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Romania
Romania's name comes from the Latin word romanus, which means "citizen of Rome." Despite the historic name and its accuracy as the lands and people were under Roman rule, the name is a more recent addition and has only been used since the 1500s.
Introduction:
The Romanian people are a combination of their neighbors ethnically, their lifestyle is still heavily rooted in the lands, and their culture is a combination of multiple influences over time; the greatest of these coming from the Romans, who lent the people their name and language. However, since this time other influences have made just as significant impacts.
The Romanians are a combination of peoples, but the similarity that linked them all in the past and continues to link them today is that they lived off the lands and the lifestyle is heavily dependent on this. Even today many people make a living in farming and raising animals as the sun and weather do a great deal in determining the lifestyle and daily routine. However, the Carpathian Mountains also separate the people to a degree and north of the mountains there is a substantial Hungarian minority.
Although this historic lifestyle based on the lands is still common today to a great degree, many changes have also occurred. The Roman Empire arrived to the region and they made an incredibly significant impact as the people gained a new language. Ties to this and later the Byzantine Empire also led to the introduction of Christianity and the region's ties to the Greeks and other people connected to the Byzantine Empire.
Later influences also arrived, including in the form of the Turks, Austrians, Hungarians, and Russians. The Russians didn't have a significant impact, but their successor, the Soviet Union greatly changed the culture and people. Communism arrived to Romanian and, although independent from the Soviet Union, the Soviets allowed communism to last much longer than most of the Romanians would have preferred.
Communism in Romania destroyed the economy and changed the culture and lifestyle. The country quickly urbanized and industrialized as the economy shifted from agriculture to industrial production. Advancements in technology also arrived, but often in the form of high taxes. However, many aspects of the culture remained, including foods and the language among many others, although ethnic Hungarians were at times treated harshly. The lifestyle also changed as people urbanized, although most of the people remained in the towns and villages and even today many people live simple lives based off the lands.
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Information for Romania was last updated: March, 2014 ● View our: Sources & Special Thanks