Abstract:

The topic of this study is to clarify the role of institutional forms of knowledge created by immigrant groups in a multicultural society. The examples are summarized based on the experience of the Bulgarian diaspora (historical and contemporary). On the one hand, each emigrant community needs its own cultural space, a symbol of the homeland, through which to preserve and develop its national identity. On the other hand, entering a new environment, the emigrant community develops approaches to integration and socialization, in which acting as their own institutional forms of knowledge are combined with institutional forms of knowledge typical of other neighboring communities. In both cases, education is unifying - both as a means of maintaining and expressing identity, and as the most important integration approach. The first steps of emigrants, falling into a foreign environment, is to transfer typical for the country of origin institutional forms of knowledge to the new environment. The typical institutional forms of knowledge about the Bulgarian diaspora are Chitaliste (community center) , libraries, museums, bookstores. The Chitalishte is a traditional Bulgarian form of institutionalization of knowledge. It houses the library as a place to read and a network of clubs for various educational and cultural activities. Other institutional forms of knowledge maintained by the Bulgarian diaspora are independent libraries and museums. The Bulgarian diaspora develops various types of independent libraries. One of them is especially popular among Bulgarians abroad - the shared library - this is a platform for exchanging books in the Bulgarian diaspora, prepared on the basis of a list of personal libraries of emigrants. Another type of libraries are the Bulgarian libraries created on the personal initiative of the emigrants. They also collect books that are made available to the local community (not just immigrants) for free use. Bulgarian libraries are also emerging as departments of large municipal libraries, and the replenishment of their funds is perceived as a very important task in building a multicultural society, with the new goals of education. Libraries are also being established in cafes related to the Bulgarian diaspora, as well as in Bulgarian schools abroad. The knowledge of Bulgarian language, Bulgarian culture and history - through these institutionalized forms of knowledge - becomes fully accessible both for the community itself and for anyone who is interested in learning about the thinking and way of life of emigrant groups. Bulgarian bookstores are another form of institutionalization of knowledge. The emigrants set up Bulgarian bookstores as independent institutions with their own buildings, through which the Bulgarian literary heritage was popularized. A relatively new form of institutionalization of knowledge is the virtual museum with a library, which has yet to receive its further development. Therefore, emigrants who find themselves in a multicultural society form their own sustainable forms through which they preserve and develop their national identity, preserve their cultural memory and historical heritage. The creation and development of such institutional forms of knowledge enriches the content characteristics of non-formal education in a multicultural society, achieving the meaning of cultural exchange and dialogue through the signs of the native.

Keywords:

Emigrant community, Bulgarian diaspora, identity, cultural memory, institutional forms of knowledge.