Dilma Rousseff's Ancestry Exhibit to Be Displayed in Sofia

Photo of Dilma Rousseff's Bulgarian ancestry tree. Photo by Focus Agency

Bulgaria's State Agency "Archives" is opening a special exhibit dedicated to the "Bulgarian Roots of Dilma Rousseff, Brazil's President, who is the daughter of Bulgarian immigrant Petar (Pedro) Rusev.

The exhibit – sponsored by the Municipality of Gabrovo, Petar Rusev's hometown – is to be opened Thursday will feature a total of 105 items – photos, portraits, and documents – of the Rusev family.

It will be opened in the Bulgarian capital Sofia after initially being exhibited in Gabrovo. A total of 598 people spanning 10 generations have been studied to compile the Rusev ancestry tree.

In addition to a President of Brazil, the Rusev family has given birth one Bulgarian government minister – Gen. Rusi Rusev; a Gabrovo Mayor, Hristo Rusev, and the first female mayor in Bulgaria after the coup of 1944 – Petrana Atanasova Ruseva. Descendants of Dilma Rusev's Bulgarian family today live not only in Bulgaria and Brazil but also in the UK, the USA, Germany, and Italy.

Many from the Rusev family were well-off craftsmen and traders in the early 20th century switching to government jobs after the communist takeover in Bulgaria in 1944.

The Dilma Rousseff exhibit in Sofia will feature photos from the Brazilian President's visit to Bulgaria in October 2011 as well as sections dedicated to the contemporary relations between Bulgaria and Brazil.