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Anti-Romanian sentiment, also known as Romanophobia (, ''românofobie'') is hostility, hatred towards, or prejudice against
Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...
as an ethnic, linguistic, religious, or perceived ethnic group, and it can range from personal feelings of hatred to institutionalized, violent persecution. To varying degrees, anti-Romanian discrimination and sentiment have both been present among the populations and governments of nations which border
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, 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 ...
, either towards Romania itself or towards Romanian ethnic minorities which have resided in these countries. Similar patterns have also existed towards other ethnic groups, both in the region and elsewhere in the world, especially where political borders do not coincide with the patterns of ethnic populations.


By country


Kingdom of Hungary and the Habsburg Monarchy

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
in the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
was organized according to the system of Estates, which were privileged groups (''universitates'') with power and influence in socio-economic and political life, being nonetheless organized according to certain ethnic criteria as well. The first Estate was the lay and ecclesiastic aristocracy, ethnically heterogeneous, but undergoing a process of homogenization around its Hungarian nucleus. The other Estates were
Saxons The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...
,
Székelys The Székelys (, Old Hungarian script, Székely runes: ), also referred to as Szeklers, are a Hungarians, Hungarian subgroup living mostly in the Székely Land in Romania. In addition to their native villages in Suceava County in Bukovina, a ...
, and
Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...
(or
Vlachs Vlach ( ), also Wallachian and many other variants, is a term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate speakers of Eastern Romance languages living in Southeast Europe—south of the Danube (the Balkan peninsula ...
– '' Universitas Valachorum''), all with an ethnic and ethno-linguistic basis (''Universis nobilibus, Saxonibus, Syculis et Olachis''). The general assembly (''congregatio generalis'') of the four Estates had mainly supra-legislative powers in Transylvania, but it sometimes took measures regarding order in the country, relationships between the privileged, military issues, etc. The turning point in the history of the Romanian population in Transylvania was in 1366, when through the Decree of Turda King Louis I Anjou of Hungary redefined nobility in terms of membership in the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, thus specifically excluding the
Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...
Romanians. Gradually, after 1366, Romanians lost their status as an Estate and were excluded from Transylvania's assemblies. This meant that the Romanian population of Transylvania was never directly represented in the Transylvanian Diet, which consisted of Hungarian nobles, German and Székely nobles (the
Unio Trium Nationum Unio Trium Nationum (Latin for "Union of the Three Nations") was a pact of mutual aid codified in 1437 by three Estates of the realm, Estates of Voivodeship of Transylvania, Transylvania: the (largely Hungarians, Hungarian) nobility, the Transylv ...
). In the 16th century, Transylvanian laws of justice separated the rights of Hungarians, Saxons, and Székelys from the rights of the Romanians, while Eastern Orthodox became a tolerated religion (opposed to the four privileged religions – Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Unitariasm). During the
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
rule of Transylvania, in order to escape their inferior status, and in correlation with the Austrian interest to strengthen Catholicism, the Romanian Orthodox accepted a proposal for a "church union" (accepting Catholic dogma and retaining Orthodox ritual and calendar), but the other privileged nations objected and the status of the Romanians remained eventually unchanged. As a consequence, Romanian peasants would sometimes revolt and demand better treatment. These revolts – even if the initial causes did not have ethnic grounds or shared the fate of the whole peasantry – were firmly suppressed such as the 1784 Romanian peasant uprising, in which
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from 18 August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 29 November 1780 until his death. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I, ...
, after learning of the escalated situation, ordered the army to intervene. The three leaders were caught by treason in their hiding places and handed over to General Paul Kray. Horea and Cloșca were executed by breaking on the wheel, while Crișan hanged himself in prison before the execution.Hegyes András - Marczali Henrik: Erdély története (Budapest, 2002) 141-147 o. In December 1918, after the
First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the
Union of Transylvania with Romania The union of Transylvania with Romania was declared on by the assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia. The Great Union Day (also called ''Unification Day''), celebrated on 1 December, is a Public holidays in Romani ...
was declared at
Alba Iulia Alba Iulia (; or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; ; ) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the river Mureș (river), Mureș in the historical region of Transylvania, it has a ...
by an assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians in Transylvania. Following the
Hungarian–Romanian War The Hungarian–Romanian War (; ) was fought between Hungary and Kingdom of Romania, Romania from 13 November 1918 to 3 August 1919. The conflict had a complex background, with often contradictory motivations for the parties involved. After the ...
of 1919 and the
Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (; ; ; ), often referred to in Hungary as the Peace Dictate of Trianon or Dictate of Trianon, was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace Conference. It was signed on the one side by Hungary ...
of 1920, eventually Transylvania became part of Romania.


Russia


Russian Empire

Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...
became part of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
under the 1812 Treaty of Bucharest. A period of autonomy followed, but in 1828 all Romanian government institutions, schools and presses were closed and replaced by a
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
n-style provincial administration. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, Bessarabia saw an intense process of
Russification Russification (), Russianisation or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians adopt Russian culture and Russian language either voluntarily or as a result of a deliberate state policy. Russification was at times ...
. Military service also became a new instrument of Russification. The process of
Russification Russification (), Russianisation or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians adopt Russian culture and Russian language either voluntarily or as a result of a deliberate state policy. Russification was at times ...
and
colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...
of this territory started to be carried out by representatives of other ethnic groups of the Russian Empire, including
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
s,
Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...
,
Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...
, Gagauz, and
Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...
. * Russian census 1817: 86% Romanians * Russian census 1856: 74% Romanians * Russian census 1897: 56% Romanians


Soviet Union

When the Russian Empire collapsed after the
Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
, a local body called "" ("Council of the Country") was created in Bessarabia. Moldova became an independent republic on December 2, 1917. Given that Soviet raids already menaced the newly formed authority, the local body ("Sfatul Țării") called in support troops from the
Kingdom of Romania The Kingdom of Romania () was a constitutional monarchy that existed from with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King of Romania, King Carol I of Romania, Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian royal family), until 1947 wit ...
. The troops entered
Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...
on December 13. On March 27, 1918, Sfatul Țării voted to unite with
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, 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 ...
. Subsequently, the Soviet Union refused to recognize the union, and supported an intense propaganda campaign stating that the Kingdom of Romania was an imperialistic state. Bessarabia was a part of Romania until June 1940, when the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
re-annexed the territory as well as Northern
Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...
, after delivering an ultimatum that threatened the use of force (see
Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina Between 28 June and 3 July 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, following an ultimatum made to Romania on 26 June 1940 that threatened the use of force. Those regions, with a total area of and a population of 3,776 ...
). The convention of October 28, 1920, whereby the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, and
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
recognized Romanian sovereignty in Bessarabia, was rejected as invalid by the USSR. The
Soviet government The Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) was the executive and administrative organ of the highest body of state authority, the All-Union Supreme Soviet. It was formed on 30 December 1922 and abolished on 26 December 199 ...
even denied the validity of that part of the convention that stipulated that, upon Soviet request, the Council of the League of Nations could be empowered to arbitrate the Soviet-Romanian dispute over Bessarabia. In short, the
Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin (fortification), Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Mosco ...
insisted that Romania was illegally occupying Bessarabia. Moscow also encouraged revolutionary activities by
Bolshevik The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
elements in Bessarabia. The exact position of the USSR on these issues is unknown except for Moscow's unwillingness to make any concessions to the Romanian government on Bessarabian issues. Recent tracts by Romanian historians have emphasized the support given by Romanian Communists to the "democratic forces" opposed to alteration of the status quo in
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
in 1938 and subsequent years. True as this may be, there has been no evidence presented in support of any fundamental change in Moscow's positions with respect to Bessarabia in 1938 and subsequent years. According to official
NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...
documents, over 15,000 Romanians from Northern Bukovina were deported to
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
in 1940 alone. The Soviet action culminated with the Fântâna Albă massacre, when 2,500 to 3,000 Romanian refugees who were attempting to leave Northern Bukovina for Romania were blocked by the
Soviet Border Troops The Soviet Border Troops () were the border guard of the Soviet Union, subordinated to the Soviet state security agency: first to the ''Cheka''/State Political Directorate, OGPU, then to NKVD/Ministry for State Security (USSR), MGB and, final ...
and about 200 of them were shot, at a place called "Fântâna Albă" (''White Fountain'' in Romanian). This policy resulted in a substantial shrinkage of the Romanian population in the province. By 1941, out of 250,000 Romanians in Northern Bukovina, only 192,000 were left. On June 22, 1941, Romania joined
Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along ...
on the side of the
Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...
, in order to reclaim the lost territories of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina; these territories were regained by the Soviet Union in 1944 (see Romania in World War II). The territory of the
Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic or Moldavian SSR (, mo-Cyrl, Република Советикэ Сочиалистэ Молдовеняскэ), also known as the Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldovan SSR, Soviet Moldavia, Sovie ...
(MSSR) was composed of Bessarabia (except for Southern Bessarabia, assigned to
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
) and a part of the territory of the former
Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic The Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, shortened to Moldavian ASSR, was an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republics, autonomous republic of the Ukrainian SSR between 12 October 1924 and 2 August 1940, encompassing the modern territory ...
(
Transnistria Transnistria, officially known as the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic and locally as Pridnestrovie, is a Landlocked country, landlocked Transnistria conflict#International recognition of Transnistria, breakaway state internationally recogn ...
), founded in 1924 within the territory of Ukraine. In the document confirming the establishment of the Moldavian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (MASSR) of 12 October 1924 the West frontier of the republic was traced out not along the Dniester River but the
Prut River The Prut (also spelled in English as Pruth; , ) is a river in Eastern Europe. It is a left tributary of the Danube, and is long. Part of its course forms Romania's border with Moldova and Ukraine. Characteristics The Prut originates on the eas ...
. In the MASSR the ideology of a separate Moldovan identity was pursued, including the introduction of
Moldovan language Moldovan or Moldavian (Romanian alphabet, Latin alphabet: , Moldovan Cyrillic alphabet: ) is one of the two local names for the Romanian language in Moldova. ''Moldovan'' was declared the official language of Moldova in Article 13 of the Cons ...
, distinct from Romanian. The Cyrillic alphabet and abundant Russisms were introduced. In Bessarabia, the Soviet government pursued a policy of assimilation of the native Romanian population. First, the province was divided into a "Moldovan" Socialist Republic and a southern region known as
Budjak Budjak, also known as Budzhak, is a historical region that was part of Bessarabia from 1812 to 1940. Situated along the Black Sea, between the Danube and Dniester rivers, this #Ethnic groups and demographics, multi-ethnic region covers an area ...
, which was renamed Izmail Oblast and attached to the
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...
. Elite elements of the Romanian population were then deported to Siberia much like their Bukovinian counterparts. Russian and Ukrainian settlers were used to fill the vacant areas caused by the deportation of Romanians. In 1946–1947, as a result of the famine organised in the MSSR (according to some data of certain scientists; official data has not yet been published), around 300,000 Romanians died and many instances of
cannibalism Cannibalism is the act of consuming another individual of the same species as food. Cannibalism is a common ecological interaction in the animal kingdom and has been recorded in more than 1,500 species. Human cannibalism is also well document ...
occurred. In addition, the population of the former MASSR, as a part of the
Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...
, also suffered from the artificial famine in the 1930s when several million people died in
Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
(''see also
Holodomor The Holodomor, also known as the Ukrainian Famine, was a mass famine in Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Ukraine from 1932 to 1933 that killed millions of Ukrainians. The Holodomor was part of the wider Soviet famine of 1930–193 ...
''). The territory of Transnistria was more industrialised in comparison with the other part of
Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...
and the industrialisation process of Transnistria was accompanied by a population flow from other areas of the USSR, especially from Russia. Although in the
Republic of Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised ...
the level of population density was the highest one in the USSR,
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
continued to stimulate the arrival of labour force from outside, including that with a poor qualification. Even Igor Smirnov, the former leader of the separatist Transnistria, was sent in 1987 from
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
to Bender to be the director of an enterprise. This process was also amplified by the excessive militarization of the area. The 1989 adoption of the Law on state language (official language) and Law on functioning of languages on the territory of the MSSR generated an extremely negative reaction in the industrial centres of Transnistria, where the largely Russian-speaking population was not being consulted, and felt threatened by the prospects of Romanianization. These laws proclaimed the Moldovan (Romanian) language, written in the Latin alphabet, as the only state language. The fact that Moldovan and Romanian are identical was recognised. Although a majority of the Transnistrian population never read these laws which served as a reason for the conflict's outburst, they feared that by the application of the new linguistic legislation,
Russian language Russian is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language belonging to the Balto-Slavic languages, Balto-Slavic branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. It is one of the four extant East Slavic languages, and is ...
speakers would become second-class citizens. At the industrial enterprises, including those of the military-industrial complex of the USSR, strikes occurred protesting against granting official language status to the Moldavian (Romanian) language.


Modern-day Russia

Today, there is a strong opposition in Russia to Romania in the context of Moldova. A Russian newspaper, InfoRos, even accused Romanians of genocide against Moldovans. In 2022, during the
Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
and responding to a British declaration saying that Ukrainian attacks over military bases on Russian soil would be justified, the Russian news website Pravda.ru said that Romania could be the first candidate for an attack with 3M-54 Kalibr missiles, since "Romania may now invade Transnistria to save its Moldovan brothers there". An ethnic slur against Romanians as well as Moldovans used by Russians is (; in plural , ). It originates from
mămăligă Mămăligă (;) is a polenta-like dish made out of yellow maize flour, traditional in Romania, Moldova, south-west regions of Ukraine and among Poles in Ukraine (''mamałyga''), Hungary (''puliszka''), the Black Sea regions of Georgia (country), ...
, a Romanian dish.


Post-Soviet Moldova

After the breakup of the USSR, various legislative reforms consolidated the position of ethnic Romanians/Moldovans, especially by establishing the
Moldovan language Moldovan or Moldavian (Romanian alphabet, Latin alphabet: , Moldovan Cyrillic alphabet: ) is one of the two local names for the Romanian language in Moldova. ''Moldovan'' was declared the official language of Moldova in Article 13 of the Cons ...
as the official language. The 2001 parliamentary elections, won by the
Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova The Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova (, PCRM) is a communist party in Moldova led by Vladimir Voronin. It is the only communist party to have held a majority government in a post-Soviet state. It has been variously described as Com ...
, initially brought a series of attempts to raise Russian to the status of a state language. However, the project was dropped by popular opposition. Relations between the Moldovan and Romanian governments have initially included some tension as the Moldovan government led by President
Vladimir Voronin Vladimir Voronin (; born Vladimir Bujeniță, 25 May 1941) is a Moldovan politician. He was the third President of Moldova#Republic of Moldova (1991–present), President of Moldova from 2001 until 2009 and has been the leader of the Party of ...
accused Romania of committing
imperialism Imperialism is the maintaining and extending of Power (international relations), power over foreign nations, particularly through expansionism, employing both hard power (military and economic power) and soft power (diplomatic power and cultura ...
, specifically declaring that "Romania has remained the only empire in Europe, consisting of Moldavia, Dobruja and Transylvania". Nevertheless, in the recent past relations have improved and President Voronin as well as Romanian President
Traian Băsescu Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a Romanian politician who served as the president of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian minister of transport on multiple occasions between 1991 and 2000, ...
have called for cooperation between the two sovereign states. In 2006, the Gheorghe Asachi Romanian-French School was forced by the government to change its name to the Gheorghe Asachi Moldovan-French School. Critics argued that the government acted unilaterally and discriminated against Romanians, as other schools such as the Necui-Levitski Russian-Ukrainian School were allowed to continue using that name. In protest, four high school students from Asachi replaced the new high school sign with another with the old name. They were charged with "group-committed aggravated hooliganism". In Transnistria, the situation is considered to be far worse than the rest of Moldova. After the 1992 war, the Romanian population was substantially persecuted, causing at least 5,000 to 10,000 Romanians to flee the region. Although the number of Romanians in Transnistria is significant, Romanian is almost never used in public. Romanian schools comprise about 11% of the total schools in Transnistria. Most of the schools are forced to teach in the
Cyrillic The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...
script and use outdated, 40-year-old, communist-era books, and 6 schools are permitted to teach in Romanian using the
Latin script The Latin script, also known as the Roman script, is a writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae in Magna Graecia. The Gree ...
; however, pressure is often put on the institutions to close. The 2004 school crisis is a prime example of this, when the pro-Russian government in
Tiraspol Tiraspol (, ; also /; , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Transnistria, a breakaway state of Moldova, where it is the third-largest city. The city is located on the eastern bank of the Dniester River. Tiraspol is a regional hub of cul ...
forcefully attempted to close down 2 of the schools. In the orphanage of Tighina, Romanian children returning from vacations found the orphanage locked by police. After spending a night outdoors, they forced their way into the building and had to stay there without water and electricity for a few months, until pressure from the Moldovan and Romanian governments and from the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the p ...
(OSCE) made the conflict get resolved. Numerous Romanian parents were arrested or fired from their jobs for their political views and their determination to keep their children in Romanian-language schools. Citizens who express pro-Romanian or pro-Moldovan attitudes are likewise persecuted in Transnistria. The Ilie Ilașcu group is the most commonly known and well-documented of organisation.


Ukraine

Northern Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...
, as well as the Tiachiv and Rakhiv
raion A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is c ...
s (districts) of
Zakarpattia Oblast Zakarpattia Oblast (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпатська область), also referred to as simply Zakarpattia (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпаття; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kárpátalja'') or Transcar ...
(Transcarpathia), are the regions in Ukraine with considerable Romanian minorities, according to the 2001 Ukrainian Census. The Ukrainian Census of 2001 was criticized by Dr. Ion Popescu, leader of the National Council of the Interregional Union of the Romanian Community in Ukraine and also one of the authors of the
Constitution of Ukraine The Constitution of Ukraine (, ) is the fundamental law of Ukraine. The constitution was adopted and ratified at the 5th session of the ''Verkhovna Rada'', the parliament of Ukraine, on 28 June 1996. The constitution was passed with 315 ayes o ...
, who claims that the very existence of the classification of Moldovans as a separate ethnic group in census results is a "continuation of the
Stalinist Stalinism (, ) is the totalitarian means of governing and Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1927 to 1953 by dictator Joseph Stalin and in Soviet satellite states between 1944 and 1953. Stalinism in ...
and Soviet policies of artificially dividing Romanians into
Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...
and
Moldovans Moldovans, sometimes referred to as Moldavians (, , ), are an ethnic group native to Moldova, who mostly speak the Romanian language, also referred to locally as Moldovan language, Moldovan. Moldovans form significant communities in Romania, It ...
br>
!---is this a quote? than quotation marks are in order if not, pls replace with the exact quote--->. However, the response to the census question about the ethnicity had to be written in into the census form rather than picked from a pre-determined set of choices and the census respondents were free to claim their ethnicity as they wishedThe Census form
at the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine web-site.
not to respond to this or any other particular census question or not answer any questions at all; besides, no allegation of counting fraud were ever brought up. It is therefore unclear if Dr. Popescu criticizes the way in which the census was conducted or the way in which data was processed. The number of Romanian students at Chernivtsi University declined sharply in Soviet times. In 1991–92, the last year of Soviet rule, the number of Romanian students was only 4.44% (434 out of 9,769

Among teaching faculty, under-representation of Romanians is also evident. The breakdown by nationalities (in the same year) reveals: Ukrainian teachers 465 (77.1%), Russians 102 (16.9%), Moldovans 9 (1.4%), Romanians 7 (1.1%), Belarusians 6 (0.9%), etc. Even after Ukrainian independence, the number of Romanian students at the University continued to decline, to only 3.9% in 1992–93, which is much less than the overall percentage of Romanians in the region's general population. Since 1997, arrangements have been made for some students to study at universities in Romania. In 2001 the Christian-Democratic Alliance of the Romanians from Ukraine reported that Romanians in
Chernivtsi Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also #Names, other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivt ...
lack an opportunity to study at the university level in their native languag

However, according to the Ukrainian Constitution adopted after its 1991 independence, Ukrainian language, Ukrainian is the only
state language An official language is defined by the Cambridge English Dictionary as, "the language or one of the languages that is accepted by a country's government, is taught in schools, used in the courts of law, etc." Depending on the decree, establishmen ...
in the country, and the state higher education system was switched to Ukrainian, according to the common practice in many countries worldwide and this practice was not directed specifically at the Romanian population. For example, the majority of Ukrainian universities do not provide education in Russian either, despite the fact that Russian is the native language of a much more considerable part of the population in Ukraine. At the same time, there are schools teaching Romanian as a primary language, as well as newspapers, TV, and radio broadcasting in Romania

Future teachers for Romanian schools are trained in at the Chernivtsi University in the fields of Romanian philology, mathematics, and physic

Romanian organizations still complain that despite this, 19 villages inhabited by Romanians have been deprived of schooling in their native language, therefore creating a worse situation than that which existed under the repressive Soviet regim


Yugoslavia and modern-day Serbia

The Romanians in Serbia, Romanians living in the Serbian province of
Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...
are very well represented at the provincial level despite their small presence (about 30,000 people, 1.5% of the province's population of around 2 million), and Romanian is one of the six official languages of the province. However, their counterparts in eastern
Central Serbia Central Serbia (), also referred to as Serbia proper (), is the region of Serbia lying outside the autonomous province of Vojvodina to the north and the disputed Kosovo region to the south. Central Serbia is a term of convenience, not an administ ...
(mostly in the Timok Valley and Branicevo), known as "Vlachs" in Serbian and outnumbering the Serbian Romanians in Vojvodina, have not had any privileges. As example from
Negotin Negotin ( sr-cyrl, Неготин, ; ) is a town and municipality located in the Bor District of Southern and Eastern Serbia, eastern Serbia. It is situated near the borders between Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria. It is the judicial center of the Bo ...
in
Vršac Vršac ( sr-Cyrl, Вршац, ) is a city in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2022, the city urban area had a population of 31,946, while the city administrative area had 45,462 inhabitants. It is located in the geographical ...
, the Romanian local television station door was vandalized with the inscription "Out Romanians, Serbia!!!" (Serbian: ''Napolje Rumuni, Srbija!!!''). The Timok Romanians speak the same language ( Daco-Romanian) as is spoken to the north, in
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, 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 ...
. However, the Serbian authorities have pursued a policy of de-nationalization as they have slowly changed the term Romanian into "Vlach" through the years. These people declare themselves on census forms as ethnic Vlachs and their number is about 40,000. Nevertheless, older Serbian censuses counted up to 200,000 Romanians in present-day Central Serbia (the 1895-census counted 159,510 Romanians, the 1921-census counted 150,098 Romanians, the 1953-census counted 198,793 "Vlach" (Romanian) speakers). Since 2004 there are regular clashes between the Serbian authorities and the Romanian community in Timok when
Bojan Aleksandrović Bojan Aleksandrović (, born 5 January 1977) is a Timok Vlach/ Romanian priest who in 2004 successfully defied the Serbian authorities to build a Romanian Orthodox church in Malajnica, the first Romanian Orthodox Church in the Timok Valley in ...
, a Romanian Orthodox priest decided to build a small church where he would hold services in Romanian. Romanians in Serbia proper do not have the right to schooling and public worship in their native language. In the town of
Negotin Negotin ( sr-cyrl, Неготин, ; ) is a town and municipality located in the Bor District of Southern and Eastern Serbia, eastern Serbia. It is situated near the borders between Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria. It is the judicial center of the Bo ...
, the Romanian Cultural Association was vandalized in 2004 when Serbian pro-fascist ultra-nationalists wrote "Out of Serbia" on the windows of the main doors. Some Serbian ultranationalists even treat Romanians as "Romanized
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...
", even though no part of present-day
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, 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 ...
was ever under Serbian rule.


Romania

In 2013 accusations of discrimination in Covasna surfaced against Hungarian students and teachers. During a ceremony celebrating the Hungarian National Day, some Romanian students wearing the Romanian flag were physically assaulted by older students, and threatened by teachers with punishment for wearing the national symbol. As a result, the Romanian human rights organisation ActiveWatch issued a statement condemning the actions of the school's administration, which it considers a blunt infringement of human rights and freedom of expression.


Switzerland

In 2009, the
right-wing Right-wing politics is the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position based on natural law, economics, authority, property ...
Swiss People's Party The Swiss People's Party (, SVP; , PPS), also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre (, UDC; , UDC), is a national-conservative and right-wing populist political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Marcel Dettling, it is the largest party in ...
(SVP) ran an anti-immigration campaign against Romanians and Bulgarian emigrants, distributing and displaying banners depicting citizens of these countries as "crows".


European Union

Anti-Romanian sentiment in the European Union refers to the hatred, fear or discrimination of Romanian emigrants and citizens within the European Union. Although Romania is a member of the EU, Romanian emigrants have faced ethnic profiling in various European countries and open discrimination in countries like Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, Greece or Austria.


United Kingdom

In June 2009, having had their windows broken and death threats made against them, twenty Romanian-Roma families were forced from their homes in
Lisburn Road Lisburn Road is a main arterial route linking Belfast and Lisburn, Northern Ireland. The Lisburn Road is now an extension of the "Golden Mile (Belfast), Golden Mile" with many shops, boutiques, wine bars, restaurants and coffee houses. The road ...
,
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
. Up to 115 people, including women and children, were forced to seek refuge in a local church hall after being attacked. They were later moved by the authorities to a safer location. An
anti-racist Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and delibera ...
rally in the city on 15 June was attacked by local youths chanting
neo-Nazi Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazism, Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and Supremacism#Racial, racial supremacy (ofte ...
slogans. Following the arrest of three local youths in relation to the attacks, the church where the Romanians had been given shelter was badly vandalised. Using 'emergency funds', Northern Irish government assisted most of the victims to return to Romania. In 2013, Romanian ambassador to the United Kingdom
Ion Jinga Ion Jinga (born 1 September 1961) is a Romanian diplomat working in the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1992. Between 9 April 2003 and 7 March 2008 he served as the Romanian Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium and between 7 March 20 ...
claimed that portions of the British media had written a series of unduly negative articles about Romanian immigrants. He claimed that these articles portrayed Romanian immigrants as being "invaders", criminals who abused social benefits and being involved in the 2013 horse meat scandal. Jinga responded to these alleged claims in a series of interviews and articles in British newspapers, radio and television, presenting his views on the professional value of Romanian immigrants and their, in his view, significant contribution to the
British economy The United Kingdom has a highly developed social market economy. From 2017 to 2025 it has been the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal gross domestic product (GDP), tenth-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP), ...
. He also blamed
UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP, ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), member ...
for inciting anti-Romanian prejudice and violent attacks against Romanian immigrants. In 2013, the ''
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...
'' launched a "crusade" against new EU migrants from
Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...
and
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, 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 article, published on the 31st of October, declared that "Britain is full and fed up. Today join your Daily Express Crusade to stop new flood of Romanian and Bulgarian migrants".
UKIP The UK Independence Party (UKIP, ) is a Eurosceptic, right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. The party reached its greatest level of success in the mid-2010s, when it gained two Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), member ...
leader
Nigel Farage Nigel Paul Farage ( ; born 3 April 1964) is a British politician and broadcaster who has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Clacton (UK Parliament constituency), Clacton and Leader of Reform UK since 20 ...
declared that he had signed the petition, and urged others to do the same. Romanian politician Cătălin Ivan expressed "outrage" at the campaign.


France

Historically, France had cultivated a
close relationship An intimate relationship is an interpersonal relationship that involves emotional or physical closeness between people and may include sexual intimacy and feelings of Romance (love), romance or love. Intimate relationships are Interdependence ...
with the Romanian Principalities. France was a strong supporter of their independence and unification in 1859 and ultimately the establishment of
Greater Romania Greater Romania () is the Kingdom of Romania in the interwar period, achieved after the Great Union or the related pan-nationalist ideal of a nation-state which would incorporate all Romanian speakers.Irina LivezeanuCultural Politics in Greate ...
in 1918. Many prominent Romanian scientists and artists such as Henri Coandă and
Constantin Brâncuși Constantin Brâncuși (; February 19, 1876 – March 16, 1957) was a Romanian sculptor, painter, and photographer who made his career in France. Considered one of the most influential sculptors of the 20th century and a pioneer of modernism ...
studied and worked in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, and Bucharest was nicknamed ''Le Petit Paris'' for its cosmopolitan atmosphere. Furthermore, the Romanian flag alludes to the ideals of the French Revolution and has been interpreted as Liberty (blue), Justice (yellow), Fraternity (red). However, following the deportation of Roma-Romanian citizens from France, and numerous discriminatory articles in the French media, there was a small protest in front of the French embassy in Bucharest, against the discrimination against Romanians in France.


Netherlands

A Dutch right-wing political party (
Party for Freedom The Party for Freedom ( , PVV) is a right-wing populist, far-right political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole registered member of the party. Founded in 2006 as the successor to Wilders' one-ma ...
(PVV)) launched a website aimed at gathering denunciations against Polish, Romanian, and Bulgarian nationals living in the Netherlands. Denunciations consist of competition on the job market, and others, with the slogan: "Are they causing you problems? Or did you lose your job to a Pole, Bulgarian, Romanian or other Central or East European? We would love to hear from you,"; thus inciting social tension between citizens of other European countries exercising their treaty right of freedom of movement, and the local population. The Netherlands is one of the main countries blocking Romania and Bulgaria from joining the
Schengen Agreement The Schengen Agreement ( , ) is a treaty which led to the creation of Europe's Schengen Area, in which internal border checks have largely been abolished. It was signed on 14 June 1985, near the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, by five of the t ...
; as well as one of the countries where populism is growing.


See also

* Anti-Slavic sentiment * Anti-Eastern Orthodox sentiment *
Second Vienna Award The Second Vienna Award was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and the Kingdom of Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all of Maramureș and part of Cri ...
* Ip massacre * Nușfalău massacre * Treznea massacre * Vlach language


Notes


References

* *


Transnistria

#


USSR

#


Transylvania

# # Romsics, Ignác. Magyarország története a huszadik században ("A History of Hungary in the 20th Century"), p. 85-86.


Serbia

# # # # # {{Discrimination Romanian Transylvania in the Kingdom of Hungary