Alexei (or Alexe) Mateevici (; March 27, 1888 – August 24, 1917) was one of the most prominent Romanian poets in

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 ...

Biography

He was born in the town

Căinari Căinari is a town in Căușeni District, Moldova. One village is administered by the town, Căinari station. The town is located west of the district seat, Căușeni, and south of Chișinău. International relations Twin towns — Sister citi ...

, in Eastern

, which was part of 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. ...

, now in the

Republic of Moldova A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

. He grew up in

Zaim, Căușeni Zaim commune in a Căușeni District, Moldova, located 7 km from the district seat Căușeni. It is composed of three villages: Marianca de Sus, Zaim and Zaim station. Demographics As of the 2014 Moldovan Census, it had a population of 4,2 ...

. He studied at the theological school of

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 ...

, and published his first poems (''Țăranii'' (''Peasants''), ''Eu cânt'' (''I sing''), ''Țara'' (''The Country'')) in the newspaper ''Basarabia'', where he also published two articles on Moldavian folklore. Mateevici later published several articles on religion in Moldavia. Mateevici went on to study at the Theological Academy of

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, from which he graduated in 1914. In that year he married Teodora Borisovna Novitski. He returned to Chișinău, and became a

Greek language Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...

teacher at the theological school. In the summer of 1917 he wrote the lyrics for ''

Limba noastră "" ("Our Language"; ) is the national anthem of Moldova. It has been used since 1994 and was officially adopted on 22 July 1995. For a short period of time in the early 1990s, the national anthem of Moldova was "Deșteaptă-te, române!", whi ...

'' (''Our Language''), which has been the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European n ...

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 ...

since 1994. He also volunteered as a World War One Romanian front prest, at Mărășești great battle. Stamp of Moldova 247

He died a month later of epidemic typhus, and was buried at the

Chișinău Central Cemetery The Chișinău Central Cemetery ( ro, Cimitirul Central din Chișinău) is a cemetery located in the Sectorul Centru of Chișinău, Moldova, in the "triangle" of Alexei Mateevici, Vasile Alecsandri and Pantelimon Halippa. Founded in 1811, it i ...

. The street leading to the cemetery now bears his name. Aleea Clasicilor Mateevici

Honours

Monument to Simion Murafa, Alexei Mateevici and Andrei Hodorogea The Monument to Simion Murafa, Alexei Mateevici and Andrei Hodorogea ( ro, Monumentul în memoria eroilor naţionali Simion Murafa, Alexei Mateevici şi Andrei Hodorogea) was a monument in Central Chişinău, Moldova. It existed between 1933 and 1 ...

, opened in 1933Mario-Ovidiu Oprea
Parliamentary Debates
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References

External links

Museum Alexei Mateevici from Cainari
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mateevici, Alexei 1888 births 1917 deaths People from Căușeni District People from Bendersky Uyezd Moldovan poets Male poets Romanian people of Moldovan descent Romanian poets Romanian male poets Romanian nationalists National anthem writers Deaths from typhus Eastern Orthodox Christians from Moldova Members of the Romanian Orthodox Church Poets from the Russian Empire Moldovan male writers