The Official Journal of the European Commission, document 9435/26, has published the design of Bulgaria's first 2-euro commemorative coin. The coin is dedicated to the Bulgarian alphabet, one of the oldest alphabets in Europe. The obverse features the Cyrillic letter combination "АЗ БУКА" at its centre, forming part of the commemorative inscription "БЪЛГАРCКАТА АЗБУКА" (Bulgarian Alphabet) running along the upper rim. The issuing state "БЪЛГАРИЯ" (Bulgaria) and the year "2026" appear at the lower rim. The twelve stars of the European flag are on the outer ring. Designed by the artist collective of Svetlin Balezdrov and Stoyan Dechev, the coin is planned for the second half of 2026 with an expected mintage of approximately 1 million.
The Bulgarian alphabet is based on the Cyrillic script and currently comprises 30 letters. Developed as early as the 9th century in the First Bulgarian Empire by disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius, it later spread to other Slavic nations including Russia, Serbia and Ukraine. Bulgarian uses several distinctive letters, such as "ъ," which represents a characteristic Bulgarian vowel. The script is written from left to right and is today the official alphabet of Bulgaria, as well as one of the official writing systems of the European Union.
Source: Official Journal of the European Commission, document 9435/26