Elena Alistar-Romanescu (1 June 1873 – 1955) was a

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 ...

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who was part of Sfatul Țării from Bessarabia. She was the aunt of poet

Magda Isanos Magda Isanos (17 April 1916 – 17 November 1944) was a Romanian poet. Biography Born in Iași, her parents were Mihail Isanos and his wife Elisabeta (née Bălan), doctors at the Costiugeni psychiatric hospital near Chișinău. Elisabeta was t ...

Biography

Alistar was born on 1 June 1873 in Vaisal commune, at the time in

Ismail County Ismail County was a county ( județ) of Romania between 1925 and 1938 and between 1941 and 1944, in Bessarabia, with the capital city at Ismail. Geography The county was located in the eastern part of Greater Romania, in the south of the histori ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

(now in

Odessa Oblast Odesa Oblast ( uk, Оде́ська о́бласть, translit=Odeska oblast), also referred to as Odeshchyna ( uk, Оде́щина) is an administrative divisions of Ukraine, oblast (province) of southwestern Ukraine, located along the northern ...

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

). According to some historical sources, she was of

n origin. She was born in a family of priest Vasile Bălan. Her mother was Elisabeta Bălan.Natașa Peteu: Unica femeie deputat din Sfatul Țării: Elena Alistar, un exemplu de conștiință politică
/ref> She graduated from primary school of

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 ...

Cahul County Cahul County was a county of Bessarabia. In the Middle Ages, its territory belonged to the Fălciu County, but after the annexation of Bessarabia by the Russian Empire in 1812 it became a county by itself. History Two smaller, Codru County and ...

, and then, attended the

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 ...

Eparchial School. There she met the young theologian Dumitru Alistar. They married. After a while, her husband became a priest and she followed him. Since 1890, she worked as a teacher in the such villages as Văleni, Roșu,

Zîrnești Zîrnești is a commune in Cahul District, 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 Ukrain ...

Cahul Cahul (; also known by other alternative names) is a city and municipality in southern Moldova. The city is the administrative center of Cahul District; it also administers one village, Cotihana. As of 2014 census, the city has had a populatio ...

, Rezeni, and

. After her husband's death, she was encouraged by the journalist Mihai Vântu to leave for

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, Romania. In 1909–1916, she attended the Medical Faculty of the University of Iași. She was arrested for "nationalistic activity" together with the members of Daniel Ciugureanu's group. The group has claimed the need for forced liberation of Bessarabia from the Russian influence. In 1916, she was recruited by the army as a military doctor. She continued to practice medicine at Costiujeni Hospital near

. She was the member of the Moldavian National Party and was elected as an MP from the Cetatea Albă County for the Sfatul Țării. She was one of the two women elected as MP, and actively took part in the political events that led to Bessarabia's unification with Romania. On 27 March 1918, she voted for the Union of Bessarabia with Romania. The other woman MP,

Nadejda Grinfeld Nadejda Evgenevna Grinfeld (1887–?) was a Bessarabian politician. Biography Nadejda Grinfeld served as Member of the Sfatul Țării, Moldovan Parliament (1917–1918). Sfatul Țării included only two women, Elena Alistar being the other wo ...

, was shot by the Romanian Army for opposing such an unification. Bellu 130222 79

Alistar founded the Women's Cultural League of Bessarabia. She was the president of the People's Party, founded by Mareșal Alexandru Averescu, who was also originally from Babele, a commune near Izmail, Budjak which was at the time in the United Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia and is now in

. The newspaper ''"New Romania"'' was founded and headed by

Onisifor Ghibu Onisifor Ghibu (May 31, 1883 – October 3, 1972) was a Romanian teacher of pedagogy, member of the Romanian Academy, and politician. Biography Early life Born into a peasant family in Szelistye (now Săliște, Romania), near Nagyszeben (now Si ...

, in which have been published many articles signed by Elena Alistar. In 1927, she established in Bessarabia the ''Romanian Women Group''. She became famous for her activity for the Romanian Women Orthodox Society which operates under the patronage of Mrs. Alexandrina Cantacuzino. After the Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina of 28 June 1940, she fled to

. After a short stay in

, she was arrested by the Communist regime and sent to the town of

Pucioasa Pucioasa () is a town in Dâmbovița County, Muntenia, Romania. It administers six villages: Bela, Diaconești, Glodeni, Malurile, Miculești and Pucioasa-Sat. The town is located on the middle course of the Ialomița River, north of Târgovi ...

, then in and now in

Dâmbovița County Dâmbovița County (also spelt ''Dîmbovița'', ) is a county ( județ) of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Târgoviște, the most important economic, political, administrative and cultural center of the county. It has an area of ...

, where she died in 1955. Years later, she was reburied at the Bellu Cemetery in Bucharest.Bejan, Vlad, Românii din sudul Basarabiei, Editura Fundației "Axis", Iași 1998 pp.89-90

Works

* Elena Alistar - ''Mișcarea feministă din Basarabia. Începuturi și realizări. Spre un viitor mai frumos''. In: Mișcarea Feministă. 1. Nr. 1 (1933): 2.

Gallery

Image:Stamp of Moldova 227.gif, Moldovan stamp, 1998

Bibliography

Gheorghe E. Cojocaru Gheorghe E. Cojocaru (born 8 February 1963) is a historian from the Republic of Moldova. Biography Gheorghe E. Cojocaru was born on 8 February 1963. He graduate from Moldova State University in 1986 and got a PhD from University of Bucharest ...

, ''Sfatul Țării: itinerar'', Civitas, Chişinău, 1998, *Mihai Taşcă, ''Sfatul Țării şi actualele autorităţi locale'', " Timpul de dimineaţă", no. 114 (849), June 27, 2008 (page 16) *Alexandru Chiriac. Membrii Sfatului Ţării. 1917–1918. Dicţionar, Editura Fundaţiei Culturale Române, București, 2001.

External links

Unica femeie deputat din Sfatul Ţării. Elena ALISTAR, un exemplu de conştiinţă politică

Elena Alistar

Nataşa PETEU: Unica femeie deputat din Sfatul Ţării: Elena ALISTAR, un exemplu de conştiinţă politică

Arhiva pentru Sfatul Tarii

Deputaţii Sfatului Ţării şi Lavrenti Beria

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alistar, Elena Romanian people of Moldovan descent 1873 births 1955 deaths People from Odesa Oblast National Moldavian Party politicians Moldovan MPs 1917–1918 Moldovan physicians Burials at Bellu Cemetery Moldovan female MPs 20th-century Romanian women politicians Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy alumni Prisoners and detainees of Romania 19th-century Romanian women