Prime Minister at opening of Great National Dictation: If you live here, it’s natural to learn Romanian

Learning the Romanian language is a sign of respect for the Republic of Moldova, and knowing it should help bring all citizens closer together, regardless of the language spoken at home. This message was conveyed by Prime Minister Vasile Tofan at the opening of the fourth edition of the Great National Dictation, which took place on Monday in Chișinău and other localities of the Republic of Moldova.

The Prime Minister noted that for him the Romanian language means home and that, having lived in several countries, he learned the language of the country where he was, whether it was the Netherlands or Ukraine.


“I believe that in Moldova things are simple as well. If you live here, it’s natural to learn Romanian. Yes, we are an open and welcoming people, we respect the languages spoken by the people who live here, and no one should give up their mother tongue. But we also respect our own language and we want people who choose to live in the Republic of Moldova to learn and speak Romanian. It is a sign of respect for the country in which you live and, at the same time, the Romanian language allows all of us, regardless of the language spoken at home, to understand each other. Romanian is extraordinarily rich, and to love it you do not necessarily have to speak it with a Bucharest accent. Romanian sounds just as beautiful in our sweet Moldovan dialect,” the Prime Minister said, emphasizing that he is originally from Călărași District.


In his speech, the Prime Minister also recalled the Soviet period, when the Romanian language was subjected to strong pressure and was removed from certain areas of public life. He reminded that, in defending the language and national identity, some people paid a very high price.


“The Romanian language survived here despite the Soviet occupation, the foreign alphabet that was imposed on it, and the enormous pressure of the Russian language in education, in administration, in public life. It survived because it could not be taken out of the people. It was the language spoken at home, the language of grandparents, the language of songs, the language in which people shared their joys and sorrows. It was in the marrow of this nation,” Tofan said.



“There were people who paid a very high price for our right to say today, without fear, that we speak the Romanian language,” the Prime Minister noted.


Vasile Tofan linked this history to his own childhood memories. He recounted that in August 1989, when he was seven years old, he came with his parents to the Great National Assembly Square, where major demonstrations for the Romanian language and the return to the Latin alphabet were taking place.


“At seven years old I did not understand what was happening, but I remember well the feeling that it was something very important. And I remember something else, an ice cream that my parents bought me. So since then, for me this day is associated with the sweet taste, the sweet Romanian language,” the Prime Minister said.


The Prime Minister praised the role of the Great National Dictation, which brings together thousands of people every year to write together in Romanian.


“The Great National Dictation is not really about who puts all the hyphens correctly. It is about the fact that we care, that thousands of people come together in this square to write in their language: students, teachers, parents, grandparents,” the Prime Minister said.


According to Vasile Tofan, the event is also a symbol of the change that has taken place over the last 37 years: if in 1989 people gathered in this square to demand the right to return to the Latin alphabet and to speak their language with dignity, today thousands of people gather here to write it, read it and celebrate it freely.


“Our language has carried us through times much harder than those of today. It preserved our identity when others tried to change it, it helped us regain our dignity. And today it accompanies us on our path forward, as a free and European country. Love the Romanian language, speak it, read it, teach your children to love it and enjoy it. Happy anniversary to our language! Happy anniversary to the sweet Romanian language!” the Prime Minister said.


The Great National Dictation took place today in the center of the capital, in the Great National Assembly Square. Now in its fourth edition, the event brought together over 3,000 participants from Chișinău and from across the country. At the official opening of the event, participants were greeted by Prime Minister Vasile Tofan and the Minister of Education and Research, Dan Perciun, who delivered messages on the importance of the Romanian language and its role in society.