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 About Romania |
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The largest of the Balkan countries, Romania enjoys majestic mountains and rolling plains, dense forests and picturesque valleys, and white, sandy beaches. Transylvania has been well-known for the healing powers of its spas, and infamous for its medieval king known as Vlad the Impaler, who helped inspire the novel, Dracula.
Romania’s history is dominated by the control of numerous empires, from the Roman, to the Ottoman, to the Austro-Hungarian. Most of Romania was the Roman province of Dacia from about 100 C.E. to 271 C.E. Subsequently, until the 12th century, wave after wave of barbarian conquerors overran the native Daco-Romans. From the 8th to the 10th century Romania was subject to the Bulgarian Empire, in the 11th century, Transylvania was absorbed into the Hungarian Empire. By the 16th century, Moldavia and Wallachia had become satellites within the Ottoman Empire, although they retained much independence. After the Russo-Turkish War of 1828–1829, they became Russian protectorates. The nation became a kingdom in 1881.
At the start of World War I, Romania proclaimed its neutrality, but joined the Allies in 1916. The armistice of November 11, 1918, gave Romania vast territories from Russia and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including Bessarabia, Transylvania, and Bukovina. The Banat, a Hungarian area, was divided with Yugoslavia. King Carol II was crowned in 1930 and transformed the throne into a dictatorship. In 1940, the country was reorganized along Fascist lines, and the Fascist Iron Guard became the core of the new totalitarian party. On June 27, the Soviet Union occupied Bessarabia and northern Bukovina. King Carol II abdicated his throne, and went into exile.
In November, 1940 Romania signed the Axis Pact, and the following June joined in Germany's attack on the Soviet Union, reoccupying Bessarabia. Following the invasion of Romania by the Red Army in August 1944, King Michael led a coup that ousted the Antonescu government. An armistice with the Soviet Union was signed in Moscow on September 12, 1944. A Communist-dominated government bloc won elections in 1946, and King Michael abdicated in the end of 1947. In 1955 Romania joined the Warsaw Treaty Organization and the United Nations.
Running a neo-Stalinist police state from 1967–1989, Nicolae Ceausescu tightly wound the iron curtain around Romania, bringing a moderately well-off country to a state of near starvation. To settle his $10 billion foreign debt in 1982, he ransacked the Romanian economy of every possible export, leaving the country with desperate shortages. An army-assisted rebellion in 1989 led to Ceausescu's overthrow, trial, and execution.
Since Ceausescu’s overthrow, Romania has been attempting to change to a free-market economy. Romania joined NATO in 2004, and in 2005 the EU approved the entry of Romania in 2007. Final acceptance into the EU will require a number of reforms, including increased law enforcement and environmental measures, and the protection of the rights of the Roma (Gypsy) minority. |
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Location |
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Located in southeastern Europe, Romania is situated on the northeastern part of the Balkan peninsula. To the southeast, Romania has a coastline along the Black Sea, and the country shares borders with Bulgaria to the south, Serbia and Montenegro to the southwest, Hungary to the northwest, Moldova to the northeast, and Ukraine to the north.
The Danube River, which connects central Europe with the Black and Mediterranean Seas, forms much of Romania’s borders with Bulgaria, and Serbia and Montenegro. Transylvania and Moldavia compose the northern half of the country, which is divided down the middle by the Carpathian Mountains. South of the east–west line of the Carpathians lies the flat Danube plain of Wallachia. |
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Population |
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The population of Romania numbers approximately 22 million, of which close to 90% are ethnic Romanians.
Hungarians and Roma (commonly-known as Gypsies) are the two main minority groups, with a declining German population and smaller numbers of Serbs, Croats, Ukrainians, Greeks, Turks, Armenians, Great Russians, and others. Minority groups are greatest in Transylvania and the Banat, areas in the north and west, which were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I. Before World War II, minorities represented close to 30% of the total population. During the war that percentage was reduced by half, largely the result of the loss of the border areas of Bessarabia, northern Bukovina, and southern Dobrudja, as well as the postwar flight or deportation of ethnic Germans. In the last several decades, more than two-thirds of the remaining ethnic Germans in Romania have emigrated to Germany.
Religious affiliation tends to parallel ethnicity, with most ethnic Romanians identifying with the Romanian Orthodox Church. Also ethnically Romanian is the Greek Catholic or Uniate church, reunified with the Orthodox Church by fiat in 1948, and restored after the 1989 revolution. The 2002 census indicates that less than 1% of the population is Greek Catholic, as opposed to about 10% previous to 1948. Roman Catholics, largely ethnic Hungarians and Germans, comprise about 5% of the population, and Calvinists, Baptists, Pentecostals, and Lutherans make up another 5%. There are smaller numbers of Unitarians, Muslims, and other religions.
Most Jews from Romania survived the Holocaust, but during World War II Romanian troops participated in the destruction of the Jewish communities of Bessarabia and Transnistria (both now comprising the independent Republic of Moldova) and Bukovina (now part of Ukraine). Mass emigration, mostly to Israel, has reduced the Jewish community from over 300,000 people to less than 10,000. |
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Language |
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The official language of Romania is Romanian. Although containing elements of Slavic, Turkish, and other languages, Romanian is a romance language related to French and Italian. Hungarian and German are also spoken in Romania. |
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Education |
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The Romanian education system, centrally controlled by the National Ministry of Education in Bucharest, historically has been directive, promoting the rote learning of facts as central to the learning process. The system is highly competitive and marked by periodic examinations to test the capability of the student. The examinations focus primarily on mathematics and grammar.
The school system is divided to Preschool or Kindergarten, General School, incorporating the generalist Primary and specialist Gymnasium or Lower Secondary stages, and the post-compulsory Liceu or High School. Children of certain ethnic minorities may study in schools in their mother language.
Since 1989, this system has been under various reforms. The private school sector, particularly in Bucharest, offers educational alternatives. |
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Weather |
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Romania's location gives it a continental climate, particularly in Moldavia and Wallachia located east of the Carpathians and south of the Transylvanian Alps, and to a lesser extent in centrally located Transylvania, where the climate is more moderate.
A long and sometimes severe winter with frequent snow and fog, a hot, sunny summer with frequent showers and thunderstorms, and a prolonged autumn are the principal seasons, with a rapid transition from spring to summer. In Bucharest, the daily minimum temperature in January averages around 20oF (-7oC), and the daily maximum temperature in July averages around 85oF (29oC). |
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Money and Cost of Living |
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Bucharest has been called the cheapest city in Europe, but it is also known as a hardship city. When available, housing is expensive and building quality poor by Western standards. Power shorts are common, and may be lengthy during the winter. Everyday goods taken for granted in western Europe are hard to come by, and costly. Supplies in local stores are unreliable, and selection of brands is limited. In addition, locally grown food can be of poor quality.
Banking hours are Mon-Fri 0900-1300. |
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Currency |
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The currency in Romania is the Leu (plural Lei) = 100 bani. As of 1 July 2005, Romania's legal tender, previously coded as ROL, has been redenominated so that ROL 10,000 are exchanged for 1 new Leu (RON). The old Leu will be legal tender until the end of December 2006.
Old notes are in denominations of Lei1,000,000, 500,000, 100,000, 50,000 and 10,000. Old coins are in denominations of Lei5000, 1000, 500, 100 and 1. New notes are in denominations of Lei500, 100, 50, 10, 5 and 1. New coins are in denominations of Bani50, 10, 5 and 1. |
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Health |
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Health insurance with a provision for medical evacuation by air is recommended, as health care to western standards is scarce. There are limited health facilities, medical supplies and medications. Doctors and hospitals often expect immediate cash payment for services, and patients routinely tip medical personnel to guarantee attention.
There are no vaccinations required for entry to Romania, but it is recommended to be up-to-date on immunizations for hepatitis A, and B, typhoid, tetanus-diptheria, and rabies. Tuberculosis and hepatitus C pose risks. |
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Weights and Measures |
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Romania uses the metric system, measuring units in grams and kilograms, and milliliters and liters. |
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Electricity |
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Romania uses 230V and 50Hz electricity with C and F plugs. C plugs are round pin attachment plugs that can also be used with E, F, and some L receptacles. This type of plug is common in most universal adaptor sets. F plugs are known as Schukostecker or Schuko plugs, and F receptacles will accept C and E plugs. |
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