The Film Festivals in The Perspective Of Cultural Anthropology Case Study: Transilvania International Film Festival

The new morphology of film festivals brings a new light on film festivals and the theory of culture, especially with the new reconfiguration of festivals Europe, the insertion of new technologies and new opportunities to create networks. From the point of view of cultural anthropology, I analyze the new film festival rendering the distinction space/place; mapping/tracking replacing universal/particular; local/global, following contemporary approaches of convergence and network as more efficient in the globalization context. Film festivals shift away from the stereotyped category of nation and auteur as connected to Europe towards the global economy and the city . The case study of Transilvania International Film Festival is bringing forth questions regarding the Western European vs. Eastern European film festival models and how are the Eastern and Central European festivals incorporating the traits of the Western European film festival.

Keywords: creative industries, Hollywood film vs. Film Europe, Transilvania International Film Festival, convergence and network.

The Structure of the Chinese Characters(III)

The present article is a section from a larger study entitled The History and Culture of the Chinese Characters and serves as a continuation to my second article named The Evolution of Chinese Characters (II). The article aims to provide the reader with a short background on the methods used in order to create the Chinese Characters. I will mainly refer to the Ancient Characters, thus leaving the Current Characters for another detailed explanation. The foundation of the article lays on the contribution of Xu Shen brought to the development of the characters.

Keywords: Ancient Characters, Xu Shen, “The Six Methods”, Single-Component Characters, Composed Characters

The Romanian Beauty

In a secular world, in which beauty has become rather one of the preferred products of the consumer society, this study aims to highlight the authentic Romanian beauty, primarily the Romanian traditional art, as testimony of a profound world filled with aspirations, endeavours, joys and pains, inclined towards everlasting beauty.
The Romanian Kalokagathia means „decency” or „wisdom”, similar to beauty expressed in words and deeds. Man and the universe are kalokagathonic entities. Beauty co-exists in a hypostatic union with the good; beauty equals love, and the Beauty in the Christmas carols is Christ, the One that the Romanian people should not betray, but should continue to obey with „decency”. The morally ugly, the chaotic, the monstrous are not capable to gladden and to enrich the interior life of the human.

Keywords: the Romanian beauty, kalokagathia, ethical/aesthetical, decency, love, ugly, traditional Romanian art, Christocentric ethos

Barbarism and Civilization in J. M. Coetzee’s Novels

Always preoccupied with his native country’s problems concerning interracial conflicts and eager to evaluate within his novels the complex relationship between the dominant and the peripheral elements (be they cultural or not), J. M. Coetzee implicitly puts into question the image of barbarism and civilization in the contemporary world. Elaborated as an exquisite allegory in the novel Waiting for the Barbarians (1980) or rather directly stressing upon the brutal reality of the South African post-apartheid era, like we witness in Disgrace (1999), Coetzee’s writings impress the reader and at the same time appeal to their cultural memory. Because, apart from the general preoccupation with some (often) controversial aspects, the above mentioned novels, as well as In the Heart of the Country or Dusklands, express the influence of William Faulkner or Franz Kafka on Coetzee’s work. His entire creation proves to be an intricate labyrinth offering to the reader, among other things, the revelation of great art’s endurance and importance.

Keywords: allegory, South African reality, brutality, contemporary civilization, literary influence.

The Orthodoxy from Turda in the First Half of the 18th Century Between Survival and Institutional Reconstruction

The Union with the Church of Rome determined at Turda the disappearance of the Orthodox deanery for a period of more than half a century. However, Orthodoxy in the Turda region survived, an important role being played by the priests from neighboring localities and especially by the believers, who did not accept the union. Following the reaction of Orthodox forces led by Visarion Sarai and Sofronie of Cioara, a large part of the population of Turda and beyond returned to Orthodoxy, so that this community of faith was the largest, from a numerical point of view, at the beginning of the second half of the 18th century. As the documents of the time records, for a good period of time, the Orthodox believers in Turda did not have a priest. With the appointment to the leadership of the Orthodox Church in Transylvania of bishop Dionisie Novacovich, the Orthodox community in Turda received a priest, Job Baciu certified in 1763 and the Orthodox Deanery of Turda was re-established, the hierarch naming a holder of this church dignity, Irimie Vaida, attested in 1767.

Keywords: Turda, Orthodox Church, Union with Rome, Transylvania, Deanery.

The Interdiction School Manuals in Border Guard Schools (1875-1918)

The educational process in Border Guard Schools had been influenced in a negative way by Hungarian-Austrian authorities that banned some school manuals beginning with 1875. This decision affected both parents’ and students’ budget. The authorities continued to ban some manuals in 1877, 1886, 1887, 1888, 1896, and 1906. Those who didn’t observe this rule were punished, thus affecting the Romanian educational system.

Keywords: ban, school book, border school, border guard, student, teacher, Sibiu, Blaj

Iacob Brenduşian, a member of Astra’s Division from Blaj, born in Sătmar

Born in 1825 at Apa (Satu Mare County), Iacob Brenduşian is one of the personalities who stood out everywhere his steps took him. After graduating from the Pesta Philosophy Course, he followed the Oradea Law Academy. He published in „Diorile of Bihor”, the first almanac of the Reading Society of Oradea, the prose Camarzana, the first novel dedicated to the Country of Oaş. From 1861 to 1865 he was a fiscal comitatens and lawyer at Baia de Arieş. Afterwards, until the end of his life he was a lawyer of the archdiocese of the Greek-Catholic Metropolitan Church. He became a very wealthy man, in his office there were many lawyers who pleaded throughout Transylvania. Among them were Iuliu Maniu. He was part of the leadership of Astra’s Division from Blaj from the very beginning. His daughter Otilia, who studied the piano in Vienna, was married to composer Iacob Mureşianu. Iacob Brenduşian corresponded with Timotei Cipariu, Al. Papiu Ilarian. He died in 1900 in Blaj.

Keywords: Iacob Brenduşian, Diorile Bihorului, Country of Oaş, Blaj, the Mureşianu family, Greek-Catholic.

Dinicu Golescu and the Romanian Old Books in the Culture of Argeş

Important personality of the Arges culture, Dinicu Golescu put his intellectual efforts in the interest of the moral and spiritual prosperity of the county. The scholar presents the insertion point between the Romanian and European culture, between the generation of the past and the generation of his present. He addresses this subject using through the bio-bibliographical method and documentary research, representing not only a simple informal subject but also a commemorative one (240 years from birth – in 2017), which underlines the importance of his contribution to the configuration of local education. The volume “Note to my Journey” has constituted a reference point in Romanian culture. For signalizing the author’s work I used bibliographic systematization by alphabetical criterion, insisting primarily on the volumes falling within in the subject “Old Romanian Book”.

Keywords: Dinicu Golescu, old Romanian book, research, culture of Argeş, bibliography

The Church of Bishopric of Argeş under the Magnifying Glass of the 19th Century Romanian Literature

Inspired by the motifs from popular ballads of the times, Sava N. Soimescu embraces the religious theme through a works dedicated boundless, of the foundation of the sacrifice for creation, the grandiose monastery of Curtea de Arges.
On the beautiful Argeş fields, has it the sanctuary a real wonder of christian-orthodox art and religion, Curtea de Argeş monastery, dedicated to the romanian literary treasure, “literary medallions” that charm the reader through their content. The church monument from Curtea de Argeş, this year has reached five centuries of existence, during which in september of 2017, various thematic religious events took place.
A nineteenth-century religious book in the Romanian book fund of the University Library in Pitesti will be the subject of expertise, being valorized at the same time, and promoted through a bibliographic research, illustrating the profile of the Argeş Episcopal Church, a source of inspiration in numerous ballads, legends, drama and literary criticism.

Keywords: Curtea de Argeş monastery, Neagoe Basarab, Piteşti University library, bibiological research, religious book.

Lexical aspects of Damaschin Bojincă’s texts with special review of the work „Răspundere dezgurzătoare la cârtirea cea în Hale” (Clarifying Answers to Criticism in Hale), Buda, 1828

This research aims to study the methods of glossaries in Damaschin Bojincă’s texts, reviewing especially the work Răspundere dezgurzătoare la cârtirea cea în Hale (Clarifyings Answers to Criticism in Hale) printed at Buda in 1828.
Along the study we shall look for traditional and innovative elements of the lexis, their processing and frequency in the studied text, but also in other texts of the author.
The analysis shall present the types of glossaries with the help of which Damaschin Bojincă introduces neologisms in the Romanian lexical system, contributing as such to the enhancement of the literary Romanian language of that period. The article also identifies some lexical characteristics specific to all Romanian Enlightenment representatives, through which had mainly educational purposes but also the structuring of the Romanian language as a language of culture.

Keywords: Damaschin Bojincă, Şcoala Ardeleană (Transylvanian School), Romanian Enlightenment, Romanian Western Enlightenment, Lexis of Enlightenment.

The Book for the United Romanian Clerical Elite (the 19th Century)

The present study analyzes the way in which the united clerical elite in Transylvania reported itself to the book. The author investigates the way in which the interest of this elite in the spread of the books was reflected at the level of local (urban and rural) communities from the perspective of the regulations of the Synod between 1782 and 1900.
The research is based on the fact that, at the decision-making level, the Synod had in the Romanian society that unique ability to transform the impossibility of the common man’s, priest’s, and parishioner’s access to the book in something feasible, and the possibility to turn the reading of the books into a gesture of daily occurrence on a social scale.

Keywords: Church, library, the books, Transylvania, Blaj.

“The Character and Life of Emperor Joseph II.” A History of the Austrian Emperor, published in a periodical from Sibiu in the middle of the nineteenth century

The personality of emperor Joseph II was complex and controversial. An extremely capable political man, eager to reform the Austrian empire; he had a political purpose that all his measures should come to serve the general good. “Everything for the people, nothing for the people” was probably his supreme creed. His travels through the Transylvanian space would lead to the crystallization of the myth of the good emperor in the Romanians consciousness. His image, however, was perceived differently by german society in this space and fluctuated according to political realities throughout the 19th century. The little stories that are published by the german press in Transylvania can provide important data on the ideological expectations of the Saxon society in relation to the central authority. To give a concluding example, I brought to the attention of the specialists a compilation of small stories – “The Character and Life of Emperor Joseph II” – published in the Sibiu periodical of German language “Neu und Alt Siebenbürgischer Provinzialkalender” in 1846. The direct translation of the entire compilation is thought of as a documentary contribution and primary source for new studies on the emperor’s image within Transylvanian society.

Keywords: Transylvania, Joseph II, nineteenth century, the Habsburg reformism, revolution, periodic

A handwritten songbook from the Batthyaneum Library of Alba Iulia: “A’ Bóldogságos Szűz Máriának Szives tisztelője” (1800) and the unknown ex-Jesuit author, Kováts József (†1819)

The Batthyaneum Library from Alba Iulia does not need any introduction. But it is undeniable that even in the proximity of the most valuable books and collections, there are lesser known, and nonetheless remarkable, values. In this article, I will approach a handwritten Roman Catholic songbook from the Batthyaneum. It was written in 1800 in „Székely – Udvarhely”/Odorheiu Secuiesc. “A’ Bóldogságos Szűz Máriának Szives tisztelője” was unknown to the academic community. Its entry in the library catalogues was not in any way extended, a researcher can only find the essential bibliographical reference, but not the author’s name too. In this study, I would like to present this handwritten songbook – a rare book that combines the liturgical songbook with private devotion, like a Hausgesangbuch. It could have been assumed that the book was in use of the Saint Imre Seminar (Szent Imre Szeminárium/Seminarul Sf. Emeric) of Odorheiu Secuiesc. This article is also a diachronic guide for the reception of the book. Researching in more transylvanian archives I have found the author, the ex-jesuit priest professor, KOVÁTS József. Finally, I have found a list with all his books in the Roman Catholic Priest Seminar’s Library of Alba Iulia. This story also mentions KOVÁTS József, his works, and their history.

Keywords: Transylvanian Catholicism, Alba Iulia, Batthyaneum, songbook manuscript, literature of devotion, Jesuit

News Regarding the Romanian Included in the Byzantine Manual of Diplomacy, Ekthésis Néa

The Byzantine manual of diplomacy – Ekthésis Néa – dates from the end of the 14th century. The manual was written or its writing started on September 1st 1386. Additions were also made during the 15th century. The news regarding the Romanians that are included in Ekthésis Néa can be divided in two categories: diplomatic news and religious news. The news that are found in the first category present the addressing formulas used by the ecumenical patriarch or by others high clergymen in the letters (pittakia) which were addressed to some of Romanian Principalities princes or addressed to the leaders of some political-territorial structures of the Balkan Vlachs. The news from the second category is referring to some transfers and appointments of metropolitans in the metropolitan chairs of Moldavia and Wallachia.

Keywords: Ekthésis Néa, pittakia, Wallachia, Ungaro-Wallachia, Dobrotitzas, Moldavia.

Owners of Spanish Old Books in Batthyaneum Library 17th to 19th century (II)

Our study continues the investigation of the ex-librises and of the notices on the old books from the old books collection of the Bathyaneum Library, in order to identify the owners and find out the cultural travels of the books, from their printing places to the moment they entered the collection of the famous Bathyaneum library from Alba Iulia.
Among the owners of old Spanish books we notice especially the schools run by the Jesuits in Vienna, as well as some clerics and laymen who signed their names on the pages of these works, helping us this way to retrace the bibliophile itineraries for the European modern age. These books still preserve in the shadow of anonymity the names of some persons who are yet to be identified.

Keywords: library, books, Spain, Transylvania, Alba Iulia, ex-libris.

Peregrinatio librorum. Books printed in Transylvania from the holdings of Slovak National Library from Martin

Books printed in Transylvania, with other letters than Cyrillic, have been a constant preoccupation of the Romanian researchers during the last decade. Analysis of these works that may fall within the name of „Transylvanica” only aligns with the European trend that has debated concepts such as „Hungarica”, „Slovacica”, „Britanica” or „Gallica” for several years. Yet, the term of „Transylvanica” must mandatorily be separated geographically, chronologically and historically: the three coordinates must subsume under the researched period in Transylvania the way the province was recorded during the age, without Banat, Crisana, Maramures or should it be debated about current Transylvania? Analysis of the three coordinates and agreeing on how much of Transylvania falls within the concept of „Transylvanica” would clarify the debate on the future.
Old book holdings from the Slovak National Library from Martin comprise numerous works of the European authors, but also Romanian printed in Transylvania with other letters than Cyrillic, beginning with the first part of the XVIth century. Initially, we chose the centres from Aiud, Arad, Braşov, Oradea, leaving Cluj and Sibiu to be researched subsequently. The annex from the end exemplifies the authors and the works that were presented in the analysis. This time, we included in the research also Crisana, although the proper term „Transylvanica” should not debate this historical region.

Keywords: „Transylvanica”, Slovak National Library, European authors, XVIth century, printed books

Books from Alba Iulia in the Rákóczi library

The books from the printing houses of Alba Iulia were valued by the princes of Transylvania. The original library from Alba Iulia was scattered but some books could be found in the library of the princes from Sárospatak.

Keywords: library, printing, Transylvania, prince, catalogue

Theses in Sámuel Teleki’s Collection Printed in 17th Century Transylvania

This collection of theses is an integral part of Sámuel Teleki’s vision regarding his scientific, encyclopaedic library. Thus the presence of the great number of volumes of theses is not surprising in this library that was created to further the culture, education and to close the scientific gap of Târgu-Mureş and in the interpretation of the founder that of the whole Transylvania.
As a didactic genre, the thesis has had centuries of history. During the centuries, the thesis in today’s sense written on the occasion of graduating a university or doctoral studies has been given several names, disputation, dissertation and thesis being the most used terms.
In the Teleki Library of Târgu-Mureş there are 10 theses that were printed17th century Transylvania. Some of these are rare editions (2-3 known copies, or just one complete copy), however there are theses that survived in two copies in Târgu-Mureş. The research and cataloguing of the theses is not one of the favourite activities of today’s librarians. Fittingly Sámuel Teleki himself said that this was a great and tedious work. However, these small prints can offer a great number of surprises that can be used not only in the history of education and schools, but also in the history of printing, as well as in the history of books and libraries (because of the fact that they are not as significant, there are many unique copies), they can also offer directions within the history of different disciplines of science, history of ideas, in issues regarding the history of philology, family and culture.

Keywords: 17th century printing, Transylvanica, history of education and schools, Sámuel Teleki’s Library.

A rare Blaj Printing from the Collections of the National Museum of Union Alba Iulia

The collection of old books and documents of the National Museum of Union Alba Iulia is at a national level one of the most valuable owned by analogous institutions. More often than not, restoration works carried out on old books come as a pleasant surprise, meaning fragments of other printings that were used at making the cover support are discovered. Such is the case with the fragment of Forma jurământului (Oath’s shape), printed in Blaj in 1781 and retrieved from the covers of a Bucoavnă (Primer) (Sibiu, 1792). This represents the second known copy of the very important printing, not long ago the copy from the collections of the Romanian Academy Library-Cluj-Napoca Branch being considered unique.

Keywords: Forma jurământului (Oath’s shape), restoration, leaflet, Transylvania, XVIIIth century.

New editions of old Romanian book in the library of Cocoş Monastery from Northern Dobrudja. Considerations

After the inventory of the entire old book collection in the patrimony of Cocoș Monastery (Tulcea County), in 2015-2016 here were identified and researched new editions and copies of old Romanian books printed inside the borders of Austro-Hungarian Empire, in Wallachia, in Moldavia as well as in the typographies from Chisinău and St. Petersburg. From the total of 56 editions in 74 copies, we have recently brought into discussion 15 editions in 29 copies printed in Transylvania (Blaj, Brasov, Sibiu) and in the Romanian typographies from Vienna and Buda.
Through the present study we introduce in the scientific circuit still unpublished copies, 45 from 41 editions dated in 1731-1828, which have come from the Wallachian and Moldavian printing centres. Some editions are kept in two or three copies. Almost half from the number of the copies, more exactly 20, belonged to the monastery’s library from the past. The others were brought from numerous Tulcea parishes, fact which explains the circulation and the spreading of the old books in the settlements from Northern Dobrudja.

Keywords: Cocoş Monastery-Tulcea County, old Romanian book, new editions, Dobrudja, the circulation of the old books

The Image of the Habsburg Monarchy in the work of Petru Maior

Petru Maior was one of the Transylvanian intellectuals, loyal to the cause of the reforming emperor. From his point of wiew, the initiatives of the Royal Court of Wien represent the beginning of a new historical period, by the improvement of the socio-economic-cultural and political condition of the Romanians in Transylvania. In full agreement with Gheorghe Şincai and Samuil Micu, Petru Maior shows in his works the consequences of the positive actions of the Royal Court of Wien on the idea of national revival under Habsburg emperors. According to Petru Maior, they appeal to the difficulties of social life, the climate of insecurity and the marginal status of the Romanian population in the politics of Transylvania.
He noticed that the policies of the Habsburg monarchy of favoring the Romanian element were a reaction to the economic and political force of Hungarian gentry. Under these circumstances, the Habsburg emperor becomes the focal point of all the promises, expectations and hopes of the Romanian public.

Keywords: Petru Maior; Habsburg emperor; Transylvania; Court of Wien; climate of insecurity.

Musical Instruments in the Woodcuts of Romanian Old Books (17th- 19th Centuries)

Musical instruments like harp, trumpet, bagpipe, horn, violin, lyre and kettledrum approached in the woodcuts of old Romanian books do not play only a decorative role, but they also intensify the varied significances of religious or secular themes.

Keywords: woodcut, typography, king David, harp, trumpet, coat of arms, Bucharest.

Referential Contributions to the Completion of Two Major Works of Historian Samuil Micu: “Scurtă cunoştinţă a istorii românilor“ and “Istoria şi lucrurile şi întâmplările românilor“

The analysis of the texts of Samuil Micu from the works The brief acquaintance of the Romanians’ history and the history and things and the events of the Romanians, by inventing the inspirational models lead to the knowledge of the author’s historical conception, and from the analysis of the bibliographic references the historical method follows.
The detailed analysis of the above mentioned works leads to the conclusion that the European ideas that circulated at that time were taken according to the individual option of the author and passed through the filter of his own thinking so as to use the Romanian realities of that time.

Keywords: Samuil Micu, history, nation, sources, analysis

Researching Brâncoven’s Proscomisarions

The present study examines two church memorial monuments in the Bistriţa Oltenia Monastery site, the first is the Hurezi Monastery, and the second is the depiction of the Apostle Peter and Paul, founded by Father John the Archimandrite, at the end of the century the 17th century (1698). They were designed to record in a solemn form the names of the founders and benefactors of the places of worship founded by them. They are unique historical sources, important for the knowledge of the political and social life of the time, are were used during the service (Acatist, Liturgy, Parastas). They carry testimonies about the historical monuments in the area dominated by the Bistriţa monastery, about the partial restoration, the repairs of the churches, the riches with which the places of worship were endowed in exchange for the mention of time. Their writing is mostly due to priests or monks who were literate, and aware of compositional regulations.

Keywords: Constantin Brâncoveanu, copyists, founders, John the Archimandrite, manuscript, Hurezi Monastery.

Old Romanian Book from Széchényi National Library from Budapest (XVITH-XVIITH Centuries)*

This paper exemplifies the existence of 16th-17th century Romanian printings in the holdings of Széchényi National Library from Budapest. The presented material was known by the Romanian researchers. Ioan Chindriş published in the past decades a list of books from the libraries of Budapest, yet without supplementary bibliographical data. In the paper, we added ownership marks and other notes to demonstrate the circulation of books in the Romanian area and their owners from the Hungarian area, especially lawyer dr. Iuliu Todorescu. The majority of the Romanian books were added to the holdings of Széchényi Library exactly due to the donation of Todorescu.

Keywords: Old Romanian Books, the circulation of the Romanian book, Széchényi National Library, Budapest, 16th-17th centuries.

Romanian Orthography – Transylvanian Scholars’ Constant Concern between 1691–1830

In a 139-year interval, over 80 works intended for training Romanian writing were printed in typographical centres of the Habsburg Empire. They had both certain and uncertain existence. Two of them are analyzed at length in the present communication Ortografie sau scrisoare dreaptă pentru folosul şcoalelor neamniceşti (Viena, 1784) [Ortography or Accurate Writing for the Benefit of People’s Schools (Vienna, 1784)] and Orthoepia Latina, LatinoValachica, Hungarica, Germanica, et Serbo-Valachica (Sibiu, 1826). The former formulates writing principles and simplifies the Cyrillic alphabet, in a period when there were no rules for the use of the Cyrillic alphabet in written Romanian. People used to write ”as it was accustomed”. The importance of the latter work resides in the fact that it describes Romanians’ engagement in a real cultural dialogue. Hence, Nicolae Maniu Montan’s attempt to achieve an educational work meant to teach Orthoepy, Graphics and Orthography in Latin, Romanian (with Latin and Cyrillic letters), German and Hungarian.

Keywords: Orthography, Graphics, Orthoepy, Spelling Book, ABC, Alphabet, primer, Latin letters, Cyrillic letters.

Foreword

The current issue of Revista Transilvania contains the works presented at the National Conference “Bibliology and National Cultural Heritage. Old Romanian Books in the Habsburg Empire (1691-1830), 11th edition, that took place in Alba Iulia on October 26 & 27, 2017. Specialists from over a dozen Romanian instututions gathered at the annual Conference and worked towards establishing the place of bibliology in the academic discourse of the country.

Keywords: bibliology; cultural heritage; old books; Transylvania.