Yes Is “No” and “No” Is “Yes”

How it works

In most of the world, nodding up and down means “yes” and shaking from side to side means “no”. In Bulgaria it is the other way round:

• „Да“ (da, “yes”) – the head sways to the side, lightly and softly, often tilted, with half a smile. It looks more like a gentle rocking than a firm negation.
• „Не“ (ne, “no”) – the head is thrown sharply upward (sometimes with the eyebrows too) and lowered. A click of the tongue is often added: “tsk”.

An important clarification: the Bulgarian “yes” is not exactly the same as a foreign “no”. It is softer, rounder. But from a distance, on a noisy street or in a panic, the difference vanishes completely.

Who else does it

Bulgaria is not entirely alone:

• Albania – often named as the country with an almost identical system.
• Greece and Turkey – there, too, “no” is said with a sharp lift of the head and a click. Some gestures in Southern Italy are similar. The “yes”, however, is often as in the rest of Europe.
• India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – the famous sideways wobble of the head means “yes”, “fine” or “understood”. Bulgarians and Indians get on wonderfully – for one movement, at least.

Where it comes from

Nobody knows for certain. The most popular explanation is a legend from the time of Ottoman rule: when the conquerors held a sabre to the Bulgarians' throats and demanded that they convert to Islam, they nodded – to look as if they agreed, while actually saying “no”. A beautiful story, but historians have no evidence for it. It is more likely that the gesture is simply part of the common Balkan heritage, like coffee and arguments about coffee.

The misunderstandings

• The waiter asks whether you would like more rakia. You nod politely. No rakia for you. The waiter was polite, you were polite, and as a result everyone is confused.
• The taxi driver asks “to the station?”. You shake your head to mean “no, to the airport”. He is already driving to the station – delighted.
• Bulgarians abroad get used to the local system and, on returning to Bulgaria, start nodding in the wrong direction. Result: their mother doesn't know whether her son wants more sarmi (stuffed cabbage rolls).
• Double confusion: kind Bulgarians sometimes “switch” the gesture when talking to a foreigner. The foreigner, who has already read that in Bulgaria it's the other way round, switches too. The two of them miss each other perfectly.

Practical advice

Say it out loud. „Да“ is da, „не“ is ne. Simple. It is safer than any gesture – and it works even when your mouth is full of banitsa (flaky cheese pastry).