Ethnic Minorities in Bessarabia during Romanization in 1918–1920

This article describes the political and social situation in Bessarabia in the context of the so-called Great Romania Project, i.e., attempts to romanize the multiethnic population in the region that took place after the Great War in 1918–1919. The collapse of the Austro-Hungarian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires changed the map of Europe and gave rise to new national states. These processes triggered various national minority issues, e.g., civil, political, and language inequality. In 1918, Romania occupied Bessarabia, which had been part of Russian Empire since 1812. Besides Moldovans, who were recognized as the core of Romanian nation, Bessarabia’s population was multiethnic and involved Russians, Ukrainians, Russinians, Germans, Jews, Poles, Bulgarians, Gagauz, etc. Romania started incorporating Bessarabia and integrating its population even before the new borders were recognized internationally. This research featured the methods of Romanization in Bessarabia. It relied on archival documents published in The Red Archive Journal in 1940, which remained beyond the scope of scientific attention. The authors used the principles of historicism and objectivity represented by the methods of analysis and synthesis, comparative historical and problem-chronological methods, etc. The goal of the forced Romanization was to exterminate Russian influence, e.g., the regional division into zemstvo, local elections, language, education, etc. As a result, the methods of force applied to the language, ethnic, and religious minorities caused their active resistance.

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