Alba Iulia is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the river Mureș in the historical region of Transylvania, it has a population of 63,536.
The coat of arms of Romania was adopted in the Romanian Parliament on 10 September 1992 as a representative coat of arms for Romania. The current coat of arms is based on the lesser coat of arms of interwar Kingdom of Romania, which was designed in 1921 by the Transylvanian Hungarian heraldist József Sebestyén from Cluj, at the request of King Ferdinand I of Romania, it was redesigned by Victor Dima. As a central element, it shows a golden aquila holding a cross in its beak, and a mace and a sword in its claws. It also consists of the three colors which represent the colors of the national flag. The coat of arms was augmented on 11 July 2016 to add a representation of the Steel Crown of Romania.
The unification of Moldova and Romania is a popular concept in the two countries that began during the Revolutions of 1989. The Romanian Revolution in 1989 and the independence of Moldova in 1991 further contributed to the development of a movement for the unification of the two Romanian-speaking countries. The question of reunification is recurrent in the public sphere of the two countries, often as a speculation, both as a goal and a danger. Though historically Romanian support for unification was high, a 2022 survey during the Russian invasion of Ukraine indicated that only 11% of Romania's population supports an immediate union, while over 42% think it is not the right moment.
Great Union Day is a national holiday in Romania, celebrated on 1 December, marking the unification of Transylvania, Bassarabia, and Bukovina with the Romanian Kingdom in 1918, something that is known as the Great Union. This holiday was declared after the Romanian Revolution and commemorates the Great National Assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia, who declared the Union of Transylvania with Romania.
The Romanian government is the armiger in Romania. It exercises this right under the mandatory advice of the National Committee of Heraldry, Genealogy and Sigillography. The committee is subordinate to the Romanian Academy. All the coats of arms of Romanian institutions must be approved by this committee with two exceptions. The Romanian military is subject to the Ministry of National Defense Heraldric Committee, and Romanian law enforcement institutions are subject to the Ministry of Administration and Interior Heraldric Committee. Both of these committees may share members with the National Committee of Heraldry, Genealogy and Sigillography.
Modern Moldova-Romania relations emerged after the Republic of Moldova gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Pan-Romanianism has been a consistent part of Moldovan politics, and was adopted in the Popular Front of Moldova's platform in 1992. The official language of Moldova is Romanian. The peoples of the two countries share common traditions and folklore, including a common name for the monetary unit – the leu. At present, relations between the two states are exceptionally friendly, especially on account of the pro-Romanian administration of Maia Sandu in Moldova.
Freemasonry in Romania traces its origins to the 18th century. Following an intricate history, all organised Freemasonry in the country ceased during the Communist era, although some lodges continued to operate in exile overseas. Freemasonry returned to Romania in the 1990s.
A controversy exists over the national identity and name of the native language of the main ethnic group in Moldova. The issue more frequently disputed is whether Moldovans constitute a subgroup of Romanians or a separate ethnic group. While there is wide agreement about the existence of a common language, the controversy persists about the use of the term "Moldovan language" in certain political contexts.
A total of 41 counties, along with the municipality of Bucharest, constitute the official administrative divisions of Romania. They represent the country's NUTS-3 statistical subdivisions within the European Union and each of them serves as the local level of government within its borders. Most counties are named after a major river, while some are named after notable cities within them, such as the county seat.
Ștefan Cicio Pop was a Romanian politician.
The Romanian transitional alphabet, also known as the civil alphabet, was a series of alphabets containing a mix of Cyrillic and Latin characters used for the Romanian language in the 19th century. It replaced the Romanian Cyrillic alphabet and was in turn replaced by the Romanian Latin alphabet.
The Centenary March or Centenary March of the Great Union was a civic demonstration organized by George Simion and various non-governmental organizations from Romania and Moldova, known under the collective name "Alliance for the Centenary". It started in Alba Iulia (Romania) on 1 July 2018 and ended in Chișinău (Moldova) on 1 September 2018. Its participants, both Moldovans and Romanians, targeted 300 cities and villages, passing through several points significant for the Great Union.
Moldovans in Romania include the people born in the Republic of Moldova living in Romania and their descendants. The largest group of immigrants in Romania are from Moldova. Owing to the former period of union between most of Moldova and Romania, many Moldovans are eligible for Romanian citizenship on the basis of Romanian descent. Many immigrants from the Republic of Moldova prefer to settle in the Romanian counties from the region of Western Moldavia as the culture there is more similar to that of their home country. There are also significant Moldovan communities in the largest cities of Romania, such as Bucharest and Constanta (Wallachia) as well as Cluj-Napoca (Transylvania) and Timișoara (Banat).
Greater Moldova or Greater Moldavia is an irredentist concept today used for the credence that the Republic of Moldova should be expanded with lands that used to belong to the Principality of Moldavia or were once inside its political orbit. Historically, it also meant the unification of the lands of the former principality under either Romania or the Soviet Union. Territories cited in such proposals always include Western Moldavia and the whole of Bessarabia, as well as Bukovina and the Hertsa region; some versions also feature parts of Transylvania, while still others include areas of Podolia, or Pokuttia in its entirety. In its most post-Soviet iterations, "Greater Moldova" is associated with a belief that Moldovans are a distinct people from Romanians, and that they inhabit parts of Romania and Ukraine. It is a marginal position within the Moldovan identity disputes, corresponding to radical forms of an ideology polemically known as "Moldovenism".
The Day of the Unification of the Romanian Principalities or, unofficially, the Little Union Day, is a public holiday of Romania celebrated every 24 January to commemorate the unification of the Romanian Principalities, also known as the "Little Union", on 24 January 1859 under prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza. This event is deemed as important as it is considered the first step towards the goal of achieving a unitary Romanian state, something that is considered to have been achieved on 1 December 1918, when the Romanian National Assembly declared the union of Transylvania, Banat, Crișana, and Maramureș with the Kingdom of Romania.
The Day of the Union of Bessarabia with Romania is a public holiday of Romania celebrated every 27 March to commemorate the union of Bessarabia with Romania on 27 March 1918. Bessarabia is a Romanian historical region that was part of the Principality of Moldavia, which united with Wallachia to form modern Romania. The region was annexed in 1812 by the Russian Empire, but it became independent and united with Romania on 27 March 1918.
The unification of Moldavia and Wallachia, also known as the unification of the Romanian Principalities or as the Little Union, happened in 1859 following the election of Alexandru Ioan Cuza as prince of both the Principality of Moldavia and the Principality of Wallachia. A potential unification between the two principalities, which shared a common Romanian ethnicity, language and culture, had been attempted to be avoided by the great powers for a long time, although it was allowed at the moment it happened. The unification of these two states began a political struggle in the new country to find out which of the two regions would obtain "supremacy" and met some opposition in Moldavia by the so-called "separatists".
Action 2012, officially Unionist Platform Action 2012 or Civic Platform Action 2012, is a coalition of non-governmental organizations striving for the unification of Moldova and Romania operating in both Moldova and Romania. It was established on 17 April 2011, bringing together more than 30 unionist NGOs from Romania, Moldova, the United States and several other European countries. Action 2012 takes its name from the year 2012, which marked the 200th anniversary of the annexation of Bessarabia by the Russian Empire away from the Romanian principality of Moldavia. The coalition was founded by George Simion, then a Romanian activist who later became a politician.
Iosif Blaga was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian literary theorist, aesthetician, priest, politician and educator.
The Great National Assembly of Alba Iulia was an assembly held on 1 December 1918 in the city of Alba Iulia in which a total of 1,228 delegates from several areas inhabited by ethnic Romanians declared the union of Transylvania with Romania. It was summoned by the National Romanian Central Council. Regular ethnic Romanian civilians were also called to participate, and these came from all regions inhabited by Romanians; in total, the assembly was attended by some 100,000 people. The union of Transylvania with Romania was declared with the adoption of the Declaration of Alba Iulia during the assembly.
