Romania

Lore & Background

Romania was settled during the Lower Paleolithic, later becoming Dacia before Trajan's Dacian Wars and Romanisation. The modern Romanian state was formed in 1859 with the unification of Moldavia and Wallachia under Alexandru Ioan Cuza, becoming the Kingdom of Romania in 1881 under Carol I. Romania gained independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1877. After World War I, Transylvania, Banat, Bukovina, and Bessarabia joined the Old Kingdom, forming Greater Romania. In 1940, under Axis pressure, Romania lost territories to Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Soviet Union. Following the Act of 23 August, Romania switched sides to join the Allies. After World War II, it regained Northern Transylvania through the Paris Peace Treaties. Under Soviet occupation, King Michael I was forced to abdicate, and Romania became a socialist republic and Warsaw Pact member. After the fall of communism and the Romanian revolution in 1989, Romania transitioned to liberal democracy.

In Their Own Story

The humidity of Pasadena clung to the turf as the whistle approached for the quarter-final penalty shootout against Germany. Gheorghe Hagi stood on the sideline, his eyes fixed on the ball, knowing this was the culmination of a dream that had burned through the entire decade. The stadium roared with a mix of hope and dread, the red and yellow flags whipping violently in the wind. For Romania, it was not just about winning; it was about proving that the Carpathian spirit could stand toe-to-toe with footballing giants on the world's biggest stage.

Reader's Guide

Romania is a developed country with a high-income economy and is widely regarded as a middle power in international relations. The country possesses 11 UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Romania is a global net exporter of automotive parts and is an increasingly prominent technology centre with some of the fastest internet speeds in the world. Romania is a member of several international organisations, including the European Union, NATO, and the BSEC.

Did You Know?

• Romania derives from the local name for Romanian (român), which in turn derives from Latin romanus, meaning 'Roman' or 'of Rome'.
• The oldest known surviving document written in Romanian that can be precisely dated is a 1521 letter known as the 'Letter of Neacșu from Câmpulung', which includes the first documented occurrence of Romanian in a country
• Human remains found in Peștera cu Oase ('Cave with Bones') date from circa 40,000 years ago and represent the oldest known Homo sapiens in Europe.
• The Cucuteni–Trypillia culture flourished in Muntenia, southeastern Transylvania and northeastern Moldavia in the 3rd millennium BC.