Romania's Journey Towards European Inclusion

INCLUSION ON THE WAY TO EUROPE
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ROMANIA
BORDER LAND
BETWEEN ORIENT
AND OCCIDENT

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 Geography: Romania is located in south-eastern Europe
(2,900 km east of the Atlantic Ocean, and 900 km from the
Mediterranean), where the 45° north latitude parallel meets the 25°
east longitude meridian.
 Accessibility: By road – European entrance/exit points
into/from Romania: Borş, Nădlac, Petea, Turnu, Vărşand, Cenad
(Hungary), Halmeu, Siret (Ukraine), Albiţa, Sculeni, Galaţi (Republic of Moldova), Negru
Vodă, Giurgiu, Vama Veche (Bulgaria), Porţile de Fier I, Moraviţa (Serbia); By plane –
main airports: Bucharest (Henri Coandă, Băneasa), Constanţa (Mihail Kogălniceanu),
Timişoara, Cluj-Napoca, Târgu Mureş, Suceava, Sibiu, Tulcea, Bacău, Iaşi, Oradea, Arad;
By sea – harbours: Constanţa and Mangalia.
 Surface area: 238,391 km2
 Population: 19,760 mil. inhabitants (2016)
 Religion: Orthodox (87%)
 Official language: Romanian. Many Romanians also speak English, French or German
 Capital: Bucharest,
 Other principal cities: Constanţa, Timişoara, Iaşi, Cluj-Napoca, Braşov, Galaţi, Craiova,
Ploieşti, Brăila
 Form of government: republic
 Legal holidays: January 1st and 2nd; the first and second days of Easter; May 1st; the first
and second days of Pentecost; Dormition of the Theotokos feast day; Decem- ber 1st; the
first and the second day of Christmas; two days for each of the three annual religious
holidays, as designated by religions other than Christianity, for their devotees
 Emergency services’ telephone number: 112
 Climate: varies between temperate and continental.
During summer, the average temperature falls between
22°C and 24°C, but can reach 38°C. During winter, the
average temperature falls to around -3°C, and can reach
-30°C.
 Romanian time zone: GMT + three hours during
summer (from the last Sunday of March until the last
Sunday of October), GMT + two hours for the rest of the
year
 National currency: LEU (1 leu = 100 bani)

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Romanian
Inventions
That
Changed
The
World
Nicolae Constantin Paulescu (1869-1931), physician and physiologist, teacher at the Faculty of
Medicine from Bucharest, he discovered the anti diabetic hormone released by the pancreas, called
later insulin. Although the publication of his research result preceded with 8-10 months from the
announcement by Fr. Grant Banting and Ch. Herbert Best from Toronto (Canada) about the
discovery of insulin, the committee of accordance of Nobel Price for Physiology or Medicine, from
the year 1923, recompensed the Canadians researchers for the demonstration of the first effective
treatment for diabetes at humans. Responding to the international campaign, initiate by the Scottish
physiologist Ian Murray, professor A.W.K. Tiselius, the vice president of Nobel Foundation,
recognized in 1969, the merits of Nicolae Paulescu in the discovering of anti diabetic treatment,
expressing his hope that the `` pioneering work ``of Paulescu will be praised properly by the
international scientific forums.
Tank cistern, meaning the fountain pen, was invented by the
craioveanul Petrache Poenarul (1799-1875), teacher, inventor,
engineer and mathematician, member of Romanian Academy.
He registered his patent, first in Vienna, after in Paris (patent
3208, from 25 may 1827), with the title `` The endless cone,
feeding itself with ink``

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Emil Racoviţă, the first Romanian who got to
Antarctica, he put the base for biospeology,
science who studies the fauna and flora in
caves. In 1920, when this science crystallized
fully, yet again Emil Racoviţă founded at Cluj,
the first Institute of Speology in the world, and
true center for the investigation of mondial
biospeology. His dreams and spirit of adventure
took him to Balearic Islands and the Caribbean,
Latin America and Europe. Doctor of the Faculty of Science from Soborna. He signed in 1907, the
birth certificate of biospeology a defined by him as a science for the life forms from the
underground environment, with the publication of the study „Essai sur les problčmes
biospéologiques―.("Testing of biospecological problems").
Dr. Eugen Pavel is a Romanian scientist and the inventor of the Hyper CD-
ROM, a 3D optical data storage medium with an initial capacity of 1PB and
with a theoretical capacity of 100 EB[1] on a single disc. It is considered by
some to be the next revolution in computer storage.
Aurel Persu- was a Romanian engineer and pioneer car designer,
the first to place the wheels inside the body of the car as part of
his attempt to reach the perfect aerodynamic shape
for automobiles. He came to the conclusion that the perfectly
aerodynamic automobile must have the shape of a falling water
drop.

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CYBERNETICS Stefan Odobleja
(1902-1978) laid the foundations of
Cybernetics in 1941. Stefan Odobleja is
the creator of psycho cybernetics and the
father of generalized cybernetics. He
started by creating a cybernetic model
which he began from observations,
intuition and rationality. Though
everything was used (as we know) ten
years later, in the American literature by Norbert Wiener. Odobleja‘s work is very important as it
had been used and applied in many scientific fields.
Ioan Cantacuzino
Professor Ioan Cantacuzino (1863- 1934), one of the most
illustrated scientific personality of Romania. He is one of
the creators of medical experiments in Romania, founder of
the romanian school of microbiology. His discoveries had a
big importance in the treatment for cholera, typhus
epidemic, tuberculosis and scarlet fever. He discovered the
vaccine anticholeric.
Traian Vuia – primul avion
Romanian inventor Traian Vuia was the first
European to build and fly a fully self-propelled,
fixed-wing ‗automobile airplane in March 18,
1906
1910 - 1910 - Aurel Vlaicu launches the world's
first aerodynamic fuselage..
.
Scaunul ejectabil – Anastase Dragomir
Anastase Dragomir concentrated his efforts on the safety of the flight
equipment and passengers, being well known for the invention of an old
version of the ejectable seat. After he studied in France and perfectionated
the salvation mode for the pilots in case of emergency, the Romanian
inventator, applied in 1930, at Paris, the license request with the name ``new system of assembling

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parachutes for planes``. The invention consists in a chair provided with two parachutes, detachable
and ejectable vertical from any type of vehicle, designed for emergency situations.
The Romanian engineer Henri Coandă was a pioneer of aviation.
He invented the reaction engine and discovered the effect which
shares his names. The The Romanian physicist graduated as Chief
of promotion `` the upper aeronautics and construction school ``
from Paris, after he effectuated aeronautics experiments and built
the first plane with reaction, named Coanda 1910, shown at
International Salon Aeronautic from Paris, in 1910. The machine
attracted immediately the attention of the public: he had no
propeller, had two wings and one place, a length of 12.5 meters and
a weight of 420 kg, but the real cause for astonishment was the propulsion system, which
revolutionized the construction of aircraft engines.,
Pila Karpen – Nicolae Vasilescu-Karpen
In 1950, the scientist Nicolae Vasilescu-Karpen made "uniform
temperature thermoelectric pile," later renamed "Karpen's Pila".
The inventor has stated from the very beginning that the device
will generate energy endlessly, without any additional
intervention, and the mechanism has not stopped even today. The object is preserved by the
National Technical Museum "Dimitrie Leonida" in Bucharest, and a large replica could feed a
spacecraft
1952- Its established the National Institute of Gerontology and Geriatrics "Dr. Ana Aslan",
the first geriatric institute in the world
Dr. Ana Aslan has specialized in gerontology and has led the National
Institute of Geriatrics and Gerontology for 30 years. This has
accentuated the importance of procaine in relieving age-related
dystrophic disorders by applying it extensively in the geriatric clinic
under the name of Gerovital. Patients who have undergone treatment
with Gerovital include J.F. Kennedy, Charles de Gaulle, Indira
Gandhi, Marlene Dietrich, Charlie Chaplin, or Salvador Dali. Ana
Aslan also invented, patented and widely produced geriatric product Aslavital since 1980.

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1880 – Dumitru Vasescu - build a car with steam engine
1885 - Victor Babeş realizes the world's first bacteriological treatment.
1886 - Alexander Ciurcu - built the first jet boat
1895 - D. Hurmuzescu - discover electroscope
1900 - Nicolae Teclu –the bulb with electric current and gas regulation.
1904 - 1905 - Augustin Maior – multiple telephones
1906 - A.A. Beldiman – the hydraulic hammer with the percussion chisel for deep surveys.
1908 - Lazar Edeleanu the world's first refining process for sulfur dioxide petroleum products
1910 - Gh. Marinescu – treatment for general paralysis.
1918 - Gogu Constantinescu founded a new science: Sonicity.
1920 - ing. Gheorghe Botezatu calculated the possible Earth trajectories – Month used to prepare
"Apollo" project
Do you know?
Oldest writing in the World
Tartaria Writing- 5300BC
―The Thinker and the Sitting Woman‖
 The name of Romania is derivative of the Latin romanus, meaning „citizen of Roma ”.
 The Romanian language is 1,700 years old .
 It is the only Romanic or Neolithic language in Eastern Europe, closely linked to Italian, France,
Spanish, and Catalan. The Tărtăria tablets, three tablets, discovered in 1961 by archaeologist Nicolae Vlassa at
a Neolithic site in the village of Tărtăria (about 30 km (19 mi) from Alba Iulia), in Romania. The tablets, dated
to around 5300 BC.
 ―The Thinker and the Sitting Woman‖ that were found in Romania and are between 6,600 and 7,000
years old.

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DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ROMANIA?
 1858 - Bucharest - the first city in the world that was illuminated by oil and the first oil
refinery.
 In 1889 the Romanian city of Timisoara became the first in Europe to have electric street
lighting.
 Timisoara was also the first European city to introduce horse-drawn trams,
also in 1869.
 Soprano Alma Gluck – the first lyrical artist to sell one million records –was
born inBucharest, Romania on May 11, 1884.
 Romania has the smallest printed banknote in the world. In 1917, the
10-pound banknote was just 2,75 on 3,80 cm , and because of this
thing, this little banknote a symbol of poverty , came into the Records
Book .
 Romania is the ninth largest wine producer in the world.
 In Brasov we find the third narrow street in Europe. Has between 1,11 -
1,35 meters called „Rope Street ‖ .
 The Black Church in Brasov is the third of the biggest churches in gothic
style in Europe,.
 The Black Church in Brosov, has the largest organ in Europe, with 4000
tubes. It also has the largest bell in Romania, weighing 41,000 lbs (6.3
tons).
 Europe‘s second largest underground glacier, the Scarisoara
glacier, is found underneath the Bihor Mountains in
Romania. It has a volume of 75,000 cubic meters and has
existed for more than 3,500 years. After the glacier in the
Dobsinska cave, Slovakia, this has 112,000 cubic meters.
 The Unitarian Church was founded in Transylvania, Romania, where Francis David was
born in 1510
 On 31 October 2012 on the street`s site Sibiu –Orăștie have discovered the oldest inscription
of the world that can prove the writing existence from the Neolithic .
 The earliest Homosapiens fossils, up to now, were discovered in 2002 in southwestern
Romania, in the Cave of Bones. The fossil‘s age is estimated at 37,800 to 42,000 years old.

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1. THE PAINTED MONASTERIES OF BUCOVINA
Voronet Monastery
Perhaps the most famous and stunning of the painted
monasteries is Voronet (Vo ro nets), founded in 1487 by
Stephen the Great to celebrate a victory over the Turks.
Widely known throughout Europe as "the Sistine Chapel of
the East" due to its interior and exterior wall paintings, this
monastery offers an abundance of frescoes featuring an
intense shade of blue commonly known as 'Voronet blue.
The composition of the paint continues to remain a mystery
even now, more than 500 years after the church was built.
Sucevita Monastery- Sucevita was a princely residence as well as a fortified monastery.
Today, the thick walls shelter a museum presenting an outstanding collection of historical and art
objects. The tomb covers of Ieremia and Simion Movila – rich portraits embroidered in silver
thread –, together with ecclesiastical silverware, books and illuminated manuscripts, offer eloquent
testimony to Sucevita's importance first as a manuscript workshop, then as a printing center.
Humor Monastery-Founded in 1530, Humor (Hoo mor) is rather small
physically, but looms large among Bucovina's treasures with a variety of
frescoes dating from 1535, including one illustrating the Return of the Prodigal
Son and one with a "humorous" depiction of the devil as a woman.
The church, topped by a cross-shaped shingled roof, is without a steeple,
indicating that it was built by a court official rather than a prince. An extremely
valuable collection of icons from the 16th century is displayed in the monastery.
Among the most picturesque treasures of Romania are the Painted Churches of
Bucovina (northeastern Romania). With their painted exterior walls, decorated with 15th and 16th
century elaborate frescoes (featuring portraits of saints and prophets, scenes from the life of Jesus,
images of angels and demons, heaven and hell), deemed as masterpieces of Byzantine art, these
churches are one-of-a-kind architectural sites in Europe.. Their outstanding composition, elegant
outline and harmonious colors blend perfectly with the surrounding landscape. The best preserved are
part of monasteries in Humor, Moldovita, Patrauti, Probota, Suceava, Sucevita, and Voronet.

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2. DACIAN FORTRESSES OF THE ORASTIE MOUNTAINS
.
3. HISTORICAL CENTER OF SIGHISOARA
Built in murus dacicus style, the six Dacian Fortresses of the
Orăștie Mountains, in Romania, were created in the 1st
centuries BC and AD as protection against Roman conquest,
and played an important role during the Roman-Dacian wars.
The town of Sarmizegetusa Regia was the capital and major
fortress of the Dacian kingdom, probably built in the mid first
century BCE. It consisted of perimeter walls and
fortifications, a sacred precinct, and a settlement area
primarily for nobles and supporting servants. It was located at
the top of a 1200-meter hill with excellent visibility of the
surrounding lands. The sacred precinct was on the east side of
the town, with a prominent plaza and circular shrines. There
were two settlement areas one on the east side and a larger
one on the west. In addition to dwellings they included
workshops, storage buildings, and agricultural processing
areas.
Founded by German craftsmen and merchants
known as the Saxons of Transylvania, Sighişoara is a fine
example of a small, fortified medieval town which played an
important strategic and commercial role on the fringes of
central Europe for several centuries. Sighisoara is an
outstanding testimony to the culture of the Transylvanian
Saxons, a culture that is coming to a close after 850 years
and will continue to exist only through its architectural and
urban monuments.
Sighisoara is an outstanding example of a small
fortified city in the border region between the Latin-oriented
culture of central Europe and the Byzantine-Orthodox
culture of south-eastern Europe. The apparently unstoppable
process of emigration by the Saxons, the social stratum
which had formed and upheld for cultural traditions of the
region, threatens the survival of their architectural
heritageell.

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4. MONASTERYOF HOREZU
5. THE MEDIEVAL FORTIFIED CHURCHES OF
TRANSYLVANIA
The Horezu Monastery was founded in 1690
by Prince Constantin Brâncoveanu in the town
of Horezu, Wallachia, Romania. It is
considered to be a masterpiece of
"Brâncovenesc style", known for
its architectural purity and balance, the richness
of its sculpted detail, its treatment of religious
compositions, its votive portraits, and its
painted decorative works.
Originally Catholic churches, they became Evangelic after the Reformation reached Transylvania
in the 16th century. The architecture of the fortified churches is generally a mixture between the
Romanesque and Gothic styles, according to the additions and necessary changes which occurred in
time. There is no other place in the world with such an impressive number of fortified churches, all
located in relative proximity. Out of the 300 fortified churches in Transylvania, 150 still remain.
Each bears its distinctive mark, but only 7 have made it on the UNESCO World Heritage List:
Saschiz (Keisd, Mures County), Viscri (Deutschweißkirch, Brasov County), Biertan (Birthälm,
Sibiu County), Prejmer (Tartlau, Brasov County), Calnic (Kellig, Alba County), Darjiu (Harghita
County) and Valea Viilor (Wurmloch, Sibiu County).

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5.THE WOODEN CHURCHES OF MARAMURES
6. THE DANUBE DELTA
There is a strong tradition of building wooden churches across
Eastern Europe, from Karelia and northern Russia all the way to the
Adriatic, but in terms of both quality and quantity the richest examples
are in Maramures. The Wooden Churches of Maramures are unique in
shape and ornamentation and eight of them – in Barsana, Budesti
Josani, Desesti, Ieud, Plopis, Poienile Izei, Rogoz and Surdesti, have
been recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites.The
characteristic high roofs and tall, narrow, pointed steeples are often
collectively described as the Gothic Style of Maramures. The interior
walls of the churches were painted by local artists, with biblical scenes
often juxtaposed against the familiar landscape of the village. Most of
these houses of worship have stood proudly since the 17th and 18th
centuries – some even longer. The oldest wooden church in Maramures
is the Church on the Hill in Ieud, which dates from 1364.
Is the second largest river delta in Europe, after the Volga
Delta, and is the best preserved on the continent. The greater
part of the Danube Delta lies in Romania (Tulcea County),
while its northern part, on the left bank of the Chilia arm, is
situated in Ukraine (Odessa Oblast).
Its approximate surface area is 4,152 km2 (1,603 sq mi),
of which 3,446 km2 (1,331 sq mi) is in Romania. With the
lagoons of Razim–Sinoe (1,015 km2 (392 sq mi) with
865 km2 (334 sq mi) water surface), located south of the
main delta, the total area of the Danube Delta is 5,165 km2
(1,994 sq mi). The Razim–Sinoe lagoon complex is
geologically and ecologically related to the delta proper and
the combined territory is listed as a World Heritage Site.

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DO YOU KNOW ABOUT ROMANIA?
 Romania is the richest gold area in Europe . From ancient times up to now, 2070 tons of
gold have been extracted from Romania's mountains,
placing us in the 5th place in the world after Southern
Africa, Canada, USA, and Australia. It is expected that we
have had three times as was exploited until now, that is
about 6000 tons of gold.
 The only museum of gold in Europe. Four and a half kilograms of gold displayed at a unique
museum. The collection and its presentation surprise the visitors right from the entrance, as the
visitors are introduced to more than 1,300 gold exhibits and more than 1,000 samples of minerals
brought here from around the world. It is worth noticing that 80 per cent of the samples come from
the Brad-Ruda, Musariu, Bradisor and the Moara Valley mines, and these items are displayed to the
public as they were found by underground miner.
 Romania has the largest administrative building in the world, built by the former
dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.The Romanian Palace of
Parliament in Bucharest , known by the name de Casa
Poporului, is the second largest building in the world,
next only to the Pentagon in the United States. It is the
largest, heaviest and most expensive administrative
building in the world.
 Romania has the largest largest population of brown bears
in Europe. The Carpathian Mountains are home to one of the largest
virgin forests in Europe. 400 unique species of mammals, including the
Carpathian chamois, call the Carpathian Mountains home. 60% of
European brown bear
population lives in the Carpathian Mountains
estimated
 The Danube to Black Sea canal in southeast
Romania, is world‘s third longest man-made
navigation route, after the Suez and the Panama

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Canals.
 The Danube River flows 1,788 miles from its springs in Germany‘s Black Forest to the
Black Sea. Just before reaching the sea it forms the second largest and best preserved of
Europe‘s deltas: 3540 square kilometers of rivers, canals, marshes, tree-fringed lakes and
reed islands.
 The rock sculpture of Decebalus is a 42.9 m in
height and 31.6 m in width carving in rock of the face
of Decebalus, the last king of Dacia, who fought against
the Roman emperors Domitian and Trajan to preserve the
independence of his country, which corresponded to
modern Romania. The sculpture was made between 1994
and 2004, on a rocky outcrop on the river Danube, at the Iron Gates, which form the border between
Romania and Serbia. It is located near the city of Orșova in Romania. It is the tallest rock relief in
Europe.
 In Săpânța we find the The tallest wooden church in the world, and the second tallest
wooden structure in Europe, can be found in Peri Church.
It has a 7 meters tall cross that weighs 455 kilograms , on
top of the 78 meters tall church.
 The Merry Cemetery is a cemetery in the village
of Săpânța, Maramureş county, Romania. It is famous for
its colorful tombstones with naïve paintings describing, in
an original and poetic manner, the people who are buried
there as well as scenes from their lives. The Merry Cemetery became an open-air museum and a
national tourist attraction. The unusual feature of this cemetery is that it diverges from the prevalent
belief, culturally shared within European societies – a belief that views death as something indelibly
solemn. Connections with the local Dacian culture have been made, a culture whose philosophical
tenets presumably vouched for the immortality of the soul and the belief that death was a moment
filled with joy and anticipation for a better life (see
also Zalmoxianism).
 Peles Castle was the first European castle
entirely lit by electrical current. The electricity was
produced by the castle‘s own plant. The castle‘s
central heating system, built in 1888, is still
functional and in use today.

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Proud of their traditions, Romanians welcome guests warmly, inviting them into their
homes, offering them the finest dishes they can prepare, singing them beautiful folk songs and
even inviting them to dance.
MĂRŢIŞORUL
According to the old Roman calendar, March 1st was the
first day of the year and marked the beginning of the celebration of
Mars, god of the forces of nature, of spring and agriculture. Every
year on this day we renew our hope, optimism, faith and strength. We
invoke this time‘s triumph of resurrection and re- generation by
giving our loved ones ‗mărţişor‘, small symbolic totems woven from
two combined threads, one red and one white, to wish each other happiness and luck.
WINTER CELEBRETIONS
A winter holiday spent in a Romanian village can
be a unique experience. On Christmas and New
Year‘s Eve, children and young people go from
door to door singing carols, and young men perform
the ‗goat‘ or ‗bear‘ dance. The ‗goat‘ dance used to
be a ceremonial, religious element of agricultural
celebrations, a ritual designed to bring fertility for
the following year, herds full of animals and
abundant crops. The dance is accompanied by a
wooden flute, and at its end one of the young men,
approaching the table
where the visited family
sit, wishes them good fortune for the following year. The young men
dance with the lady of each house and her daughters and then, refreshed
with treats provided by their hosts, offer thanks and take their leave.
ROMANIAN HOSPITALITY
It is impossible to enter a Romanian house- hold and not be offered
whatever food the hosts have on the table, or a glass of wine or rachiu – a
traditional type of brandy. Romania cuisine has countless culinary

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customs and traditions, which use both foods specific to the region and ingredients and methods
from the gastronomic cultures of other peoples whose destinies have inter- twined with Romania‘s
throughout history. The abundance of wildlife in the Romanian forests also inspired a rich variety of
meat dishes and delicacies.
EASTER EGGS
Perhaps Easter‘s most picturesque tradition is the painting of
eggs. Generally, it is women and girls who carefully
decorate eggs, presenting each traditional motif in versions
which vary according to the area, and the eggs‘ sizes.
Painted eggs are a symbol of Easter customs, beliefs and
traditions, representing an element of spiritual culture that is
specific to Romania. Using wax, many Romanians create extremely beautiful decorative motifs
that recall ancestral traditions.
HANDCRAFTS
In so much of today‘s world, tradition and ancient crafts seem
suffocated by modernism. Many weaving workshops, for
example, closed long ago. But in the south of Romania, there
are still women weaving, their hands creating stunning
treasures. And while their skills are appreciated by well-
known designers, fame is not their ambition. In households in Oltenia, this old tradition lives on,
and its products continue to delight the eyes of visitors
FOLK DANCES
Every wedding is celebrated with folk dances and
fiddlers. Hora, învârtita, haţegana, bătuta,
căluşarii are some of the traditional dances, each
representing a different region of the country.
Perhaps the most spectacular and dynamic dance
from Romanian folklore is the căluşarii (a
UNESCO World Cultural heritage monument), a
complex, ritualistic dance which relates to fertility
and healing and stirs up a delirious, tireless
outpouring of human energy. Dramatic jumps suggest the human desire to transcend the Earth or
man‘s own condition, in a dynamic representation of inner feelings. The costumes of the căluşarii

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dancers combine the colours white, signifying purity and chastity, and red, which protects against
the evil eye.
SONGS FOR THE SOUL
Of all Romania‘s many
folk songs, none has more
emotive power than
the doina (a UNESCO
World Cultural
heritage monument),
and a doina performed
on a panpipe flute
creates a visceral
reaction in its listeners. The precise origin of the panpipe is not
known for sure, and archeology and history record its use all
over the world. It is thought that the instrument was
introduced into Romanian culture following contact with the Greeks, on the shores of the Black
Sea, and the hollow shape of the panpipes played here is recognized worldwide as a Romanian
variation. Although an ancient musical instrument, the panpipe has won new appreciation in recent
decades, notably because of Hollywood films with soundtracks featuring panpipe players
 Romania‘s Astra Museum in Sibiu is the second-largest outdoor museum in the world. It
features more than 300 buildings as well as watermills and windmills, gigantic presses for wine,
fruit and oil, hydraulic forges and more.
NATIONAL COSTUMES- ROMAN AREA
The female folkloric costume
In general, the female costume is composed of: shirt,
hem and the part which is covering the part from the
waist down which differs from one region to another. It
has different names depending on its shape and the area,

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it can be "catrinta", "valnita", "fota", "opreg".These pieces are woven from wool, with simpler or
more complicated ornamentation depending on the geographical area. The shirts have the same
ornamental parts, with some chromatic and ornamentals differences. O completion to the women‘s
port is the great variety of the female ‗head ornamentation‘ which differs from one area to another,
even from village to village, depending on the value of this finery beauty fabrics and embroidery or
other ornaments for this purpose. They consist of: head dress, wimple, ‗cepse‘ or wreath. Other
parts of the women‘s costume are belts and ‗betelele‘ which show outstanding artistic
achievements. Characteristic to the female costume of all regions consist in using as background, of
the white color, the of flax, hemp and wool fabrics.
For centuries, people speaking diverse languages, belonging to various cultures and
practicing different religions have lived together peacefully in Romania.
Multiculturalism is our reality. It embraces cultural variety and pluralism, and the cultural identities
of Romania‘s minority communities. Cultural borrowing, the intermingling of customs, continuous
competition between Romanian, Transylvanian Saxon, Hungarian and other influences inform
every day. If you visit Transylvania, you will witness how closely Romanians‘ houses resemble
those of Transylvanian Saxons and Hungarians, each one more charming than the last. Visit
Dobrogea and you can sample Turkish baklava in Romanian pastry shops, while in southern
Romania tasty meatballs are customary fare. The Romanian language is enriched by many words
borrowed from immigrant cultures. All our tribes have co-mingled, bringing about a wisdom rooted
in tolerance. On the streets of Transylvania you will often see Romanian, Hungarian and
Transylvanian Saxon children playing together. Growing up together,
they le- arn mutual respect instinctively. Architectural, historical and
religious monuments are some of the visible expressions of our
minority cultural inheritance. Sibiu‘s Brukenthal Museum, the oldest
museum in Romania, and the historic centre of Sighişoara city, a
UNESCO World Heritage site, showcase our German community‘s
cultural achievements. Many of Transylvania‘s castles belong to the
Hungarian aristocracy.
Romania’s Jewish community’s history stretches back around two
millennia. The Yiddish language, much used between the wars by

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Romanian Jews, is very little spoken among today‘s Jewish population. Several temples and
synagogues have stood on Romanian soil, some of them declared historic
and architectural monuments, and protected by law.
The Hungarians minority is Romania‘s largest. Most Hungarians live in
the Transylvania area, which has been shaped by Hungarian influence.
Proud of their cultural inheritance, they speak and study in Hungarian and
maintain traditions including folk costume. Over 1,000 Hungarian children
and teenagers, most of them from the Harghita County, take part in a
traditional folk dance festival, which takes place in the Miercurea Ciuc
municipality.
The first German settlers came to live in Romania more than than850 years ago. Romanian
Germans today are not a compact, unitary group, as their ancestors came
from many parts of Europe, some willingly, invited by Romanian rulers
to share a better standard of living than their own country afforded them,
others driven here by circumstance over the centuries. Without a single,
unifying cultural connection, and speaking various di- alects of the
German language, they have integrated as various small and distinctive
communities. Although today very few Transylvanian Saxons remain,
most of them seniors, pass through Transylvania and their cultural
footprint can be seen everywhere, nowhere more than in the spectacular fortified churches they
built over the centuries for defense.
The influences of Romania‘s diverse ethnic communities con- tribute to a
fluid, evolving universe of culture, art and spirituality. The beauty and
spirit of the various traditions‘ songs and dances, their arts and crafts
enrich the nation‘s cultural life. And Romania‘s unique blend of customs
and traditions drawn from all its communities takes centre stage at the
festivals that take place every year.
The exact date of the Romany people‘s arrival in
today‘s Ro- mania is not known, but experts estimate it
is around 1000 AD. The first references to Romany people appear in documents
from Moldavia and Transylvania from the 15th century. Historians and
sociologists believe that many of the Romany arrivals came as Tartar slaves,
captives of the Golden Horde. Not until the first decades of the 19th century
were they released from bondage. In the Middle Ages, most Romany people
from Romanian territories were slaves for the nobility, voivodes or at the

Page20
monasteries, mainly as coopers, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, tin- kers or fiddlers. Today, traditional
Romany occupations – principally jobs in crafts – no longer thrive.
NOTABLE ROMANIAN GYPSY PEOPLE
 Grigoraş Dinicu, violinist
 Damian Draghici, player of the pan-
pipe
 Ştefan Bănică, Sr., singer
 Ştefan Bănică, Jr., singer
 Fănică Luca, player of the pan-pipe
 Bănel Nicoliţă, footballer
 Alexandru Neagu, footballer
 Johnny Răducanu, jazz musician
 Adrian Copilul Minune, manele singer
 Ion Voicu, classical violinist and
conductor
 Mădălin Voicu, conductor
 Nicolae Guţă, manele singer
 Marcel Pavel, singer
 Fărâmiţă Lambru, singer
 Anca Parghel, jazz singer
 Connect-R, singer
Type of houses owned by wealthy
Romani families
Historical population
Year Pop. ±%
1887 200,000 —
1930 262,501 +31.3%
1948 53,425 −79.6%
1956 104,216 +95.1%
1966 64,197 −38.4%
1977 227,398 +254.2%
1992 401,087 +76.4%
2002 535,140 +33.4%
2011 621,573 +16.2%
Romani people in Romania, Gypsy, constitute one of the
country's largest minorities. According to the 2011 census,
they number 621,573 people or 3.08% of the total
population, being the second-largest ethnic minority in
Romania after Hungarians

Page21
1. VLAD ȚEPEȘ (THE IMPALER) (BLOODY MEDIEVAL RULER ASSOCIATED
WITH DRACULA)
Few names have cast more terror into the human heart
than Dracula. The legendary vampire, created by author
Bram Stoker in his 1897 novel of the same name, has
inspired countless horror movies, television shows and
other bloodcurdling tales of vampires.
Though Dracula is a purely fictional creation, Stoker
named his infamous character after a real person who
happened to have a taste for blood: Vlad III, Prince of
Wallachia or — as he is better known — Vlad the
Impeller. The morbid nickname is a testament to the
Wallachian prince's favorite way of dispensing with his
enemies. But other than having the same name, the two Dracula‘s don't really have much in
common, according to historians who have studied the link between Stoker's vampire count and
Vlad III.
2. NICOLAE CEAUȘESCU (COMMUNIST DICTATOR)
Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, Elena, marked Romania‘s destiny in a twisted way. Admired,
feared and despised altogether, the dictator couple led Romania through times of
industrial development, but also through times of human misery and denial of
culture or religion. Sometimes, the Romanians remember fondly of communist era
when having a house and a job were facts granted by the state. Other times, people
remember with horror of the days when the grocery stores were empty and it was a
great struggle to buy daily food. Nicolae Ceausescu has both fans, but there are also
people who actually cried of happiness when he was shot. However, debatable as he
may be, his wife was and is still despised by everybody. Some say that she was the
one who actually made him take the wrong turns. As he got older, he became a
megalomaniac dictator, ruthless and surrounded himself blindly by people who were
trying to take advantage of his power. He started huge expensive constructions
like The People‘s House and he had this ambition to pay all Romania‘s external

Page22
debt. But all came with a great price. The people
got poorer and their life became miserable. The
Romanian people were starving, had no link to
the world outside the Russian borders and had
rationalized heat, gas and water into their homes.
Above that, the secret service of the communist
regime, named ―Securitate‖, was watching
everybody‘s moves and punished everything they considered to be a threat to the
regime. Even a joke about Ceausescu and his wife was considered ―a threat‖.
3. NADIA COMĂNECI (FIRST GYMNAST TO
SCORE A PERFECT 10)
Is a Olympic gold medalist who, at the age of 14, became the
first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10.0 in the Olympic
games during the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.[2]
She would
eventually go on to receive six more perfect 10s in Montreal as
well as three gold medals. Four years later, she won two gold
medals at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. She won a total of nine
Olympic medals and four World Championship medals during her
career.
Comăneci is one of the world's best-known gymnasts and is
credited with popularizing the sport around the globe. In 2000,
she was named as one of the Athletes of the 20th Century by
the Laureus World Sports Academy. She has lived in the United
States since 1989 and is married to American Olympic gold
medalist Bart Conner.
4. ILIE NĂSTASE (#1 TENNIS PLAYER FROM THE
70'S)
He is a former world No. 1 professional tennis player, one of the
world's top players of the 1970s. He was ranked world no. 1 from 23
August 1973 to 2 June 1974.
Năstase is one of the five players in history who have won more than
100 ATP professional titles (58 singles and 45 in doubles). He was
inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1991. Năstase

Page23
won seven Grand Slam titles: two in singles, three in men's doubles and two in mixed doubles. He
also won four Masters Grand Prix year-end championship titles and seven Championship
Series titles (1970–73), the precursors to the current Masters 1000.
Tennis magazine ranked him in 2005 as the 28th-best player of the preceding 40 years. He is the
first male player to have won a French Open title without dropping a set (1973).
5. MIRCEA ELIADE (RELIGIOUS HISTORIAN AND
PHILOSOPHER)
He was a Romanian historian of religion, fiction writer,
philosopher, and professor at the University of Chicago. He was a
leading interpreter of religious experience, who
established paradigms in religious studies that persist to this day.
His theory that hierophanies form the basis of religion, splitting the
human experience of reality into sacred and profane space and time,
has proved influential. One of his most influential contributions to
religious studies was his theory of Eternal Return, which holds that
myths and rituals do not simply commemorate hierophanies, but, at least to the minds of the
religious, actually participate in them.
His literary works belong to the fantastic and autobiographical genres. The best known are the
novels Maitreyi ("La Nuit Bengali" or "Bengal Nights"), Noaptea de Sânziene ("The Forbidden
Forest"), Isabel și apele diavolului ("Isabel and the Devil's Waters") and Romanul Adolescentului
Miop ("Novel of the Nearsighted Adolescent"), the novellas Domnișoara Christina ("Miss
Christina") and Tinerețe fără tinerețe ("Youth Without Youth"), and the short stories Secretul
doctorului Honigberger ("The Secret of Dr. Honigberger") and La Țigănci ("With the Gypsy
Girls").
He was elected a posthumous member of the Romanian Academy.
6. CONSTANTIN BRÂNCUȘI (20TH CENTURY
SCULPTOR, STUDENT OF RODIN)
He was a Romanian sculptor, painter and photographer who made his
career in France. Considered a pioneer of modernism, one of the most
influential sculptors of the 20th-century, Brâncuși is called the patriarch
of modern sculpture. His art emphasizes clean geometrical lines that
balance forms inherent in his materials with the symbolic
allusions of representational art. Brâncuși sought inspiration in non-
European cultures as a source of primitive exoticism, as did Paul Gauguin, Pablo Picasso, André
Derain and others. But other influences emerge from Romanian folk art traceable through

Page24
Byzantine and Dionysian traditions. Constantin Brâncuşi was a key figure in the renewal of
contemporary sculpture‘s expression. Leading auction houses worldwide have sold his works to
elite collectors, but anyone can admire some of his sculptures in peace, in the Romanian city
Târgu Jiu. The sculpture collection brings together three components in an homage to the heroic
soldiers who
lost their lives in the First World War – The Table of Silence, The Kiss Gate and the Endless
Column.
7. GHEORGHE HAGI (GREATEST
ROMANIAN FOOTBALLER)
He is a former professional footballer,
considered one of the best attacking
midfielders in Europe during the 1980s and
1990s[1]
and the greatest Romanian footballer of

Page25
all time. Galatasaray fans called him Comandante (The Commander) and Romanians call
him Regele (The King).
Nicknamed "The Maradona of the Carpathians", Hagi is
considered a hero in his homeland. He was named Romanian
Footballer of the Year seven times, and is regarded as one of
the best football players of his generation. As a creative
advanced playmaker, he was renowned for his dribbling,
technique, vision, passing and finishing.
Hagi played for the Romanian national team in three World
Cups in 1990, 1994 (where he was named in the World Cup
All-Star Team) and 1998, as well as in three European
Football Championships in 1984, 1996 and 2000. He won a total of 125 caps for Romania, ranked
second after Dorinel Munteanu, and is the joint leading goal scorer (alongside Adrian Mutu) with
35 goals.
8. ANA ASLAN (GERIATRIC SPECIALIST, INVENTOR OF
GEROVITAL H3)
She was a biologist and physician who discovered the anti-aging effects
of procaine, based on the drugs Gerovital H3 and Aslavital, which she
developed. She is considered to be a pioneer
of gerontology and geriatrics in Romania. In 1952, she founded
the Geriatric Institute of Bucharest. This institute was the first of its kind in
the world and was recognized by the World Health Organization. Although her work was
controversial, it received international attention.
Gerovital H3- While investigating the pain-relieving effects of procaine in patients with arthritis,
Ana Aslan discovered that the drug also produced other beneficial effects, such as an improvement
of skin and hair aspect, better memory, and a general feeling of well-being. Based on this discovery,
she developed the anti-aging drug Gerovital H3 (1952). Later, together with Elena Polovrăgeanu,
she created an improved formula marketed as Aslavital (1961).
9. HENRI COANDĂ (DISCOVERER OF COANDĂ EFFECT,
STATOREACTIVE JET ENGINE INVENTOR)
Inventions, and discoveries
 1910: The Coandă-1910, an experimental aircraft constructed on the
principle of air-reactive propulsion.

Page26
 1911: An aircraft powered by two engines driving a single propeller – the configuration
cancelled the torque of the engines. He invented a new decorative material for use in
construction, beton-bois; one prominent example of its use is the Palace of Culture, in Iaşi.
 1926: Working in Romania, Coandă developed a device to detect liquids underground,
useful in petroleum prospecting. Shortly thereafter, in the Persian Gulf region, he designed a
system for offshore oil drilling.
 The most famous of Coandă's discoveries is the Coandă Effect. After more than 20 years
studying this phenomenon along with his colleagues, Coandă described what Albert
Metral was later to name the "Coandă Effect". This effect has been utilized in many
aeronautical inventions.
 A modular system of sea water desalination and transformation to fresh water, based on
solar energy, a clean, ecological and adaptable system.
10.GEORGE ENESCU HE WAS A ROMANIAN COMPOSER, VIOLINIST,
PIANIST, CONDUCTOR, AND TEACHER.
He is regarded by many as Romania's most important musician
Pablo Casals described Enescu as "the greatest musical phenomenon since Mozart" and "one of
the greatest geniuses of modern music".
Queen Marie of Romania wrote in her memoirs that "in
George Enescu was real gold".
Yehudi Menuhin, Enescu's most famous pupil, once said
about his teacher: "He will remain for me the absoluteness
through which I judge others", and "Enescu gave me the light
that has guided my entire existence." He also considered
Enescu "the most extraordinary human being, the greatest musician and the most formative
influence" he had ever experienced.
Vincent d'Indy claimed that if Beethoven's works were destroyed,
they could be all reconstructed from
memory by George Enescu.
Alfred Cortot, one of the greatest
pianists of all time, once said that
Enescu, though primarily a violinist,
had better piano technique than his
own.

Page27
Romanian recipes bear the same influences as the
rest of Romanian culture. The Turks
brought meatballs (perișoare in a meatball soup),
from the Greeks there is musaca, from the Austrians
there is the șnițel, and the list could continue. The
Romanians share many foods with the Balkan area
(in which Turkey was the cultural vehicle), Central Europe (mostly in the form of German-
Austrian dishes introduced through Hungary or by the Saxons in Transylvania), and Eastern
Europe (including Moldova). Some others are
original or can be traced to the Romans, as well as
other ancient civilizations. The lack of written
sources in Eastern Europe makes it impossible to
determine today the punctual origin for most of
them.
One of the most common meals is the mămăligă, a
type of polenta, served on its own or as an
accompaniment. Pork is the main meat used in Romanian cuisine, but also beef is consumed
and a good lamb or fish dish is never to be refused.
Before Christmas, on December 20 (Ignat's Day or Ignatul in Romanian), a pig is
traditionally sacrificed by every rural family. A variety of foods for Christmas are prepared
from the slaughtered pig, such as:
 Cârnați – garlicky pork sausages, which may
be smoked or dry-cured;
 Caltaboș – an emulsified sausage based
on liver with the consistency of the filling
ranging from fine (pâté) to coarse;
 Sângerete (black pudding) – an emulsified sausage obtained from a mixture of pig's
blood with fat and meat, breadcrumbs or other grains, and spices;

Page28
 Tobă (head cheese) – based on pig's feet, ears, and meat from the head suspended
in aspic and stuffed in the pig's stomach;
 Tochitură – a stew made with pork,
smoked and fresh sausage simmered in a
tomato sauce and served
with mămăligă and wine ("so that the
pork can swim"). There are many
variations of this stew throughout
Romania, with some versions combining
different meats, including chicken, lamb,
beef, pork and sometimes even offal;
 Pomana porcului—pan-fried cubed pork served right after the pig's sacrifice to thank
the relatives and friends who helped with the process;
 Piftie/răcitură – inferior parts of the pig, mainly the tail, feet, and ears, spiced with
garlic and served in aspic;
 Jumări – dried pork remaining from rendering of the fat and tumbled through various
spices
The Christmas meal is sweetened with the traditional cozonac(sponge cake), a sweet
bread made from nuts, poppy seeds, or rahat (Turkish delight).
At Easter, lamb is served: the main dishes are borș de miel (lamb sour soup), roast lamb,
and drob de miel – a Romanian-style lamb haggis made from minced offal (heart, liver,
lungs), lamb meat and spring onions with spices, wrapped in a caul and roasted. The
traditional Easter cake is pască, a pie made from yeast dough with a sweet cottage
cheese filling at the center.
Romanian pancakes, called clătite, are thin (like the French crêpe) and can be prepared
with savory or sweet fillings: ground meat, cheese, or jam. Different recipes are prepared
depending on the season or the occasion.
Wine is the preferred drink,and Romanian wine has a tradition of over three
millennia.[11]
Romania is currently the world's ninth largest wine producer, and recently the
export market has started to grow. Romania produces a wide selection of domestic varieties
(Fetească, Grasă, Tămâioasă, Busuioacă, and Băbească), as well as varieties from across the
world (Italian Riesling, Merlot, Sauvignon blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay,

Page29
and Muscat Ottonel). Beer is also highly regarded, generally blonde pilsener beer, made
with German influences. There are also Romanian breweries with a long tradition.
Romania is the world's second largest plum producer (after the United States),[12]
and
as much as 75% of Romania's plum production is processed into the famous țuică, a plum
brandy obtained through one or more distillation steps
Soups
 Borș is fermented wheat bran, a souring agent
for ciorbă. Borș is also used today as a synonym
for ciorbă, but in the past, a distinction was made
between borș and ciorbă (acritură), the souring
agent for the latter being the juice of unripe fruits,
such as grapes, mirabelle, or wood sorrel leaves.
 Ciorbă is the traditional Romanian sour soup
 Ciorbă de burtă (tripe soup), soured with sour cream
 Ciorbă de perişoare (meatball soup)
 Ciorbă de fasole cu afumătură (bean and smoked meat soup)
 Ciorbă de legume (vegetable soup)
 Ciorbă de peşte „ca-n Deltă” (fish soup prepared in the style of the Danube Delta)
 Ciorbă de pui is a chicken soup
 Ciorbă de sfeclă, also called Borș de sfeclă or Borș rusesc
 Ciorbă țărănească (peasant soup), made from a variety of vegetables and any kind of meat
(beef, pork, mutton, chicken, fish)
 Supă (generic name for sweet (usually clear) soups, made from vegetables alone or combined
with poultry and beef). The difference
between Supă and Ciorbă is that the meat and most
of the vegetables are removed, the resulted liquid
being served with dumplings or noodles. There are
also a number of sour soups, which use lemon juice
as a souring agent, called Supe a la grec (Greek
soups).
 Supă (de pui) cu găluşte (clear dumpling soup with chicken broth)
 Supă (de pui) cu tăiţei (clear noodle soup with chicken broth)
Meat

Page30
 Caltaboș / chișcǎ - a cooked sausage made from minced pork organs and rice, stuffed in a pig's
casing
 Cârnați - a garlicky sausage, as in Fasole cu
cârnați
 Chiftele - a type of large meatball covered with
breadcrumbs or a flour crust
 Ciulama - white roux sauce used in a variety of
meat dishes
 Ciulama de vițel - veal ciulama
 Ciulama de pui - chicken ciulama
 Drob de miel - a lamb haggis made from
minced organs wrapped in a caul and roasted
like a meatloaf; a traditional Easter dish
 Frigărui - Romanian-style shish-kebab
 Mititei (mici) - grilled minced meat rolls
 Grătar (usually made together with "mici") -
grilled pork/beef with condiments
 Musaca - an eggplant, potato, and meat pie
Desserts
 Brânzoaice (Poale-n brâu moldoveneşti) - traditional Moldavian soft cakes filled with sweet
cheese.
 Chec - coffee cake
 Clătite - crêpes (literally: pancakes)
 Colivă - boiled wheat, mixed with sugar
and walnuts (often decorated with candy and icing
sugar; distributed at funerals and memorial
ceremonies)
 Cornulețe - pastries filled with Turkish delight,
jam, chocolate, cinnamon sugar, walnuts,
or raisins, with the shape representing a crescent
 Covrigi - pretzel
 Cozonaci - a kind of Stollen made from leavened
dough, into which milk, eggs, sugar, butter, and other ingredients are mixed together before
baking

Page31
I LOVE MY COUNTRY

Page32
The project is supported by the European Commission –Erasmus + Program. All the information is the
exclusive responsibility of the project team, A N P C DE F P and the European Commission are not
responsible for the use of the content of this information.
ROMANIAN TEEM

Romania's Journey Towards European Inclusion

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