George M. Averoff (15 August 1815 – 15 July 1899), alternately Jorgos Averof or Georgios Averof (in Greek : Γεώργιος Αβέρωφ), was a Greek businessman and philanthropist. He is one of the great national benefactors of Greece. Born in the town of Metsovo ( Epirus , Greece, then Ottoman Empire ), Averoff moved to Alexandria while still young. He was known through most of his life for founding numerous schools in both Egypt and Greece.
146-561: George Averoff was born in Metsovo in Northern Greece, into an Aromanian family. He moved to Cairo, Egypt, in 1837 to work in a shop run by his brother, Anastasios. Thanks to his bold tactics and business activities, he became the biggest merchant in Egypt. At the same time he participated in banking and real estate (buying and leasing land) while, thanks to his many riverboats travelling up and down
292-493: A high-income economy , recognized as a middle power in international affairs . It hosts several UNESCO World Heritage Sites and is a growing tourist attraction, receiving 13 million foreign visitors in 2023 . Its economy ranks among the fastest growing in the European Union, primarily driven by the service sector . Romania is a net exporter of cars and electric energy worldwide, and its citizens benefit from some of
438-507: A 1521 letter known as the " Letter of Neacșu from Câmpulung ", is notable for including the first documented occurrence of Romanian in a country name: Wallachia is mentioned as Țara Rumânească . Human remains found in Peștera cu Oase ("Cave with Bones"), radiocarbon date from circa 40,000 years ago, and represent the oldest known Homo sapiens in Europe. Neolithic agriculture spread after
584-550: A distinct Aromanian national consciousness, however, was hampered by the tendency of the Aromanian upper classes to be absorbed in the dominant surrounding ethnicities, and espouse their respective national causes as their own. So much did they become identified with the host nations that Balkan national historiographies portray the Aromanians as the "best Albanians", "best Greeks" and "best Bulgarians", leading to researchers calling them
730-667: A leader of the opposition to Antonescu, entered into secret negotiations with British diplomats who made it clear that Romania had to seek reconciliation with the Soviet Union. To facilitate the coordination of their activities against Antonescu's regime, the National Liberal and National Peasants' parties established the National Democratic Bloc, which also included the Social Democratic and Communist parties. After
876-495: A new state under Ottoman suzerainty, the Principality of Transylvania . Reformation spread and four denominations— Calvinism , Lutheranism , Unitarianism , and Roman Catholicism—were officially acknowledged in 1568. The Romanians' Orthodox faith remained only tolerated, although they made up more than one-third of the population, according to 17th-century estimations. The princes of Transylvania, Wallachia, and Moldavia joined
1022-510: A policy of total reimbursement of the foreign debt by imposing austerity steps that impoverished the population and exhausted the economy. The process succeeded in repaying all of Romania's foreign government debt in 1989. At the same time, Ceaușescu greatly extended the authority of the Securitate secret police and imposed a severe cult of personality , which led to a dramatic decrease in the dictator's popularity and culminated in his overthrow in
1168-546: A political crisis in 2012. Near the end of 2013, The Economist reported Romania again enjoying "booming" economic growth at 4.1% that year, with wages rising fast and a lower unemployment than in Britain. Economic growth accelerated in the midst of government liberalisation in opening up new sectors to competition and investment—most notably, energy and telecoms. In 2016, the Human Development Index ranked Romania as
1314-607: A principle was enacted, but women could not vote or be candidates. Calypso Botez established the National Council of Romanian Women to promote feminist ideas. Romania was a multiethnic country, with ethnic minorities making up about 30% of the population, but the new constitution declared it a unitary national state in 1923. Although minorities could establish their own schools, Romanian language, history and geography could only be taught in Romanian. Agriculture remained
1460-566: A recent article in the Romanian media points out, the kindergarten, primary and secondary schools in the Albanian town of Divjakë where the local Albanian Aromanians pupils are taught classes both in Aromanian and Romanian were granted substantial help directly from the Romanian government. One of the only churches serving the Aromanian minority in Albania is the St. Sotir Church ( Ayiu Sutir ) of Korçë, which
1606-719: A regular tribute to the Ottoman sultans from 1417 and 1456, respectively. A military commander of Romanian origin, John Hunyadi , organised the defence of the Kingdom of Hungary until his death in 1456. Increasing taxes outraged the Transylvanian peasants, and they rose up in an open rebellion in 1437, but the Hungarian nobles and the heads of the Saxon and Székely communities jointly suppressed their revolt. The formal alliance of
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#17328514361351752-594: A result of Hungarian oppression in the region. In April 1990, a sit-in protest contesting the results of that year's legislative elections and accusing the FSN, including Iliescu, of being made up of former Communists and members of the Securitate grew rapidly to become what was called the Golaniad . Peaceful demonstrations degenerated into violence, prompting the intervention of coal miners summoned by Iliescu. This episode has been documented widely by both local and foreign media, and
1898-425: A separate identity. According to Frank Kressing and Karl Kaser in 2002, there were between 30,000 and 50,000 Aromanians in Albania. Tanner (2004) pointed out Albania as the only country where Aromanians make a relatively significant percentage of population, around 2%. For the last years there seems to be a renewal of the former policies of supporting and sponsoring of Romanian schools for Aromanians of Albania. As
2044-522: A significant improvement in living standards as the country successfully reduced domestic poverty and established a functional democratic state. However, Romania's development suffered a major setback during the late 2000s' recession leading to a large gross domestic product contraction and a budget deficit in 2009. This led to Romania borrowing from the International Monetary Fund. Worsening economic conditions led to unrest and triggered
2190-466: A successful Soviet offensive, the young King Michael I ordered Antonescu's arrest and appointed politicians from the National Democratic Bloc to form a new government on 23 August 1944. Romania switched sides during the war, and nearly 250,000 Romanian troops joined the Red Army's military campaign against Hungary and Germany, but Joseph Stalin regarded the country as an occupied territory within
2336-580: Is Bucharest . Other major urban centers include Cluj-Napoca , Timișoara , Iași , Constanța and Brașov . Settlement in the territory of modern Romania began in the Lower Paleolithic , later becoming the kingdom of Dacia before Roman conquest and Romanisation . The modern Romanian state emerged in 1859 through the union of Moldavia and Wallachia and gained independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1877. During World War I , Romania joined
2482-457: Is a country located at the crossroads of Eastern and Southeast Europe . It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to the east, and the Black Sea to the southeast. It has a mainly continental climate , and an area of 238,397 km (92,046 sq mi) with a population of 19 million people (2023). Romania
2628-573: Is celebrated instead for the same event. This observance is meant for the Aromanians but also for the Megleno-Romanians and the Istro-Romanians . In modern times, Aromanians generally have adopted the dominant national culture, often with a dual identity as both Aromanian and Greek/Albanian/Bulgarian/Macedonian/Serbian/etc. Aromanians are also found outside the borders of Greece. There are many Aromanians in southern Albania and in towns all over
2774-800: Is considered to have developed from Common Romanian , a common stage of all the Eastern Romance varieties that evolved from the Vulgar Latin spoken by Paleo-Balkan peoples after the Romanization of the Balkan area that fell under the Latin sphere of influence. The Aromanian language shares many common features with Albanian , Bulgarian and Greek ; however, although it has many loanwords from Greek, Slavic , and Turkish , its lexicon remains majority Romance in origin. The term Aromanian derives directly from
2920-432: Is derived from the way the Aromanians pronounce the word meaning five , tsintsi . In Romania, the demonym Macedoni , Machedoni or Macedoromâni is also used. In Albania, the terms Vllah or Vlleh ("Vlach") and Çoban or Çobenj (from Turkish çoban , "shepherd") are used. The Aromanian community in Albania is estimated up to 200,000 people, including those who no longer speak the language. Tanner estimates that
3066-517: Is difficult to estimate the exact number of Aromanians in Greece today. The Treaty of Lausanne of 1923 estimated their number between 150,000 and 200,000, but the last two censuses to differentiate between Christian minority groups, in 1940 and 1951, showed 26,750 and 22,736 Vlachs respectively. Estimates on the number of Aromanians in Greece range between 40,000 and 300,000. Kahl estimates the total number of people with Aromanian origin who still understand
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#17328514361353212-554: Is more likely to belong to the L11 branch. L11 subclades form the majority of Haplogroup R1b in Italy and western Europe, while the eastern subclades of R1b are prevailing in populations of the eastern Balkans. The Aromanians or Vlachs first appear in medieval Byzantine sources in the 11th century, in the Strategikon of Kekaumenos and Anna Komnene 's Alexiad , in the area of Thessaly . In
3358-547: Is no longer mentioned after the late 13th century. The medieval Vlachs (Aromanians) of Herzegovina are considered authors of the famous funerary monuments with petroglyphs ( stecci in Serbian) from Herzegovina and surrounding countries. The theory of the Vlach origin was proposed by Bogumil Hrabak (1956) and Marian Wenzel and more recently was supported by the archeological and anthropological researches of skeleton remains from
3504-590: Is noteworthy that the term Vlach also meant "bandit" or "rebel" in Ottoman historiography , and that the term was also used as an exonym for mainly Orthodox Christians in Ottoman-ruled western Balkans (mainly denoting Serbs ), as well as by the Venetians for the immigrant Slavophone population of the Dalmatian hinterland (also mainly denoting Serbs). German academic Thede Kahl , expert on Aromanian studies , divides
3650-698: Is remembered as the June 1990 Mineriad . The subsequent disintegration of the Front produced several political parties, including most notably the Social Democratic Party (PDSR then PSD) and the Democratic Party (PD and subsequently PDL). The former governed Romania from 1990 until 1996 through several coalitions and governments, with Ion Iliescu as head of state. Since then, there have been several other democratic changes of government: in 1996 Emil Constantinescu
3796-658: Is represented on the Member State Committee of the European Bureau for Lesser Spoken Languages in Greece. The exact presence of the Aromanian community in Albania is unknown. They are mostly concentrated in parts of southern and western Albania. 8,266 people declared themselves to be Aromanians in the 2011 census. On the quality of the specific data the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for
3942-565: Is the twelfth-largest country in Europe and the sixth-most populous member state of the European Union . Europe's second-longest river, the Danube , empties into the Danube Delta in the southeast of the country. The Carpathian Mountains cross Romania from the north to the southwest and include Moldoveanu Peak , at an altitude of 2,544 m (8,346 ft). Romania's capital and largest city
4088-602: Is well documented from the end of the 11th century. Scholars who reject the Daco-Roman continuity theory say that the first Vlach groups left their Balkan homeland for the mountain pastures of the eastern and southern Carpathians in the 11th century, establishing the Romanians' presence in the lands to the north of the Lower Danube. Exposed to nomadic incursions, Transylvania developed into an important border province of
4234-598: The 2008 summit in Bucharest. The country applied in June 1993 for membership in the European Union and became an Associated State of the EU in 1995, an Acceding Country in 2004, and a full member on 1 January 2007. During the 2000s, Romania had one of the highest economic growth rates in Europe and has been referred at times as "the Tiger of Eastern Europe". This has been accompanied by
4380-781: The Arab countries and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) allowed Romania to play a key role in the Israel– Egypt and Israel–PLO peace talks. As Romania's foreign debt increased sharply between 1977 and 1981 (from US$ 3 billion to $ 10 billion), the influence of international financial organisations—such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank —grew, gradually conflicting with Ceaușescu's autocratic rule. He eventually initiated
4526-634: The Axis occupation of Greece , Italy encouraged Aromanian nationalists to form an "Aromanian homeland", the so-called Principality of the Pindus . The project never gained much traction among the local population, however. On the contrary, many leading figures of the Greek Resistance against the Axis, like Andreas Tzimas , Stefanos Sarafis , and Alexandros Svolos , were Aromanians. The "principality" project collapsed with
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4672-753: The Danubian Principalities ) in 1774. Taking advantage of the Greek War of Independence , a Wallachian lesser nobleman, Tudor Vladimirescu, stirred up a revolt against the Ottomans in January ;1821, but he was murdered in June by Phanariot Greeks. After a new Russo-Turkish War , the Treaty of Adrianople strengthened the autonomy of the Danubian Principalities in 1829, although it also acknowledged
4818-792: The Fara Armãneascã ("Aromanian tribe") or the Populu Armãnescu ("Aromanian people"). The endonym is rendered in English as Aromanian , in Romanian as Aromâni , in Greek as Armanoi (Αρμάνοι), in Albanian as Arumunët , in Bulgarian as Arumani (Арумъни), in Macedonian as Aromanci (Ароманци), in Serbo-Croatian as Armani and Aromuni . The term "Vlach" was used in medieval Balkans as an exonym for all
4964-667: The Holy League against the Ottoman Empire in 1594. The Wallachian prince, Michael the Brave , united the three principalities under his rule in May ;1600. The neighboring powers forced him to abdicate in September, but he became a symbol of the unification of the Romanian lands in the 19th century. Although the rulers of the three principalities continued to pay tribute to the Ottomans,
5110-565: The Italian armistice in 1943. The date of the announcement of the Ottoman irade of 23 May 1905 has been adopted in recent times by Aromanians in Albania, Australia , Bulgaria and North Macedonia as the " Aromanian National Day " ( Dzua Natsionalã a Armãnjilor ), but notably not in Greece or among the Aromanians in the Greek diaspora . In Romania, every 10 May, the Balkan Romanianness Day
5256-572: The Kingdom of Hungary . The Székelys—a community of free warriors—settled in central Transylvania around 1100 and moved to the easternmost regions around 1200. Colonists from the Holy Roman Empire —the Transylvanian Saxons ' ancestors—came to the province in the 1150s. A high-ranking royal official, styled voivode , ruled the Transylvanian counties from the 1170s, but
5402-452: The Megleno-Romanians ). The term "Vlachs" is used in Greece and in other countries to refer to the Aromanians, with this term having been more widespread in the past to refer to all Romance-speaking peoples of the Balkan Peninsula and Carpathian Mountains region ( Southeast Europe ). Their vernacular, Aromanian , is an Eastern Romance language very similar to Romanian , which has many slightly varying dialects of its own. Aromanian
5548-423: The Republic of Genoa started establishing colonies on the Black Sea, including Calafat , and Constanța . The Mongols destroyed large territories during their invasion of Eastern and Central Europe in 1241 and 1242. The Mongols' Golden Horde emerged as the dominant power of Eastern Europe, but Béla IV of Hungary's land grant to the Knights Hospitallers in Oltenia and Muntenia shows that
5694-440: The Tripartite Pact of Germany, Italy and Japan on 23 November. The Iron Guard staged a coup against Antonescu, but he crushed the riot with German support and introduced a military dictatorship in early 1941. Romania entered World War II soon after the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. The country regained Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, and the Germans placed Transnistria (the territory between
5840-408: The Veria (Aromanian Veryia ) and Grevena (Aromanian Grebini ) areas and in Athens . The Aromanians are predominantly Orthodox Christians , and follow the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar . Aromanian cuisine is strongly influenced by Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine . Polyphonic music is common among the Aromanians, and follows a common set of rules. A literature in
5986-561: The fastest internet speeds globally . Romania is a member of several international organizations , including the European Union , NATO , and the BSEC . "Romania" derives from the local name for Romanian ( Romanian : român ), which in turn derives from Latin romanus , meaning " Roman " or "of Rome ". This ethnonym for Romanians is first attested in the 16th century by Italian humanists travelling in Transylvania , Moldavia , and Wallachia . The oldest known surviving document written in Romanian that can be precisely dated,
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6132-478: The first constitution of Romania in the same year. The Great Powers acknowledged Romania's full independence at the Congress of Berlin and Carol I was crowned king in 1881. The Congress also granted the Danube Delta and Dobruja to Romania. Although Romanian scholars strove for the unification of all Romanians into a Greater Romania , the government did not openly support their irredentist projects. The Transylvanian Romanians and Saxons wanted to maintain
6278-413: The national flag . In Transylvania, most Romanians supported the imperial government against the Hungarian revolutionaries after the Diet passed a law concerning the union of Transylvania and Hungary. Bishop Andrei Șaguna proposed the unification of the Romanians of the Habsburg Monarchy in a separate duchy, but the central government refused to change the internal borders. The Treaty of Paris put
6424-428: The " chameleons of the Balkans". Consequently, many Aromanians played a prominent role in the modern history of the Balkan nations: the revolutionary Pitu Guli , Greek Prime Minister Ioannis Kolettis , Greek magnate Georgios Averoff , Greek Defence Minister Evangelos Averoff , Serbian Prime Minister Vladan Đorđević , Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople , Romanian metropolitan Andrei Şaguna etc. Following
6570-426: The "critical situation" of Aromanian culture and language. This was after pressure from the Union for Aromanian Language and Culture in Germany . In response, the then President of Greece , Konstantinos Stefanopoulos , publicly urged Greek Aromanians to teach the language to their children. In 2001, 31 Aromanian mayors and heads of villages signed a protest resolution against the U.S. State Department report on
6716-448: The 12th century, the Jewish traveller Benjamin of Tudela records the existence of the district of "Vlachia" near Halmyros in eastern Thessaly , while the Byzantine historian Niketas Choniates places " Great Vlachia " near Meteora . Thessalian Vlachia was apparently also known as "Vlachia in Hellas ". Later medieval sources also speak of an "Upper Vlachia" in Epirus , and a "Little Vlachia" in Aetolia-Acarnania , but "Great Vlachia"
6862-401: The 1920s it was designed more towards encouraging the Romanians' "Macedonian brothers" to emigrate to Southern Dobruja , where there were strong non-Romanian minorities. While Romanian activity declined, from World War I on and with its involvement in Albania , Italy made some efforts—not very successful—in converting pro-Romanian sympathies into pro-Italian ones. In World War II , during
7008-401: The 1930s. The democratic parties were squeezed between conflicts with the fascist and anti-Semitic Iron Guard and the authoritarian tendencies of King Carol II . The King promulgated a new constitution and dissolved the political parties in 1938, replacing the parliamentary system with a royal dictatorship. The 1938 Munich Agreement convinced King Carol II that France and
7154-525: The 1960s that Albanian Aromanians migrated to Tirana , Stan Karbunarë, Skrapar , Pojan , Bilisht and Korçë , and that they inhabited Karaja, Lushnjë , Moscopole , Drenovë (Aromanian Dãrnova ) and Boboshticë (Aromanian Bubushtitsa ). There was an important community of Aromanians in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina that was probably assimilated by local dwellers. Initially they were Christians but around year 1000 they adhered to Bogomil / Patarene Christian sect and were Serbianized . After
7300-458: The 1990s. North Macedonia's Government provides financial assistance to Aromanian-language newspapers and radio stations. Aromanian-language newspapers such as Phoenix ( Aromanian : Fenix ) service the Aromanian community. The Aromanian television program Spark ( Aromanian : Scanteao ; Macedonian Искра (Iskra)) broadcasts on the second channel of the Macedonian Radio-Television . There are Aromanian classes provided in primary schools and
7446-662: The Albanian Aromanians (Arvanito Vlachs) have immigrated to Greece, since they are considered in Greece part of the Greek minority in Albania . There are attempts to establish education in their native language in the town of Divjakë . Notable Aromanians whose family background hailed from today's Albania include Bishop Andrei Şaguna, and Father Haralambie Balamaci , whereas notable Albanians with an Aromanian family background are actors Aleksandër (Sandër) Prosi , Margarita Xhepa , Albert Vërria , and Prokop Mima , as well as composer Nikolla Zoraqi and singers Eli Fara and Parashqevi Simaku . On 13 October 2017, Aromanians received
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#17328514361357592-422: The Allies , and after the war, territories including Transylvania and Bukovina were integrated into Romania. In World War II , Romania initially aligned with the Axis but switched to the Allies in 1944. After the war, Romania became a socialist republic and a member of the Warsaw Pact , transitioning to democracy and a market economy after the 1989 Revolution . Romania is a developing country with
7738-434: The Aromanian Dimitri Atanasescu , and by the early 20th century there were 100 Romanian churches and 106 schools with 4,000 pupils and 300 teachers. As a result, Aromanians divided into two main factions, one pro-Greek, the other pro-Romanian, plus a smaller focusing exclusively on its Aromanian identity. With the support of the Great Powers , and especially Austria-Hungary , the "Aromanian-Romanian movement" culminated in
7884-402: The Aromanian language exists. In Aromanian rural areas, clothes differed from the dress of the city dwellers. The shape and the colour of a garment, the volume of the headgear, the shape of a jewel could indicate cultural affiliation and also could show the village people came from. Fustanella usage among Aromanians can be traced to at least the 15th century, with notable examples being seen in
8030-433: The Aromanian language is almost totally absent from television. Indeed, although as of 2002 there were over 200 Vlach cultural associations in Greece, many did not even feature the term "Vlach" in their titles, and only a few are active in preserving the Aromanian language. In 1997, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe passed Recommendation 1333 (1997) encouraging the Balkan states to take steps to rectify
8176-410: The Aromanian minority of the country. These are the Democratic Union of the Vlachs of Macedonia (DSVM; Unia Democratã a Armãnjlor dit Machidunii , UDAM ) and the Party of the Vlachs of Macedonia (PVM; Partia Armãnjilor ditu Machidunie , PAM ). They are the only Aromanian parties in the world along with ABDE in Albania. Many forms of Aromanian-language media have been established since
8322-442: The Aromanian stećak of the Radimlja necropolis. Additionally Aromanians claim the fustanella as their ethnic costume. There are some famous Aromanian sport personalities like tennis player Simona Halep and football player Gheorghe Hagi . In Romania, they also have their own football team called Armãnamea, who have been representing them since 2008 in the European football tournament for minorities, Europeada . There also exists
8468-493: The Aromanians into two main groups, the "Rrãmãnji" and "Armãnji", which are further divided into sub-groups. Rrãmãnji Armãnji The Aromanian communities have several nicknames depending on the country where they are living. In the South Slavic countries, such as Serbia, North Macedonia and Bulgaria, the nicknames used to refer to the Aromanians are usually Vlasi (South Slavic for Vlachs and Wallachians) and Tsintsari (also spelled Tzintzari, Cincari or similar), which
8614-437: The Balkans, while Aromanians identifying as Romanians are still to be found in areas where Romanian schools were active. There are also many Aromanians who identify themselves as solely Aromanian (even, as in the case of the "Cincars", when they no longer speak the language). Such groups are to be found in southwestern Albania, the eastern parts of North Macedonia, the Aromanians who immigrated to Romania in 1940, and in Greece in
8760-415: The Bulgar elite had already begun in the 9th century. Following the conquest of southern Transylvania around 830, people from the Bulgar Empire mined salt at the local salt mines. The Council of Preslav declared Old Church Slavonic the language of liturgy in the country in 893. The Vlachs also adopted Old Church Slavonic as their liturgical language. The Magyars (or Hungarians) took control of
8906-452: The Cucuteni–Trypillia culture built the largest settlements in Neolithic Europe , some of which contained as many as three thousand structures and were possibly inhabited by 20,000 to 46,000 people. The first fortified settlements appeared around 1800 BC, showing the militant character of Bronze Age societies. Greek colonies established on the Black Sea coast in the 7th century BC became important centres of commerce with
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#17328514361359052-437: The Cupa Armânamea, a futsal competition organized by Aromanians in Romania. In Greece, Aromanians are not recognised as an ethnic but as a linguistic minority and, like the Arvanites , have been indistinguishable in many respects from other Greeks since the 19th century. Although Greek Aromanians would differentiate themselves from native Greeks ( Grets ) when speaking in Aromanian, most still consider themselves part of
9198-399: The Danubian Principalities under the collective guardianship of the Great Powers in 1856. After special assemblies convoked in Moldavia and Wallachia urged the unification of the two principalities , the Great Powers did not prevent the election of Alexandru Ioan Cuza as their collective domnitor (or ruling prince) in January 1859. The united principalities officially adopted
9344-401: The European Pontic steppe , occupied the Lower Danube region in 680. After the Avar Khaganate collapsed in the 790s, the First Bulgarian Empire became the dominant power of the region, occupying lands as far as the river Tisa . The First Bulgarian Empire had a mixed population consisting of the Bulgar conquerors, Slavs , and Vlachs (or Romanians) but the Slavicisation of
9490-414: The Hungarian, Saxon, and Székely leaders, known as the Union of the Three Nations , became an important element of the self-government of Transylvania. The Orthodox Romanian knezes ("chiefs") were excluded from the Union. The Kingdom of Hungary collapsed, and the Ottomans occupied parts of Banat and Crișana in 1541. Transylvania and Maramureș , along with the rest of Banat and Crișana developed into
9636-427: The Latin Romanus , meaning Roman citizen. The initial a- is a regular epenthetic vowel, occurring when certain consonant clusters are formed, and it is not, as folk etymology sometimes has it, related to the negative or privative a- of Greek (also occurring in Latin words of Greek origin). The term was coined by Gustav Weigand in his 1894 work Die Aromunen . The first book to which many scholars have referred to as
9782-571: The Nile, he managed to dominate Egypt's domestic and foreign trade. The Greek historian Antonios Chaldeos, who has written his PhD thesis about the history of the Greeks in Sudan , says that beyond Egypt, Averoff exported Arabic gum and ivory from southern Sudan. According to the diary of Nicholas Papadam, which is part of the Sudanese archives, in 1872 George Averoff toured in all commercial centers flourished at that time ( Khartoum , Sennar , Gedareff , Kasala , etc.) in order to make an investment. Finally, he chose an area in Omdurman which became
9928-404: The Orthodox Romanian prelates to accept the union with the Roman Catholic Church in 1699. The Church Union strengthened the Romanian intellectuals' devotion to their Roman heritage. The Orthodox Church was restored in Transylvania only after Orthodox monks stirred up revolts in 1744 and 1759. The organisation of the Transylvanian Military Frontier caused further disturbances, especially among
10074-399: The Panathenian Stadium. It remains there today. On 12 March 1910, the armoured cruiser flagship of the Hellenic Navy , Georgios Averof , was named in his honour, thanks to a bequest of 300,000 GBP (2,500,000 Gold francs ) left to the navy by the terms of his Will & Testament. Aromanians The Aromanians ( Aromanian : Armãnji, Rrãmãnji ) are an ethnic group native to
10220-528: The Protection of National Minorities stated that "the results of the census should be viewed with the utmost caution and calls on the authorities not to rely exclusively on the data on nationality collected during the census in determining its policy on the protection of national minorities.". According to Tom Winnifrith in 1995, that there were about 200,000 individuals who were of Aromanian descent in Albania, regardless of proficiency in Aromanian, or spoke Aromanian without necessarily considering themselves to have
10366-430: The Roman period. It is hard to establish the history of the Vlachs in the Balkans, with a gap between the barbarian invasions and the first mentions of the Vlachs in the 11th and 12th centuries. Byzantine chronicles are unhelpful, and only in the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries does the term Vlach become more frequent, although it proves problematic to distinguish sorts of Vlachs as it was used for various subjects, such as
10512-551: The Romance-speaking (Romanized) people of the region, as well as a general name for shepherds , but nowadays is commonly used for the Aromanians and Meglenites , Daco-Romanians being named Vlachs only in Serbia , Bulgaria and North Macedonia . The term is noted in the following languages: Greek "Vlachoi" ( Βλάχοι ), Albanian "Vllehët", Bulgarian, Serbian and Macedonian "Vlasi" (Bласи), Turkish "Ulahlar", Hungarian "Oláh". It
10658-605: The Romanian army on behalf of the Entente Powers a day before Germany capitulated on 11 November 1918. Austria-Hungary quickly disintegrated after the war. The General Congress of Bukovina proclaimed the union of the province with Romania on 28 November 1918, and the Grand National Assembly proclaimed the union of Transylvania, Banat, Crișana and Maramureș with the kingdom on 1 December. Peace treaties with Austria, Bulgaria and Hungary delineated
10804-570: The Romanians as the fourth privileged nation was forced into exile. Uniate and Orthodox clerics and laymen jointly signed a plea for the Transylvanian Romanians' emancipation in 1791, but the monarch and the local authorities refused to grant their requests. The Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca authorised the Russian ambassador in Istanbul to defend the autonomy of Moldavia and Wallachia (known as
10950-600: The September 1943 Allied armistice with Italy , Romania became the second Axis power in Europe in 1943–1944. After the German occupation of Hungary in March 1944, about 132,000 Jews – mainly Hungarian-speaking – were deported to extermination camps from Northern Transylvania with the Hungarian authorities' support. After the Soviet victory in the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943, Iuliu Maniu ,
11096-550: The Slavic invasion of Thrace, though before the Megleno-Romanians . In 2006 Bosch et al. attempted to determine if the Aromanians are descendants of Latinised Dacians , Greeks , Illyrians , Thracians or a combination of these, but it was shown that they are genetically indistinguishable from the other Balkan populations. Linguistic and cultural differences between Balkan groups were deemed too weak to prevent gene flow among
11242-446: The Soviet Union on 26 June 1940, Northern Transylvania to Hungary on 30 August, and Southern Dobruja to Bulgaria in September. After the territorial losses, the King was forced to abdicate in favour of his minor son, Michael I , on 6 September, and Romania was transformed into a national-legionary state under the leadership of General Ion Antonescu . Antonescu signed
11388-588: The Soviet sphere of influence. Stalin's deputy instructed the King to make the Communists' candidate, Petru Groza , the prime minister in March 1945. The Romanian administration in Northern Transylvania was soon restored, and Groza's government carried out an agrarian reform. In February 1947, the Paris Peace Treaties confirmed the return of Northern Transylvania to Romania, but they also legalised
11534-468: The Soviet-led 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia . Ceaușescu even publicly condemned the action as "a big mistake, [and] a serious danger to peace in Europe and to the fate of Communism in the world". It was the only Communist state to maintain diplomatic relations with Israel after 1967's Six-Day War and established diplomatic relations with West Germany the same year. At the same time, close ties with
11680-506: The Székely and Saxon seats (or districts) were not subject to the voivodes' authority. Royal charters wrote of the " Vlachs ' land" in southern Transylvania in the early 13th century, indicating the existence of autonomous Romanian communities . Papal correspondence mentions the activities of Orthodox prelates among the Romanians in Muntenia in the 1230s. Also in the 13th century,
11826-685: The Székelys in 1764 . Princes Dimitrie Cantemir of Moldavia and Constantin Brâncoveanu of Wallachia concluded alliances with the Habsburg Monarchy and Russia against the Ottomans, but they were dethroned in 1711 and 1714, respectively. The sultans lost confidence in the native princes and appointed Orthodox merchants from the Phanar district of Istanbul to rule Moldova and Wallachia. The Phanariot princes pursued oppressive fiscal policies and dissolved
11972-563: The Turkish occupation, the Aromanians of Bosnia and Herzegovina converted to Islam faith due to economic and religious motives. There are many artifacts of Aromanians in Bosnia and Herzegovina, mainly in their necropolises . These necropolises cover all Bosnia and consist of funerary monuments, generally without crosses. The Aromanian language is related to the Vulgar Latin spoken in the Balkans during
12118-466: The United Kingdom could not defend Romanian interests. German preparations for a new war required the regular supply of Romanian oil and agricultural products. The two countries concluded a treaty concerning the coordination of their economic policies in 1939, but the King could not persuade Adolf Hitler to guarantee Romania's frontiers. Romania was forced to cede Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina to
12264-660: The Vlachs until the 15th century. A distinct Aromanian consciousness was not developed until the 19th century, and was influenced by the rise of other national movements in the Balkans . Until then, the Aromanians, as Eastern Orthodox Christians , were subsumed with other ethnic groups into the wider ethnoreligious group of the "Romans" (in Greek Rhomaioi , after the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire), which in Ottoman times formed
12410-659: The army. The neighboring powers took advantage of the situation: the Habsburg Monarchy annexed the northwestern part of Moldavia, or Bukovina , in 1775, and the Russian Empire seized the eastern half of Moldavia, or Bessarabia , in 1812. A census revealed that the Romanians were more numerous than any other ethnic group in Transylvania in 1733, but legislation continued to use contemptuous adjectives (such as "tolerated" and "admitted") when referring to them. The Uniate bishop , Inocențiu Micu-Klein who demanded recognition of
12556-695: The arrival of a mixed group of people from Thessaly in the 6th millennium BC. Excavations near a salt spring at Lunca yielded the earliest evidence for salt exploitation in Europe; here salt production began between the 5th and 4th millennium BC. The first permanent settlements developed into "proto-cities", which were larger than 320 hectares (800 acres). The Cucuteni–Trypillia culture —the best known archaeological culture of Old Europe —flourished in Muntenia , southeastern Transylvania and northeastern Moldavia between c. 5500 to 2750 BC. During its middle phase (c. 4000 to 3500 BC), populations belonging to
12702-596: The broader Greek nation ( Elini , Hellenes ), which also encompasses other linguistic minorities such as the Arvanites or the Slavic speakers of Greek Macedonia . Greek Aromanians have long been associated with the Greek national state, actively participated in the Greek Struggle for Independence, and have obtained very important positions in government, although there was an attempt to create an autonomous Aromanian canton under
12848-596: The community constitutes 2% of the population. In Albania , Aromanian communities inhabit Moscopole, their most famous settlement, the Kolonjë District (where they are concentrated), a quarter of Fier (Aromanian Ferãcã ), while Aromanian was taught, as recorded by Tom Winnifrith, at primary schools in Andon Poçi near Gjirokastër , Shkallë (Aromanian Scarã ) near Sarandë , and Borovë near Korçë (Aromanian Curceau ) (1987). A Romanian research team concluded in
12994-489: The country and proclaimed Romania a people's republic . Romania remained under the direct military occupation and economic control of the USSR until the late 1950s. During this period, Romania's vast natural resources were drained continuously by mixed Soviet-Romanian companies ( SovRoms ) set up for unilateral exploitative purposes. In 1948, the state began to nationalise private firms and to collectivise agriculture. Until
13140-749: The development of educational and other infrastructure projects for the Greek communities of Alexandria, Metsovo, Athens and for the Greek state in general. Among them, the most notable ones were the founding of the School of Agriculture in Larisa, the construction of the Evelpidon Military Academy, the donation to the Athens Conservatory, the donation for the refurbishment of the Panathenian Stadium (raised by another two Aromanian benefactors), where
13286-501: The distinct Rum millet . The Rum millet was headed by the Greek-dominated Patriarchate of Constantinople , and the Greek language was used as a lingua franca among Balkan Orthodox Christians throughout the 17th–19th centuries. As a result, wealthy, urbanized Aromanians were culturally Hellenized and played a major role in the dissemination of Greek language and culture; indeed, the first book written in Aromanian
13432-593: The early 1960s, the government severely curtailed political liberties and vigorously suppressed any dissent with the help of the Securitate —the Romanian secret police. During this period the regime launched several campaigns of purges during which numerous " enemies of the state " and "parasite elements" were targeted for different forms of punishment including: deportation, internal exile, internment in forced labour camps and prisons—sometimes for life—as well as extrajudicial killing . Nevertheless, anti-communist resistance
13578-557: The early 7th century. The Goths were expanding towards the Lower Danube from the 230s, forcing the native peoples to flee to the Roman Empire or to accept their suzerainty . The Goths' rule ended abruptly when the Huns invaded their territory in 376, causing new waves of migrations. The Huns forced the remnants of the local population into submission, but their empire collapsed in 454. The Gepids took possession of
13724-501: The empire of the Asen dynasty, Thessaly, and Romania across the Danube. It has been assumed that Vlachs are descendants of Roman soldiers or Latinized original populations (Greeks, Illyrians, Thracians or Dacians), due to the historical Roman military presence in the territory inhabited by the community. Many Romanian scholars maintain that the Aromanians were part of a Daco-Romanian migration from
13870-540: The establishment of independent Romania and the autocephaly of the Romanian Orthodox Church in the 1860s, the Aromanians increasingly began to come under the influence of the Romanian national movement . Although vehemently opposed by the Greek church, the Romanians established an extensive state-sponsored cultural and educative network in the southern Balkans: the first Romanian school was established in 1864 by
14016-414: The evacuation of the province Dacia Trajana in the 270s. Scholars supporting the continuity theory are convinced that most Latin-speaking commoners stayed behind when the army and civil administration were withdrawn. The Romans did not abandon their fortresses along the northern banks of the Lower Danube for decades, and Dobruja (known as Scythia Minor ) remained an integral part of the Roman Empire until
14162-463: The fact that most of the former industrial and economic enterprises which were built and operated during the communist period were closed, mainly as a result of the policies of privatisation of the post–1989 regimes. Corruption has been a major issue in contemporary Romanian politics. In November 2015, massive anti-corruption protests which developed in the wake of the Colectiv nightclub fire led to
14308-595: The federalisation of Austria-Hungary and the Romanian intellectuals established a cultural association to promote the use of Romanian. Fearing Russian expansionism, Romania secretly joined the Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy in 1883, but public opinion remained hostile to Austria-Hungary. Romania seized Southern Dobruja from Bulgaria in the Second Balkan War in 1913. German and Austrian-Hungarian diplomacy supported Bulgaria during
14454-601: The first modern Olympic Games were held, the completion of the National Technical University of Athens and the donation for building of the namesake flagship of the Greek Navy. The restoration of the Panathenian Stadium for the 1896 Summer Olympics was done at the request of Crown Prince Constantine . The stadium was refurbished in 1895, its second refurbishment in the 19th century, using white marble from Mount Penteli pursuant to Averoff's request. The cost
14600-566: The former Dacia province. Place names that are of Slavic origin abound in Romania, indicating that a significant Slavic-speaking population lived in the territory. The first Slavic groups settled in Moldavia and Wallachia in the 6th century, in Transylvania around 600. The nomadic Avars defeated the Gepids and established a powerful empire around 570. The Bulgars , who also came from
14746-478: The graves under stećci. The theory is much older and was first proposed by Arthur Evans in his work Antiquarian Researches in Illyricum (1883). While doing research with Felix von Luschan on stećak graves around Konavle , he found that a large number of skulls were not of Slavic origin but similar to older Illyrian and Albanian tribes , as well as noting that Dubrovnik memorials recorded those parts inhabited by
14892-517: The groups. Haplogroup R1b is the most common haplogroup among two or three of the five tested Aromanian populations, which is not shown as a leading mark of the Y-DNA locus in other regions or ethnic groups on the Balkan Peninsula . On the 16 Y-STR markers from the five Aromanian populations, Jim Cullen's predictor speculates that over half of the mean frequency of 22% R1b of the Aromanian populations
15038-568: The human rights situation in Greece . They complained "against the direct or indirect characterisation of the Vlach-speaking Greeks as an ethnic, linguistic or other minority, stating that the Vlach-speaking Greeks never requested to be recognised by the Greek state as a minority, stressing that historically and culturally they were and still are an integral part of Hellenism, they would be bilingual and Aromanian would be secondary". Furthermore,
15184-1102: The language as no more than 300,000, with the number of fluent speakers under 100,000. The majority of the Aromanian population lives in northern and central Greece; Epirus , Macedonia and Thessaly . The main areas inhabited by these populations are the Pindus Mountains , around the mountains of Olympus and Vermion , and around the Prespa Lakes near the border with Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia. Some Aromanians can still be found in isolated rural settlements such as Samarina (Aromanian Samarina , Xamarina or San Marina ), Perivoli (Aromanian Pirivoli ) and Smixi (Aromanian Zmixi ). There are also Aromanians (Vlachs) in towns and cities such as Ioannina (Aromanian Ianina , Enina or Enãna ), Metsovo (Aromanian Aminciu ), Veria (Aromanian Veryia ) Katerini , Trikala (Aromanian Trikolj ), Grevena (Aromanian Grebini ) and Thessaloniki (Aromanian Sãruna ) Generally,
15330-546: The largest Aromanian group in Greece (and across the world), the Panhellenic Federation of Cultural Associations of Vlachs in Greece, has repeatedly rejected the classification of Aromanian as a minority language or the Vlachs as a distinct ethnic group separate from the Greeks, considering the Aromanians as an "integral part of Hellenism". The Aromanian (Vlach) Cultural Society, which is associated with Sotiris Bletsas ,
15476-409: The local Vlach rulers were subject to the king's authority in 1247. Basarab I of Wallachia united the Romanian polities between the southern Carpathians and the Lower Danube in the 1310s. He defeated the Hungarian royal army in the Battle of Posada and secured the independence of Wallachia in 1330. The second Romanian principality, Moldavia , achieved full autonomy during
15622-576: The local chieftains and established Roman Catholic bishoprics (office of a bishop) in Transylvania and Banat in the early 11th century. Significant Pecheneg groups fled to the Byzantine Empire in the 1040s; the Oghuz Turks followed them, and the nomadic Cumans became the dominant power of the steppes in the 1060s. Cooperation between the Cumans and the Vlachs against the Byzantine Empire
15768-669: The local tribes. Among the native peoples, Herodotus listed the Getae of the Lower Danube region, the Agathyrsi of Transylvania and the Syginnae of the plains along the river Tisza at the beginning of the 5th century BC. Centuries later, Strabo associated the Getae with the Dacians who dominated the lands along the southern Carpathian Mountains in the 1st century BC. Burebista
15914-559: The most talented princes— Gabriel Bethlen of Transylvania, Matei Basarab of Wallachia, and Vasile Lupu of Moldavia—strengthened their autonomy. The united armies of the Holy League expelled the Ottoman troops from Central Europe between 1684 and 1699, and the Principality of Transylvania was integrated into the Habsburg monarchy . The Habsburgs supported the Catholic clergy and persuaded
16060-497: The most valuable to translate their ethnic name is a grammar printed in 1813 in Vienna by Mihail G. Boiagi . It was titled Γραμματική Ρωμαϊκή ήτοι Μακεδονοβλαχική/ Romanische oder Macedonowlachische Sprachlehre ("Romance or Macedono-Vlach Grammar"). The term Vlach is an exonym used since medieval times. Aromanians call themselves Rrãmãn or Armãn , depending on which of the two dialectal groups they belong, and identify as part of
16206-516: The name Romania on 21 February 1862. Cuza's government carried out a series of reforms, including the secularisation of the property of monasteries and agrarian reform, but a coalition of conservative and radical politicians forced him to abdicate in February ;1866. Cuza's successor, a German prince, Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (or Carol I), was elected in May. The parliament adopted
16352-519: The new borders in 1919 and 1920, but the Soviet Union did not acknowledge the loss of Bessarabia. Romania achieved its greatest territorial extent, expanding from the pre-war 137,000 to 295,000 km (53,000 to 114,000 sq mi). A new electoral system granted voting rights to all adult male citizens, and a series of radical agrarian reforms transformed the country into a "nation of small landowners" between 1918 and 1921. Gender equality as
16498-417: The north of the Danube between the 6th and 10th centuries, supporting the theory that the 'Great Romanian' population descend from the ancient Dacians and Romans. Greek scholars view the Aromanians as descendants of Roman legionaries that married Greek women. There is no evidence for either theory, and Winnifrith deems them improbable. The little evidence that exists points that the Vlach (Aromanian) homeland
16644-593: The official status of ethnic minority , through voting of a bill by Albanian Parliament . According to official government figures (census 2002), there are 9,695 Aromanians or Vlachs, as they are officially called in North Macedonia. According to the census of 1953 there were 8,669 Vlachs, 6,392 in 1981 and 8,467 in 1994. Aromanians are recognized as an ethnic minority, and are hence represented in Parliament and enjoy ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious rights and
16790-405: The opinion polls. This surprise victory was attributed by many analysts to the implication of the Romanian diaspora in the voting process, with almost 50% casting their votes for Klaus Iohannis in the first round, compared to only 16% for Ponta. In 2019, Iohannis was re-elected president in a landslide victory over former Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă . The post–1989 period is characterised by
16936-592: The presence of units of the Red Army in the country. During the Soviet occupation of Romania , the communist-dominated government called for new elections in 1946, which they fraudulently won , with a fabricated 70% majority of the vote. Thus, they rapidly established themselves as the dominant political force. Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej , a communist party leader imprisoned in 1933, escaped in 1944 to become Romania's first communist leader. In February 1947, he and others forced King Michael I to abdicate and leave
17082-648: The principal sector of economy, but several branches of industry—especially the production of coal, oil, metals, synthetic rubber, explosives and cosmetics—developed during the interwar period . With oil production of 5.8 million tons in 1930, Romania ranked sixth in the world. Two parties, the National Liberal Party and the National Peasants' Party , dominated political life, but the Great Depression in Romania brought about significant changes in
17228-560: The protection of Italy at the end of World War I, called Principality of the Pindus . Aromanians have been very influential in Greek politics, business and the army. Revolutionaries Rigas Feraios and Giorgakis Olympios , Prime Minister Ioannis Kolettis , billionaires and benefactors Evangelos Zappas and Konstantinos Zappas , businessman and philanthropist George Averoff , Field Marshal and later Prime Minister Alexandros Papagos , and conservative politician Evangelos Averoff were all either Aromanians or of partial Aromanian heritage. It
17374-618: The provincials enjoyed a long period of peace and prosperity in the 2nd century. Scholars accepting the Daco-Roman continuity theory—one of the main theories about the origin of the Romanians —say that the cohabitation of the native Dacians and the Roman colonists in Roman Dacia was the first phase of the Romanians' ethnogenesis . The Carpians , Goths , and other neighbouring tribes made regular raids against Dacia from the 210s. The Romans could not resist, and Emperor Aurelian ordered
17520-540: The recognition of the Aromanians as a distinct millet (the Ullah millet ) by the Ottoman Empire on 22 May 1905, with corresponding freedoms of worship and education in their own language. Nevertheless, due to the advanced assimilation of the Aromanians, this came too late to lead to the creation of a distinct Aromanian national identity; indeed, as Gustav Weigand noted in 1897, most Aromanians were not only indifferent, but actively hostile to their own national movement. At
17666-467: The reign of Bogdan I around 1360. A local dynasty ruled the Despotate of Dobruja in the second half of the 14th century, but the Ottoman Empire took possession of the territory after 1388. Princes Mircea I and Vlad III of Wallachia , and Stephen III of Moldavia defended their countries' independence against the Ottomans. Most Wallachian and Moldavian princes paid
17812-403: The resignation of Romania's Prime Minister Victor Ponta. During 2017–2018, in response to measures which were perceived to weaken the fight against corruption, some of the biggest protests since 1989 took place in Romania, with over 500,000 people protesting across the country. Nevertheless, there have been significant reforms aimed at tackling corruption. A National Anticorruption Directorate
17958-516: The right to education in their language. There are Aromanian cultural societies and associations such as the Union for Aromanian Culture from North Macedonia, The Aromanian League of North Macedonia, The International League of Aromanians and Comuna Armãneascã "Frats Manachi" , (The Aromanian Community Manaki Brothers) in Bitola (Aromanian Bituli or Bitule ). There also are two political parties representing
18104-459: The rivers Dniester and Dnieper) under Romanian administration. Romanian and German troops massacred at least 160,000 local Jews in these territories; more than 105,000 Jews and about 11,000 Gypsies died during their deportation from Bessarabia to Transnistria. Most of the Jewish population of Moldavia, Wallachia, Banat and Southern Transylvania survived, but their fundamental rights were limited. After
18250-533: The same regions. The reliability of the Gesta is debated. Some scholars regard it as a basically accurate account, others describe it as a literary work filled with invented details. The Pechenegs seized the lowlands abandoned by the Hungarians to the east of the Carpathians. Byzantine missionaries proselytised in the lands east of the Tisa from the 940s and Byzantine troops occupied Dobruja in the 970s. The first king of Hungary , Stephen I , who supported Western European missionaries, defeated
18396-457: The same time, the Greek–Romanian antagonism over Aromanian loyalties intensified with the armed Macedonian Struggle , leading to the rupture of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1906. During the Macedonian Struggle, most Aromanians participated on the "patriarchist" (pro-Greek) side, but some sided with the " exarchists " (pro-Bulgarians). However, following the Balkan Wars of 1912–13, Romanian interest waned, and when it revived in
18542-412: The separate status of Transylvania in the Habsburg Monarchy, but the Austro-Hungarian Compromise brought about the union of the province with Hungary in 1867. Ethnic Romanian politicians sharply opposed the Hungarian government's attempts to transform Hungary into a national state, especially the laws prescribing the obligatory teaching of Hungarian. Leaders of the Romanian National Party proposed
18688-630: The southern Balkans who speak Aromanian , an Eastern Romance language . They traditionally live in central and southern Albania , south-western Bulgaria , northern and central Greece , and North Macedonia , and can currently be found in central and southern Albania, south-western Bulgaria, south-western and eastern North Macedonia, northern and central Greece, southern Serbia, and south-eastern Romania ( Northern Dobruja ). An Aromanian diaspora living outside these places also exists. The Aromanians are known by several other names, such as " Vlachs " or "Macedo-Romanians" (sometimes used to also refer to
18834-418: The state funds some Aromanian published works (magazines and books) as well as works that cover Aromanian culture, language and history. The latter is mostly done by the first Aromanian Scientific Society, "Constantin Belemace" in Skopje (Aromanian Scopia ), which has organized symposiums on Aromanian history and has published papers from them. According to the last census, there were 9,596 Aromanians (0.48% of
18980-478: The steppes north of the Lower Danube in the 830s, but the Bulgarians and the Pechenegs jointly forced them to abandon this region for the lowlands along the Middle Danube around 894. Centuries later, the Gesta Hungarorum wrote of the invading Magyars' wars against three dukes— Glad , Menumorut and the Vlach Gelou —for Banat, Crișana and Transylvania. The Gesta also listed many peoples—Slavs, Bulgarians, Vlachs, Khazars , and Székelys —inhabiting
19126-407: The sultan's right to confirm the election of the princes. Mihail Kogălniceanu , Nicolae Bălcescu and other leaders of the 1848 revolutions in Moldavia and Wallachia demanded the emancipation of the peasants and the union of the two principalities, but Russian and Ottoman troops crushed their revolt. The Wallachian revolutionists were the first to adopt the blue, yellow and red tricolour as
19272-413: The total population). There are concentrations in Kruševo (Aromanian Crushuva ) 1,020 (20%), Štip (Aromanian Shtip ) 2,074 (4.3%), Bitola 1,270 (1.3%), Struga 656 (1%), Sveti Nikole (Aromanian San Nicole ) 238 (1.4%), Kisela Voda 647 (1.1%) and Skopje 2,557 (0.5%). Romania – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the European Union (green) Romania
19418-538: The trade station of the ships that cross Nile , transferring goods from Egypt to Sudan and vice versa. However, Omdurman residents' local histories in Sudan suggest that Averoff was heavily involved in slave-trade there. In fact, the Omdurman quarter of "Abu Ruf", where historically the slave-market was situated, is still today named after him. His business activities resulted his accumulating vast wealth, which he used to donate to charity and common good purposes. His charity work included significant donations for
19564-497: The use of the minority languages has been discouraged in Greece, although recently there have been efforts to preserve the endangered languages (including Aromanian) of Greece. Since 1994, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki offers beginner and advanced courses in "Koutsovlach", and cultural festivals with over 40,000 participants—the largest Aromanian cultural gatherings in the world—regularly take place in Metsovo. Nevertheless, there are no exclusively Aromanian newspapers, and
19710-592: The violent Romanian Revolution of December 1989 in which thousands were killed or injured. After a trial, Ceaușescu and his wife were executed by firing squad at a military base outside Bucharest on 25 December 1989. The charges for which they were executed were, among others, genocide by starvation. After the 1989 revolution, the National Salvation Front (FSN), led by Ion Iliescu , took partial and superficial multi-party democratic and free market measures after seizing power as an ad interim governing body. In March 1990, violent outbreaks went on in Târgu Mureș as
19856-459: The war against the Central Powers in 1916. The German and Austrian-Hungarian troops defeated the Romanian army and occupied three-quarters of the country by early 1917. After the October Revolution turned Russia from an ally into an enemy, Romania was forced to sign a harsh peace treaty with the Central Powers in May 1918, but the collapse of Russia also enabled the union of Bessarabia with Romania . King Ferdinand again mobilised
20002-441: The war, bringing about a rapprochement between Romania and the Triple Entente of France, Russia and the United Kingdom. The country remained neutral when World War I broke out in 1914, but Prime Minister Ion I. C. Brătianu started negotiations with the Entente Powers. After they promised Austrian-Hungarian territories with a majority of ethnic Romanian population to Romania in the Treaty of Bucharest , Romania entered
20148-432: Was again united under Decebalus around 85 AD. He resisted the Romans for decades, but the Roman army defeated his troops in 106 AD. Emperor Trajan transformed Banat , Oltenia , and the greater part of Transylvania into a new province called Roman Dacia , but Dacian and Sarmatian tribes continued to dominate the lands along the Roman frontiers. The Romans pursued an organised colonisation policy, and
20294-450: Was elected president, in 2000 Iliescu returned to power, while Traian Băsescu was elected in 2004 and narrowly re-elected in 2009. In 2009, the country was bailed out by the International Monetary Fund as an aftershock of the Great Recession in Europe . In November 2014, Sibiu former FDGR/DFDR mayor Klaus Iohannis was elected president, unexpectedly defeating former Prime Minister Victor Ponta , who had been previously leading in
20440-463: Was formed in the country in 2002, inspired by similar institutions in Belgium , Norway and Spain . Since 2014, Romania launched an anti-corruption effort that led to the prosecution of medium- and high-level political, judicial and administrative offenses by the National Anticorruption Directorate . After the end of the Cold War , Romania developed closer ties with Western Europe and the United States, eventually joining NATO in 2004, and hosting
20586-480: Was given 2 billion lei help from the Romanian government. They also have a political party named Alliance for Equality and European Justice (ABDE; Ligãturea ti Egaliteati shi Ndrept European ), which is the only in the world along with two in North Macedonia, and two social organisations named Shoqata Arumunët/Vllehtë e Shqiperisë (The Society of the Aromanians/Vlachs of Albania) and Unioni Kombëtar Arumun Shqiptar (The Aromanian Albanian National Union). Many of
20732-406: Was initially estimated at 585,000 drachmas but eventually reached 920,000 drachmas. Averoff also served as a member of the reception committee for the foreign competitors at the Games . Averoff died in Alexandria in 1899. In gratitude for his generous donations and services, the Greek state declared him a Major National Benefactor and commissioned a marble statue of him which was placed in front of
20878-409: Was one of the most long-lasting and strongest in the Eastern Bloc. A 2006 commission estimated the number of direct victims of the Communist repression at two million people. In 1965, Nicolae Ceaușescu came to power and started to conduct the country's foreign policy more independently from the Soviet Union. Thus, communist Romania was the only Warsaw Pact country which refused to participate in
21024-398: Was the first Dacian ruler to unite the local tribes. He also conquered the Greek colonies in Dobruja and the neighbouring peoples as far as the Middle Danube and the Balkan Mountains between around 55 and 44 BC. After Burebista was murdered in 44 BC, his kingdom collapsed. The Romans reached Dacia during Burebista's reign and conquered Dobruja in 46 AD. Dacia
21170-407: Was within the Latin sphere of influence in the Northern Balkans, north of the Jireček Line , which roughly demarcated the areas of influence of Latin and Greek. With the Slavic breakthrough of the Danube frontier in the 7th century, Latin-speakers were pushed further southwards. Based on linguistic considerations, Olga Tomic concludes that Aromanians moved from Thrace to their present locations after
21316-426: Was written in the Greek alphabet and aimed at spreading Greek among Aromanian-speakers. By the early 19th century, however, the distinct Latin-derived nature of the Aromanian language began to be studied in a series of grammars and language booklets. In 1815, the Aromanians of Budapest requested permission to use their language in liturgy , but it was turned down by the local metropolitan. The establishment of
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