The Romanian emigrants’ relationship with their country
More and more Romanians decide to leave their native country and build a life from scratch somewhere else. Romania’s population has decreased under 20 million citizens since 1968, as there would be around 2.4 million of Romanian immigrants according to the National Institute of Statistics (NIS). There are several reasons which lead to such a decision, as follows: better living conditions, a better paid job or a mere desire to belong to another culture, embrace new habits or a different ways of thinking.
The cultural and behavioral changes are generated as the immigrants begin to work in that particular country or from the moment they simply begin to socialize. As their cultural identity is of great significance, they look for methods to keep it alive by getting in touch with other compatriots through different means of communication. Once again, the internet is the main means used, the key element which bonds the absent ones with the ones back home.
The Association for Intercultural Development has identified a series of Romanian communities which function in different geographic regions. Thus, there have been found such groups in over 19 countries and they help Romanians to stay in touch, get information or ask for advice. In order not to lose touch with their mother country, the immigrants read online newspapers and comment upon the events that take place back home.
Being linked in such a way makes the fellow compatriots feel comfortable and less alone. Some of them even subscribe to Romanian TV channels in order to keep up with the news or their favorite TV shows. The cultural identity is what distinguishes the cultures, creates a set of values and principles to be followed and has a great influence upon the mindset of the people. Time and again, the Romanian immigrants living in the same area spend their holidays together in order to feel “at home”.
Such actions emphasize the willingness of the Romanians abroad to maintain a close bond. However, this course of events is not mandatory as there are many unfortunate situations when they get really used to the foreign country and start a new chapter in their lives.
The stories of the Romanians who decide to leave their country and earn a living in other lands both inspires and concerns us, as it is also a hot topic in the international media. Besides, we often deal with members of other ethnic groups with equally interesting stories worthy of attention.
The project Cultural Agora @ Your Library reveals this kind of stories: of the ethnic groups’ members who have decided to live in Romania and have embraced many aspects of the local cultures, without forgetting their origins.
You can subscribe to such stories on the Facebook page of the project: https://www.facebook.com/agoraculturala
Cultural Agora @ Your Library is a project implemented by ANBPR in affiliation with Jazzmontor AS Norvegia and REPLIKA Cultural Association, financed through the SEE 2009-2014 Grants, the PA17/RO13 Program “The Promotion of diversity of culture and art within the European hertiage” (www.fonduri-diversitate.ro) in Romania.
