Romania is Central and Eastern Europe in a nutshell.
Do you associate Romania more with Italy or Russia? It’s true it is half way between Rome and Moscow but which one influenced it more? It is also true that for 50 years it was under soviet-minded communism but Romania is not a Slavic country, it is actually a Latin “island” in Central-Eastern Europe. Two millennia ago, Romans occupied ancient Dacia, colonized it and strongly influenced the culture. Since then, being at the crossroads of the Ottoman, Hungarian, Austrian, Russian and Polish empires, each fought to own it, leaving behind a fascinating multicultural heritage.
While Romans left behind the language, Ottomans greatly influenced the southern region, Hungarians reluctantly gave up Transylvania and a populous minority remained and brought German Saxons to settle. So if you are interested in the Eastern half of Europe, this might be the best place to visit.
Romania is situated half way between the Equator and the North Pole, having a tempered, 4 seasons climate. Cities like Milano, Montreal and Ulan Bator are at similar latitudes as Romania. Romania covers an area similar with that of the United Kingdom, New Zealand or Michigan. Romania’s neighbors are Ukraine, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova.
Romania is composed of 4 historical regions: Transylvania, Wallachia, Dobruja and Moldova, each of them having sub-regions such as Banat, Oltenia, Muntenia, Crisana, Bucovina, Maramures, or “countries” like Motilor, Hateg, Barsei, Zarandului. The land is equally split between plains, hills and mountains (the Carpathians, also known as the Transylvanian Alps).
The Black Sea bathes the south-eastern side of the country, and there are over 3500 inland lakes. The Danube is Europe’s second longest river and flows through Romania for 1000 km, collecting most other, smaller rivers in Romania. Before it meets the Black Sea, the Danube creates a wonderful Delta, rich in wildlife, now a biosphere reserve.
When it became independent in 1918 Romania was a kingdom. In 1947, as communists took power, it became a republic, led by them until the 1989 revolution. Currently Romania is a democratic republic; it joined NATO in 2004 and is the newest European Union member, since 2007. The trauma of the communist regime is still felt in people’s attitudes, in the way cities look, and in the economy, which is still struggling to be competitive. It is a developing country, figuring on most development indicators above Latin American countries or the richest African ones. Its GDP per capita is close to those of Brazil, Malaysia and South Africa.
People and cities
Romania hosts 21 million people, as many as Australia or Sri Lanka. In the past decades the population shrank by 2 million mainly due to migration to Western Europe. The largest ethnic groups are Romanian - 90%, Hungarian - 7% and Gypsy - 2%. Small German, Serbian, Ukrainian, Tatar, Slovak, Czech, Aromanian, Polish, Slovene and Bulgarian minorities are scattered around the country.
Bucharest is the capital and largest city with a population of 2 million, followed by Iași, Timișoara, Cluj and Constanța with populations of just over 300,000. 45% of the population lives in rural areas while 55% live in urban areas.
Noteworthy Romanians:
- Constantin Brâncuși – acclaimed modern sculptor
- Elie Wiesel – 1986 Nobel Peace Prize
- Eugène Ionesco – Theater of the Absurd pioneer
- George Palade – 1972 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine
- Gheorghe Hagi and Cristian Chivu – famous football players
- Henri Coandă – built the first jet powered aircraft
- Herta Muller – 2009 Nobel Prize for Literature
- Ilie Năstase - won over 100 titles in tennis
- Johnny Weissmuller – first actor to play Tarzan
- Lucian Bute and Leonard Doroftei – recent world professional boxing champions
- Nadia Comăneci – first gymnast to receive a perfect score of 10
- Nicolai Păulescu – invented insulin
- Petrache Poenaru – invented the fountain pen
- Vlad Țepeș – Romanian ruler that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula character
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