Alexander Fol

Who was Alexander Fol?

Alexander Fol was a Bulgarian historian and Thracologist. In 1957, he studied history at the University of St. Kliment Ohridski in Sofia and earned a PhD in 1966. He worked as a university lecturer from 1972 and became a professor in 1975. From 1980 up until 1986, he served as Minister of Culture and Education of Republic of Bulgaria. His research interests lay in classical Greek and Roman history, the cultural history of southeast Europe and Asia Minor, and Indo-European studies. He is best known for his contributions to Thracology.

In 1972, he established the Institute of Thracology at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences in Sofia, and became its first director up until 1992. During this time he organized International Congresses of Thracology in Sofia, Bucharest, Vienna, Rotterdam, Moscow, and Palma de Mallorca. He was secretary-general of the International Council for Indo-European and Thracology Studies. He held a chair of Ancient History and Thracology at the University of Sofia between 1979 and 1987, and a chair of Cultural History of Southeastern Europe since 1991.