The De-Stalinization in Romania was a process of removing

Stalinist Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory o ...

policies and

Stalin's cult of personality Joseph Stalin's cult of personality became a prominent feature of Soviet popular culture in 1929, after a lavish celebration of his purported 50th birthday. For the rest of Stalin's rule, the Soviet press presented Stalin as an all-powerful, ...

between 1959 and 1965. Implemented by

Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej (; 8 November 1901 – 19 March 1965) was a Romanian communist politician and electrician. He was the first Communist leader of Romania from 1947 to 1965, serving as first secretary of the Romanian Communist Party ( ...

, it included the marginalization of Stalinists such as

Ana Pauker Ana Pauker (born Hannah Rabinsohn; 13 February 1893 – 3 June 1960) was a Romanian communist leader and served as the country's foreign minister in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Ana Pauker became the world's first female foreign minister wh ...

and a large-scale amnesty of thousands of

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

s. A number of political and cultural figures from the 19th century fight for independence were rehabilitated and writers formerly considered "bourgeois decadent" (like

Tudor Arghezi Tudor Arghezi (; 21 May 1880 – 14 July 1967) was a Romanian writer, best known for his unique contribution to poetry and children's literature. Born Ion N. Theodorescu in Bucharest, he explained that his pen name was related to ''Argesis'', the ...

) were allowed to publish again.Deletant, p. 172 It marked the beginning of a period of

liberalization Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used m ...

Communist Romania The Socialist Republic of Romania ( ro, Republica Socialistă România, RSR) was a Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989. From 1947 to 1965, the state was known as the Romanian Peopl ...

, which ended in 1971 with the

July Theses The July Theses ( ro, Tezele din iulie) is a name commonly given to a speech delivered by Romanian leader Nicolae Ceaușescu on July 6, 1971, before the Executive Committee of the Romanian Communist Party (PCR). Its full name was ("Proposed measu ...

returning the country to the Totalitarian side which was renamed Ceauşism.

Changes in placenames

Many placenames, companies and institutions had been named after Stalin and the "classics of Marxism", as well as Romanian Communist heroes. Most of these were reverted in the 1960s. This began in 1962, with the reverting everything that was named after Stalin:

Brașov Brașov (, , ; german: Kronstadt; hu, Brassó; la, Corona; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the administrative centre of Brașov County. According to the latest Romanian census (2011), Brașov has a pop ...

(which had been named ''Orașul Stalin''), two raions in Bucharest, 23 national companies, 28 local companies, 26 agricultural cooperatives, 5 schools, 285 socio-cultural institutions (hospitals, clubs, stadiums, etc.) and 541 avenues, streets and parks.Mariana Bechir
„Tătucul“ Stalin, şters de pe harta României
''

Adevărul ''Adevărul'' (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published dur ...

'', July 22, 2009 Some placenames named after Lenin were also changed, but many were also kept. The reason for the change was to have a better proportion between international and local names, part of the advancement of National Communism in Romania.

Notes

References

*Marcela Salagean, "The Period of De-Stalinization in Romanian Culture, 1959-1965", in ''East European Quarterly'', Vol. 42, No. 3, Fall 2008 *Dennis Deletant, Ceaușescu and the Securitate: Coercion and Dissent in Romania, 1965-1989, M.E. Sharpe, London, 1995, {{ISBN, 1-56324-633-3. Romanian Communist Party Socialist Republic of Romania De-Stalinization