Henrieta Todorova

Todorova was born as Henrieta Theodor Blank on February 25, 1933, in Sofia, Bulgaria, in the family of Theodor Blank (Hugo Carl Theodor Blank from Germany) and Maria Statkova (from Bulgaria). She has a younger sister, Elsa. After World War II, he changed his father's German name "Theodor" to the Bulgarian name "Todorova". In the early 1950s, she married Augustin Vais from Slovakia, with whom they have a son Iven (Ivan). Later, their marriage was dissolved. She has a second marriage with Yordan Simeonov, with whom they have a daughter Iveta (Ivet). This marriage has also been dissolved.

Henrieta Todorova began her higher education at Sofia University. She graduated in 1954 from Comenius University in Bratislava, majoring in history and philosophy. In 1964 she defended her dissertation at the Archaeological Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Nitra on the topic "Eneolithic ceramics from Thrace and Northeastern Bulgaria". Its scientific supervisor is Antonin Tochik. In the same year he received a doctorate (PhD) from Comenius University.

Her life is connected with the Archaeological Institute in Sofia (Bulgaria). Since 1967, after winning a competition, he has been working at the Archaeological Institute at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. In 1978, he defended his dissertation (habilitation thesis) on "Eneolithic Period in Bulgaria" and received the title "Doctor of Historical Sciences". He became a senior research associate I (professor) degree at the Archaeological Institute. From 1977 to 1979, he was scientific secretary of the “Center for History” at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. Since 1978, he has been a corresponding member of the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin. He is the founder of the Problem Group for Interdisciplinary Research at the Archaeological Institute. From 1978 to 1990, he was its head. From 1989 to 1993, he was deputy director of the Archaeological Institute from the team of Prof. Velizar Velkov. From 1982 to 1994, she was a member of the Scientific Council of the Archaeological Institute. From 1982 to 2000 and 2004 to 2010, she was a member of the “Specialized Council for Ancient History, Archeology and Ethnography” at the High Attestation Commission. From 1984 to 1994, she was a member of the “Historical Commission at the High Attestation Commission Bulgarian”. In 2004, she was elected a corresponding member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and in 2007 - a foreign member of the prestigious Leibniz Society in Berlin.[3]

Todorova died on April 12, 2015, at the age of 82.[4] At her request, her body was cremated and part of the dust was scattered in Durankulak (Bulgarian).

Todorova is the author of 18 monographs, over 150 studies, articles, reports and reviews published in Bulgaria and abroad. Publishes in Bulgarian, English, French, German, Italian and Russian. She publishes with the names: Henrieta Vajsová, Henrieta Todorova-Simeonova and Henrieta Todorova. Her works have been reviewed in the most renowned specialized publications. Her research interests include the Neolithic (Neolithic), Stone Age (Eneolithic), Bronze Age, Antiquity, Early Middle Ages, early metallurgy, climate change and their impact on human life,[5] prehistoric societies and their transformation as a consequence of cultural relationships and much more. She is the discoverer of many of the prehistoric cultures in Bulgaria, such as: the cultures of Usoe, Sava, Ovcharovo, Polyanitsa, Kodzadermen-Gumelnița–Karanovo culture (KGK VI) and others. She was the discoverer of the earliest monochrome Neolithic in Northern Bulgaria and of the transition period from the Eneolithic to the Bronze Age.[6] He studies and makes available to science the prehistory of Northeastern Bulgaria and the western Black Sea coast. Characteristic of Herieta Todorova's scientific work is the consideration of the archeological data in a broad, over regional aspect, which turns them into important historical sources. Her contributions to the study of the earliest metallurgy in the Balkans are also significant. He accepts the results of the study of the archaeological complex near the village of Durankulak as one of his most significant achievements.

He teaches courses at lectures at Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski”, New Bulgarian University and the University of Veliko Tărnovo “St. St. Cyril and Methodius”. He gives a dozen public lectures to promote the achievements of Bulgarian prehistory in Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne, Heidelberg and other cities in Germany. He is a visiting professor at several universities: in 1988 - in Bonn (Germany); in 1990 - in Hadjettepe in Ankara (Turkey); in 1999 - 2000 - in Freiberg (Germany); in 2007 - 2008 - in Heidelberg (Germany).

Henrieta Todorova is a participant in numerous international scientific congresses, symposia and conferences. From 1979 to 1996 he was a member of the leadership of the International Scientific Forum "Problems of the prehistory of the Lower Danube region". He has participated in 14 of its international symposia: 2 in Slovakia, 2 in the Czech Republic, 2 in Hungary, 2 in Italy, 2 in Georgia, 2 in the former Yugoslavia and 2 in Greece. Henrietta Todorova is a participant in numerous international scientific congresses, symposia and conferences. He is the organizer of three international symposia on prehistory in Bulgaria: 1978 “Pulpudaeva Praehistoricus” in Plovdiv (Bulgaria); 1988 “Pontus Praehistoricus” in Dobrich (Bulgaria); 2004 “Strymon Praehistoricus” in Kyustendil–Blagoevgrad–Seres–Amphipolis (Bulgaria-Greece).

In 1984 - 1986 he participated in the Bulgarian-German project "Sadovets" (project of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences). In 1993-1998 he participated in a project of the Max Planck Institutes in Mainz and Heidelberg for the study of the earliest metallurgy in Bulgaria. In 1993 - 2007 he was the leader of the Bulgarian team in the Greek-Bulgarian project "Promahon-Topolnica".

Henrietta Todorova is also the editor-in-chief of the Durankulak scientific series, published by the German Archaeological Institute in Berlin; member of the editorial board of Sbornik Dobrudja from its foundation until 2002; co-editor of the series In the Steps of J.H. Gaul. For some time he was also the editor-in-chief of the Studia Praehistorica magazine.

In 2003, Henrieta Todorova was declared an honorary citizen of Dobrich (Bulgaria).

In 2003, a collection was published in her honor (issue 21 of the journal "Sbornik Dobrudja", 2003).

In 2007, the National Archaeological Institute with a museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences published another collection in her honor – PRAE: In honorem Henrieta Todorova.[7]

In 2016, colleagues and friends from Romania dedicated the collection to her (In Memory of Henrieta Todorova) with scientific articles on the topic Between Earth And Heaven Symbols And Sygns. ISBN 978-606-8698-10-6.[8]

• Bibliography

Publication for Prof. Henrietta Todorova

• Vajsova-Simeonova, Henrieta. — In: Jan Filip (Ed.). Encyclopedic Manual for Prehistoric and Early Historic Europe II, Prag 1968, стр. 1562.
• Todorova, Henrieta (Simeonova) — In: J. Filip and J. Harlan (Ed's.). Encyclopedic Manual for Prehistoric and Early Historic Europe III — adenda, Prag 1998, стр. 386.
• Тодорова-Вайсова, Хенриета. — In: Петър Чолов (Ed.). Български историци: Биографично-библиографски справочник. София 1981, стр. 386.
• Васил Николов. Юбилей на проф. д.и.н. Хенриета Тодорова. — Археология 44/1, 2003, стр. 67—68.
• R. Krauß, Henrieta Todorova 1933-2015. Über die Liebe zur deutschen Sprache und zur Archäologie. Praehistorische Zeitschrift 91, 2016, 220-224.