VAZOFF, IVAN Bulgarian poet and novelist, was born at Sopot. In common with the founders of Bulgarian literature, Rakovsky, Karaveloff and Botev (q.v.), he was first inspired by the sufferings of his countrymen before the liberation. His Trials of Bulgaria describes the nation's struggle for freedom. A bard of the people, Vazoff's style is simple and unaffected ; his Epic Poem to the Forgotten, celebrating the great deeds and sacrifices of the Bulgarian people, thrilled the nation, as also did Under the Thunder of Victory (1914), Songs of Macedonia (1916) and New Echo (1917). Vazoff's most inspired poems and novels
of a descriptive character are those relating to the Bulgarian countryside and village life. He died at Sofia on Sept. 22, 1921. His chief novels are: Under the Yoke (Eng. trans. 1894) Svetoslav Terter (1907), Hadji Ahil and Kazalarskata Tsaritza; and his dramas include : Borislav (1910) and Towards the Abyss.