The Transylvanian School: Romania's Forgotten Enlightenment

In the late 18th century, a small group of Greek Catholic priests and scholars in the Habsburg-ruled principality of Transylvania ignited a cultural and political revolution. The Școala Ardeleană, or Transylvanian School, argued for the Latin origins of the Romanian people and language, producing history works, grammar books, and petitions that demanded recognition of Romanians as a nation equal to the other privileged estates. This episode explores the key figures: Samuil Micu, Gheorghe Șincai, and Petru Maior, their Supplex Libellus Valachorum of 1791, and the lasting influence of Transylvanian Latinism on Romanian national identity. We also consider the controversy over the 'protochronist' claim that Romanians wrote in Latin script long before Cyrillic, and how the school's ideas clashed with both Hungarian nobility and Orthodox traditionalists.

#History #FexingoHistory #Romania #Transylvania #TransylvanianSchool #ScoalaArdeleana #SamuilMicu #GheorgheSincai #PetruMaior #SupplexLibellusValachorum #DacoRoman #Latinism #GreekCatholic #Enlightenment #Blaj #RomanianIdentity #Habsburg #Protochronism

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