Edinet
Encyclopedia
Edineț is a town
in the north of Moldova
. It is the administrative center of the eponymous district. The town is located 201 km north of the national capital, Chișinău
. It is located at 48°10′N 27°19′E. The town administers also two suburban villages, Alexăndreni and Gordineştii Noi. The population at the 2004 census
was 17,292, including 15,624 in the town itself.
To the North of the town is situated the commune Hlinaia
(Glina-Mare), to the South - the town of Cupcini
, to the Est - the commune Ruseni
, and to the West the suburb Alexăndreni.
Alexandru cel Bun
offered to a certain Ivan Cupcici "14 villages with their old domains and empty land to found new villages and an apiary
". According to this document, the old name of Edineț was Viadineți, possibly meaning little Viadins. A document dating August 18, 1690, given by Prince Constantin Movilă to a certain Cozma Pop mentions the village as Iadineți. The name Edineț is documented since 1663, and remained used till present.
In 1812, eastern part of Moldavia was annexed by the Russian Empire
, and became known as Governorate of Bessarabia
.
Bessarabia
proclaimed independence in January 1918 as Moldavian Democratic Republic
. In April 1918, Bessarabia proclaimed union
with Romania
.
At the 1930 census, there were three separately administered localities: Edineți-Târg (literally Edineți-Fair), population 5,910, Edineţi-Sat (literally Edineţi-Village), population 5,260, part of Plasa Briceni of the Hotin County
, and Alexăndrenii-Noi, population 1,083, part of Plasa Răşcani of the Bălţi County
.
In 1918-1940, along Edineţ, two other spellings were sometimes used: Edineţi and Ediniţa. Between the two World Wars there was a Zionist Tarbut
school.
In 1940, the Soviet Union
with the consent of the Nazi Germany
occupied Bessarabia, and created the Moldavian SSR
, closing privately-owned businesses, and religious schools.
A year later, Romanian Army
, now allied with the Nazi Germany, drove the Soviets out and recoverned Bessarabia. The German and Romanian troops entered Edineţ on July 5, 1941. Only a part of the Jews of Edineţ fled before that. Within two days several hundred Bessarabian Jews
of Edineţ were murdered by units of Einsatzkommando D and Romanian gendarms, assisted by quite a few civilians that came to profit from the Jews. Many women and young girls were raped; some of them committed suicide. The victims were buried in three large ditches, then the Jewish gravediggers who had interred the bodies were in turn murdered and buried on the same spot. In the middle of August a ghetto was set up. Surviving Jews of Edineţ and others from different places from the north of Bessarabia, and from Bukovina
were interned. In September there were about 12,000 Jews in the ghetto, crammed into a small area, suffering from malnutrition and disease. Many of the interned succumbed to disease, cold weather, hunger, and thirst; dozens of persons died every day. On September 16, 1941, all Jews were deported to Transnistria
. The majority of them died in Transnistria. By 1944 only a few managed to survive. The few dozen families still alive at the end of the War settled either in Czernovitz
or moved to Israel
. Only a handful chose to return to Edineţ.
In 1944, Soviets re-conquered Bessarabia, and re-established Moldavian SSR. During the Soviet time
, the town was also known in the Russified
versions Yedintsy and Yedintzi.
In 1960s, the Jewish population was estimated at about 200. There was no synagogue although the Jewish Cemetery was still extant.
At the dissolution of the Soviet Union
in 1991, Moldova
became an independent country.
1There is an ongoing controversy
over whether Moldovans' self-identification constitutes an ethnic group distinct and apart from Romanians, or a subset. At the 2004 Moldovan Census
, citizens could declare only one ethnic group. Consequently, one could not declare oneself both "Moldovan" and "Romanian". In the 1930 Romanian census no one was registered as "Moldovan".
with:
Râmnicu Sărat
, Romania
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in the north of Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
. It is the administrative center of the eponymous district. The town is located 201 km north of the national capital, Chișinău
Chisinau
Chișinău is the capital and largest municipality of Moldova. It is also its main industrial and commercial centre and is located in the middle of the country, on the river Bîc...
. It is located at 48°10′N 27°19′E. The town administers also two suburban villages, Alexăndreni and Gordineştii Noi. The population at the 2004 census
2004 Moldovan Census
The 2004 Republic of Moldova Census was carried between October 5 and October 12, 2004. The breakaway Transnistria failed to come into an agreement with the central government in Chişinău, and carried out its own census during between November 11 and November 18, 2004...
was 17,292, including 15,624 in the town itself.
To the North of the town is situated the commune Hlinaia
Hlinaia, Edineţ
Hlinaia is a commune in Edineţ district, Moldova. It is composed of a single village, Hlinaia.-History:Hlinaia village is first certified on April 12, 1620, as the "village of Costea Buceac" when given by Gaspar Gratiani, Buceac Costea's possession. In 1664 during Gheorghe Duca, the village is...
(Glina-Mare), to the South - the town of Cupcini
Cupcini
Cupcini is a town in Edineţ district, Moldova. Two villages are administered by the town, Chetroşica Veche and Chiurt....
, to the Est - the commune Ruseni
Ruseni
Ruseni or ' may refer to three villages in Romania:* Ruseni, a village in Borleşti Commune, Neamţ County* Ruseni, a village in Poiana Teiului Commune, Neamţ County* Ruşeni, a village in Păuleşti Commune, Satu Mare Countyand to two villages in Moldova:...
, and to the West the suburb Alexăndreni.
History
The first known written mention of the locality is in a document from July 15, 1431, by which the Prince of MoldaviaMoldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
Alexandru cel Bun
Alexandru cel Bun
Alexander cel Bun was a Voivode of Moldavia, reigning between 1400 and 1432, son of Roman I Mușat. He succeeded Iuga to the throne, and, as a ruler, initiated a series of reforms while consolidating the status of the Moldavian Principality....
offered to a certain Ivan Cupcici "14 villages with their old domains and empty land to found new villages and an apiary
Apiary
An apiary is a place where beehives of honey bees are kept. Traditionally beekeepers paid land rent in honey for the use of small parcels. Some farmers will provide free apiary sites, because they need pollination, and farmers who need many hives often pay for them to be moved to the crops when...
". According to this document, the old name of Edineț was Viadineți, possibly meaning little Viadins. A document dating August 18, 1690, given by Prince Constantin Movilă to a certain Cozma Pop mentions the village as Iadineți. The name Edineț is documented since 1663, and remained used till present.
In 1812, eastern part of Moldavia was annexed by the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, and became known as Governorate of Bessarabia
Bessarabia Governorate
Bessarabia was an oblast and later a guberniya in the Russian Empire. It was the eastern part of the Principality of Moldavia annexed by Russia by the Treaty of Bucharest following the Russo-Turkish War, 1806-1812...
.
Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
proclaimed independence in January 1918 as Moldavian Democratic Republic
Moldavian Democratic Republic
The Moldavian Democratic Republic , a.k.a. Moldavian Republic, was the state proclaimed on by Sfatul Ţării of Bessarabia, elected in October-November 1917 in the wake of the February Revolution and disintegration of the political power in the Russian Empire.Sfatul Ţării was its legislative body,...
. In April 1918, Bessarabia proclaimed union
Union of Bessarabia with Romania
On , the Sfatul Ţării, or National Council, of Bessarabia proclaimed union with the Kingdom of Romania.-Governorate of Bessarabia:The 1812 Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empires provided for Russian annexation of the eastern half of the territory of the Principality...
with Romania
Kingdom of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania was the Romanian state based on a form of parliamentary monarchy between 13 March 1881 and 30 December 1947, specified by the first three Constitutions of Romania...
.
At the 1930 census, there were three separately administered localities: Edineți-Târg (literally Edineți-Fair), population 5,910, Edineţi-Sat (literally Edineţi-Village), population 5,260, part of Plasa Briceni of the Hotin County
Hotin County
Hotin County was a county in the Principality of Moldavia , the Governorate of Bessarabia , the Moldavian Democratic Republic , and the Kingdom of Romania ....
, and Alexăndrenii-Noi, population 1,083, part of Plasa Răşcani of the Bălţi County
Bălţi County
Bălți was a county of Moldova from 1998 to 2003. Its population in 2003 was 500,900. Its capital was Bălți.-External links:* , Statoids.com...
.
In 1918-1940, along Edineţ, two other spellings were sometimes used: Edineţi and Ediniţa. Between the two World Wars there was a Zionist Tarbut
Tarbut
The Tarbut movement was a network of secular, Hebrew-language schools in parts of the former Jewish Pale of Settlement, specifically in Poland, Romania and Lithuania...
school.
In 1940, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
with the consent of the Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
occupied Bessarabia, and created the Moldavian SSR
Moldavian SSR
The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...
, closing privately-owned businesses, and religious schools.
A year later, Romanian Army
Romania during World War II
Following the outbreak of World War II on 1 September 1939, the Kingdom of Romania officially adopted a position of neutrality. However, the rapidly changing situation in Europe during 1940, as well as domestic political upheaval, undermined this stance. Fascist political forces such as the Iron...
, now allied with the Nazi Germany, drove the Soviets out and recoverned Bessarabia. The German and Romanian troops entered Edineţ on July 5, 1941. Only a part of the Jews of Edineţ fled before that. Within two days several hundred Bessarabian Jews
Bessarabian Jews
-Early history:Jews are mentioned from very early in the Principality of Moldavia, but they did not represent a significant number. Their main activity in Moldavia was commerce, but they could not compete with Greeks and Armenians, who had the knowledge of the Levantine commerce and relationships...
of Edineţ were murdered by units of Einsatzkommando D and Romanian gendarms, assisted by quite a few civilians that came to profit from the Jews. Many women and young girls were raped; some of them committed suicide. The victims were buried in three large ditches, then the Jewish gravediggers who had interred the bodies were in turn murdered and buried on the same spot. In the middle of August a ghetto was set up. Surviving Jews of Edineţ and others from different places from the north of Bessarabia, and from Bukovina
Bukovina
Bukovina is a historical region on the northern slopes of the northeastern Carpathian Mountains and the adjoining plains.-Name:The name Bukovina came into official use in 1775 with the region's annexation from the Principality of Moldavia to the possessions of the Habsburg Monarchy, which became...
were interned. In September there were about 12,000 Jews in the ghetto, crammed into a small area, suffering from malnutrition and disease. Many of the interned succumbed to disease, cold weather, hunger, and thirst; dozens of persons died every day. On September 16, 1941, all Jews were deported to Transnistria
Transnistria (World War II)
Transnistria Governorate was a Romanian administered territory, conquered by the Axis Powers from the Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa, and occupied from 19 August 1941 to 29 January 1944...
. The majority of them died in Transnistria. By 1944 only a few managed to survive. The few dozen families still alive at the end of the War settled either in Czernovitz
Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi is the administrative center of Chernivtsi Oblast in southwestern Ukraine. The city is situated on the upper course of the River Prut, a tributary of the Danube, in the northern part of the historic region of Bukovina, which is currently divided between Romania and Ukraine...
or moved to Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. Only a handful chose to return to Edineţ.
In 1944, Soviets re-conquered Bessarabia, and re-established Moldavian SSR. During the Soviet time
Moldavian SSR
The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...
, the town was also known in the Russified
Russification
Russification is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attributes by non-Russian communities...
versions Yedintsy and Yedintzi.
In 1960s, the Jewish population was estimated at about 200. There was no synagogue although the Jewish Cemetery was still extant.
At the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1991, Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
became an independent country.
Demographics
| Ethnic composition | |||||||
| Ethnic group | 1930 census | 2004 census | |||||
| Edineţi-Târg | Edineţi-Sat | Alexăndrenii-Noi | Edineţ | Alexăndreni | Gordineştii Noi | Total | |
| Moldovans Moldovans Moldovans or Moldavians are the largest population group of Moldova... 1 |
- | - | - | 8,747 | 1,272 | 331 | 10,351 |
| Romanians Romanians The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania.... 1 |
194 | 2,183 | 1,082 | 131 | 23 | 0 | 153 |
| Jews Bessarabian Jews -Early history:Jews are mentioned from very early in the Principality of Moldavia, but they did not represent a significant number. Their main activity in Moldavia was commerce, but they could not compete with Greeks and Armenians, who had the knowledge of the Levantine commerce and relationships... |
5,341 | 398 | - | 18 | - | - | 18 |
| Russians Russians The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries.... |
344 | 2,214 | 1 | 3,394 | 15 | 2 | 3,411 |
| Ruthenians Ruthenians The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians... (Ukrainians Ukrainians Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens... ) |
14 | 353 | - | 2,682 | 17 | 5 | 2,704 |
| Romani Romani Romani relates or may refer to:- Nationality :*The Romani people**their Romani language*The Latin term for the ancient Romans, see Roman citizenship*The Italian term for inhabitants of Rome... |
- | 55 | - | 490 | - | - | 490 |
| Bulgarians Bessarabian Bulgarians The Bessarabian Bulgarians are a Bulgarian minority group of the historical region of Bessarabia, inhabiting parts of present-day Ukraine and Moldova.- Location and number :-Modern Ukraine:... |
1 | 1 | - | 37 | - | - | 37 |
| Gagauzians | - | - | - | 23 | - | - | 23 |
| Poles Poles thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe... |
14 | 28 | - | 11 | - | - | 11 |
| Germans | - | 3 | - | 91 | 1 | 2 | 94 |
| Albanians Albanians Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo... |
1 | - | - | ||||
| Hungarians | - | 1 | - | ||||
| others | 1 | 24 | - | ||||
| Total | 5,910 | 5,260 | 1,083 | 15,624 | 1,328 | 340 | 17,292 |
1There is an ongoing controversy
Controversy over linguistic and ethnic identity in Moldova
A controversy exists over the national identity and name of the native language of the main ethnic group in the Republic of Moldova. The issue more frequently disputed is whether Moldovans constitute a subgroup of Romanians or a separate ethnic group...
over whether Moldovans' self-identification constitutes an ethnic group distinct and apart from Romanians, or a subset. At the 2004 Moldovan Census
2004 Moldovan Census
The 2004 Republic of Moldova Census was carried between October 5 and October 12, 2004. The breakaway Transnistria failed to come into an agreement with the central government in Chişinău, and carried out its own census during between November 11 and November 18, 2004...
, citizens could declare only one ethnic group. Consequently, one could not declare oneself both "Moldovan" and "Romanian". In the 1930 Romanian census no one was registered as "Moldovan".
| Native language | ||||
| Language | 1930 census | 2004 census | ||
| Edineţi-Târg | Edineţi-Sat | Alexăndrenii-Noi | ||
| Romanian Romanian language Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova... |
183 | 2,209 | 1,082 | N/A |
| Yiddish | 5,328 | 401 | - | N/A |
| Russian Russian language Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics... |
375 | 2,360 | 1 | N/A |
| Ukrainian Ukrainian language Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet.... |
9 | 282 | - | N/A |
| Polish Polish language Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries... |
11 | 7 | - | N/A |
| German German language German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union.... |
2 | 1 | - | N/A |
| Bulgarian Bulgarian language Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the... |
1 | - | - | N/A |
| other | 1 | - | - | N/A |
| Total | 5,910 | 5,260 | 1,083 | 17,292 |
Culture
Edineţ has a Natural History Museum, and a famous Museum of National Craftsmen, whose collection is rich in original folk objects and works.Twin towns — Sister cities
Edineț is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Râmnicu Sărat
Râmnicu Sarat
Râmnicu Sărat is a city in Buzău County, Romania. It was declared a municipality in 1439. On December 21, 1994 it celebrated its 555th anniversary....
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...