Bride Market Tradition in Bulgaria Where Teenage Girls are 'Sold' to Potential Husbands

Roma boys and girls chat during the open-air 'bride market' in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria

In Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, a bride market is organized every spring, where young Roma girls, virgins, are paraded before potential suitors. This event allows poor families to arrange financially beneficial marriages for their children.

Potential brides are provocatively dressed, wearing heavy mascara, flashy jewelry, towering heels, and mini-skirts, along with traditional long velvet skirts and brightly colored headscarves. Gold jewelry adorns their necks, fingers, ears, and even teeth in what is locally known as the "Gypsy bride market." Surrounding them are young men whose families hope to secure a wife at a favorable cost. The event resembles a social gathering, with young women posing for selfies, applying lipstick, and dancing in rooms strewn with clothing, appearing no different from teenagers in any other part of the world. However, their fate diverges significantly.

Roma girls pose during an open-air 'bride market' in the central village of Mogila in 2011

The Kalaidzhi, an Orthodox Christian subgroup of the Roma community, fiercely guard their cultural traditions. Numbering approximately 18,000, they face widespread discrimination across Eastern Europe. Many young women are removed from school upon reaching puberty.

The market, held up to four times a year, serves as the main avenue for young people to meet before their families negotiate dowries. According to Alexey Pamporov, an academic studying Roma communities for two decades, despite the rise of social media, this event remains a primary method for matchmaking. He notes that while some girls wish for independence, most comply with familial expectations. "They’re not happy, but what can they do? When they grow up in this culture, what can they do?" he remarks.

It starts, like a high school dance, with groups of boys and girls in separate clumps, occasionally shaking hands and checking each other out - while mothers and fathers stay discreetly in the background

The Kalaidzhi adhere to rigid marriage customs, discouraging dating and frowning upon unions outside their community. The first Saturday of Orthodox Christian Lent marks their largest gathering, where intricate negotiations determine a bride price, typically leading to marriage.

According to ethnographer Velcho Krustev of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, "The man is not buying a wife, but her virginity." He asserts that the financial transaction ensures proper treatment of the bride within her new family. The market sees bride prices varying based on beauty. For instance, Hristos Georgiev, 18, negotiated for Donka Dimitrova, also 18, with bargaining ranging between $7,500 and $11,300—more than a year's wages for the average Bulgarian. Georgiev saved money while working in Cyprus. Exceptional beauty can push the price to $21,000.

Roma brides-to-be dance in a car park

Kalaidzhi families typically arrange marriages for their daughters between 16 and 20, often withdrawing them from school by eighth grade. Women play traditional roles, assisting in tinsmithing, managing households, and weaving dowries. Education is not a priority; one in five Bulgarian Roma women are illiterate, and only 10% attain secondary education, according to World Bank estimates.

Despite this, some, like Dimitrova, advocate for marriage based on personal connection rather than financial gain. "One shouldn't look at the money but at the person, his way of speaking, thinking, feeling, and all the rest," she says. However, others acknowledge the challenges, with some girls fearing that wealthier suitors may reject them for not meeting beauty expectations.

A young Roma girl wearing a dress smiles as she wanders through the market with her friends

The tradition, though ancient, is evolving. According to the documentary Young Brides for Sale by Milene Larsson and Alice Stein, modern Kalaidzhi brides have some choice—albeit within the framework of family pressure. "The bride market is essential to Kalaidzhi identity," Larsson explains, "but that doesn't justify the disturbing idea that women are property to be sold, bid on, and bought. These girls are raised to obey and serve their future husbands, rather than pursue their own ambitions."

The documentary also highlights financial struggles within the community. A traditional coppersmithing family spent a week’s wages to dress their daughters for the market. One woman emphasizes the market’s significance, stating, "If the girl is not a virgin when you sell her, they will call us whores, sluts, and disgraceful women. Virginity is crucial because a lot of money is given for it."

Kalaidzhi, who are almost all devout Orthodox Christians, are known to remove girls from school at 15 or even earlier to keep them safe from temptation

Girls at the market, even those too young for marriage, wear extravagant makeup and attire—electric pinks, blood reds, and canary yellows dominate the scene. Boys, clad in tight jeans and leather jackets, dance beside them, surrounded by cars rigged with speakers blasting Gypsy pop music. The event’s exuberance stems from the rare opportunity for youth to interact. Most socialization outside the market occurs through online chats.

Hristova, 19, a prime marrying age, hopes to meet potential suitors. "It’s a good tradition. It’s easier for us if our parents approve," she says. Initially, boys and girls remain in separate groups, shaking hands and engaging in small talk while their parents observe discreetly.

Milka Minkova, 13, poses with her husband Ivan Ankov, 17, at the event which is commonly known as the 'bride market'

A generation ago, the bride market was more explicit, with women standing on stage while suitors bid for them. Though such practices have faded, flirtations at the event often lead to financial negotiations between families. The price of a bride has dropped due to economic downturns, now ranging from $3,000 to $6,600. However, prices remain higher for exceptionally beautiful women.

Some defend the practice as a means of covering wedding expenses, while others criticize it as a transaction for a woman's virginity. Spectator Kosta Kostov argues, "We maintain the morals of our children by marrying them young. If she’s not a virgin, the bride’s family must return the money."

Although the idea that a young woman must be a virgin when she marries has generally faded in many segments of Bulgarian society, it remains strong among the Roma

Financial hardship exacerbates challenges for many Kalaidzhi families. The collapse of the coppersmithing industry has left young men unable to afford marriage. "My grandsons have no jobs, and their parents can’t pay for a bride," Kostov laments.

While notions of virginity have diminished in broader Bulgarian society, they remain deeply entrenched within traditional Roma communities. Unlike other Roma groups, the Kalaidzhi do not allow extremely young marriages—most brides are at least 18. Modernization has introduced some change; young couples must express mutual interest before parents negotiate a bride price.

A Roma woman hugs her daughter as she speaks with a boy. The event is held four times a year and is extremely popular with teenagers among the Orthodox Christian community

Despite outside criticism, the Kalaidzhi view the market as a vital tradition that sustains community ties. Many who found spouses through the fair years ago now attend to arrange matches for their children. Pepa Georgieva, married in 2008 after meeting her husband at the fair, now assists her 20-year-old cousin. "She is nervous," Georgieva says. "There are several grooms possible. She has not decided, and she can’t decide alone. We ask her opinion, but she must also recognize our opinion."

For the Kalaidzhi, the decision is not just about the groom—it extends to his family’s ability to provide financial stability for the bride.

The families gathered here are part of a community of about 18,000 Roma known as Kalaidzhi, who traditionally make a living as coppersmiths but who face fierce competition from China