This is the 265th most frequent Bulgarian word.
имало
"Имало" means "there was" or "there has been" in English.
Here, 'имало' is used to refer to the past existence of something, reported or remembered, often implying hearsay or unconfirmed information.
Казват, че в гората имало тайно езеро.
They say that there was a hidden lake in the forest.
In this sentence, 'имало' is used to introduce a past narrative or story, commonly in folktales or fiction, roughly equivalent to 'there was' in English.
Имало едно време един малък замък.
There was once a small castle.
In this sentence, 'имало' is used in a conditional clause to hypothesize about an unreal past situation, translating to 'had been' in English.