Romanians

*Population estimates for 1994

Romanians, or Rumanians (from Latin “romanus” maning “Roman”) belong to the Pontian type of Indo-Mediterranean race of the European race; in the mountainous areas, the Dinar is an example of the anthropological type of Balkan-Caucasus race from the European race. The Thracian tribes of the Goths and the Dukhs laid the foundation of the Romanian ethnos. During the ninteenth century, the ancestors of the Romanian people adopted Christianity from the Bulgarians. The first written mentioning of the ethnonym “romanian” dates back to the sixteenth century.

The traditional trades of the Romanians were farming, gardening, and viticulture. Until the sixteenth century the main occupation was cattle-raising.

Traditional women’s dress consisted of a white linen shirt or a short jacket, floral woolen skirt, a gorgeous ornamented marrow belt, and two aprons. Their headdress consisted of a kerchief, a cap, or a silk shawl. The men’s clothing consisted of a linen shirt, a sleeveless jacket, white linen or woolen trousers, and a leather or woolen belt. They covered heads with astrakhan, felt, or straw hats.

The family was small and had the English style.

Their holidays are accompanied by agrarian ceremonies. The Romanian verbal folklore is presented in the form of epic songs, tales, proverbs, lyric doina-songs, and about 2,000 dances.