that in the EU, two countries - Bulgaria and Romania (68%) - show similar cultural nationalism, and in Greece (89%) it reaches chauvinism. The other five countries with more than two-thirds endorsement of the thesis of cultural superiority are the Western Balkans (Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina) and the former USSR (Russia, Georgia, Armenia). With 44%, Croatia is not in this group, and no studies have been made in Slovenia, Macedonia, Kosovo and Montenegro.

In addition, Bulgaria is second (after Romania) to support the claim that in order to have a national identity, you must be born in the country. That is 85% (in Romania 89%) and 79% think that in order to be called a Bulgarian, your family must have some connection with the country. Very close to these results are the Hungarians (83%) and the Poles (82%), according to whom it is "very much" or "common sense important" to be born in the country to be considered a "true Hungarian" or "true Pole".

Among the top 10 in this criterion, the only western country is Portugal (81%), and among the top 20 are Italy (66%) and Spain (63%). In the Scandinavian countries, Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands around and under 50% give so much importance to where someone was born to be considered a "real" compatriot.

This, like the rest of the study, raises the question of Europeans' understanding of the "European values". Data reveals that different groups of people give different answers. For some this means that Europe has Christian roots and heritage, and for others - political liberalism, including the separation of the church from the state, democratic rule and the granting of asylum to refugees.

"For the EU, the term" European values ​​"rather reflects what the US may consider to be liberal ideas: the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union refers to respect for cultural and religious diversity, the prohibition of discrimination because of religion or gender , the right to asylum for refugees and guaranteeing freedom of movement in the EU These rights and principles have become part of the EU legal system and have been confirmed for decades by the EU Court.

But with the first wave of new members of the former communist camp in 2004 it turned out that the inhabitants of these countries are more intolerant of western and cultural pluralism than Western Europe. This calls into question the idea of ​​universal consensus on what are the "European values".

Central and Eastern Europeans in the EU are less willing than Western Europeans in the EU to say they would accept Muslims or Jews as members of their family or as neighbors.

In nearly all of the Central and Eastern European countries surveyed, fewer than half of adults say they would be willing to accept Muslims into their family, including 29% who say this in Romania and 32% in Bulgaria. Meanwhile, in most of the surveyed Western European countries, more than half of adults say they would accept a Muslim into their family, including 66% who say this in Finland and 74% in Spain. The same general pattern holds when Europeans are asked about accepting Jews as family members or neighbors.

Majorities in all of the surveyed Western European countries favor same-sex marriage, while majorities in almost all of the Central and Eastern European countries oppose it.

For example, 88% of adults in Sweden and 75% in Germany say they favor or strongly favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally. By contrast, 74% of Romanians and 79% of Bulgarians oppose or strongly oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally. This split in attitudes is reflected in the laws of the two regions: While most Western European countries in the EU allow same-sex marriage, it is prohibited from taking place in most of the bloc’s Central and Eastern European nations.

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