Also known as: birnic · birnik · tax collector
The title survives only in the plural. The Mraka Charter issued by Ivan Alexander in 1347 uses the form “по-кѫрчие,” while Ivan Shishman’s Rila Charter of 1378 has “покѫрчїе.” The word is Slavic in origin and has been connected with the verb kratiti and with the idea of collecting or taking; the later term birnik, meaning a tax official, belongs to the same semantic and word-forming field. No individual holder of the office is known by name.
The Slavic title cannot be securely identified with any particular Byzantine office. The tax gatherer therefore should not be treated as a straightforward copy of a specific Byzantine fiscal official. Serbian charters contain related words, but they do not clarify his authority. A term found in a document of Georgi Branković from the first half of the fifteenth century, for example, appears to mean taxation in general, while other similar expressions refer to ecclesiastical dues. Wallachia and Moldavia provide a more useful comparison, since bir there means a tax. In Wallachian documents, birciul denotes a collector of dues and is probably the closest functional parallel. It must not be confused with the Romanian birnic, which means a taxpayer rather than an official.
The tax gatherer’s place within the fiscal administration is virtually certain, although it is not known whether he collected taxes generally or only a particular levy. The word “бирникъ” in the Virgino Charter has been interpreted as a census or fiscal assessment and compared with the Russian birka, a stick or small board used to record taxable property and obligations. This connection remains uncertain, while the related Bulgarian term birk more probably referred to an ecclesiastical due rather than to the tax gatherer’s office.
His position in official lists indicates a low rank: he appears fourteenth in the Mraka Charter and twenty-second, or next to last, in the Rila Charter. He probably belonged to the provincial administration. There is no evidence for distinctive insignia, seals, or coins, and no secure indication that the office continued after the end of the fourteenth century.
The title is only attested in plural form. In Ivan Alexander’s Mraka Charter of 1347, it appears as “по-кѫрчие,” and in Ivan Shishman’s Rila Charter of 1378 as “покѫрчїе.” The word is Slavic in origin. It has been linked to the verb kratiti and to the idea of collecting or taking. The later term birnik, meaning a tax official, belongs to the same group of related words and meanings. No person who held the office is known by name.
This Slavic title cannot be tied with confidence to any one Byzantine office, that is, an office in the Byzantine imperial system. For that reason, the tax gatherer should not be seen as a simple copy of a particular Byzantine tax official. Serbian charters use related words, but these do not make his powers any clearer. In a document of Georgi Branković from the first half of the fifteenth century, one such term seems to mean taxation in general, while other similar forms refer to church payments. Wallachia and Moldavia give a more useful comparison, because bir there means a tax. In Wallachian documents, birciul means a collector of dues and is probably the closest match in function. It should not be confused with the Romanian birnic, which means a taxpayer, not an official.
His place in the tax system is almost certain, although it is not known whether he collected taxes in general or only one specific levy. In the Virgino Charter, the word “бирникъ” has been taken to mean a census or a fiscal assessment, and it has been compared with the Russian birka, a stick or small board used to record taxable property and obligations. That link is still uncertain. The related Bulgarian term birk more likely referred to a church payment than to the tax gatherer’s office.
His rank in official lists shows that he was low in the hierarchy. He appears fourteenth in the Mraka Charter and twenty-second, or next to last, in the Rila Charter. He probably belonged to the provincial administration. There is no evidence that he had special insignia, seals, or coins, and there is no secure sign that the office survived after the end of the fourteenth century.
This was a Slavic office for a tax collector. We know it from two charters, one from 1347 and one from 1378. No named person who held the office is known.
It was probably part of the local tax system, but we do not know if he collected all taxes or only one kind. He seems to have had a low rank and likely worked in the province. He was not a clear copy of a Byzantine official.
The office is important because it shows how taxes were gathered in medieval Bulgaria. After the end of the 1300s, there is no sure sign that the office still existed.