Gagauzia or Gagauz-Yeri, or ; ro, Găgăuzia; russian: Гагаузия, Gagauziya officially the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia; ro, Unitatea Teritorială Autonomă Găgăuzia, ''UTAG''; russian: Автономное территориальное образование Гагаузия, Avtonomnoye territoriaľnoye obrazovaniye Gagauziya, АТОГ (ATUG),
is an
autonomous territorial unit
An autonomous territorial unit (ATU; ro, Unitate teritorială autonomă, ) is an administrative division of Moldova.
Originally, Gagauzia was the only such unit.
In 2005, Moldovan law also recognized the Administrative-Territorial Units of the ...
of
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
. Its autonomy is ethnically motivated by the predominance in the region of the
Gagauz people
The Gagauz ( gag, Gagauzlar) are a Turkic people living mostly in southern Moldova ( Gagauzia, Taraclia District, Basarabeasca District) and southwestern Ukraine (Budjak). Gagauz are mostly Eastern Orthodox Christians. The term Gagauz is also o ...
, who are primarily
Orthodox
Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to:
Religion
* Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...
Turkic-speaking people.
At the end of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, all of the territory of Gagauzia became part of the
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...
, before being
carved up into the Soviet Union in June 1940. From 1941 to 1944 it was again part of Romania, after which it was incorporated into the
Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic
The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic ( ro, Republica Sovietică Socialistă Moldovenească, Moldovan Cyrillic: ) was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union which existed from 1940 to 1991. The republic was formed on 2 August 1940 ...
. As the
Soviet Union began to disintegrate, Gagauzia declared independence in 1990 as the
Gagauz Republic
The Gagauz Republic ( gag, Gagauz Respublikası; ro, Republica Găgăuzia; russian: Республика Гагаузия, ''Respublika Gagauzija'') was an unrecognised state that separated from Moldova during the dissolution of the Soviet Unio ...
, but was integrated into Moldova in 1994.
''Gagauz Yeri'' literally means "place of the Gagauz".
History
The origin of the Gagauz is obscure. In the beginning of the 20th century, Bulgarian historian M. Dimitrov counted 19 different theories about their origin. A few decades later, the Gagauz ethnologist M. N. Guboglo increased that number to 21. In some of those theories the Gagauz are presented as descendants of the
Bulgars
The Bulgars (also Bulghars, Bulgari, Bolgars, Bolghars, Bolgari, Proto-Bulgarians) were Turkic semi-nomadic warrior tribes that flourished in the Pontic–Caspian steppe and the Volga region during the 7th century. They became known as nomad ...
, the
Cumans
The Cumans (or Kumans), also known as Polovtsians or Polovtsy (plural only, from the Russian language, Russian Exonym and endonym, exonym ), were a Turkic people, Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman–Kipchak confede ...
-
Kipchaks
The Kipchaks or Qipchaks, also known as Kipchak Turks or Polovtsians, were a Turkic nomadic people and confederation that existed in the Middle Ages, inhabiting parts of the Eurasian Steppe. First mentioned in the 8th century as part of the Se ...
,
or a clan of
Seljuk Turks
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
led by a Turkoman dervish,
Sarı Saltık
Sarı Saltık (also spelled Sarı Saltuk, "the blonde", ota, صارى صالتق, Ṣarı̊ Ṣaltı̊q; also referred as ''Sari Saltuk Baba'' or ''Dede'') (died 1297/98) was a 13th-century Alevi Turkish dervish, venerated as a saint by the Be ...
. The fact that their confession is
Eastern Orthodox Christianity
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...
may suggest that their ancestors already lived in the
Balkans
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
prior to the Ottoman conquest in the late 14th century. Another theory indicates that Gagauz are descendants of
Kutrigurs
Kutrigurs were Turkic Eurasian nomads, nomadic equestrians who flourished on the Pontic–Caspian steppe in the 6th century AD. To their east were the similar Utigurs and both possibly were closely related to the Bulgars. They warred with the Byza ...
. In the official Gagauz museum, a plaque mentions that one of the two main theories is that they descend from the Bulgars.
Russian Empire
In 1812,
Bessarabia
Bessarabia (; Gagauz: ''Besarabiya''; Romanian: ''Basarabia''; Ukrainian: ''Бессара́бія'') is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Be ...
, previously the eastern half of the
Principality of Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and former principality in Central ...
, was annexed by the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
following the defeat of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
in the
Russo-Turkish War of 1806–1812 (''see
Treaty of Bucharest (1812)
The Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, was signed on 28 May 1812, in Manuc's Inn in Bucharest, and ratified on 5 July 1812, at the end of the Russo-Turkish War of 1806–1812. The Ottomans had done poorly in ...
'').
Nogai tribes who inhabited several villages in south Bessarabia (or
Budjak
Budjak or Budzhak (Bulgarian and Ukrainian: Буджак; ro, Bugeac; Gagauz and Turkish: ''Bucak''), historically part of Bessarabia until 1812, is a historical region in Ukraine and Moldova. Lying along the Black Sea between the Danube ...
) were forced to leave. Between 1812 and 1846, the Russians relocated the Gagauz people from what is today eastern Bulgaria (which was then under the Ottoman Empire) to the orthodox Bessarabia, mainly in the settlements vacated by the Nogai tribes. They settled there together with
Bessarabian Bulgarians
The Bessarabian Bulgarians ( bg, бесарабски българи, ''besarabski bǎlgari'', ro, bulgari basarabeni, uk, бесарабські болгари, ''bessarabski bolháry'') are a Bulgarian minority group of the historical region ...
in
Avdarma
Avdarma ( ro, Avdarma; gag, Avdarma) is a commune and village in the Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova. The 2004 census listed the commune as having a population of 3,564 people.
3,356 of the inhabitants belonged to ...
, Comrat,
Congaz
Congaz ( gag, Kongaz) is a commune and village in the Gagauz Autonomous Territorial Unit of the Republic of Moldova
A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a ...
,
Tomai,
Cișmichioi, and other former Nogai villages. Some Gagauz were also settled in the part of the Principality of Moldavia that did not come under Russian control in 1812. But, within several years, villagers moved to live with their own people in the compact area in the south of Bessarabia where their descendants inhabit in the 21st century.
With the exception of a six-day ''de facto'' independence in the winter of 1906, when a peasant uprising declared an autonomous
Comrat Republic
The Comrat Republic ( gag, Κομράτ Ρεσπυβλικάσι, italics=no, ; ro, Republica de la Comrat; russian: Комратская республика, Komratskaya respublika) was an autonomous republic established in the village of C ...
, ethnic Gagauz have always been ruled by other dominant groups: the Russian Empire (1812–1917), the
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...
(1918–1940 and 1941–1944), the Soviet Union (1940–1941 and 1944–1991), and Moldova (1917–1918 and 1991 to date).
Soviet Union
Gagauz nationalism remained an intellectual movement during the 1980s, but strengthened by the end of the decade, as the Soviet Union began to embrace democratic ideals. In 1988, activists from the local intelligentsia aligned with other ethnic minorities to create a movement known as the Gagauz People. A year later, the Gagauz People held its first assembly; they passed a resolution demanding the creation of an
autonomous territory
An autonomous administrative division (also referred to as an autonomous area, entity, unit, region, subdivision, or territory) is a subnational administrative division or internal territory of a sovereign state that has a degree of autonomy ...
in southern Moldova, with the city of Comrat as its capital.
The Gagauz national movement intensified when Moldovan (Romanian) was accepted as the official language of the Republic of Moldova in August 1989, challenging the then-dominant Russian language which was the official language of the
USSR
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
. A part of the multiethnic population of southern Moldova was concerned about the change in official languages.
They had a lack of confidence in the central government in
Chișinău
Chișinău ( , , ), also known as Kishinev (russian: Кишинёв, r=Kishinjóv ), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Republic of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial center, and is located in the ...
. The Gagauz were also worried about the implications for them if Moldova reunited with Romania, as seemed likely at the time. In August 1990, Comrat declared itself an autonomous republic,
but the Moldovan government annulled the declaration as unconstitutional. At that time,
Stepan Topal emerged as the leader of the Gagauz national movement.
Independent Moldova
![Gagauzja](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Gagauzja.png)
Support for the Soviet Union remained high in Gagauzia, with a
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
in March 1991 returning an almost unanimous vote in favour of remaining part of the USSR. Many Gagauz supported the
Moscow coup attempt in August 1991,
and Gagauzia declared itself an
independent republic on 19 August 1991. In September
Transnistria
Transnistria, officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR), is an unrecognised breakaway state that is internationally recognised as a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester riv ...
declared its independence, thus further straining relations with the government of Moldova. But, when the Moldovan parliament voted on independence on 27 August 1991, six of the 12 Gagauz deputies in the Moldovan parliament voted in favour, while the other six abstained. The Moldovan government began to pay more attention to
minority rights
Minority rights are the normal individual rights as applied to members of racial, ethnic, class, religious, linguistic or gender and sexual minorities, and also the collective rights accorded to any minority group.
Civil-rights movements ofte ...
. The economic dependence of Gagauzia on the rest of Moldova, and the Moldovan army's inability to defeat Transnistria, created reasons for compromise on both sides.
In February 1994, President
Mircea Snegur
Mircea Snegur (; born 17 January 1940) is a Moldovan politician who was served as first President of Moldova from 1990–1997. Before that, he served as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet 1989–1990 (head of state) and Chairman ...
promised autonomy to the Gagauz, but opposed independence. He was also opposed to the suggestion that Moldova become a federal state made up of three republics: Moldova, Gagauzia, and Transnistria.
In 1994, the Parliament of Moldova awarded to "the people of Gagauzia" (through the adoption of the new Constitution of Moldova) the right of "external self-determination". On 23 December 1994, the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova accepted the "Law on the Special Legal Status of Gagauzia" (Gagauz: ''Gagauz Yeri''), resolving the dispute peacefully. This date is now a Gagauz holiday. Gagauzia is now a "national-territorial autonomous unit" with three official languages: Romanian, Gagauz, and Russian.
Communes with over 50% ethnic Gagauz held referendums where a simple majority was required to join the autonomous region. Communes with fewer Gagauz could have referendums if they were requested by one-third of the population. Following the 5 March 1995 referendum, three towns and 26 communes were included in the Autonomous Gagauz Territory.
Gheorghe Tabunșcic was elected to serve as the
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
(Romanian: ''Guvernator'', Gagauz: ''Başkan'') of Gagauzia for a four-year term, as were the deputies of the local parliament, "
The People's Assembly" (Gagauz: "
Halk Topluşu
The People's Assembly of Gagauzia (''Gagauziyanin Halk Topluşu'', ''Народное Собрание Гагаузии'') is the representative and legislative body of the Gagauzia, an autonomous territorial unit of Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ...
"), with
Petr Pașalî as
chairman
The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...
.
Dmitrii Croitor won the 1999 governor elections and began to assert the rights granted to the governor by the 1994 agreement. The central authorities of Moldova proved unwilling to accept the results, initiating a lengthy stand-off between the autonomy and Chișinău. Finally, Croitor resigned in 2002 due to the pressure from the Moldovan government, which accused him of abuse of authority, relations with the separatist authorities of Transnistria, and other charges.
The central electoral commission of Gagauzia did not register Croitor as a candidate for the post of the Governor in the subsequent elections, and
Gheorgi Tabunshik was elected in what was described as unfair elections.
Mihail Formuzal
Mihail Formuzal (russian: Михаил Формузал; born 7 November 1959, in Beșghioz) is a Moldovan politician of Gagauz ethnicity, who was Governor (Başkan) of the Autonomous Territorial Unit of Gagauzia (Gagauz Yeri) from December 200 ...
served as the Governor of Gagauzia from 2006 until 2015. That year
Irina Vlah
Irina Vlah (born 26 February 1974) is a Moldovan politician. She served as member of the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova from 2005 to 2009 and from 2014 to 2015. Since 15 April 2015 she has been the Governor (''Başkan'') of the Autonomous ...
was elected to the position, with 51% of the vote.
On 2 February 2014, Gagauzia held a referendum. An overwhelming majority of voters opted for closer ties with Russia over EU integration. They also said they preferred the independence of Gagauzia if Moldova chooses to enter the EU.
On 23 March 2015, Irina Vlah was elected as the new governor after a strongly pro-Russian campaign, dominated by the quest for closer ties with the Russian Federation.
Geography
Gagauzia is divided into three districts. It is also split into four enclaves. The main, central enclave includes the cities Comrat and
Ceadîr-Lunga
Ceadîr-Lunga (, also spelled ''Ceadâr-Lunga''; Gagauz: ''Çadır-Lunga'') is a city and municipalityenclave
An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
is located around the city of
Vulcănești
Vulcănești (; gag, Valkaneş) is a town in Gagauzia, Moldova.
The area of Vulcănești is the southern exclave of Gagauzia surrounded by the Cahul District (Moldova) and Odessa Region (Ukraine).
One village-rail station also named Vulcăneș ...
, while two smaller enclaves are the villages of
Copceac and
Carbalia. The village of Carbalia falls under administration of Vulcănești, while Copceac is part of the Ceadîr-Lunga district.
Administrative divisions
Gagauzia consists of one municipality, two cities, and 23 communes containing a total of 32 localities.
Politics
The autonomy of Gagauzia is guaranteed by the Moldovan constitution and regulated by the 1994 Gagauz Autonomy Act. If Moldova decided to unite with Romania, Gagauzia would have the right of self-determination. The
Gagauz People's Assembly (Gagauz: ''
Halk Topluşu
The People's Assembly of Gagauzia (''Gagauziyanin Halk Topluşu'', ''Народное Собрание Гагаузии'') is the representative and legislative body of the Gagauzia, an autonomous territorial unit of Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ...
''; Romanian: ''Adunarea Populară'') has a mandate for lawmaking powers within its own jurisdiction. This includes laws on education, culture, local development, budgetary and taxation issues, social security, and questions of territorial administration. The People's Assembly also has two special powers: it may participate in the formulation of Moldova's internal and foreign policy; and, should central regulations interfere with the jurisdiction of Gagauz-Yeri, it has the right of appeal to Moldova's
Constitutional Court
A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...
.
The highest official of Gagauzia, who heads the executive power structure, is the
Governor of Gagauzia
The Governor of Gagauzia, (''Başkan'' ()), is the highest political position in Gagauzia, an autonomous territorial unit of Moldova. They chair the Executive Committee of Gagauzia and are an ''ex-officio'' member of the Cabinet of Moldova.
The ...
(Gagauz: ''Başkan''; Romanian: ''Guvernatorul Găgăuziei''). She/he is elected by popular
suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in representative democracy, public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally i ...
for a four-year term, and has power over all public administrative bodies of Gagauzia. She/he is also a member of the Government of the Republic of Moldova. Eligibility for governorship requires fluency in the Gagauz language, Moldovan citizenship, and a minimum age of 35 years.
Permanent executive power in Gagauz Yeri is exercised by the Executive Committee (''Bakannik Komiteti'' / ''Comitetul Executiv''). Its members are appointed by the Governor, or by a
simple majority vote in the Assembly at its first session. The Committee ensures the application of the laws of the Republic of Moldova and those of the Assembly of Gagauz-Yeri.
As part of its autonomy, Gagauzia has its own
police
The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...
force.
Gagauz Halkı is a former Gagauz separatist political party, now outlawed.
Elections
Elections for the local governor and parliament as well as referendums take place in the autonomous region.
The population also votes in the national legislatives elections.
Economy
The base of Gagauzia's economy is
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
, particularly
viticulture
Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...
. The main export products are
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
,
sunflower oil
Sunflower oil is the non-volatile oil pressed from the seeds of the sunflower (''Helianthus annuus''). Sunflower oil is commonly used in food as a frying oil, and in cosmetic formulations as an emollient.
Sunflower oil is primarily composed ...
, non-alcoholic beverages,
wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
,
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hogs, ...
, and
textile
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
s. There are 12 wineries, processing more than 400,000 tonnes annually. There are also two oil factories, two carpet factories, one meat factory, and one non-alcoholic beverage factory.
Transport
There are of roads in Gagauzia, of which 82% are paved.
Demographics
According to the 2014 census, Gagauzia had a population of 134,132, of which 36.2%
urban
Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to:
* Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas
* Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities
Urban may also refer to:
General
* Urban (name), a list of people ...
and 63.8%
rural
In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...
population.
*
Births
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the ...
(2010): 2,042 (12.7 per 1,000)
*
Deaths
Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...
(2010): 1,868 (11.6 per 1,000)
*Growth Rate (2010): 174 (1.1 per 1,000)
Ethnic composition
According to the 2014 census results, the ethnic breakdown in Gagauzia was:
There is an
ongoing identity controversy over whether
Romanians
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Culture of Romania, Romanian culture and Cultural heritage, ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they l ...
and
Moldovans
Moldovans, sometimes referred to as Moldavians ( ro, moldoveni , Moldovan Cyrillic: молдовень), are a Romance-speaking ethnic group and the largest ethnic group of the Republic of Moldova (75.1% of the population as of 2014) and a sign ...
are the same ethnic group. At the census, every citizen could only declare one nationality; consequently, one could not declare oneself both Moldovan and Romanian.
Religion
*
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
– 96.0%
**
Orthodox Christians
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...
– 93.0%
**
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
– 3.0%
***
Baptists
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
– 1.6%
***
Seventh-day Adventists
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...
– 0.8%
***
Evangelicals
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
– 0.4%
***
Pentecostals
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement – 0.2%
*Other – 2.2%
*No Religion – 1.6%
*Atheists – 0.2%
Culture and education
Gagauzia has 55 schools, the Comrat Pedagogical College (high school plus two years over high school), and
Comrat State University
ro, Universitatea de Stat din Comratrussian: Комратский государственный университет
, image_name = Universitatea de Stat din Comrat.png
, image_size = 150px
, image_alt ...
(''Komrat Devlet Universiteti '').
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
financed the creation of a
Turkish cultural centre (''Türk İşbirliği Ve Kalkınma İdaresi Başkanlığı'') and a Turkish library (''Atatürk Kütüphanesi''). In the village of Beșalma, there is a Gagauz historical and ethnographical museum established by Dimitriy Kara Çöban.
Despite declaring
Gagauz as the national language of the autonomous region, the local authorities do not provide any full Gagauz-teaching school, most of those are
Russian-language
Russian (russian: русский язык, russkij jazyk, link=no, ) is an East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the native language of the Russians, and belongs to the Indo-European language family. It is one of four living Eas ...
as opposed to inner Moldovan full
Romanian language
Romanian (obsolete spellings: Rumanian or Roumanian; autonym: ''limba română'' , or ''românește'', ) is the official and main language of Romania and the Moldova, Republic of Moldova. As a minority language it is spoken by stable communi ...
education. Although pupils are introduced to all of the usual school languages (Russian, Romanian, English or French, Gagauz), the local language continues to be the most popular language.
Not being a sovereign nation, Gagauzia's Football team cannot be admitted to
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
. However, in 2006 Gagauzia did participate in the
ELF Cup
The ELF Cup (''Equality, Liberty, Fraternity'') was an international football tournament organised by the Cyprus Turkish Football Federation (KTFF), a member of the NF-Board. It was played only once in 2006. Among the participants were NF-Board ...
, held in
North Cyprus
Northern Cyprus ( tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs), officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC; tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, ''KKTC''), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. Recog ...
, where it competed with teams from other regions around the world which fall short of full national sovereignty.
See also
*
Gagauz people
The Gagauz ( gag, Gagauzlar) are a Turkic people living mostly in southern Moldova ( Gagauzia, Taraclia District, Basarabeasca District) and southwestern Ukraine (Budjak). Gagauz are mostly Eastern Orthodox Christians. The term Gagauz is also o ...
*
FC Olimp Comrat
FC Olimp Comrat is a Moldovan football club based in Comrat, Moldova. They play in the Divizia A, the second tier of Moldovan football.
Honours
*Divizia B
:Winners (1): 2019
Roman Rostokin- top goal scorer of 2021–22 Moldovan Cup
Stadium
O ...
*
List of Chairmen of the Gagauzian People's Assembly
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
Notes
References
Further reading
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External links
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{{Authority control
Territorial units of Moldova
States and territories established in 1994
Autonomous regions
Members of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization
Post-Soviet states
Romanian-speaking countries and territories
Russian-speaking countries and territories
Regions of Europe with multiple official languages
1994 establishments in Moldova
Observer members of the International Organization of Turkic Culture
Turkic states