Background
During the Late Antiquity and Middle Ages, the major influences came from medieval Greeks and theHistory
Middle Ages
Until the 14th century, small states (Classical Age
In Transylvania, although they formed the majority of the population, Romanians were merely seen as a "tolerated nation" by the Austrian leadership of the province, and were not proportionally represented in political life and theGolden Age
The first half of the 20th century is regarded by many as the golden age of Romanian culture, and it is the period when it reached its main level of international affirmation and a strong connection to European cultural trends. The most important artist who had a great influence on the world culture was thePost-war period
In Romania, theCulture inside communist Romania
A strong editorial activity took place during the Communist regime. With the purpose of educating the large masses of peoples, a huge number of books were published. Large-scale editing houses such as ''Cartea Românească'', ''Editura Eminescu,'' and others appeared, which published huge collections of books, such as the ''Biblioteca pentru Toţi'' ("The Library for Everyone") with over 5,000 titles. Generally, a book was never published in an edition of less than 50,000 copies. Libraries appeared in every village, and almost all were kept up to date with the newest books published. Also, due to low prices, almost everyone could afford to have their own collection of books at home. The negative part was that all the books were heavily censored. Also, due to rationing in every aspect of life, the quality of the printing and the paper also was very low, and the books, therefore, degraded easily. During this period, there was a significant increase in the number of theatres, as they appeared even in the smallest towns. Many new establishments were built, and in the big cities they became important landmarks, such as the building of the National Theatre of Bucharest, situated right in the middle of the city, immediately adjacent to Romania's kilometre zero. In the smaller towns, there existed the so-called "Worker's Theatre", a semi-professional institution. Partly due to the lack of other entertainment venues, the theatre was highly popular, and the number of actors increased. All of the theatres had a stable, state-funded budget. Again, however, the drawback was the heavy control imposed on them by the regime: censorship was ever-present, and only ideologically-accepted plays were allowed. More progressive theatres managed to survive in some remote cities that became favorite destinations for young actors, but they generally had only a local audience. Cinemas evolved the same way as the theatres; sometimes, the same establishment served both purposes. Movies were very popular, and from the 1960s, foreign films started becoming quite widespread.Romanians in exile
A consequence of the communist attitude towards the bourgeoisie elites in general, was the creation, for the first time in Romania's history, of aEvolutions after 1989
The fall of soviet-style communism in 1989 elated the cultural world, but the experience hasn't been an easy one due to problems in the transition period and the adoption of a free market economy. The discontinuation of state and political control of culture brought about the long dreamt freedom of expression, but, at the same time, the state subsidies also stopped, and Romania's culture was seriously affected by the side-effects of the incipient, still very imperfect, free-market economy and by inadequate material resources. Culture has had to cope with a variety of problems, one of them being a shift in people's interest towards other areas such as the press and television. The search for a new cultural policy, relying on decentralization, seems to prevail now. People speak about a crisis of culture in this country, but if there is a crisis of culture, it is only at an institutional level. After the fall of communism in 1989, there was an almost immediate explosion of publication of books previously censored by the regime. Books were published in huge numbers per edition, sales were high, and a great number of publishing houses appeared. However, this soon reached a saturation point, and publishing houses began to decline due to a combination of bad management, a rapid drop in sales, and the absence of subsidies. Many closed after publishing only a few titles; some changed their profile and started printing commercial literature – mainly translations – and the state-owned publishers entered a "state of lethargy". The latter survived due to state financing, but their publishing activity diminished. Despite this, some publishing houses managed to survive and develop by implementing market-oriented policies, and by improving the quality and overall appearance of the books they published. Among the most notable contemporary Romanian publishers are Humanitas in Bucharest, Polirom in Iași, andTraditions
Folklore
The most striking thing about Romanian culture is the strong folk traditions which have survived to this day due to the rural character of the Romanian communities, which has resulted in an exceptionally vital and creative traditional culture. Romania's rich folk traditions have been nourished by many sources, some of which predate theMythology
Romanians have had, from time immemorial, a myriad of customs, tales, and poems about love, faith, kings, princesses, and witches. The ethnologists, poets, writers, and historians have tried in recent centuries to collect and to preserve tales, poems, ballads and have tried to describe as well as possible the customs and habits related to different events and times of the year. Customs related to certain times of year are the '' colinde'', RomanianSpirituality and religion
Romanian spirituality is greatly influenced by its strong connections with theCuisine
The cuisine of Romania has the same influences as the rest of Romanian culture; from Roman times, there still exists the simple pie called, inRomanian script
During the 16th century, Romanian first appeared in writing, usually in religious texts and other written documents. A letter dating from 1521, from Neacșu of Câmpulung to the mayor of Brașov, is considered to be the earliest known text written in Romanian. The letter was written in a script which was used mainly in Wallachia and Moldavia until the year 1859. This script was a version of the Old Church Slavonic alphabet, a version of theContribution of the minorities
Minorities have made a major cultural contribution to Romania. Influences came from, most notably, minority groups such asArchitecture and engineering
In the technical domain, one can note the achievements in the field of aviation made byMedia and television
Music
Folk music is the oldest form of Romanian musical creation, characterized by great vitality; it is the defining source of the cultured musical creation, both religious and lay. Conservation of Romanian folk music has been aided by a large and enduring audience, and by numerous performers who helped propagate and further develop the folk sound. Two of them, Vasile Pandelescu, and Dumnitru Zamfira are some of the most famous examples of Romanian folk musicians. Before the major incorporation of more modern instruments that found their way into Romanian folk music, older instruments such as the Tobă (double-headed drum, also known as the Tabul or Davul), Surlă (also known as the Zurna in other parts of the Balkans), Caval (ancient shepherd's pipe),See also
*References
External links
Sibiu International Theatre Festival: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSfSH16tFXU