The Romanian versus Moldovan language polemic as reflected in civil society and political debates in the Republic of Moldova’s press

Șipoș, Sorin and Șarov, Igor and Eremia, Ion (2025) The Romanian versus Moldovan language polemic as reflected in civil society and political debates in the Republic of Moldova’s press. CIVIL SZEMLE, 22 (1). pp. 105-124. ISSN 1786-3341

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Abstract

This investigation will present an examination of the issue regarding civil society debates on the issue of the Romanian language versus the Moldovan language" in the Republic of Moldova in the years 1991-2023. The aim pursued is to analyze the place and role of civil society in the Republic of Moldova in linguistic debates in the context of state consolidation and European integration trends. The problem of the "Moldovan language" as a language close to, but distinct from the Romanian language has its origins as far back as the 19th century and was accentuated in the conditions when Bessarabia was annexed to the Russian Empire, and Moldova and Wallachia united in 1859 and formed a new state, later called Romania. Tsarism saw in this a danger for its dominance in Bessarabia, and efforts begin to be made to "prove" the existence of the "Moldovan language" and the "Moldovan people". This tendency was amplified during Soviet power, initially in the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Autonomous Republic, then in the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic. The democratization of society in the USSR from the mid-80s of the last century led to the splitting of society: one part took scientific positions and recognized the identity of the Romanian language and the "Moldovan language", the other part, primarily Russian speakers, but not only that, they continued the propagation of the concept of "Moldovan language", a situation that continues up to the present time, despite the legislation recently adopted by the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. The working hypothesis is that civil society in the Republic of Moldova is politicized on the linguistic issue and continues to remain divided: most recognize the existence of only one language, the Romanian language. At the same time, Russian speakers continue to propagate the concept of "Moldovan language", being supported by external forces from Moscow, which further proves the interference/influence of the Russian Federation on the Russian-speaking society of the Republic of Moldova. This state of affairs requires considerable efforts in order to unify the opinion of civil society on the excessively politicized linguistic issue, a consequence of an imperial policy actively promoted for a long time. From a methodological perspective, the following levels of analysis are proposed: 1. Short scientific excursion into the history of the problem regarding the genesis of the concept of "Moldovan language". 2. Civil society and the concept of the Romanian language - "Moldovan language" at the end of the 80s-early 90s of the 20th century. 3. The place and role of civil society in the process of solving the "linguistic conflict" in the Republic of Moldova at the current stage.

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