BEYOND WORDS THE COMMUNICATION OF UNIVERSAL VALUES THROUGH THE LANGUAGE OF ART TEACHING UNIT 3 EQUAL RIGHTS on SPIRITUAL PATH in INTERCULTURAL DOBRUDJA.

BEYOND WORDSTHE COMMUNICATION OF UNIVERSAL

VALUES THROUGH THE LANGUAGE OF ART

TEACHING UNIT 3

• EQUAL RIGHTS on SPIRITUAL PATH in INTERCULTURAL DOBRUDJA

Dobrudja, a “Miniature Europe and Asia" , as the Dobrudjan geographer Constantin

Bratescu called it, has played the role of a ‘huge living ethnographic museum’, where the great cultures and civilizations of the East and

West merged in the space in which the adversities of nature as well as those of wars

were overcome by people of different ethnicities.

Dobrudja represents a model of multicultural diversity, based on relations of cooperation and tolerance, this being the solution for the

geographic areas in which more ethnic- cultural groups coexist.

The Ethnic Structure

of

DOBRUDJA

IN 1913

AND

2002

Nationality 1913 2002

Romanian 56,8 90,9

Turkish 5,5 2,8

Tatar 5,6 2,4

Russian-lipovans 9,4 2,2

Roma 0,9 0,8

Greek 2,6 0,2

Ukrainian - 0,1

Hungarian 0,3 0,1

German 2,0 0,04

Armenian 0,8 0,04

Italian 0,5 0,02

Bulgarian 13,4 0,01

Polish 0,1 0,006

Jewish 1,2 0,004

Czech - 0,002

Serbian 0,1 0,003

Slovak - 0,003

Gagauz 0,3 -

Other nationalities 0,2 0,2

The Armenians in Dobrudja

Belonging to an ancient people, with a sedimented culture, the Armenians came with this ethnic heritage, infiltrated in their behaviour. They came as merchants, wealthy people, who were interested in the good run of their business. They led a fulfilled life, combining common sense with refinement. They also passed down a gesture (which became almost a reflex) of shaking, almost forcefully, the hand of the seller or buyer on closing a deal in order to win the good will of the customer.

THE BULGARIANS IN DOBRUDJAThe Bulgarians are one of the more recent ethnic minorities in Dobrudja. The Bulgarian population in Dobrudja comes in its great majority from the south of Bulgaria and the mountainous regions of the Balkans and they settled down here as fugitives after the Crimean war (1856) and especially after ther Campaign in 1877, in the Turkish villages destroyed by the war, mainly villages near the Razim lake : Caramanchioi, Cangagi, Hamangi, Ceamurli, Gargalic.

THE GERMANS IN DOBRUDJAThe Germans brought about their skills of good craftsmen, farmers and merchants, a systematic approach to work, their sense of order and a tendency towards innovation. In the absence of ploughable land, the inhabitants of the colonies created in the forest regions of Dobrudja dealt mainly with wood and coal. Unfortunately, they exploited the woods excessively, cutting down large areas of forests, for the wood and coal necessary for building ships at the Danubian construction sites. Being good animal raisers, they contributed to the improvement of the cattle and horse breeds, thus distinguishing themselves in producing and distributing butter and with time, in growing cereals and vineyards, in transports, constructions and trade.

THE GERMAN COMMUNITYAlthough from a numeric point of view, their presence is a neglectable one (0,004% out of the total population in Dobrudja), their impact on the region has been a profound one, leaving true ‘relict elements’ through the specific style and architecture in the areas inhabited by them which remained even after they had left. A representative example is Malcoci, with its beautiful church in German style.

THE JEWS

that came to our land dealt mainly with trade. The fact that they were good tradesmen stems from their position in the economic context in this part of Europe, where other work fields were inaccessible to them. The documents confirm the fact that they were granted some privileges regardless of the type of trading they practised.

The Synagogue in Constanta

Recorded in all forms of trading, with varied merchandise, from household items to agricultural produce, from craftwork to luxury objects, the Jewish shop owners also contributed to the pioneering work of conquering the market, even in its poorly supplied areas.

found a place they considered ‘home’ on the land between the Danube and the Sea.

Several sights in Constanta, designed by the Italian constructors, have a special value for the architectural heritage of Dobrudja. But the most important contribution to the development of Dobrudja belongs to the Italians who worked at the construction of bridges over the Danube and Borcea during the reign of King Carol I from 1890 to 1895; in Dobrudja, there are 214 Italians (0,022%), in comparison to 0,5% in 1913.

THE ITALIAN ETHNIC GROUP

THE GREEKS IN DOBROGEA

The constant presence of the Greeks on the western shore of the Black Sea, trading with the local people of the province between the Danube and the Sea,accounts for the considerable and constant number of Greek ethnics in this geographical area. Besides sea trade, the Greeks- mostly coming from the archipelago and Ionic islands- were sailors and ship constructors, owners of a fair share of the small trade in town. The majority of them lived in Constanta and Sulina, where in 1860 came to dominate the economic life of the town for a short period of time.

RUSSIAN- LIPOVANS

settled down in the region of the Danube estuaries and Razim lake, then towards the south.

Their main occupation was fishing (although some aspects of this occupation were learned from the Romanian locals) and the secondary one was raising animals. Speakers of the old Russian language, they gradually borrowed words from the Romanian language and a lot of Romanian influences can be noticed today. The Lipovans are very pious, strictly observing the traditions and customs.

The Lipovan localities (the most representative being: Jurilovca, Sarichioi si Slava Rusa) have wide streets, perfectly lined houses, with the narrow side towards the street and the side with the entrance towards the small yard, which hasn’t got a width larger than the gate. The houses are almost ‘standard’ with beautifully decorated and colourful verandas.

THE TURKISH- TATAR ETHNIC GROUP

The process of Islamic colonization with Turkish- Tatar elements became official permanent task after conquering the Romanian province.

The Romanian authorities respected the traditions of Muslims in Dobrudja. Thus, within the army, the Muslims formed separate departments keeping their Turkish hats and turbans with the uniform and the religious restrictions concerning food. Within the village councils the ethnic situation was obeyed, a lot of mayors being Turkish. The appointment of the first muftis in Constanta and Tulcea counties had a great importance in the life of the Turkish community. The laws guaranteed the freedom of education in the Turkish language and in Babadag a Muslim seminar was founded,which was later moved to Medgidia and is presently The Theological Muslim High School ‘Kemal Ataturk’.

In Dobrudja there are over 50 mosques, attended by all Muslims, regardless of their ethnicity.

Hunchiar Mosque,Constanta. Carol Mosque in Constanta

ROMA IN DOBRUDJA

In Dobrudja, the Roma are an extremely heterogeneous community, comprising groups different in point of language, occupation, social status, etc. Some, carrying on the tradition of the gipsy tribes more or less accurately, would keep the community life of the past: the gipsy woodworkers, the bear leaders and the bolier makers. Most of them, however, left their traditional way of life; they lived within the Romanian community or of a different ethnicity, being more or less integrated in the respective rural or urban community.

There are several Dobrudjan localities with a multiethnic population : Tulcea, Constanta, Mangalia, Sulina, Macin, Babadag, Isaccea, which had an original and picturesque aspect, in which one could see orthodox churches and mosques, synagogues and protestant or catholic chapels.

All these ethnic groups settled down in Dobrudja, remained and set up families, worked as farmers, shepherds, skilled cratsmen or intellectuals, clerks, blessing this place with their faith for a better life, in God, Allah or Jehovah, but preserving their traditions and customs, thus earning the admiration of their neighbours and our respect nowadays.