"Dumitru Mărtinaş" Roman-Catholic Association representing Roman-Catholics of Moldavia (so called "Changos",
French - Tchangos, Hungarian - Csangok, German - Tschangos)
The
Roman
Catholic
communities
in
Moldavia
continue
to
be
the
subject
of
discussions
and
disputes
in
the
conditions
of
practically
abandonment
by
the Romanian institutions in the sphere of influence of the Hungarian institutions under the umbrella of respecting the rights of minorities.
Romania's
accession
to
the
European
Union
did
not
change
the
situation,
the
Council
of
Europe
recommended
to
Romania,
without
knowing
the
concrete
reality
from
the
spot,
but
only
on
the
basis
of
tendentious
reports
coming
from
Hungarian
extremist
activists
or
apologists
for
the
destruction
of
the
Romanian
national
state
to
defend
and
preserve
an
imaginary
Csangos
culture
and
language.
Moreover,
the
Association
for
the
Defense
of
Human
Rights
in
Romania
and
the
Pro
Europa
League,
known
for
their
anti-Romanian
activism,
presented
distorted
images
of
the
reality
regarding
the
language
and culture of Roman Catholics, both in Romania and in the world.
In
order
for
the
Magyarization
process
to
be
as
elaborate
as
possible,
the
Romanian
Ministry
of
Education
intervened,
which
approved
from
2002
the
study
of
Hungarian
language
in
schools
in
7
villages
in
Bacau
county
without
thinking
for
a
moment
that
by
doing
so,
it
is
committing
an
abuse.
The
Ministry
of
Culture
in
Romania
and
the
Ministry
of
Cultural
Heritage
in
Hungary
subsidize
propaganda
books
on
the
culture
of
Roman
Catholics
called
Csangos.
In
recent
years,
the
Council
of
Europe,
starting
from
the
ignorance
of
the
state
of
affairs,
has
adopted
documents
for
the
protection
of
the
cultures
considered
to be in danger, among them and the Csangos.
Intentional
or
unintentional
confusions,
errors
and
intoxications,
created
in
relation
to
the
identity
of
Moldavian
Roman
Catholics,
improperly
called
Csangos
are
largely
unknown,
because
this
topic
continues
to
be
intensely
promoted
in
the
propagandistic
sense
by
the
influential
Hungarian
extremist
circles
and
censored
with
the
wide
competition
of
European
bodies
which,
under
the
false
umbrella
of
the
defense
of
the
collective
rights
of
the
different
European minorities, become aggressive.
Besides
the
unknown,
another
cause
of
confusions,
errors
and
intoxications
is
related
to
the
misuse
as
an
ethnonym
of
the
term
csango,
in
conjunction
with
the
launch
on
the
so-called
scientific
market,
by
pseudo-researchers,
schooled
and
paid
by
the
followers
of
the
Soros
tycoon
of
different
theories
regarding
the
history
of
this
Romanian
community.
Then
there
is
the
existence
of
a
Hungarian
dialect
among
the
Csangos,
their
assimilation
by
the
Romanians.
Assimilation
in
their
conception
was
sometimes
a
natural
phenomenon,
sometimes
organized,
the
proportion
between
the
two
types
of
assimilation
varying
from
one
period
to
another.
For
Ferenc
Pozsony
"at
present,
the
Csango
ethnonym
designates
a
community
that
has
been
partially
removed
-
from
a
linguistic,
cultural
and
social
point
of
view
-
by
the
Hungarian
community,
but
has
not
yet
fully
integrated
into
the
Romanian
community."
Without
any
basis,
the
Hungarian
circles
state
that
until
the
beginning
of
the
20th
century,
if
asked,
Catholics
from
Roman
and
Bacău
counties
replied
that
they
were
Hungarians,
the
conscience
of
origin
was
clear
to
all,
even
if
some
did
not
speak
Hungarian,
forgetting
or
rather
not
knowing
the
fact
that
the
Moldavian
Catholics
have
never
considered
themselves
Hungarians
in
history.
The
example
offered
by
Dimitrie
Cantemir
is
as
revealing
as
possible,
for
a
moment
the
Moldavian Catholics not saying they would be Hungarians.
It
is
then
spoken
of
as
unfounded
by
an
alleged
linguistic
assimilation
in
Moldavia
produced
many
generations
ago,
which
would
have
led
to
the
erasure
of
the
memory
of
Hungarian
origin.
There
was
no
doubt
a
linguistic
assimilation,
but
in
Transylvania,
before
the
emigration
of
the
Romanian
ancestors
of
the
Catholics
to
Moldavia,
following
the
process
of
sequestration
and
Magyarization
of
the
Transylvanian
Romanians,
a
phenomenon
that,
deserved
to
be
studied
more
carefully
by
the
Romanian
research,
for
that
so
the
ghost
of
the
so-called
Szekely
Land
no
longer
hates
the
jealous
promoters
of
the
dissolution
of
the
Romanian
unitary
national
state.
Identity
is
a
personal
issue
for
everyone,
but
unfortunately,
the
choice
is
today
for
Moldavian
Catholics subjected to unimaginable pressures by Hungarian political, cultural, ecclesiastical, civilian circles.
Moreover,
these
pressures
are
added
for
several
years
the
constant
pressures
from
the
Romanian
authorities
that
should
naturally
defend
their
citizens'
rights
conquered
over
time
by
Catholics,
not
to
upset
their
identity
by
introducing
Hungarian
language
hours
in
schools,
by
openly
supporting
the
actions
of
local
separatism,
forced
Magyarization,
like
the
institutions
of
the
Hungarian
state
in
the
19th
century
-
which
had
made
every
effort
to
force
assimilate
the
Transylvanian
Romanians.
We
only
mention
here
the
appearance
in
1898
under
the
control
of
the
Ministry
of
Internal
Affairs
of
Budapest
of
the
"Central
Society
for
the
Naming
of
the
Name".
By
virtue
of
the
regulation
of
this
society,
the
Romanians
received
Hungarian
names
because
"...
by
the
Hungarianization
of
the
family
name,
that
is,
by
national
baptism,
the
one
with
a
foreign
name
is
received
in
the
Hungarian
Society"
.
An
unquestionable
historical
fact
supported
by
an
official
document,
which
never
had
a
Romanian
equivalent,
the
naming
policy
is
an
important
inspiration
for
today's
Hungarian political leaders.
Today,
if
any
honest
Romanian
researcher
publishes
or
dares
to
assert
in
public
the
Romanianness
of
the
Moldovan
Catholics
is
immediately
listed
as
an
ultra-nationalist.
For
the
Hungarian
circles
the
truth
is
one-sided,
on
the
principle
"whoever
is
not
with
us
is
against
us".
The
results
of
the
official
censuses
of
1992
and
2002
are
not
accepted
either,
because
these
Catholics
declared
themselves
Romanians,
even
though
the
Romanian
officials
at
the
pressures
coming
from
the
Hungarian
side
included
in
a
completely
arbitrary
form
the
Csangos
in
the
questionnaire.
Overcoming
some
confusions
and
irregularities
that
have
arisen
in
connection
with
the
declaration
of
nationality,
signaled
during
the
census,
it
is
obvious
that
the
data
regarding
the
mother
tongue
do
not
correspond
entirely
to
reality.
Despite
all
the
insistence
by
which
the
Hungarian
circles
have
publicly
asked
people
to
declare
the
Hungarian
language
as
their
mother
tongue,
the
reality
remains
the
same:
for
Moldavian
Catholics,
the
first
language
learned
from
parents
is
Romanian
.
Even
though
the
"benevolent"
explained
to
them
that
their
language,
their
parents
and
grandparents
is
an
"archaic
Hungarian"
language,
which
must
necessarily
be preserved, the Catholics were not intimidated by further promoting the Romanian language of their Transylvanian ancestors.
In
Romania,
in
2008,
the
Romanian
institutions
came
to
play
the
games
of
Hungary.
Here's
how:
On
April
11,
2008,
the
Visit
of
the
President
of
the
Hungarian
Parliament
Katalin
Szili
and
of
the
President
of
the
Chamber
of
Deputies,
Bogdan
Olteanu
in
Bacau
County,
respectively
the
visit
of
the
parliamentary
delegation
to
the
"Csangos
lands".
For
the
Hungarian
circles,
the
event
was
of
particular
importance
from
two
points
of
view.
We
give
excerpts
posted
on
one
of
the
official
sites
of
Csangos:
"The
President
of
the
Romanian
Chamber
of
Deputies
during
the
meeting,
the
visit
legitimized
our
wishes,
by
personally
notifying
Lespezi,
and
following
the
talks
with
the
AMCM
leaders
he
confirmed:
he
supports
the
requests
submitted
by
the
Hungarians
also
from
the
organization
that
defends
their
rights,
regarding
the
learning
of
the
Hungarian
mother
tongue
and
the
celebration
of
the
holy
liturgy and in the Hungarian language.
The
second
very
important
aspect
of
the
visit
of
the
two
presidents
is
the
diplomatic
premiere.
For
the
first
time
in
history,
one
of
the
most
important
people
of
Hungary
comes
to
visit
the
Csangos
lands
(perhaps
King
Bela
IV
at
the
time
when
he
was
still
a
prince
passed
here
...
sic!).
The
presence
of
the
Hungarian
parliamentary
delegation
therefore
has
an
important
announcement
for
us
and
for
the
local
politics:
the
Parliament
of
the
Hungarian
Republic
assumes responsibility and feels the problems of the Csangos themselves, supports the AMCM's efforts.
The
President
of
the
Hungarian
Parliament
was
received
at
the
Prefecture
of
Bacau
by
Claudiu
Şerban,
the
prefect
of
Bacău
county
and
by
Bogdan
Olteanu,
the
President
of
the
Romanian
Chamber
of
Deputies.
The
numerous
Hungarian
delegation
had
conversations
for
over
an
hour
in
the
great
hall
of
the
Prefecture.
Also
present
were
Gabriel
Berca,
Secretary
General
of
the
Government
(until
recently
the
Prefect
of
Bacau),
and
Romeo
Stavarache,
Mayor
of
Bacau.
Bogdan
Olteanu
was
also
accompanied
by
Hunor
Kelemen,
the
Quaestor
of
the
Chamber
of
Deputies
from
the
UDMR,
who
participated
not
only
in
the
meeting
of
the
Prefecture
but
also
in
the
afternoon
program.
Mr.
János
Terényi,
the
Hungarian
ambassador
in
Bucharest,
Tibor
Hodicska
and
Dr.
Béla
Szabó,
main
consuls
and
other
diplomats
were
also
present.
”
The
topic
of
human
rights
and
the
rights
of
minorities
was
naturally
addressed,
with
a
special
emphasis
on
teaching
Hungarian
in
the
Csangos
communities.
The
parties
agreed
to
support
each
other's
aspirations
of
this
kind.
Bogdan
Olteanu
has
proposed
to
his
guest
that
if
there
are
requests
for
the
celebration
of
liturgies
in
Hungarian,
he
should
use
a
common
letter
to
the
Vatican.
It
has
resorted
again
to
the
now
classic
European
recommendations
that
stimulate
minorities
to
preserve
their
culture,
and
provide
support
from
the
state
in
preserving
and manifesting their identity.
At
the
post-meeting
press
conference,
Bogdan
Olteanu
said
that
it
is
very
normal
and
supportive
to
introduce
the
teaching
of
Hungarian
in
all
schools
attended
by
Moldavian
Catholics,
even
if
the
Hungarian
civil
and
political
organizations
urge
parents
to
send
children
at
school.
Hungarian
language
in
exchange
for
money.
After
the
press
conference,
at
the
festive
lunch
offered
by
Bogdan
Olteanu,
the
President
of
the
Chamber
of
Deputies
once
again
assured
them
that
he
supports
their
aspirations,
while
also
noting
that
we
are
on
the
verge
of
elections.
Given
the
political
context
of
the
problem
(AMCM
being part of the UDMR) Bogdan Olteanu's remark and the attitude of the state authorities in recent years appears in a new light.
On
May
8-9,
2008,
the
Teleki
László
Foundation
(Budapest)
organized
a
scientific
conference
in
Bacău.
Co-organizers
were
the
MTA
Institute
for
Research
Organization
(Budapest),
the
Kriza
János
Ethnographic
Association
(Cluj-Napoca)
and
the
Csango
Hungarian
Association
of
Moldova
(Bacău).
Among
the
sponsors:
the
Chancellery
of
the
Prime
Minister
and
the
MFA
of
Hungary.
For
the
first
time,
the
conference
Inherited
Heritage
-
Endangered
Cultures:
The
Csangos
from
Moldavia
was
held
in
Bacau,
with
the
wide
competition
of
the
Bacau
Prefecture.
The
organizers
chose
the
County
Museum
of
History
hoping
that
those
interested
will
take
part
more
easily
in
the
conference
proceedings.
These
hopes
did
not
come
true,
very
few
were
interested.
The
desired
dialogue
with
the
Romanian
side
was
not
carried
out
either,
when
the
Romanian
specialists
were
not
even
invited.
Among
the
lecturers
were
Hungarian
researchers
from
England,
Germany,
Poland,
Italy,
Norway,
Serbia
and
Hungary,
all
of
whom
had
strong
Hungarian
financial
and
political
backing. The reformed bishop László Tőkés, as well as Hunor Kelemen, executive president of the UDMR, gave lectures.
At
the
end
of
the
conference
the
participants
went
to
the
locality
of
Pustiana,
where
the
first
liturgy
was
held
in
Hungarian,
thus
contradicting
the
general
opinion
regarding
the
opposition
of
the
Bishopric
of
Iasi
to
such
celebrations.
And
because
every
cake
has
to
be
custom-made,
the
Bacău
Prefecture
celebrated
the
national
day
of
Hungary
very
fast,
under
the
mask
offered
by
the
European
Year
of
Intercultural
Dialogue
2008.
Obviously,
on
this
occasion, they could not even the efforts made to promote the rescue of the minority of the Csangos.
For
UDMR
and
Hungary
csangos
represents
an
extremely
subtle
weapon
in
the
political
discourse
aiming
at
the
autonomy
and
by
extension
the
independence
of
the
Szeklerland,
the
Csango
County,
the
Transylvanian,
the
Carpathian
Basin,
the
Greater
Hungary.
The
creation
in
the
laboratories
of
the
Hungarian ideals and the placement of the above syntagms was not and is not of course coincidental.
Modern science, especially GENETICS, reveals the truth about
Roman Catholics from Moldavia - so called "Csangos"
The
Roman
Catholics
of
Moldova
(Csangos),
who
currently
live
in
this
territory,
are
undoubtedly
incomplete
Magyarized Romanians (few of them).
Most
Moldavian
Roman
Catholics
speak
only
Romanian.
They
were
never
Hungarians
-
neither
they
nor
their
ancestors.
The
popular
port
of
the
Roman
Catholics,
the
folklore,
their
popular
dances,
are
all
Romanian.
The
traditions
of
the
Roman Catholics and the popular architecture are Romanian.
Along
with
arguments
based
on
various
branches
of
science:
history,
ethnology,
ethnography,
linguistics,
in
recent
years
modern
science
can
also
provide
arguments
based
on
biological
sciences
and
especially
those
provided
by
genetics, respectively that branch of biology that studies the laws of heredity and of variability of organisms.
DNA tests are the best evidence of a person's belonging to an ethnic group.
For
this
reason,
the
result
of
DNA
tests
performed
on
populations
from
all
countries,
including
Romania
and
Hungary, is the best method of determining a person's ethnicity.
The
Human
Genome
Project
,
carried
out
after
1990,
is
an
international
genetic
research
project,
carried
out
with
the
main
purpose
of
deciphering
the
genetic
code
and
identifying
the
genes
responsible
for
the
genetic
diseases,
how
these
genes
trigger
the
disease.
The
main
purpose
of
the
project
is
to
prevent
the
occurrence
of
genetic
diseases
and
to
cure these diseases.
Simultaneously
with
the
main
purpose
of
prevention
of
genetic
diseases,
once
the
genetic
code
has
been
deciphered,
it
can
contribute
to
the
understanding
of
the
history
of
humanity
and
the
evolution
of
the
human
species,
but
it
can
also
help
to
establish
kinship
relations
between
parents
and
children,
implicitly
in
establishing
the
descent
of
certain
groups
of
people,
communities,
peoples,
so
that
one
can
highlight
the
genetic
characteristics
of
a
people,
the
historical
evolution
and
the
genetic
diversity
of
the
members
of
a
people
or
on
the
contrary
the
isolation
and
singularity,
the typicality of a people.
The
scientific
organizations
dealing
with
the
study
of
the
human
genome
have
performed
genetic
tests
on
people
from different communities, from territories on all continents, including Romania and Hungary.
Aside
from
this
broad
project,
scientific
organizations,
universities
around
the
world,
including
universities
in
Hungary, have undertaken small-scale projects aimed at deciphering the genetic code for certain groups of people.
The
identification
and
classification
of
gene
groups
(haplogroups),
through
the
Human
Genome
project
but
also
of
other
smaller
projects
with
particular
objectives
(precise
goals
and
objectives,
regarding
groups
of
people),
allowed
to
highlight
some
genetic
characteristics
for
large
groups.
of
populations,
from
clearly
defined
geographical
areas
(peoples,
nations, continents).
In
this
way
haplogroups
specific
to
European,
Asian,
African,
etc.
populations
were
identified
and
on
this
occasion
it
was
established
which
populations
belong
to
an
individual,
which
is
the
genealogy
of
the
peoples,
who
are
their
ancestors and how different ethnic groups have evolved.
The
development
of
the
genetics
and
the
important
results
obtained
in
the
project
of
deciphering
the
human
genetic code, allowed the identification of the genetic characteristics of the Csangos.
DNA
tests
performed
on
the
Romanian
population,
Hungarians
but
also
the
Csangos
provided
results
that
lead to the conclusion that the Csangos are Romanian.
The
same
DNA
tests
concluded
that
95%
of
Hungarians
are
descendants
of
European
populations
and
only
5% have Asian origins.
The result of the DNA tests can be seen here ...
The
list
of
sites
that
present
results
of
DNA
tests,
carried
out
by
scientific
organizations
specialized
in
genetic
research, including from Hungary, can be accessed here...
Map of the region of Moldavia - Romania - with the
administrative organization by counties and the location of the
communities in which there are communities of
Roman-Catholic believers
Localities in the region of Moldavia - Romania - where there are
communities of Roman Catholic believers (current data)
Location of localities where there are communities of Roman Catholic believers
Roman Catholics from Moldavia, at present
Map of the region of Moldavia - Romania - indicating the
localities in which there are important communities
of Roman Catholics