Virgil Ierunca (; born Virgil Untaru ; August 16, 1920,

Lădești Lădești is a commune located in Vâlcea County, Oltenia, Romania. It is composed of ten villages: Cermegești, Chiricești, Ciumagi, Dealu Corni, Găgeni, Lădești, Măldărești, Olteanca, Păsculești and Popești. The river Cerna Cerna may ...

Vâlcea County Vâlcea County (also spelt ''Vîlcea''; ) is a county (județ) of Romania. Located in the historical regions of Oltenia and Muntenia (which are separated by the Olt River), it is also part of the wider Wallachia region. Its capital city is Râ ...

– September 28, 2006,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

) was a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

n literary critic, journalist and poet. He was married to Monica Lovinescu. Both Ierunca and Lovinescu worked for several decades for

Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a United States government funded organization that broadcasts and reports news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Caucasus, and the Middle East where it says tha ...

. In 2006 both were members of the Romanian Presidential Commission for the Study of the Communist Dictatorship in Romania; the Commission's chairman,

Vladimir Tismăneanu Vladimir Tismăneanu (; born July 4, 1951) is a Romanian American political scientist, political analyst, sociologist, and professor at the University of Maryland, College Park. A specialist in political systems and comparative politics, he is di ...

, called them "the most honest and dignified couple in the history of Romanian culture".

Published books

*''Fenomenul Pitești'' ( Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1990) *''Românește'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1991) *''Subiect şi predicat'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1993) *''Dimpotrivă'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1994) *''Semnul mirării'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 1995) *''Trecut-au anii'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 2000) *''Poeme de exil'' (Ed. Humanitas, Bucharest, 2001)

External links

* Vladimir Tismăneanu
"Ce-i datorăm lui Virgil Ierunca"
''

Evenimentul Zilei ''Evenimentul Zilei'' is a formerly physical and now exclusively online newspaper in Romania. Its name means "today's even (news)". History and profile ''Evenimentul Zilei'' was founded by Ion Cristoiu, Cornel Nistorescu and Mihai Cârciog, and ...

'', October 4, 2006 1920 births 2006 deaths People from Vâlcea County Romanian journalists Romanian literary critics Romanian male poets Romanian expatriates in France Romanian defectors 20th-century Romanian poets Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty people 20th-century journalists {{Romania-bio-stub