[Bulair]

Yes, you're right to some extend, but nationalist movements appeared in the early 18th century and since then most people started realising that they were not just regular citizens of the Ottoman empire.Well actually these ideas didn't reach the majority of the population living by that time in isolated villages, but it did spread in the major cities and the importand thing is that the progressive elite adopted these nationalistic ideas.

Bulgaria was split in two major administrative parts (if we don't count Macedonia) - Rumelia and Moesia, but there is no written evidence that the people in these districts called themselves Rumelians or Moesians.Bulgarians were Bulgarians, Serbs were Serbs etc.Same thing with Macedonia.