Ioan Mețianu (; May 9, 1828–February 3, 1916) was an

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

cleric of the

Romanian Orthodox Church The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the East ...

. Born in

Zărnești Zărnești (; ; ) is a town in Brașov County, Transylvania, Romania, with a population of 21,624 as of 2021. It administers one village, Tohanu Nou (''Neu-Tohan''; ''Újtohán''). The town is located near the Piatra Craiului Mountains, which ...

, in the

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

region, he attended high school in

Brașov Brașov (, , ; , also ''Brasau''; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Kruhnen'') is a city in Transylvania, Romania and the county seat (i.e. administrative centre) of Brașov County. According to the 2021 Romanian census, ...

and

Cluj Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...

, studying theology in

Sibiu Sibiu ( , , , Hungarian: ''Nagyszeben'', , Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'' or ''Hermestatt'') is a city in central Romania, situated in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles th ...

. He served as a priest in

Râșnov Râșnov (; ; ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect: ''Ruusenåå''; Latin: ''Rosnovia'') is a town in Brașov County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 15,920 as of 2021. It is located at about southwest of the city of Brașov and about the s ...

(1853-1857) and in Zărnești (1857-1874), rising to archpriest in 1859. He belonged to various diocesan institutions in Sibiu, was a member of the national church council and an ally of

Metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: Areas and governance (secular and ecclesiastical) * Metropolitan archdiocese, the jurisdiction of a metropolitan archbishop ** Metropolitan bishop or archbishop, leader of an ecclesiastical "mother see" * Metropolitan ar ...

Andrei Șaguna Andrei Șaguna (; 20 January 1808, Miskolc, Kingdom of Hungary (1526–1867), Hungary – 28 June 1873, Nagyszeben, Kingdom of Hungary (1867–1918), Hungary) was a Metropolitan bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Church in Transylvania, and one of ...

. After remaining a widower, he was elected vicar bishop for

Oradea Oradea (, , ; ; ) is a city in Romania, located in the Crișana region. It serves as the administrative county seat, seat of Bihor County and an economic, social, and cultural hub in northwestern Romania. The city lies between rolling hills on ...

, a post he held from 1874 to 1875. Then, from 1875 to 1898, he was Bishop of Arad. In December 1898, he was elected Archbishop of Sibiu and Metropolitan of Transylvania. Enthroned the following March, Mețianu remained in office until his death. While still an archpriest, Mețianu organized Romanian confessional primary schools, guided the building of churches and, in 1865, was elected to the

Transylvanian Diet The Transylvanian Diet (; ; ) was an important legislative, administrative and judicial body of the Principality (from 1765 Grand Principality) of Transylvania between 1570 and 1867. The general assemblies of the Transylvanian noblemen and the jo ...

. While bishop of Arad, he supervised numerous primary schools, founded a girls' middle school in Arad and a boys' boarding school in

Beiuș Beiuș (; ) is a municipiu, city in Bihor County, Romania near the Apuseni Mountains. The river Crișul Negru flows through Beiuș, and the city administers a single village, Delani (''Gyalány''). Between the late 18th and very early 20th centu ...

, started a diocesan printing press, launched the newsletter ''Biserica și școala'' in 1877, constructed a new building for the theological-pedagogical institute and founded an endowment for poor priests and widowed priests' wives. As metropolitan, he initiated and led building work for the new cathedral, as well as for the theological-pedagogical institute's new building. He guided the activity of this institute, of '' Telegraful Român'' newspaper and of the nearly 800 confessional primary schools in the archdiocese; and started endowments for Romanian pupils and students, or for other cultural and philanthropic purposes. In the

Diet of Hungary The Diet of Hungary or originally: Parlamentum Publicum / Parlamentum Generale () was the most important political assembly in Hungary since the 12th century, which emerged to the position of the supreme legislative institution in the Kingdom ...

, he belonged to both the House of Representatives and the

House of Magnates The House of Magnates (; ; ; ) was the upper chamber of the Diet of Hungary. This chamber was operational from 1867 to 1918 and subsequently from 1927 to 1945. The house was, like the current House of Lords in the United Kingdom, composed of ...

, where he defended maternal-language rights in Romanian primary schools. His articles, speeches and sermons appeared in ''Biserica și școala'' and ''Telegraful Român''."Ioan Mețianu"
, entry in

Mircea Păcurariu Mircea Păcurariu (30 July 1932 – 13 January 2021) was a Romanian theologian, historian and priest in the Romanian Orthodox Church. Biography Born in Ruși, Hunedoara County, he was the son of the village priest. He enrolled in the History ...

, ''Dicționarul Teologilor Români'', Editura Univers Enciclopedic, Bucharest, 1996

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Metianu, Ioan 1828 births 1916 deaths People from Zărnești Romanian Austro-Hungarians Romanian Orthodox metropolitan bishops Members of the House of Magnates Members of the House of Representatives (Hungary)