"Hunger circus" ( ro, Circ al foamei) was a colloquial name for any in a series of identical buildings which were to be completed as part of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( , ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician and dictator. He was the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and the second and last Communist leader of Romania. He was ...

's program of

systematization Systematization ( ro, Sistematizarea) in Romania was a program of urban planning carried out by the Romanian Communist Party under the leadership of Nicolae Ceaușescu. Ceaușescu was impressed by the ideological mobilization and mass adulation ...

during his period as ruler of

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 ...

. Officially designated by the

communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Cominte ...

as "complex agroalimentar" ( Agroalimentary Complex), these large domed buildings were intended as produce markets and public

refectories A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the L ...

. It appears to have been Ceauşescu's vision that they would serve as food distribution centres, eliminating the need for selling or distributing food anywhere else. The name "hunger circuses", now so universally used as to have almost suppressed the memory of the official communist-era term, derived from the circus-like domed architecture and the irony of constructing these massive food-related buildings during a period when food was scarce throughout Romania, due to Ceaușescu's policy of exporting most of Romania's agricultural produce in order to pay off the foreign debt. The irony was reinforced by the connotation of "circus" as ridiculous farce. At the time of Ceaușescu's downfall and execution, only two hunger circuses had been completed: One of these, Pantelimon, now forms part of a public market in the Delfinului area of

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

; the other, also in Bucharest, is placed close to the Unirea shopping mall, nestled between

Piața Unirii Piața Unirii (; ''Unification Square'' or ''Union Square'' in English) is one of the largest squares in central Bucharest, Romania, located in the center of the city where Sectors 1, 2, 3, and 4 meet. Part of the Civic Centre, it is bisected by U ...

and Sfânta Vineri Street. Several others stood half-finished in scattered locations around Bucharest, surrounded by rusting construction cranes and vacant lots. The hunger circuses left unfinished after the 1989 Revolution were later completed, as malls such as the

Bucharest Mall Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

in Vitan, City Mall and Plaza Romania in

Militari Militari is a district in the western part of Bucharest, in Sector 6. It is home to more than 100,000 inhabitants. In the past a village called "Militari" existed here, but today there are only few houses left from that time. The earliest housin ...

. The ''hunger circus'' in

Rahova Rahova is a neighbourhood of southwest Bucharest, Romania, situated in Sector 5, west of Dâmboviţa River. It is named after the Bulgarian town ''Rahovo'' (today Oryahovo), site of a battle in the Romanian War of Independence. The neighborh ...

was partially demolished in November 2006 to make room for a new mall – Liberty Center Mall. Another hunger circus was transformed into a private university.

References

"Circurile foamei"

Jurnalul Național ''Jurnalul Național'' is a Romanian newspaper, part of the INTACT Media Group led by Dan Voiculescu, which also includes the popular television station Antena 1. The newspaper was launched in 1993. Its headquarters is in Bucharest Bucharest ...

, 23 January 2005
"Circul foamei din Rahova se transformă în mall"

Cotidianul image:Cotidianul.png, The logo used between 2003 and 2007 ''Cotidianul'' (meaning ''The Daily'' in English) is a Romanian language newspaper published in Bucharest, Romania. History and profile Founded by Ion Raţiu, ''Cotidianul'' was first ...

, 14 February 2006 {{coord missing, Bucharest Buildings and structures in Bucharest Socialist Republic of Romania History of Bucharest Unfinished buildings and structures in Romania