The advisory commission to the government of North Macedonia, which is the one approving the names of historical figures used by foundations and associations, has banned the creation of a Bulgarian association with the name "Tsar Ferdinand".

Speaking to Sitel TV, the chairman of the commission, Boban Petrovski, said that Tsar Ferdinand was "not a positive figure in the collective memory of Macedonians." "This person was the head of the Bulgarian state at a time when several wars were fought, which meant bloodshed and destruction for the Macedonians and we estimated that the name of such a person would cause negative feelings among a large part of the population," Petrovski added.

Ferdinand I of Bulgaria ruled from 1887 and abdicated in 1918.